Professor Dr. Dilafza Haydaraliyeva

Biography

Dilafza Haydaraliyeva is a doctoral researcher in Social Anthropology at the University of Zurich, specializing in the intersection of material heritage, national identity, and state policy in post-Soviet Central Asia. Her research focuses on the role of architectural monumental heritage in Uzbekistan's ongoing nation-building processes, with case studies in Shakhrisabz, Samarkand, and Tashkent. With a background in archaeology and heritage conservation from University College London, Dilafza applies a multidisciplinary approach, blending archaeological analysis with ethnographic fieldwork. Her interests center on the conservation practices of monumental architecture as they are politicized and repurposed to serve shifting narratives of identity, heritage, and legitimacy. Dilafza is particularly focused on the management of World Heritage sites and the socio-political implications of conservation policy, highlighting the lived experiences of communities situated in historic urban environments. Her master’s dissertation, entitled 'Manufacturing National Identities in the Post-Soviet Republic of Uzbekistan', critically examined the controversial conservation practices in Samarkand and Shakhrisabz and emphasized the tensions between international heritage frameworks and state-driven identity politics. Her research lays a theoretical and empirical foundation for her current PhD, expanding the scope of heritage policy critique through anthropological inquiry into everyday encounters with heritage in post-Soviet contexts.

Research Interests