There are many stans, but only Tajikistan is Tajikistan. Our host sits across the world from the pseudonymous Benjamin, an American scholar of Persian language and literature and a walking Wikipedia of Central Asian fun facts. Tajikistan was Ben's first real trip abroad, and he liked the place so much that he married it. (Real Live Tajik in-laws can be heard clunking around in the background.) On this episode, Ben floats a theory that Persian and Tajik are, in fact, the exact same language – a suggestion that is sure to piss off Iranian and Tajikistani listeners alike. Ben offers his take on the brutal Tajikistani Civil War and its origins, relates his personal experience of the 2015 government crackdown on free speech, explains why the hell he decided to master Esperanto during his free time, and (urged on by his host) explores the wide world of traditional Tajikistani sport. Horses and goats are involved, simultaneously.
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