Introduction to Russia and Eurasia - Cultures Covered



This volume provides descriptions of all major cultural groups of the former Soviet Union, including nationalities such as the Russians and Kazakhs, indigenous peoples such as the Chukchee, religious groups such as the Kurds and various Jewish groups, the peoples and tribes of the Caucasus, and others such as the Don Cossacks and Gypsies. In all, 111 groups are described. In order to provide as much information as possible about these groups, I sought contributions from scholars in the former Soviet Union, some of whom are writing for the first time for a Western audience. Thus, 42 of the articles were written in Russian and were translated and edited for inclusion in this volume.

The emphases of some articles reflect the traditional interests of ethnography in the Soviet Union. Thus, there is often much detail about material culture (clothing, food, housing, tools, and weapons), language, and literature, and in this volume we have added subheadings as needed for these topics. At the same time, because they were relatively ignored by Soviet ethnographers, descriptions of the kinship system and sociopolitical organization of some groups described here are less complete than for cultures in other parts of the world.

I have also attempted to be as up-to-date as possible in the information provided, reflecting the wholesale changes in the Soviet Union that occurred as this volume was being written and edited. We have tried to use the most current name for groups (for example, Belarussians instead of Byelorussians), nations, regions, cities, bodies of water, etc., although some names are likely to have fallen into disuse by the time this volume appears in print as change continues in the former Soviet Union. For historical information, we have generally used traditional spellings and names.


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