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The economy of the population of the Surgut Ob basin in the beginning of the 19^th century through the eyes of a private zemsky commissar

A previously unpublished document is presented, containing information about the subsistence activities of the inhabitants of the Middle Ob River basin, which was prepared in 1805 by a Surgut private commissar. The document was intended for the completion of a gubernatorial report to the Minister of Internal Affairs. It is interesting as one of the early experiences of characterising economic activities of the Russian and indigenous populations of North-West Siberia by local officials, as well as due to the lack of documents comparable with this one in terms of the content for the period from 1740 to 1881 for the respective region. Active involvement of administrators of the district and provincial levels in the collation of systematic information about the territorial and ethnic diversity is considered as a process of the formation of a new model of self-cognition by the Empire and collection of information by the centre for making managemental decisions. It replaced the practice of retrieving the information from foreign travellers and members of academic expeditions. The source being published is subjected to critical historical-ethnographic analysis from the point of view of completeness, relevance, and uniqueness of the data contained, and it is annotated. The discovered document contains little-known information about the consumption by the indigenous inhabitants of the Middle Ob of Calla palustris root, which they called ‘kas’ (‘khas’), as an alternative staple food when there was a shortage of fish and bread.

Keywords: Tobolsk gubernia, Middle Ob region, materials of the governor's reports, socio-economic characteristics, Russians and Siberian natives.

Tomilov N.A.

Food of the Siberian Tatars in the ethno-cultural processes of the 17^th–18^th centuries (by the materials of the culture of the Tomsk group of Tatars)

In the paper, the food of the Tomsk group of the Siberian Tatars of the 17th–18th centuries, settled in the Tomsk Ob River basin (Western Siberia), is analysed. The aim of the research is to determine and characterise ethno-cultural processes in the food of the Siberian Tatars of the 17th–18th centuries and to identify the role of these processes in the increase of the proportion of common phenomena in the material culture of the Tomsk Tatars as a result of their interaction, first of all, with the Russians. The research sources are represented by the materials and information about food complexes and composition of food dishes of the Tomsk Tatars from the works of travellers and scientists of the 17th–18th centuries, as well as by the results of archaeological and ethnographic studies on the economy and material culture of the Siberian Tatars, and materials on ethnography of the Russians of Siberia in the 17th–18th centuries. The method of socio-historical analysis, historical-comparative method, and, in some cases, the method of quantitative analysis have been employed in the paper. The work contains descriptions of the food products consumed by the Tomsk Tatars in the 17th–18th centuries: fish, meat, vegetables, and imported products (salt, spices, cereals and others), as well as the methods of stockpiling and processing of foodstuff, preparing food dishes and consuming them, and also a description of household utensils intended for the food preparation and consumption. In addition to the results of the comprehensive characterisation of the food culture of the Tomsk group of the Siberian Tatars, conclusions have been drawn on the changes in this area of the material culture and on the ethno-cultural processes in the food of the Tomsk Tatars.

Keywords: ethnic processes, Siberian Tatars, material culture, food culture, ethnocultural interaction.

Moskovchenko D.V., Fedorov R.Yu., Tigeev, A.A., Lonsky A.I., Slepchenko S.M.

Landscape and climatic confinement of settlements of peasant-migrants of the late 19^th — early 20^th century on the territory of the Odessa district of the Omsk oblast

The landscape-climatic confinement of villages that were founded in the late 19th — early 20th century by peasant-migrants in the territory of the modern Odessa district of the Omsk oblast has been examined. Trend analysis, which were identified during the integration of remote sensing data, meteorological measurements and ethnographic materials indicate the initial landscape-climatic confinement of settlements and subsequent transformations of the steppe landscapes surrounding them were influenced by a complex of natural and anthropogenic factors. The main factor which influenced the emergence of settlements was the presence of water bodies and, to a lesser extent, forests. In the first decades of the 21th century, an increase in air temperature with a decrease in precipitation increased the dryness of the territory, thereby reducing the duration of the existence of temporary reservoirs until they completely dry out. Anthropogenic factors that influenced the reduction in the number and duration of the existence of temporary lakes include the widespread plowing of steppe landscapes, as a result of which they lost the ability to retain melt and rainwater for a long time. Currently, in connection with the water supply, the importance of confined settlements to temporary lakes began to decline, but aridization leads to the loss of resource, aesthetic and recreational functions of landscapes.

Keywords: peasant migrations, temporary lakes, economic adaptation, south of Western Siberia, forest-steppe.

Dirin D.A., Shiyan P.A., Gudkovskikh, M.V.

Modern ethno-cultural differentiation of the territory of the Altai Republic

The paper concerns the analysis of the patterns and peculiarities of the settlement of ethnic groups in the territory of the Altai Republic and identification of cultural landscapes formed by these groups. The main source of information was represented by the results of the 2021 Russian Census. The use of interviewing and literature analysis allowed the verification of some data of the Census related to the ethnic identity of the residents in the region. In particular, some inaccuracies and discrepancies in the assignment of the population to specific subethnic groups of the Altaians were identified and, accordingly, improved indicators of the population count for these groups have been proposed. From the results of the study, a map of ethno-cultural differentiation of the territory of the Altai Republic has been compiled, which shows areas of settlement of main ethnic groups, as well as ethno-contacting zones. The area of settlement of the Russian population spans the low- and mid-mountain regions in the north of the Republic. Also, in Central Altai, old-believers resettling there in the 18th–19th cc. formed yet another isolated areal of Russian population. The Northern Altaians (Chelkans, Tubalars, Kumandins) live in taiga low-mountain regions of North-Eastern Altai (Turochaksky, Choysky and Mayminsky Districts). In doing so, they have mixed to a large extent with the Russian population. The Southern Altaians (Altai-Kizhi and Telengits) have the largest territory of population, living mainly in Ust’-Kansky, Ongudaysky, Ust’-Koksinsky, Shebalinsky, Chemalsky (Altai-Kizhi), Ulagansky, and Kosh-Agachsky (Telengits) Districts. Kazakhs live compactly in the territory of Kosh-Agachsky District, as well as have a smaller enclave in Ust’-Kansky District (the village of Turata).

Keywords: geocultural space, ethnos, ethnic group, Altai, Altaians, Russians, Kazakhs, ethnic settlement, ethnic area, ethnocontact zone.

Uvarov S.N., Chernysheva N.V.

Dynamics of the educational level of Udmurt women in the 1920s–1980s: main trends and results

The paper presents the study of the educational level of Udmurt women in the 1920s–1980s. The methodology of the study is based on the theory of modernisation. The transition from the traditional society to modern is considered through the prism of the cultural changes that took place in the Soviet society, the most important component of which was the increase of the level of education within the population. The authors used general scientific methods (analysis, generalisation, description, systematisation), special-historical methods (historicalchronological, historical-genetic and historical-systematic), as well as statistical methods used in demography. As the main sources, the study employed population census materials, including those unpublished (Russian Census of 1920 and Soviet Censuses of 1926, 1939, 1959, 1970, 1979, and 1989). Some of the documents containing information about the population are introduced into scientific discourse for the first time. The authors distinguish and characterise 3 stages. In the 1920s, the most important objective was to combat illiteracy and create national schools. It is concluded that the level of education of the Udmurt population, especially Udmurt village women, was significantly lower than that in the region and in the Russian Republic in general. This tendency would manifest itself throughout the entire study period. In the 1930s–1950s, there was a gradual change of the objectives of educating people of particular nationalities, among other, under the influence of the wartime factors. In the 1950s–1980s, there was a gradual increase in the level of education of Udmurt women, including professional education, and dilution of ethnic and gender differences, whilst the age differences in the level of education remained.

Keywords: udmurts, women, level of education, Udmurt Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, Soviet period.

Agapov M.G.

Mikhail Konstantinovich Sidorov through the eyes of contemporaries and descendants: to the bicentenary of the entrepreneur, philanthropist and “zealot of the North”

The main stages in the evolution of the image of a notable Russian entrepreneur, explorer of the European and Siberian North of Russia, and an enthusiast for establishing the sea route to Siberia, Mikhail Konstantinovich Sidorov (1823–1887) in historiography, memoirs, popular science and general fiction, and in the media, are reconstructed. The role of M.K. Sidorov himself in the formation of his biographical canon is shown. The motifs underlying the campaigns carried out at different times to popularise the figure of M.K. Sidorov are clarified. There have been identified and analysed main topoi for evaluation of the personality, life and work of M.K. Sidorov: “unheard prophet”, “zealot of the North”, “unmercenary entrepreneur”, “progressive capitalist”, “outstanding dilettante”, among others. The need for a critical turn in the study of the life and works of M.K. Sidorov is argued. In particular, there have been proposed the options for a broader contextualisation and a more focused problematisation of research on the northern entrepreneurship in the later Russian Empire. It deems very productive resorting to research programmes of global history, new imperial history, and historical anthropology. It should not be forgotten that M.K. Sidorov was active in an epoch of extensive transformation of the Russian Empire; his activities, in our opinion, are interesting precisely because of that they were an important part of the trans-imperial and global processes.

Keywords: M.K. Sidorov, development of the North, Northern Sea Route, history of entrepreneurship, Russian late imperial nationalism, Soviet patriotism, local history.

Shcheglova T.K.

Practices of the formation of historical consciousness in the veteran and student social movement of Altai Krai in the 1960s–1980s

In the paper, an analysis is carried out on the commemorative practices of the formation of historical consciousness on the basis of studying and constructing memory about the Russian Civil War in Altai Krai (south of Western Siberia). The separation of the periods of the 1960s and 1970s–1980s is determined by the succession of generations. The sources of the research comprised the materials from the central (the Russian State Archive of Socio-Political History, the State Archive of the Russian Federation) and regional state archives of Novosibirsk Oblast and Altai Krai, and holdings of the museum of the Barnaul Civil Engineering College and author's field materials. As theoretic-conceptual approaches, the biographical method was used, which allowed it to reveal the traits of the Soviet man as a construct of the Soviet era, and the principle of regionalism for the analysis of anthropological aspects in particular socio-cultural conditions. In the research, the conceptual framework of the scientific field of ‘anthropology of memory’ was employed: social, historic and cultural memory, communications, and commemorations. The comparison of the social practices shows that at the first stage, owing to the veteran cause, military-revolutionary events were selected for the formation of historical consciousness. Another aspect of work was popularisation of the partisan movement through communicative channels: meetings, gala evenings, interviews, public rallies, and other collective forms of communication with rural community, youth and government. A comparison of the work of ‘fathers’ and ‘sons’ showed that the succession manifested in the strive to eternalise and popularise memory of the heroes of the Russian Civil War; translation of military-revolutionary events from social memory into cultural memory in the form of monuments and memorial places became a new tendency in the work on perpetuating the memory.

Keywords: the Civil War, social, historic and cultural memory, communications, commemorations.