Review of Empires of the Silk Road

Christopher I. Beckwith, professor of Central Eurasian studies at Indiana University, has written a provocative, scholarly history of the people of Central Eurasia in his 2009 Empires of the Silk Road. Beckwith challenges our accepted view of the Huns, Scythians, Mongols, etc. He writes "while ancient and medieval theories of the climates and humors and so forth are no longer taken seriously...there is a more serious problem here: this seemingly innocent characterization ['superior to the aristocratic and peasant armies of the sedentary states'] is simply a cleaned-up, pejorative-free, modernized version of the two and a half millennium old idea of the barbarian." For more on the accomplishments and impressive contributions of the Central Eurasians and why they aren't barbarians, read Review - Empires of the Silk Road.