The Other Russia. Cultural Multiplicity in the Making

Abstract
The unmaking of the Soviet order and the introduction of new economic and political systems have led to a society in which disparate cultural elements are simultaneously present.  The word "tradition"is connected to everyday life: people are turning to the customary livelyhoods and healing for economic reasons. "Tradition" is also a tool for cultural policies today. Neotraditionalism in Russia represents global trend. In the different republics of former Soviet Union the nature of neotraditionalism depends on the historical, political and economic experiences of the people.   

The "Other Russia" project examines the making of Post-Soviet cultural multiplicity in the Northern Russia and Western Siberia. Special attention is being paid to the recreation of indigenous traditions. "Ethnic" in this connection does not refer to a holistic entity of a primordial nature. On the contrary, the cultural multiplicity of North Russian communities is a consequence of not only the multi-ethnicity of communities, but the fact that ethnic groups are internally divided by many factors such as economic opportunities, politics, values, religion, dialect, everyday habits and the relocation of populations.   

The aims of the work are as follows: 1) To identify the diverse mechanisms of social and economic change in different Northern Russian areas and their relationship to the transformation of cultural practices.2) To trace oral and literal discourses, events and cultural processes expressing ethnic diversities in micro-level local communities and to examine them from the perspective of gender, area, state, and global cultural policies, and in the light of historical and socio-economic developments. The results will add to the knowledge on the ongoing socio-cultural processes of Northern Russia and contribute to the understanding of the local manifestations and counter-currencies of globalisation.

Besides the project leader, the research group includes following persons:  Karina Suominen, MA, Marja-Leea Hattuniemi, MA, and three Russian scholars, C.Sc. Oleg Ulyashev, Prof. Vladimir Napolskikh and C.Sc. Irina Il'ina. The research group is closely connected to an international network of more than 20 scholars established in the frame of the "Encyclopaedia of the Uralic Mythologies" Seminars and international post-graduate courses (e.g., FFSS) are organised in the frame of international co-operation with institutes and researchers from Russia, Hungary, Germany, USA, Sweden and Norway.

Project leader: Academy Professor Anna-Leena Siikala, Helsinki University, Institute for Cultural Research, Folkloristics, tel. +358 (0)9 19122631, fax. +358 (0)9 4122402, Anna-Leena.Siikala(at)Helsinki.Fi

Researchers:
Karina Suominen, MA, Helsinki University, Karina.Suominen(at)Helsinki.Fi
Oleg Uljashev, Sc.C., Komi nauchnyj tsentr, RAN, Institut yazyka, kul'tury i literatury, oleg.uljash(at)mail.ru
Vladimir Napolskikh, Prof., Udmurtskij universitet, Institut sotsial'nykh kommunikatsij, vovia(at)udm.ru
Irina Il'ina, Sc.C., Komi nauchnyj tsentr, RAN, Institut yazyka, kul'tury i literatury, ilina56(at)mail.ru
Marja-Leea Hattuniemi, MA, Helsinki University, Marja-Leea.Hattuniemi(at)Helsinki.Fi

Project description