Ekaterine Pirtskhalava and Shota Bekadze will discuss their respective research projects that explore the perception and meaning of homeland and identity among Muslim Meskhetians across diverse cultural contexts, particularly in Central Asia and the United States.
Following their forced deportation from Georgia in 1944 under Stalin’s Soviet regime, Muslim Meskhetians have experienced multiple displacements, significantly shaping both their collective and individual identities. In Central Asia, Soviet-era policies played a pivotal role in shaping their identity, often fostering cultural hybridity and imposed classifications. Conversely, resettlement in the United States has presented new challenges and opportunities, including economic mobility, shifting gender roles, and generational variations in homeland perception.
Dr. Eka Pirtskhalava will discuss her research project which employes a qualitative approach—including oral histories and ethnographic fieldwork—and critically examines how historical displacement, sociopolitical conditions, and cultural adaptation processes interact in shaping the evolving meaning of homeland for Muslim Meskhetians. Shota Bekadze, a descendent of a forcibly displaced family, who successfully repatriated to Georgia, will discuss his personal journey as well as preliminary findings of the Ph.D. project that explores the topics of migration, identity formation, and authoritarian governance.
Light refreshments will be served.
Sponsorship
The Program on Georgian Studies is an activity of the Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies at Harvard University and is made possible by a sponsored research award from the Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia.
Accessibility
The Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies at Harvard University encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the physical access provided, please contact us at 617-495-4037 or daviscenter@fas.harvard.edu in advance of your participation or visit. Requests for Sign Language interpreters and/or CART providers should be made at least two weeks in advance if possible. Please note that the Davis Center will make every effort to secure services but that services are subject to availability.
