A number of both Russian and foreign historical works deal with the migration of part of the Oirats to the Volga. However, researchers have still come to no consensus on what exactly had caused the latter. One of those to have been scrupulously searching the domestic archives for documents that would shed light on the actual reason of the arrival of the Kalmyks to the Volga was the famous Mongol- ist W. L. Kotwicz. In 1919, he published the article ‘Russian Archival Materials on Relations with the Oirats in the 17th and 18th Centuries’ which introduced a series of archival papers he had discovered in Russia’s archives. But subsequent to W. L. Kot- wicz’s relocation to Lviv University (Poland), the bulk of the documents was never published. Goals. The paper aims to introduce into scientific discourse two articles by W. L. Kotwicz found in his personal archives in Poland (Krakow). Materials. The work deals with archival materials from the researcher’s personal papers. For long years he persevered in his attempts to publish the discovered archival data. This is evidenced by his correspondence with the leadership of Kalmyk Autonomous Oblast contained in the Mongolist’s archives. The latter also happened to include two manuscript articles prepared by him in the early 1920s for publication in the Oirat News journal. However, only four journal issues (clustered in two volumes) had been released before it ceased to exist. Conclusions. The contents of the two works indicates that those are as essentially relevant and can still make a decent contribution to modern Kalmyk archaeography.

The article examines the system of umyots (Rus. умёт) that had been used to facilitate the peopling of Astrakhan Governorate. Those were minor settlements established to maintain roads significant for the economic and administrative development of the region. The paper provides an insight into the reasons, goals, contents, and results of the policy. Goals. The study seeks to investigate the unexplored aspect in the history of the peopling of Astrakhan Governorate’s lands. Methods. The comparative historical and historical genetic methods were employed to deal with the umyot policy. Materials. The paper analyzes documents housed by the State Archive of Astrakhan Oblast and once issued by public statistical departments, ones contained in the Complete Collection of Laws of the Russian Empire and memoirs of certain individuals. Conclusions. It is concluded the use of the umyot system was caused, on the one hand, by severe natural conditions, and, on the one hand, by the need to develop land routes that directly and indirectly affected the level of economic development. This idea was formulated and implemented by government authorities who determined the order and conditions of the peopling, sizes of settlements, and population structure of colonists. The umyot system played a positive role in the development of the Crimean and Solevozny (Rus. ‘salt transportation’) roads to have run across areas unfavorable for human habitation. It also facilitated the establishment of a network of stationary settlements in the nomadic territories, thus, predetermining further transformations within nomadic communities.

In the 1920s and early to mid-1930s, membership growth and structure regulation became a primary issue of party construction. From year to year there appeared new party cells. Small groups were being replaced by party organizations with better quality members. To rationalize the balance of power and develop strict record keeping of party members, cadre purges were held on a regular basis. Goals. The paper seeks to analyze Kalmykia’s party membership dynamics during the period under consideration. Materials. The work examines a range of related documents housed by the National Archive of the Republic of Kalmykia, including ones newly introduced into scientific discourse. Methods. The study employs the method of analysis which proved instrumental in investigating the membership growth of Kalmyk Party Organization. The degree of credibility of the results obtained is secured by that the historical research method complies with the goals of the study, and by that a significant number of documentary archival sources have been involved. Conclusions. The research concludes the activities conducted by Kalmykia’s party organization under heaviest conditions did facilitate the strengthening of the Party’s structures, improvement of the latter, and elaboration of new operational forms and methods. The educational level of Communists was raised, certain changes in social and national composition of the party organization occurred, e.g., numbers of worker Communists increased, basically through employing advanced fishery workers. Local party commissions would be established to conduct the cadre purges. So, between 1921 and 1936, a total of 2 049 Communists were ‘cleansed’ out of Kalmyk Party Organization.

The article describes a full-text Kalmyk expatriate database containing publications by first- (1920-1930s) and second-wave (1940s) Kalmyk emigres. Materials. The database on the Kalmyk expatriate community was compiled from journal collections of the Kalmyk Scientific Center of the RAS included into the Rarity Fonds of the Alekseeva Scientific Library and Archive, as well as from other digitized works contained both in domestic and foreign libraries. Results. The paper provides a scholarly description of the database’s structure, characterizes its materials both quantitatively and qualitatively. Still, the developed database remains incomplete, some of the to-be-included published and archival sources being unavailable for a score of reasons that are essentially objective (e. g., whereabouts of the famous Eurasianist and author of ‘Genghis Khan and His Heritage’ E. Khara-Davan’s archives are actually unknown) and subjective (lack of funding and related opportunities to investigate archives and libraries of cities where first- and second-wave Kalmyk emigres used to live and work).

Russian historiography provides no comprehensive data on the impact of Kalmykia’s Red Army soldiers and officers into a greatest battle of World War II — the Battle of Stalingrad. A major indicator thereof is data on the numbers of our compatriots awarded different military decorations (orders and medals) for participation in the battle. Some deeper understanding of the process requires a statistical analysis that would reveal common and specific features of the examined group of individuals when viewed from different perspectives. Goals. The paper aims to establish a database of Kalmykia’s residents conscripted into the Red Army and awarded military decorations for participation in the Battle of Stalingrad, and to outline a statistical analysis. Materials. The database employs a wide range of sources, such as 1) the digital bank of documents ‘Feat of the People in the Great Patriotic War 1941-1945’ (Rus. ОБД «Подвиг народа») containing actualized military awards papers of Red Army servicemen, 2) the annotated Index of names of ethnic Kalmyk soldiers and non-commissioned officers deported to Shirokovsky ITL (forced labor camp), 3) lists of Great Patriotic War veterans who resided in Kalmykia in 1965 and were offered to receive jubilee medals, etc. The term ‘compatriots’ here is used to denote both individuals conscripted in the territory of the Kalmyk ASSR and its native residents conscripted in other regions. The chronological framework of the study covers not only the Battle of Stalingrad as such but also subsequent bestowals given that the latter were at least somewhat related to the battle. Conclusions. The compiled database includes 516 bestowals (11 individuals were awarded two military decorations within the Battle of Stalingrad). And even though the database is not universally complete, it can still be considered essentially representative. The statistical analysis was conducted according to the following parameters: age, place and time of conscription, ethnicity, military rank, title of the awarded military decoration, and time of bestowal. The obtained results make it possible to draw several conclusions regarding the participation of Kalmykia’s residents in the Battle of Stalingrad. For example, the analysis shows the bulk of the awarded were young (aged 30 or below) people brought up by the Soviets to Communist ideals. The work concludes residents of Kalmykia who were conscripted into the Red Army contributed decently to the victory in the Battle of Stalingrad.

The work aims to examine the issues of perception and understanding of processes characterizing the beginnings of human life, its sources in the traditional worldview of Inner Asian Turko-Mongolic nomads. Methods. The study employs the comparative historical and comparative typological research methods; a method of interpreting cultural phenomena is also made use of. Reproduction of life is a primary task of society, and all related actions are actually manifested in wedding rites, in annual public prayers. The begging for soul ritual would be held only after other repeated reproduction efforts failed. In this case, the identification of potential sources of vitality that could convey the latter to the couple seems relevant (and instrumental) enough. No less important is how certain ‘sources of life’ tend to influence the quality of life of their ‘ward’. Results. Multiple deities, revered objects of the surrounding nature, patrons of animals, birds and even reptiles would act as bearers of the soul of the to-be-born child. Conclusions. The individual life expectancy and quality were believed to depend on who would grant the soul to the child.

In everyday and ceremonial practices of the Kalmyks, tobacco smoking remained widespread till the mid-20th century. The topic has not been scientifically explored, which makes it relevant enough. Goals. So, the work seeks to historically examine the dissemination of tobacco among the Kalmyks, investigate peculiarities of smoking accessories, illustrate some everyday and ceremonial tobacco-related practices, analyze the established ethnic representations dealing with tobacco smoking, requisites and etiquette. Methods. The research employs the synchronous/diachronous, descriptive, comparative/functional, comparative/contrastive, and semantic methods. Results and Conclusions. The paper concludes the Kalmyks became familiar with tobacco in the 16th - early 17th centuries; in everyday and ceremonial practices of Kalmyk society, tobacco smoking was functionally related to folk healing, communicative behavioral, and guest etiquette patterns, serving as a means to unite members of one clan, with its certain ties to the symbol of hearth and cult of ancestors. For the time being, traditional tobacco smoking techniques have passed out of use, which resulted in the loss of respective smoking accessories manufacturing traditions.

The article introduces into scientific circulation an Oirat-language text dealing with astrological practices and housed by the Aldan Maadyr National Museum of the Tyva Republic. Materials. The text is a fragment of the manuscript included in the Museum’s collection of Buddhist monuments under inventory number M-884. This is a Clear Script (Kalm. todo bichig) text, and is one of the two astrological monuments in the Museum’s collection. Results. The paper describes, briefly characterizes, transliterates and translates (from Oirat into Russian) the manuscript.

The article deals with peculiarities of legal status of the Buryat tribal aristocracy traced in the 17th-19th-century collections of national customary law. Compiling codes of ‘steppe laws’, the tribal aristocracy actively adapted customary law to their interests, thereby securing their privileged position in society. Compiling answers to inquiries of the Russian Government, the Buryat aristocrats modified traditional norms and customs with the aim of asserting their high legal position, and sought to vest themselves with broad powers. Goals. The article primarily aims to illustrate the interests and privileges of the tribal aristocracy according to 17th-19th-century norms of customary law. Materials. The paper analyzes customary law collections of the mentioned period. Results. The investigated documents show broad powers of the Buryat tribal aristocracy. The latter remained in charge of administrative, fiscal, judicial, family and marriage-related issues, also being authorized to resolve various contentious questions among the population. In addition, it is important to note that the Buryat tribal aristocracy were not limited in their law-making activities since they did not need to adapt themselves to new laws. As a result, accommodating themselves to the new political situation, the tribal aristocracy sought to both maintain their positions and influence in society, as well as to concentrate broad powers in their hands, which was manifested in adapting customary law to their interests.

The article deals with the religious affairs and identity of the Kalmyks after the 1771 Exodus to Dzungaria. This event and its consequences have been comprehensively examined and evaluated by modern Kalmyk historiography. The grandiose exodus yielded no expected results: dreams to revive of the Dzungar Khanate proved an illusion, and the nation became split between China and Russia. Goals. The paper seeks to investigate the changes in confessional affairs of the Kalmyks subsequent to the year 1771 - from the perspective of ethnic identity. Materials. The work analyzes most essential legal changes towards the Buddhist church, reveals factors to have facilitated the preservation of identity. After the Kalmyk Exodus, the Russian Government put the Buddhist church under strict control, paying special attention to its size and numbers of Kalmyk clergymen, their influence on the whole of Kalmyk society - and each Kalmyk individually. Results. It is shown that the authorities actually understood and recognized religion as a socio-cultural element of identity.

The publication consists of a transcription of a biographical interview of the celebrated Kalmyk historian and Oiratologist - Vladimir Petrovich Sanchirov (1947-2019), supplemented with the author’s commentaries. The interview took place in Elista in 2004 as part of the research project ‘Everyone’s Got His Own Siberia’ dealing with the crucial but understudied period of Kalmyk history - the nation’s Siberian deportation of 1943-1956 and memories thereof. Goals. The project aims is to investigate the everyday survival strategies of Kalmyks in Siberia, as well as to pay tribute to the recently deceased colleague and friend. Methods. The methodology used to study the raw interview text includes the textual analysis and deconstruction. Results. The transcribed text shows survival and adaptation strategies of the young generation of spets-pereselentsy at places of forced settlements; we see V. Sanchirov’s youth in Khanty-Mansiysk, his opposition to ethnical oppression, his dealing with the stigma of government-forbidden ethnicity, and his acquaintance with Kalmykia. The text may be of certain interest to all researchers studying the Kalmyk deportation and memories thereof.

The article introduces into scientific discourse materials dealing with the history of ethnography research of Mongolic peoples. The work publishes a diary kept by the author during the Soviet-Mongolian Comprehensive History and Culture Research Expedition. The expedition began its work in 1969, and the diary covers the events of 27 September to 26 October 1969. The introduced materials contain data about everyday activities of the field research expedition, describe specific features of the Mongolian dwelling, local household traditions, rites and superstitions.

The National Archive of Kalmykia houses multiple official Clear Script texts. Being different in terms of content, structure and format, the documents attest to that the genre diversity of Kalmyk official writing used to be large enough. The paper examines one such text that can be identified as a separate genre - letter of enfranchisement once granted to common people by their landlords. Materials. The work analyzes the text of an enfranchisement letter issued by the Dor- bet noyon (‘land and war lord’) Tsenden Dorji to manjik (‘lay priest’) Gaban Sharap. Goals. The article seeks to describe and introduce into scientific discourse the text of the document containing both historical and linguistic research data. Results. It is concluded that the letter is a standard text of the genre of 18th-century Kalmyk official writing. In this regard, it is essential to further investigate similar texts to reveal the impact of Russian records management patterns.

The study continues a series of works seeking to evaluate materials contained in the Explanatory Dictionary of the Language of the Jangar Epic. Goals. The article examines the role and functions, analyzes definitions of the lexeme haзp / yazr ‘earth, ground’ included into the word list of the Explanatory Dictionary. Materials. A total of 28 different Jangar epic texts recorded at different times have been investigated. Results. The Jangar epic employs the lexeme haзp in the meaning of ‘earth, land, ground’ and related ones, such as ‘terrestrial area’, ‘territory’, ‘path’, ‘domain’, ‘distance’, ‘place’. When used in its key meaning, the lexeme haзp ‘earth, land, ground’ largely occurs in word combinations related to geographical and agricultural terms, steppe or desert landscapes. The phrase эщго haзp (эщгэ hasp) ‘deserted land’ illustrates an important feature of the steppe — its peopleless nature. The word haзp also co-occurs in phrases with sacral meanings (haзp дунд ‘amid the Earth’, haзp, тенгрин киисн ‘center of Earth and Heaven’). The lexeme is also most frequently used in duration formulas that may possess chronotopos properties, with time acting as a measure of duration and length. The contraposition of own land to alien ones as a reflection of universal, fundamental opposition us — them is manifested in the combinations хэр hasp ‘alien land’, хэрин ик haзp ‘remote outland’.

The work deals with Kalmyk tactile adjectives. Materials. The paper analyzes texts of the Kalmyk heroic epic of Jangar and other materials contained in the Kalmyk National Corpus. Results. Adjectives are characterized by wide lexical co-occurrence, serving as means to depict human appearances, manners, and speech. Tactile adjectives denoting external properties of objects sometimes include both tactile and visual semes. For the description of outer properties, the paper examines tactile perception instrumental to obtaining and comprehending information that shape an individual image of the objective world. Tactile contact delivers data about external and internal structures of an object, its texture, e.g., smooth, dry, firm, wet, rough, silky. In tactile perception, man and an object interact and get materialized only when pressed, contacted, touched directly. The Kalmyk heroic epic of Jangar contains quite a limited number of tactile adjectives, some of the latter bearing figurative meanings, such as шyрyн сээхн хурдн ‘beautiful rapid speed’, хату дэн нутг ‘rough enemy country’, бат улан арз ‘hard, vigoruos’, хурц хойр нуди ‘sharp-sighted eyes’. The study of tactile adjectives makes it possible to distinguish several types of interaction with an object in tactile contact: pressing with application of force; visual perception; tactile interaction involving penetration. The epic narratives contain no mentions of tactile interaction involving the use of tongue, mouth, lips, back, or body.

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Linguists consider the ability to reflect historical events of society to be a specific feature of socio-political vocabulary. Socio-political vocabulary is basically studied in synchronous perspectives, through the use of dictionaries and journalistic texts. Insights into the functioning of socio-political vocabulary in different languages (including Kalmyk) are historically promising: analysis of socio-political vocabulary in diachrony helps identify stages of formation and transformation of the lexical cluster within a particular language depending on changes in a particular society. Social position-related naming units align with the group of socio-political vocabulary referred to as ‘vocabulary denoting social classes’ but are not identical to the latter, since the social position implies not only social status as such but also respective social roles. Goals. The article seeks to analyze functioning patterns of the mentioned lexical cluster in 18th-century Kalmyk official letters and in Russian translations of the same period. Materials. The work examines 28 letters of the Kalmyk Khan Ayuki and their Russian translations housed by the National Archives of Kalmykia. All the texts date to the year 1714. The investigated Kalmyk written sources contain a total of five social position-related naming units, such as 1) xa:n (transliteration) / хан (modern Kalmyk spelling); 2)yeke caya:n xa:n / ик qahaH хан; 3) kinas / кинас; 4) bayar / баяр; 5) elci / элч. In Russian 18tll-century translations, the indicated lexemes correspond to seven units of the same cluster, namely: 1) хан (‘khan’); 2) Великий Государь (‘Great Sovereign’); 3) князь (‘prince’); 4) боярин (‘boyar’); 5) комендант (‘commandant’); 6) губернатор (‘governor’); 7) посыльщик / посыльный (‘messenger’). Conclusions. The analysis of functioning patterns of the lexemes traced in the letters of Khan Ayuki and their Russian translations reveals certain ethno-linguistic trends in the use of the vocabulary by the addressant and Russian translators. Social position-related naming units used in the Kalmyk and Russian texts illustrate the 18th-century official correspondence practices, and can reflect the actual course and circumstances of socio-political relations between Peter the Great’s Russia and the Kalmyk Khanate.

To understand and essentially conceive the epic text of the Jangar it is definitely instrumental to examine specific features of its lexical structure. Goals. The work seeks to provide a linguistic analysis of lexemes denoting different clothing items and traced throughout the epic narrative. Methods. The study employs the contextual and statistical methods, dictionary entry and valency analyses. Results. The conducted analysis makes it possible to identify and restore meanings of lexemes of the cluster ‘Clothes’, and specifically those denoting outer garments. Conclusions. The etymology of the lexeme y^ ‘(fur) coat’ is restored within the Turkic language framework, the latter containing common Turkic stems *icuk ‘coat covered with fabric, (fur) coat with a covering’. The lexeme дах ‘dokha’ also proves an ancient Turkic borrowing: the noun jayqu with the initial meaning ‘rain coat’ was borrowed into Mongolian as daku ‘fur coat with pelage set on the outside’. Subsequently, the word was borrowed from Kalmyk into Russian: доха ‘saiga fur coat with pelage set on the outside’. In modern Kalmyk, the lexeme девл is defined as ‘shuba, winter garment’. But the Jangar epic employs the lexeme in two meanings: 1) ‘winter outer garment of furred skin, shuba, overcoat’, 2) ‘braided cover, surface coating’.

The study deals with spatial localization in the modem Kalmyk language. Being an important element of the world model, space finds its manifestation in certain language facts. In every language spatial semantics is expressed by certain lexical and grammatical units, and has somewhat pronounced specifics, particular semantic messages. Goals. The research seeks to describe types of localizations of spatial relations in the Kalmyk language expressed through case forms. Materials. The work investigates selected literary, folklore and journalistic texts, as well as dictionaries extracted from the National Corpus of the Kalmyk Language and the Kalmyk National Corpus respectively. Results. In the Kalmyk language, a total of four grammatical cases may express spatial relations: the dative-locative, instrumental, ablative, and aditive ones serve to indicate location and motion in space, destination and starting points, and also movement of an object along or in/through space. The work reveals and describes localization types — in the Kalmyk language — with various values regarding a reference point. Among the general spatial values, the paper specificates location, approaching, departure and movement of an object ‘on, nearby, over’ with relation to a reference point. Private localizations (IN, APUD, AD, SUPER, ULTRA, SUPRA) expressed by case forms are used to indicate space inside, close, in the distance, on the surface, over a reference point, etc. The research attempts to reveal values of key localizations in the language examined.

The article examines the life and career journey and of Valentina B. Iltsaranova, a People’s Artist of the USSR, People’s Singer of the Russian Federation, and Honorary Citizen of Kalmykia. Goals. The paper introduces into scientific discourse a unique sample of the Kalmyk lingering folk song genre — ‘Tӧvtӓ Teegm’. Results. The vivid ideological and creative contents of this Kalmyk lingering song mirrors the manifold surrounding reality, giving rise to different poetic and musical images. Its unique nature is determined by the magnificent tonal structure and sophisticated melodic line. Certain characteristics discovered make it possible to identify the song as a lyrico-dramatic one.

Precepts regarding mutual attitudes between husband and wife in many traditional cultures can essentially be reduced to a single common postulate: with equal mutual love and respect stipulated, husband is assigned the role of head of household, and wife - that of the latter’s subordinate. And views on the woman’s role in the context of the Indo-Tibetan cultural tradition are no exception. Through the use of different educational techniques, including those of verbal precepts (homilies) addressed to respective groups and individuals involved, the Buddhism was actively shaping an image of the ideal Woman. One such literary manifestation is the text containing homilies of the legendary Tibetan king Ralpachen. Goals. The paper aims to introduce into scientific discourse the text of an Old Kalmyk literary monument titled ‘The Story of Usun Debeskertu Khan’.Materials. The work deals with nine versions (handwritten copies) of the text housed in Oirat manuscript collections of Russia, Mongolia, and China. Other parts of the composition contain special instructions describing features that essentially characterize noble and common women, as well as some views on relations between husband and wife. All the mentioned attitudes are evident enough and can easily be perceived by the bulk of society. There is no doubt that in ethnic mentality the norms corresponded to the ideal that had been elaborated long before the conversion to Buddhism and received another impetus during the consolidation of its positions. Conclusions. So, the published text attests to the fact that, admitting the moral equality between man and woman, Buddhism still allots the latter with modest and useful functions actually restricting her activities to the family circle where she can sophisticate private life, i.e. vitalize and decorate it.