The Soviet nationalities policies is one of the most intensively studied subjects in the historiography of the Soviet Union. Scholars have shown how the Soviet state elaborated a vision of governing difference grounded not in religion but in ethno-territorial categories, institutionalized during the 1920s through a federative architecture of national republics. This project aimed, above all, to reorder the former territories of the Russian Empire while tightening Moscow’s political authority. Yet we still know remarkably little about how Soviet ideas of ethno-territorial self-determination travelled beyond Soviet borders. This lecture argues that Soviet approaches to managing diversity acquired unexpected resonances across parts of the global South, becoming an object of engagement for a wide range of state and non-state actors. It focuses on the post-Ottoman Middle East and British-ruled South Asia – two arenas in which anti-colonial politics and rival imaginaries of sovereignty took especially sharp form during the interwar years. Drawing on sources in Arabic, Urdu, Russian, and other languages, the lecture places Soviet nationalities policy in dialogue with select case studies from the interwar histories of both regions. In doing so, it seeks to generate new questions not only about Soviet nationalities policy itself, but also about the political and intellectual trajectories of South Asia and the Middle East in the first half of the twentieth century.
Anna Jordanová is a PhD Candidate in the Institute of International Studies at Charles University in Prague and an associate at the Association for International Affairs (AMO). Her primary expertise concerns the wider Central Asian region, especially political and economic developments in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan. She also focuses on Central Asia within the framework of her PhD at Charles University and international research projects such as MOCCA (Multilevel Orders of Corruption in Central Asia).
Anna Jordanová will present her research on the political dynamics of the five Central Asian states. Her thesis, grounded in regime theory, political economy, and autocratic governance, explores how these national regimes develop distinct strategies to preserve power, (refuse to) share authority, or shape distinct foreign policy. The lecture will also discuss the utility of conventional perceptions of frequently articulated phenomena in the region, such as state dependence as an overall negative feature or the presumed geopolitical competition among major powers in the region. The presentation will cover the core arguments of the research, along with reflections on how Western European perspectives on regional political affairs are preserved or challenged, as well as notes from field trips and study visits to the Central Asian states conducted during her PhD studies.
Maxim Demin is a research fellow at Ruhr University Bochum, working on nineteenth-century philosophy and the development of psychological thought. His research focuses on the transnational circulation of scientific concepts between German-speaking regions, the Habsburg lands, and the Russian Empire. His current book project examines Russian debates on the emergence and transfer of psychological knowledge from the early nineteenth century to the early Soviet period.
Abstract: In my presentation, I will examine the linguistic choices and translational activities of two philosophers active in St. Petersburg between 1810 and 1840: Peter Lodij (1764–1829), born in Galicia, and Adam Fischer (1797–1861), originally from Steyr in Upper Austria. Both thinkers came from the linguistically and culturally diverse Habsburg Empire, and their work in Russia offers valuable insights into early efforts to shape Russian philosophical language.
In diesem Vortrag werden wir uns damit beschäftigen, wie sich in der Forschung zu besonderen Objekten der Sowjetzeit, wie Weltraumbahnhöfe, Atomtestgelände und geschlossene Militärstädte, wissenschaftliche Intuitionen zu bizarren Mustern komplexer Erinnerungen verflechten. Wir stellen unser neues Buch „Baikonur vs. Baikonyr“ vor, das charakteristische Geschichten über die Beziehungen zwischen Testgelände, Kosmodrom und den sozialen und kulturellen Landschaften Kasachstans versammelt. Wir diskutieren, wie die Dekolonisierung des Wissens neue Ansätze für die Erforschung von Erinnerungspraktiken in Kasachstan prägt und welche Rolle lokale Narrative und kulturelle Praktiken bei der Schaffung eines kontextsensibleren Wissens spielen.
Ulbolsyn Sandybaeva
На этой встрече мы рассмотрим, как исследовательские интуиции вокруг особых объектов советского периода, таких как космодромы, ядерные полигоны и закрытые военные городки сплетаются в причудливые узоры сложной памяти. Представим новую книгу «Байконур vs Байконыр», где собраны типичные сюжеты, рассказывающие о взаимоотношениях между полигонно-космодромным и социальным, культурным ландшафтами Казахстана. Обсудим, как процессы деколонизации знания формируют новые подходы к исследованию практик памяти в Казахстане, роль локальных нарративов и культурных практик в создании более чувствительного к контексту знания.
Montag, 10. November 2025, 16.50-18.20, Raum DOL II (N.003) | Monday, 3 Nov 2025, 4.50-6.20 pm, room DOL II (N.003)
Nach dem Großangriff auf die Ukraine haben Hunderttausende Menschen Russland verlassen. Wer sind sie, wohin sind sie gegangen, und wie sehen ihre Anpassungsstrategien aus? Anna Kuleshova wirft einen kritischen Blick auf Stereotype über die jüngste Auswanderungswelle und zeigt blinde Flecken auf.
Vortrag auf Russisch, simultan verdolmetscht ins Deutsche durch Studierende im MA Translation mit Schwerpunkt Konferenzdolmetschen. Die Verdolmetschung wird nur vor Ort angeboten, auf Zoom wird nur der russische O-Ton zu hören sein!
После начала полномасштабной войны в Украине Россию покинули сотни тысяч людей. Кто они, куда направились, и каковы их стратегии адаптации? Анна Кулешова предлагает критический взгляд на последние волны эмиграции, слепые зоны и мифы, связанные с ними.
Доклад на русском языке, с синхронным переводом на немецкий. В онлайн-трансляции будет слышна только русская версия.
