Vol 15, No 2 (2025)

After the collapse of the USSR, the history of the annexation of the regions of Central Asia to Russia acquired both scientific and political relevance, since today in the former republics of Central Asia, not scientific, but political assessment of events prevails, far from objectivity. Positive results are almost completely denied, while the emphasis is placed on negative consequences, the description of which is sometimes brought to the point of absurdity. It can be said that the previous Soviet approach was continued, but in a less objective and more politicized form, since Soviet historians recognized the presence of positive consequences. Today, the historical science of Central Asia strives to show the past suffering of its peoples and the inhuman cruelty of the "conquerors", although the former were no less cruel. Moreover, not only in relation to the "conquerors", but also in relation to neighboring peoples or even in relation to other local tribes. Turning to pre-revolutionary literature, first of all, to that written by the participants of those military campaigns themselves, allows us to look at the events of the past through their eyes and more objectively assess everything that happened between Russia and the Central Asian khanates. Since the analysis of the pre-revolutionary literature on the Akhal-Teke military campaigns of 1879 and 1880–1881 has not yet been carried out, this article has scientific novelty.

In the late 19th – early 20th centuries, a huge mass of people were involved in the migration movement in the Russian Empire. Its main flow was directed from densely populated regions of the country to sparsely populated land outskirts. Population growth and progressive land shortage caused the outflow of peasants from the multinational village of the Middle Volga region. In regional literature this complex phenomenon is highlighted mainly in socio-economic and socio-political perspectives, which is both justified and in demand. At the same time, since population migration, like many socio-cultural components of reality, also bore the imprint of the ethnocultural factor, it seems necessary to pay attention to this segment of the topic, because each ethnic community has its own way of life and behavioral stereotype. This article aims to highlight the role and place of the national moment in the migration movement of the Volga peasants to the land outskirts of the country. The author of these lines believes that such a projection will add new colors to his assessment and understanding. At the same time, he finds the role of the ethnocultural factor, although significant, but, at the same time, by no means a determining component in the mechanical movement of the rural population.

The article is devoted to the analysis of Ilias Alkin’s review of the "Collection of Tatar Literature" published in Moscow in 1931 under the editorship of P. A. Radimov. The collection became one of the first anthologies of Tatar literature translated into Russian. A prominent scientist in the field of Tatar linguistics, Galimdzhan Sharaf, contributed to the compilation of this anthology. The author of the review, I.S. Alkin, was not only an outstanding figure in the national movement of the Tatars and Bashkirs in 1917–1920, but also a well-known specialist in the field of economic geography of Central Asia. In addition, he participated in the discussion of literary issues and actively contributed to the magazine "Revolutionary East" (published by the Communist University of the Workers of the East, 1927–1938). His article, published in this magazine in 1932, is a sharp "exposure" of the ideological basis of the collection and reflects the tense atmosphere in Soviet Russia in the 1930s, when criticism and literary creativity became instruments of political struggle.

The article publishes and introduces into scientific circulation for the first time twenty documents from 1645–1677 containing information about representatives of the family tree of Nogai Princes – Akhmetev, Bayterekov, Keykuvatov, Koshumov, Kutumov, Smailev, Urmametev, Sheydiakov, Yusupov Princes. All the documents presented in the article were deposited in the fund of the Razriadny Prikaz of the Russian State Archive of Ancient Acts (RGADA). The introduction names the types of published office documents, lists the names of the persons mentioned in them, and sets out the rules for transmitting the text. For the first time, a representative of the Nogai Princes, zhilets Prince N.V. Koshumov, was identified. The article is addressed to specialists in the history of the Sovereign’s Court, social history, history of public administration, source study of office documents.

The review introduces the content and scientific significance of the book published in Turkey, dedicated to the biographies and social activities of representatives of the Tatar emigration who moved to the aforementioned country during the 20th century. The value of the publication lies in the fact that the author supplements the data related to the fates of the Tatars, whose names still remain little known to Tatar historiography, with new information. In addition, the author presents publications about the Tatars in Turkish periodicals.

The article is devoted to the scientific work of the Tatar scientist, Doctor of Philology, Professor Marsel Ibragimovich Akhmetzyanov, who is well-known in Russia and abroad. The work examines the main stages of the scientist’s biography and provides an analysis of his scientific work. A list of the main works of M.I. Akhmetzyanov, devoted to various areas of history, culture and literature of the Tatar people, is also published.