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The Bronze Age and Early Iron Age Peoples of Eastern Central Asia - Victor H. Mair, ed., The Bronze Age and Early Iron Age Peoples of Eastern Central Asia. 2 vols. Washington, D.C.: The Institute for the Study of Man, 1998. xvii + 899 pp.
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 26 March 2015
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References
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3. The region is sometimes referred to as the “Silk Road,” a term Mair eschews. Ever since the term Seidenstrasse was invented, in the second half of the nineteenth century, it has not ceased to evoke “Orientalist” images of interminable caravans of camels laden with precious and rare goods, richly dressed Asian aristocrats with their retinue of veiled dancers, and intricate networks of shrewd merchants and ruthless rulers. The cliches generated by the use of the term “Silk Road” tend to reiterate an “Orientalist” view of Central Asia that does not conform to modern sensitivities, and in my view the term should be avoided. It is regrettable that in China the term has gained popular favor while, at the same time, those Western explorers, treasure- hunters, and scientists who were the primary users and propagators of the term, are chastised for having removed so much of the cultural heritage of the region. Sinologists who oppose terms such as Far East and êxtreme orient should be particularly aware of this issue.
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