“The clergy is a drag on work”. The implementation of the national policy towards the Turkic peoples of the Urals in the 1920s
https://doi.org/10.28995/2658-6541-2023-5-3-12-27
Abstract
Based on the documentary resources introduced by the author into scientific circulation, the article analyzes the features of the national policy in the Urals in the 1920s in relation to the Bashkir and Tatar population. Tatars and Bashkirs made up 4% of the region’s population, but they were the largest ethnic minority in the region after Russians, and their number in some areas exceeded 95%. The article considers the activities to involve the activists in the communist and Komsomol movements, anti-religious policy and opposition to Islam, as well as the support of the culture of secular holidays, such as Sabantui (wild celebration). The office records of the central and regional archives, introduced by the author into scientific circulation, became the main source. The document analysis showed that in the first years of Soviet rule the policy of involving opinion makers and youth in the communist movement was not successful and did not arouse any interest in the local population. The process was hampered by the activities of Muslim religious leaders. They, unlike Orthodox ministers, had the freedom of missionary work and even the support of the Narkompros (national education) in the training of priests. Later, their activities were suppressed as contradicted to the communist ideology, and the authorities began to develop a culture of secular holidays and public life. As a result, the foundations for the modern secular national culture of the Tatars and Bashkirs of Russia were laid. The author is sure that the success of the implementation of such a policy makes it possible to redefine the approaches to assessing its efficiency.
Supporting agencies: The article is published within the framework of realization of the Russian National Science Foundation grant no. 19-18-00117 “Traditional culture of Russians in the zones of active interethnic contacts of the Urals and the Volga region”.
About the Author
M. S. Kamenskikh
Institute of Humanitarian Studies, Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences; HSE University
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Mikhail S. Kamenskikh, Cand. of Sci. (History)
13a, Lenina St., Perm, 614990
38, Studencheskaya St., Perm, 614070
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Review
For citations:
Kamenskikh M.S. “The clergy is a drag on work”. The implementation of the national policy towards the Turkic peoples of the Urals in the 1920s. History and Archives. 2023;5(3):12-27. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.28995/2658-6541-2023-5-3-12-27
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