Comparative Analysis of Family Relations Among the Peoples of Central Asia

The purpose of this study was to analyze the transformation of family relations in global and Central Asian contexts. The research combined an examination of global trends with a comparative analysis of legal and ritual practices in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Kyrgyzstan. It was based on legislative acts, normative documents, international statistics, and ethnographic materials, integrating legal, demographic, and cultural perspectives. The findings show that polygyny historically dominated most societies but gradually gave way to monogamy as the dominant legal model in many modern states. Signs of the second demographic transition (SDT) were identified, including delayed marriages, increased cohabitation, and an increase in births outside registered marriage. While the family remains a key institution for transmitting values, its structure and functions have been significantly reshaped by urbanization, migration, and population ageing. In Central Asia, civil marriage registration is required for legal spousal status, although religious and traditional practices remain influential. Cultural features persist across the region: symbolic bride price and betashar in Kazakhstan, the regulatory role of the mahalla in Uzbekistan, legal limits on wedding ceremonies in Tajikistan, the prestige function of kalym in Turkmenistan, and legal tensions between civil and religious marriage in Kyrgyzstan. The study also finds that gender equality remains incomplete, with patriarchal norms persisting despite women’s growing public role and state efforts to reduce violence. The results can inform culturally sensitive family policies that combine civil-legal protection with kinship, mahalla-based, religious, and intergenerational mechanisms of support.