This book explores developments in the three major societies of the South Caucasus - Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia - focusing especially on religion, historical traditions, national consciousness, and political culture, and on how these factors interact. It outlines how, despite close geographical interlacement, common historical memories and inherited structures, the three countries have deep differences; and it discusses how development in all three nations has differed significantly from the countries' declared commitments to democratic orientation and European norms and values. The book also considers how external factors and international relations continue to impact on the three countries.

Introduction Part 1: Conceptual Frames 1. General Trends in the Interaction of Religion and Politics as Applied to the South Caucasus 2. Ethnicity, Nation and Religion: Current Debates and South Caucasian Reality 3. Democratic Repertoires - The South Caucasus Case(s) Part 2: Religion and Politics Introduction 4. Secularization and Desecularization in Georgia: State and Church under the Saakashvili Government (2003-2012) 5. Political Power and Church Construction in Armenia 6. Islam in Azerbaijan: Revival and Political Involvement Part 3: Religion, Nationalism and Education Introduction 7. Building Georgian National Identity: a Comparison of Two Turning Points in History 8. Challenges for Women's Education in Independent Azerbaijan 9. Constructing Identities through General Education: Religion within the Framework of National Identity in Armenia Part 4: Cultural Values, Ideology and Democracy Introduction 10. An Analysis of Counter-Hegemony: Challenges of Political Opposition in Azerbaijan 11. Myths and Politics: "Old" Beliefs and "New" Aspirations in Independent Armenia 12. Collectivism/Individualism in the South Caucasus. Implications for Democracy Part 5: International Context and External Impacts Introduction 13. Shi'a Politics, "Strategic Culture" and Iran's Relations with the South Caucasus 14. Russia's Soft Power in the South Caucasus: Discourses, Communication, Hegemony 15. Between Ambition and Realism: Turkey's Engagement in the South Caucasus

Alexander Agadjanian is a Professor in the Center for the Study of Religion at the Russian State University for the Humanities

Ansgar Jödicke is Lecturer and Researcher in the Department of Social Sciences at the University of Fribourg, Switzerland