Revived ‘Zhizn' Natsional'nostyei’ Now Appearing in Online Format

Paul Goble

            Staunton, August 5 – An essential source for the study of development of Moscow’s nationality policy in the first years of Soviet power is the newspaper, then journal of Stalin’s Peoples Commissariat for Nationality Affairs (“Narkomnats”), Zhizn natsionalnostyei (“The Life of the Nationalities”) which appeared between November 1918 and 1924.

            In 1992 following the demise of the USSR and the establishment of a State Committee for Nationality Policy, a journal under the same title appeared; but when that body was disbanded, it continued to appear, albeit often irregularly, as a result of the efforts of its editorial staff.

            Khuseyn Mestoyev, the new editor of the new online edition, introduced the journal at a meeting this week at which participants promised to produce articles on nationality groups from across the Russian Federation and, by do doing, to promise dialogue between Moscow and these peoples (6portal.ru/posts/жизнь-национальностей-есть-ли-будуще/).

            The first issue is “North Caucasus heavy,” with all eight articles covering issues in that region rather than more generally (swoedelo.ru/nacionalnosti/); but these are all high quality and contain information not found or easily found anywhere else. Three are especially interesting:

·         Makka Albogachiyeva on the role of Islam among the Ingush (swoedelo.ru/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/3_Албогачиева.pdf),

·         Dmitry Gevorkyan on Armenians in Derbent and southern Daghestan (swoedelo.ru/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/5_Геворкьян.pdf), and

·         Naima Neflyasheva on the tradition of close ties among men in the Caucasus nationalities (swoedelo.ru/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/6_Нефляшева.pdf).