Introduction. The article summarizes the history of one of the three largest monasteries of the Tibetan Geluk school — Ganden Monastery. The latter tradition of Tibetan Buddhism occupies an exceptional place in the history of Mongolic spiritual cultures. Therefore, the interest in Ganden monastery is determined not only by that it had been founded by Je Tsongkhapa (1357–1419), the patriarch of the Geluk and a greatest Buddhist figure in Tibet, but also by the enormous religious, cultural and political impacts this sect has had on the development and dissemination of Buddhism among Mongolian-speaking peoples. Goals. The article seeks to investigate the history of Ganden Monastery in the context of its basic organizational structure, material culture (relics, shrines), paradigm of scholastic training (texts, educational process), and specific Buddhist rituals. Materials and methods. The work examines original Tibetan texts, analyzes historical sources and special scientific literature. Results. The article shows that the central principles of scholastic training and regulations laid down by Lama Tsongkhapa, as well as the organizational structure of the monastery, have remained virtually unchanged since its foundation in 1409. The phenomenon of Tibetan monasteries is multifaceted, and in order to better understand and appreciate the role they have played over centuries in spiritual life of many peoples it is necessary to achieve a complete understanding — in their own terms — of history, educational system, and organizational structure of the monastery.

The article introduces results of the 2022 field expedition to Mongolia aimed at exploring history and culture of Khamaryn Khiid Monastery in Dornogovi Province, and provides brief historical and biographical data on the latter’s founder Ven. Luvsan Danzanravjaa. Goals. The study seeks to reconstruct key stages in the formation of the monastery’s architectural complex. Methods. The research methods employed are those of historical/topographical analysis (sacred objects), participant observation, comparison, historical/biographical investigation, and etymological analysis (toponyms). Results. Nowadays, Khamaryn Khiid serves as a tourist spot rather than a religious center. Both domestic and foreign tourists are eager to visit this sacral place in the Eastern Gobi. Despite extensive infrastructure development measures have been undertaken, there is still a lack of hotels and public eating places. The monastery has a high potential to become a leading object of religious tourism.

Introduction. The paper analyzes available Chinese-language scientific works that review contemporary history of the Daur people and examine its different aspects. Goals. The study attempts a historiographic analysis of certain Chinese-language scholarly publications (monographs, articles) dealing with contemporary history of the Daurs. So, the objectives be set and tackled thereto shall include insights into peculiarities of Chinese historiography pertaining to contemporary Daur history, reviews of monographs containing related materials, and analyses of Chinese scientists’ articles considering significant events and facts of 20th-century Daur history. Conclusions. The paper shows China’s historiography of contemporary Daur history is abundant in scientific works, both monographs and diverse articles. Peculiarities inherent to regional collections of articles largely authored by ethnic Daurs result, in our opinion, from that the shaping of historiographical science in the PRC remains somewhat incomplete. The monographs undoubtedly contain a large amount of factual materials on many aspects of contemporary Daur history. However, those are distinguished by the traditional Chinese approach to the study of history characterized by that chronologies of events (chronicles) and biographies of famous figures hold central and unshakable positions. The articles also contain various facts, descriptions of specific historical events and characters, e.g., the peasant uprising of Shaolang and Daifu, biographies of the revolutionary Guo Daofu (Merse), participation of Daurs in the anti-Japanese movement. Another peculiarity traced is that the articles widely use data collected from informants, which is supposedly due to that Chinese sources covering regional history are few enough, and the special value of information provided by participants or eyewitnesses of those events.

Introduction. Statistical yearbooks of COMECON (Council for Mutual Economic Assistance) member countries to have resulted from intergovernmental cooperation are still explored by researchers for various aspects of socialist Mongolia’s socioeconomic development. Goals. The article aims to characterize statistical yearbooks of COMECON member countries as a source on the history of agriculture in Mongolia. Materials and methods. The paper analyzes the mentioned statistical yearbooks published between 1970 and 1990. The main research methods employed are the historical descriptive, comparative, and analytical ones. Results. The agricultural section of yearbooks includes an impressive number of indicators grouped into various categories. The quantitative and qualitative composition of indicators remained virtually unchanged from 1970 to 1989, while the 1990 yearbook witnessed significant structural changes. Conclusions. The statistical yearbooks of COMECON member countries are consolidated statistical digests with a fairly voluminous nomenclature of indicators, extensive time coverage, and a well-defined structure. The main advantage of theirs over national statistical materials is that they grant an opportunity to conduct a comparative analysis of various indicators, including in the agricultural sector. The most important data are specific indicators and average values that can primarily attest to actual agricultural production intensification degrees in Mongolia in 1960–1989. All this characterizes statistical yearbooks of COMECON member countries as a very important and useful source on the history of agriculture in Mongolia.

Introduction. The article examines the system of recognition and encouragements adopted by the Russian Empire for representatives of Buryat tribal elites in the 18th–19th centuries. The focus of the study makes it possible to trace key mechanisms to have facilitated the incorporation of Buryat tribal elites into Russia’s corresponding environment. The legalization of official powers of 18th– 19th century Buryat tribal elites was paralleled by that Imperial Russia developed a corresponding system of recognition and encouragements. The latter was not only to consolidate the high social status of the local nobility but rather to facilitate their further incorporation into the Russian power structures. Goals. The paper aims to investigate Imperial Russia’s system of recognition developed for representatives of Buryat tribal elites throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. Materials and methods. The study analyzes archival materials housed at the State Archive of Buryatia, such as employee and formulary lists of Buryat tribal executives, decrees and instructions of His Imperial Majesty on rewards granted to the latter. The research methods employed include the historical comparative and comparative typological ones that have proved instrumental in analyzing the mentioned Russian system, and compiling a content analysis of archival materials involved. Conclusions. The work reveals the special recognition and rewards system was developed to regulate relations with representatives of local Buryat elites and guarantee their integration into imperial structures. The system of awards and distinctions was used by the Russian government to encourage Buryat tribal and clan leaders for certain services rendered to the state, as well as for successfully fulfilled tasks assigned.

Introduction. The article deals with the earliest years of the young Kalmyk Viceroy Ubashi’s reign. Goals. The paper attempts an analysis of the Dondukovs’ arrival in Kalmyk Steppe during the mentioned period. Results. In 1762, Empress Catherine II granted Princess Vera Dondukova and her family a permission to move back to their uluses (estates). But the January 1763 return of Vera Dondukova and her son Alexey destabilized the political situation in Kalmyk Khanate, which resulted from immediate rumors suggesting a soon handover of power to the former to be followed by changes in the ulus system proper. Many would recall how Noyon Donduk-Ombo had led the bulk of the Volga Kalmyks to Kuban somewhat thirty years before, and in those circumstances the imperial government had been forced to forgive him and formalize his actual position as Kalmyk ruler. In fact, the Khanate was facing another wave of feuds. This time the Russian government chose to identify problems before they arose, and sought — with entreaties and threats — to normalize the situation in Kalmyk uluses. This historical fact attests to that the 18th century was witnessing gradual changes in methods of imperial nationalities policies employed.

Introduction. The fact that Kalmyk past everyday life remains somewhat unexplored makes the study relevant enough to be tackled. Kalmyk historical literature virtually never viewed the issue as a subject of independent research. Only a few works by prerevolutionary and — even fewer — Soviet authors contain fragmentary references to certain aspects of Kalmyk life. In addition, topicality of the theme arises from the stern need to introduce new sources into scientific discourse, as well as ones to clarify and supplement the deeply-rooted conclusions and provisions of available works. Goals. The work sets a specific objective of characterizing some problems and concerns once faced by natives of Kalmyk Steppe (Astrakhan Governorate) through the example of Iki-Khurul Shabinar clan from Maloderbetovsky (Kalm. Baγa Dörvöd) Ulus. Materials and methods. The article investigates newly discovered records management papers housed at the National Archive of Kalmykia (collections ‘Kalmyk People’s Executive Department’ and ‘Executive Office of Maloderbetovsky Ulus’), and thus introduces the latter into scientific circulation. The study employs a complex of general scientific and special historical methods, with a fundamental role to be played by the civilizational/cultural and interdisciplinary approaches in combination with the principles of historicism and objectivity together supposed to yield maximum truthfulness in characterizing Kalmyk life during the watershed historical period examined. Conclusions. The mid-19th to early 20th centuries were witnessing dramatic changes in Kalmyk uluses, such as active integration of the region into Russia’s socioeconomic structure, intensified sedentarization trends, and significant migrations of Russian peasants to Kalmyk-inhabited steppes. This, of course, was reflected in many aspects of Kalmyk people’s life to be exemplified with facts faced by Iki-Khurul clan, namely: diminished nomadic pastoral areas, lack of water resources for sedentarized nomads, needs to stabilize available communications, social and other concerns.

Introduction. The article provides data on the territory of Kalmyk Steppe and its uluses in relation to the uyezd system of Astrakhan Governorate, outlines features of the former’s administrative structure in relation to the territorial component of public management, and examines historiography of the research issue. Materials. The paper investigates statistical digests, geographical reference books on the territorial composition of Astrakhan Governorate, including Kalmyk Steppe, its area, and ulus structure. Special attention is paid to certain legislative provisions of the Russian Empire concerning the governance of Astra­khan Kalmyks and the ulus administrative system. The work also introduces scholars’ opinions on the status of Kalmyk Steppe as part of Astrakhan Governorate, evolution of administrative governance in the 19th to early 20th centuries. Results. The question of how Kalmyk Steppe used to be classified in statistical and reference publications of the Russian Empire requires further investigation. In some cases, Kalmyk Steppe is designated as part of Astrakhan Governorate to be accompanied by a note that it is incorporated into uyezds of the province, and an indication of its total area. In other cases, there is no mention of the territory at all. This may have resulted from the administrative reforms in Kalmyk Steppe and, in general, changed approaches to Astrakhan Kalmyk people’s governance during the identified period. Nikolay Palmov’s viewpoint that the early 19th-century decrees had allotted the lands to the Kalmyk people to be fully owned by and thus constitute legitimate property of the latter is worth noticing in terms of scholarly research. The official position reflected in government documents and expressed in writings of Russian officials of the examined period states that the lands had been allotted for use and distributed by each ulus individually, i.e. never formed a single whole. So, even if one takes into account that the Kalmyks were governed by a special administrative department which was under the jurisdiction of the country’s ministerial system, there is practically no mention of the uyezd level in administrative/territorial structure of the Governorate, nor there are any essential prescriptions regarding correlation between the latter and the ulus system. This also remains understudied in Russian historiography.

Introduction. Transformation of a nomadic society is a multifaceted process. The social organization and inner structure of Mongolia’s nomadic society have undergone cardinal changes of the 20th century — only to experience various impulses of further development. Goals. The article aims to reveal the inner substantial side inherent to the transformation process within contemporary Mongolia’s nomadic society. The paper considers the social system of nomads as a self-organizing one that adapts to new market conditions and commodity-money relations to regenerate the institutions of traditional society, strengthen new social orders, and create advanced forms of social alliances and interactions. Materials. The work analyzes literary and field materials for insights into the phenomena of transformation in economic, social and cultural spheres of Mongolia’s nomads. Results. The study shows nomadic households are being gradually involved into market relations to be incorporated in the general division of labor system; defines functions of a contemporary nomadic community, such as protection of pastures in use, sharing of water and other natural resources, etc. Conclusions. The study delineates key characteristics inherent to the observed transformation of nomadic society, namely: commodification and individualization of nomadic livestock breeding and, as a consequence, rationalization of economic behavior, preservation of a mobile (migratory) lifestyle to be accompanied by fixation of nomadic boundaries and distinct localization of seasonal camps, replacement of traditional values by market ones. It is emphasized that kinship ties are being gradually replaced by territorial ones when it comes to identify borders of present-day nomadic social groups. The emergence of a territorial community attests to the overcoming of conservative features typical of nomadic society once largely based on family ties, tribal background, etc. 

Introduction. The introduction of new sources characterizing traditions of Buryat chronicle writing into scientific circulation remains an urgent task of Mongolian studies. Dozens of works and their various copies and editions are still there to be explored. The article precedes a further study and translation of a voluminous historical chronicle of the Aga and Khori Buryats. Goals. The study attempts a brief overview of the chronicle’s contents and approaches some peculiarities traced in its text. Materials and methods. The analysis of Rabzhi Sanzhiev’s writing involves a wide range of Buryat historical works — both chronicles and archival documents. The historical comparative and chronological methods prove instrumental in systematizing the data contained, while tools of textual and source studies have made it possible to delineate the author’s text proper. Results. The work identifies an extensive range of sources and the chronicle’s structure according to which R. Sanzhiev’s narrative be conventionally divided into a number of large sections, namely: Shirab-Nimbu Khobituev’s chronicle; copies of official documents; historical works by T. Toboev, D. Zayaev, S. Vandanov, A. Ochirov; and the author’s text. Conclusions. R. Sanzhiev’s writing is a major work of the historical documentary genre. The author undertook painstaking efforts to meticulously clarify data included in Shirab-Nimbu Khobituev’s chronicle and supplement certain facts and data, introduce additional findings from various sources. The continuation of Khobituev’s chronicle — despite the compiled facts are fragmented enough — acts as an independent composition. Archival documents on the history of Buryat self-governance and Buddhism, folklore texts, chronicles and legends included by the author into the narrative are of particular value.

Introduction. The Jātakamālā by Āryaśūra (4th c. AD) had been very popular in India, and was considered an early example of a structurally particular poetic composition. The Third Karmapa Rangjung Dorje (1284–1339) supplemented Āryaśūra’s 34 jātakas with 67 more stories of his own. Rangjung Dorje holds a prominent place both in the history of his lineage and in the history of Tibetan culture at large, his legacy remaining of immense interest to date. So, he authored a number of famous texts, such as Aspiration of Mahamudra (Tib. phyag chen smon lam), The Profound Inner Principles (zab mo nang don), and a collection of jātakas — The Garland of Birth Stories of the Teacher (Buddha). Goals. The article aims at analyzing the text of the specified collection available at the Buddhist Digital Resource Center (BDRC) to introduce data on the former and its structure. Results. The Garland of Birth Stories of the Teacher includes 101 jātakas — 34 ones by Āryaśūra and 67 ones by Rangjung Dorje. The last, 101st, story tells about the life of Shakyamuni Buddha. The paper deals with the 1430 Beijing xylographic edition of Dalongshan Monastery (Tib. ta’i lung shen). 

Introduction. The article examines an understudied issue of how and to what extent Buddhism had influenced the Buryat epic of Geser. Over the past two millennia, the Buddhist factor — starting from the Xiongnu era — has been to a certain degree reflected in various areas of spiritual life of Turko-Mongolian nomads and their descendants. Goals. So, the work aims to study impacts of Buddhism on such a significant monument of the Buryat oral poetic tradition as Geseriad. Results. The method of comparative analysis proves instrumental in identifying terms and concepts of Indo-Buddhist origin that constitute an ancient dimension in narrative structures of the uliger (epic). Those constants include as follows: hумбэр уула ‘Mount Sumeru’ associated with the world Mount Meru that serves to mark a center of the earth and universe in ancient Indian mythology; hун далай ‘milk sea’ that has an ancient Indian prototype in the Samudra Manthana episode. Similarly, some other cosmogonic concepts of ancient India — such as замби (Sanskr. Jambudvīpa ‘Jambu mainland’) and галаб (Sanskr. kalpa ‘aeon’) — had penetrated the Buryat folk mythological tradition through Buddhism to get completely absorbed and adapted. The Buryat Geseriad also contains traces of Indo-Buddhist mythology at the level of zoomorphic images, especially notable in the case of Khan Kherdig ‘king of birds and devourer of serpents’. Conclusions. The southern borrowings had become organically integral to the epic of Geser — its plot and images — so that nowadays tend to be perceived as quite ‘autochthonous’ and indigenous elements of the narrative. This circumstance attests to that Buddhist vestiges in the Buryat epic have a long history. 

Eastern Yugur is a Mongolic language spoken in Kangle and Mati districts of Gansu Province, China. Eastern Yugur is one of the languages spoken by the Yellow Uyghurs divided into two groups: the endonym of the Mongolic-speaking group is ‘Šera Yogor’, and that of the Turkic-speaking one is ‘Sarïg Yogïr’. Results. The article introduces data on the history of Eastern Yugur-related investigations and mentions researchers to have provided earliest  descriptions of the language. Only in the mid-20th century Eastern Yugur started being explored by many scientists, and before that period only fragmentary data on this language had been available. Despite there are different classifications of Mongolic languages, the place of Eastern Yugur therein still remains a subject of research. The article presents a brief review of works to have approached Eastern Yugur in relation to its place in classifications of Mongolic languages, and describes key methods employed thereto.

Introduction. The article examines results of associative experiments with native speakers of Tuvan and Buryat to analyze the color term ‘white’. Goals. The paper attempts conceptual and semantic analyses of obtained associative fields in comparison to traditional cultural representations of Tuvans and Buryats. Materials and methods. The paper considers materials of associative experiments attended by native speakers of Tuvan and Buryat in different years. Results. The study reveals that associative meanings of the color terms ak and sagaan are largely constituted by semes common to nomadic culture and relating to milk, white ritual food, religious representations of white as a pure and sacred color. In the associative thesaurus of Tuvan and Buryat, white conveys predominantly light semantics and positive emotions, correlates with a wide range of objects and phenomena of the outer world. Like in lexicographic sources, no semantics associated with negative emotions have been traced. However, despite such concepts as ‘death’ and ‘passing away’ are not associated with white color, nor there are any linguistic mentions — this color is involved in corresponding customs and rites. The experimental materials also show meanings specific to both the Tuvan and Buryat linguocultures, which results from differing ethnocultural traditions and language structures. In Buryat, such discrepancies occur in reactions of religious contexts — Sagaalgan, Sagaan Ȕbgen. In Tuvan, those are toponyms, such as Ak-Turug, Ak-Khem, and the reaction kara that has broad functional meanings. The analysis also shows that many associative values coincide with main meanings of corresponding lexemes (reactions/superordinates unge(n) and on). Conclusions. The study confirms that cultural and historical similarity plays an important role, and many ethnocultural stereotypes of native speakers of related languages have more conformities than differences.

Introduction. The article examines poetics of the protagonist’s image in Yelena Hahn’s Utballa which was highly appreciated by V. Belinsky. The literary work remains understudied, which makes it relevant enough to be approached with interdisciplinary analytical strategies that combine both literary and philosophical components. Goals. The paper attempts an analysis of the protagonist’s image from a perspective of gendered Orientalism with due account of genre specifics. Materials and methods. The study analyzes the text of the novel describing the life drama of a half-blood girl in Russian and Kalmyk cultural environments. The fact that the author’s farther A. Fadeev had served as Chief Supervisor of the Kalmyk People — and his views on colonization may have influenced the former — proves essential in our analysis that rests on modality poetics and gendered Orientalism. Results. The insights into poetical specifics of Utballa conclude that genre narratives of realism and romanticism play a key plot-forming function in the novel. A combination of romantic and realistic narrative logics yields a unique plot of certain interest to be examined from a perspective of gendered Orientalism. The drama of the protagonist’s life is explained by that having been incorporated into European epistemic philosophical frames she tends to view from the latter positions — the Kalmyks and culture she belongs to by birth but refuses to accept. As a result, the girl finds herself in a situation of two-worldness where none of the worlds is perfect enough. Describing the tragic fate of Utballa, the author thus addresses the question of woman’s place in patriarchal society.