Ethnology 

The article is dedicated to a local group of the Russian Germans living in the Central Ural Mountains (Sverdlovsk region). This research analyzes features of ethnical history, today's consciousness and complex identity of this group. Generally, episodes of the Russian national and regional (Ural) history are significant for the Germans in the Central Ural Mountains: Catherine the Great's manifesto, deportation, the Labor army, rehabilitation. European and German plots are manifested in historical memory much more weakly; but they are present in the religious and ceremonial sphere (for example, Osterhase, the Easter rabbit). The Volga River is a bright symbol of the Russian-German identity, for the Ural Germans in particular. In the 1960s, the Soviet Germans began a movement for rehabilitation of their people, restoration of territorial autonomy and culture. Ivan Kronevald, a resident of the Urals, was one of the leaders of that movement. In the 1990s, the Ural Germans actively initiated ethnical projects: public associations, centers for meetings and culture centers appeared, which aimed to restore the lost ethnical and cultural basis as the main objective. However, the movement for restoration of autonomy of the Russian Germans resulted in emigration to Germany.

Key words: Russian Germans, Central Ural, ethnical history, identity, symbols of ethnicity, ethnical projects.

DOI: 10.20874/2071-0437-2017-38-3-143-151

02.10.2017

T.S. Kisser

Institute of History and Archaeology of Ural Branch RAS, S. Kovalevskaya st., 16, Ekaterinburg, 620990, Russian Federation

E-mail: [email protected]