The Finno-Ugric Peoples of the Middle Volga and Southern Urals Based on the 1920 All-Russian Census: New Data

Introduction. The relevance of the research is conditioned by the introduction into scientific use of a previously unused set of archival sources – farmstead cards of the 1920 agricultural census in Little Bashkiria, stored in the National Archive of the Republic of Bashkortostan, which have a signi...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Leyla F. Sayfullina
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: National Research Mordova State University; MRSU 2025-01-01
Series:Финно-угорский мир
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.rcsi.science/2076-2577/article/viewFile/279453/274046
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849431082351460352
author Leyla F. Sayfullina
author_facet Leyla F. Sayfullina
author_sort Leyla F. Sayfullina
collection DOAJ
description Introduction. The relevance of the research is conditioned by the introduction into scientific use of a previously unused set of archival sources – farmstead cards of the 1920 agricultural census in Little Bashkiria, stored in the National Archive of the Republic of Bashkortostan, which have a significant potential for studying the history of the peasantry and ethno-demography of the region. The aim of the study is to clarify the number and determine the geographical areas of compact residence of the Finno-Ugric peoples (Mordovians, Mari, Udmurts) of the Middle Volga region on the territory of Little Bashkiria as of 1920 on the basis of a critical analysis of the primary census materials. Materials and Methods. The study is based on the analysis of the collection of farmstead cards of the agricultural census of 1920. The historical-systemic, historical-comparative and statistical methods were applied, which allowed, on the basis of the farmstead cards of 1920, to specify the number and compare the previously unknown data with the published results of the census, to determine the geographical areas of residence of the Finno-Ugric peoples of the Middle East. Results and Discussion. Significant discrepancies between the data from the household cards and the official results of the 1920 census were revealed. It was found that the number of Mordovians (16,713 people) was underestimated by official statistics by 26% (22,603 people), while the number of Mari (9,311 people) and Udmurts (531 people) was higher than the official data (7,894 people and 440 people, respectively). The discrepancies between the primary data and the published totals are explained by possible loss of some cards and/or errors in their summarization. Geographical areas of settlement were determined: the Mordovians lived compactly in the central and southern regions of Little Bashkiria, with a maximum concentration in the Sterlitamak canton (9,069 people). The main part of Mari and Udmurts settled in the north-east of the region, mainly in the territory of the former Krasnoufimsk county of Perm province. Conclusion. The study of the primary source of the 1920 census allowed us to reveal in detail the issues of the number and geographical areas of residence of the Finno-Ugric peoples of the Middle Volga region on the territory of Little Bashkiria. Because of the insufficient source base of the Civil War period in the country, further study of the materials of the statistical research of 1920 will allow us to open new horizons in analyzing both the composition of the peasant family and the peculiarities of the economy (including the specifics of the introduction of agriculture, animal husbandry, poultry farming, etc.) of different ethnic groups of variable geographical areas of residence, as well as to determine the common and special features of each group of the population.
format Article
id doaj-art-f87cb31d34994acf8fc7a52c19ea4ca1
institution Kabale University
issn 2076-2577
2541-982X
language English
publishDate 2025-01-01
publisher National Research Mordova State University; MRSU
record_format Article
series Финно-угорский мир
spelling doaj-art-f87cb31d34994acf8fc7a52c19ea4ca12025-08-20T03:27:44ZengNational Research Mordova State University; MRSUФинно-угорский мир2076-25772541-982X2025-01-0117216517810.15507/10.15507/2076-2577.017.2025.02.165-17856The Finno-Ugric Peoples of the Middle Volga and Southern Urals Based on the 1920 All-Russian Census: New DataLeyla F. Sayfullina0https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5967-2694Ufa Federal Research Center of the Russian Academy of SciencesIntroduction. The relevance of the research is conditioned by the introduction into scientific use of a previously unused set of archival sources – farmstead cards of the 1920 agricultural census in Little Bashkiria, stored in the National Archive of the Republic of Bashkortostan, which have a significant potential for studying the history of the peasantry and ethno-demography of the region. The aim of the study is to clarify the number and determine the geographical areas of compact residence of the Finno-Ugric peoples (Mordovians, Mari, Udmurts) of the Middle Volga region on the territory of Little Bashkiria as of 1920 on the basis of a critical analysis of the primary census materials. Materials and Methods. The study is based on the analysis of the collection of farmstead cards of the agricultural census of 1920. The historical-systemic, historical-comparative and statistical methods were applied, which allowed, on the basis of the farmstead cards of 1920, to specify the number and compare the previously unknown data with the published results of the census, to determine the geographical areas of residence of the Finno-Ugric peoples of the Middle East. Results and Discussion. Significant discrepancies between the data from the household cards and the official results of the 1920 census were revealed. It was found that the number of Mordovians (16,713 people) was underestimated by official statistics by 26% (22,603 people), while the number of Mari (9,311 people) and Udmurts (531 people) was higher than the official data (7,894 people and 440 people, respectively). The discrepancies between the primary data and the published totals are explained by possible loss of some cards and/or errors in their summarization. Geographical areas of settlement were determined: the Mordovians lived compactly in the central and southern regions of Little Bashkiria, with a maximum concentration in the Sterlitamak canton (9,069 people). The main part of Mari and Udmurts settled in the north-east of the region, mainly in the territory of the former Krasnoufimsk county of Perm province. Conclusion. The study of the primary source of the 1920 census allowed us to reveal in detail the issues of the number and geographical areas of residence of the Finno-Ugric peoples of the Middle Volga region on the territory of Little Bashkiria. Because of the insufficient source base of the Civil War period in the country, further study of the materials of the statistical research of 1920 will allow us to open new horizons in analyzing both the composition of the peasant family and the peculiarities of the economy (including the specifics of the introduction of agriculture, animal husbandry, poultry farming, etc.) of different ethnic groups of variable geographical areas of residence, as well as to determine the common and special features of each group of the population.https://journals.rcsi.science/2076-2577/article/viewFile/279453/274046malaya bashkiriacivil warmiddle volga regionagricultural censushousehold cardssouthern uralsfinno-ugric peoplesmarimordoviansudmurts
spellingShingle Leyla F. Sayfullina
The Finno-Ugric Peoples of the Middle Volga and Southern Urals Based on the 1920 All-Russian Census: New Data
Финно-угорский мир
malaya bashkiria
civil war
middle volga region
agricultural census
household cards
southern urals
finno-ugric peoples
mari
mordovians
udmurts
title The Finno-Ugric Peoples of the Middle Volga and Southern Urals Based on the 1920 All-Russian Census: New Data
title_full The Finno-Ugric Peoples of the Middle Volga and Southern Urals Based on the 1920 All-Russian Census: New Data
title_fullStr The Finno-Ugric Peoples of the Middle Volga and Southern Urals Based on the 1920 All-Russian Census: New Data
title_full_unstemmed The Finno-Ugric Peoples of the Middle Volga and Southern Urals Based on the 1920 All-Russian Census: New Data
title_short The Finno-Ugric Peoples of the Middle Volga and Southern Urals Based on the 1920 All-Russian Census: New Data
title_sort finno ugric peoples of the middle volga and southern urals based on the 1920 all russian census new data
topic malaya bashkiria
civil war
middle volga region
agricultural census
household cards
southern urals
finno-ugric peoples
mari
mordovians
udmurts
url https://journals.rcsi.science/2076-2577/article/viewFile/279453/274046
work_keys_str_mv AT leylafsayfullina thefinnougricpeoplesofthemiddlevolgaandsouthernuralsbasedonthe1920allrussiancensusnewdata
AT leylafsayfullina finnougricpeoplesofthemiddlevolgaandsouthernuralsbasedonthe1920allrussiancensusnewdata