The settlement of Siberia by different groups of the East Slavic population did not occur at one moment, but in waves. In Siberia they were hiding from state persecution, looking for land and a better life. As part of the conventionally “Russian” population of Siberia, groups of Chaldons, “inveterate Siberians”, Kerzhaks, Dvoedans, Kurgans, “Poles”, Semeiskies and others stood out. Each group had its own idea of the origins of its ancestors, its own traditions and customs, and until the 1920-1930s they preferred to preserve them without mixing with other populations of the region.
Narrated by Elena Fedorovna Fursova, Doctor of Historical Sciences, leading researcher at the Institute of Archeology and Ethnography of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk. The video was prepared as part of the project “Important Things: Traditions and Life of Russian Migrants in Siberia,” implemented with the support of the Presidential Fund for Cultural Initiatives in 2023-2024.
Director and cameraman - Sergey Borisenko
The story uses photographs from the website “Altai Old Believer” (altaistarover.ru/).