SUMMARY:

This article engages with post–civil war Tajikistan and the way that local narrative memories have developed over the past two decades. It argues that Soviet practices of commemoration as a political concern have been taken over by the independent Tajik regime, thus shaping the way civil war narrative memories have been articulated. While the state monopolizes the official narrative about the civil war, alternate ways of narrative memories do exist, although they do not necessarily challenge the official version. This article focuses on the role of gender in commemoration practices and narrative memories.