The research is supported by a grant of the RFFR, project № 16-31-01078
Abstract. The Nagaibaks are Southern Ural people formed less than 300 years ago at the crossroads of borders and trade routes, nomadic and sedentary cultures, Christianity and Islam. The Nagaibaks have absorbed various ethnic and religious traditions: on the one hand, elements of Christian, Muslim, and pagan religions, on the other – features of Russian, Tatar, Mari, Chuvash, and other ethnic cultures. Having the initial multiethnicity, they have formed a relatively monolithic community due to social (Cossack), religious (Orthodox), and linguistic (Turkic) identity and isolation from neighboring groups.
The Nagaibaks had their own understanding of themselves and their faith due to the activities of Orthodox preachers in the 1870s – 1910s. Soviet atheistic propaganda has also transformed their religious identity. Today the Nagaibaks consider themselves Orthodox: for them, the sense of adherence to Orthodoxy is more important than the observation of church rituals (including baptism). In addition, Nagaibak funeral and memorial rituals connected with veneration of their ancestors and accompanied by animal sacrifices have become inscribed in their Orthodox culture (which causes criticism of local priests).
Recently the Nagaibaks actively participate in new religious projects – restoration and construction of Orthodox objects in their villages. In many ways, this is a personal initiative of specific groups or individuals. So, in the Ostrolensky village there is a competition for the construction of two churches between the village community and a local resident Sergei Dyuskin who is implementing a project to build a church in the backyard of his house. Thus, Orthodox identity of the Nagaibaks has been formed due to situational circumstances and personal efforts in ethno-cultural dynamics.
Key words: Nagaibaks, Orthodoxy, identity, ethnicity, funeral rites, baptism, church.
DOI: 10.22250/2072-8662.2017.3.49-56
About the author
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Svetlana Yu. Belorussova – research fellow of the Department of Ethnohistory, Institute of History and Archeology (Ural Branch of SB RAS); 16 Sofia Kovalevskaya str., Ekaterinburg, Russia, 620137; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. |