David Christian is an Associate Professor in the Department of History at Macquarie University, Sydney where he has taught since 1975. His BA and DPhil are from Oxford University. His previous publications include Bread and Salt: A Social and Economic History of Food and Drink in Russia (1982), Living Water: Vodka and Russian Society on the Eve of Emancipation (1990) and Imperial and Soviet Russia: Power, Privilege and the Challenge of Modernity (1997).

• List of Plates viiList of Figures viiiList of Maps ixList of Tables xSeries Editor’s Preface xiAcknowledgements xiiiIntroduction xvPart I the Geography and Ecology of Inner Eurasia 11 The Geography and Ecology of Inner Eurasia 3Part II Prehistory: 100,000–1000 BCE 212 First Settlers: The Old Stone Age 233 Hunters and Gatherers after the Ice Age 464 The Neolithic Revolution: Seventh to Third Millennia BCE 695 The Bronze Age: 3000–1000 BCE 99Part III the Scythic and Hunnic Eras: 1000 Bce–500 Ce 1216 The ‘Scythic’ Era: 1000–200 BCE 1237 Outer Eurasian Invasions and their Aftermath 1638 The Hsiung-nu Empire 1839 ‘Barbarian’ Invasions before 500 CE 209Part IV Turks, Mawara’n-nahr and Rus’: 500–1200 24510 Turkic Empires of the East 24711 Turkic Empires of Western Inner Eurasia 27712 Mawara’n-nahr: Islamic Civilization in Central Asia 30413 The Origins of Rus’ 32714 Before the Mongols: 1000–1220 353Part V the Mongol Empire: 1200–1260 38315 Chinggis Khan 38516 The Mongol Empire and a New ‘World System’ 409Conclusion 430Chronology 432Bibliography 437Index 460

"Overall, this is an excellent book. It is rich in detail and has a good blend between description and history. It is everywhere fair and balanced in its interpretations. It is well written and well produced with good illustrations, maps, a useful chronology which divides the region into west, centre and east, and an excellent and extensive, albeit overwhelmingly English-language bibliography. Perhaps most important of all, although the histories of the various areas of concern to this book are reasonably well trodden paths, it crafts a new interpretation by taking up a distinct area of focus - inner Eurasia - and succeeds admirably in convincing the reader of the significance and interest of that region's history. I strongly recommend the book."Asian Ethnicity Journal"Well-written, impressive and bold synthesis ... One looks forward eagerly to volume 2."The Russian Review"Big picture history requires energy, openness and risk taking, a willingness to escape from the well-worn grooves of academe ... Christian has effected a great escape."Journal of Asian Studies