Proposals for essays in English and Russian (c. 8000-10000 words) are welcome on the topic of Buryat national intelligentsia in the Russian imperial and early Soviet periods (mid-19th century to the late 1930s).
This edited volume, Buddhists, Marxists, and Nationalists: Buryat-Mongol Intellectuals in History, will examine the role of Buryat leading intellectuals. In particular, the editors are seeking studies of individual Buryats who were political, cultural, and/or religious leaders in the late Russian Empire and early Soviet Union. This period was unique as Buryat intellectuals offered diverse, and sometimes competing, visions for the future of their society and lands. By intellectuals, we understand not only those Buryats who were educated in Russian and later Soviet schools, but also those educated in religious institutions, as well as self-educated individuals. We are not necessarily seeking biographic papers. The essays may be focused on specific cases centered around moments/events/work/ideas in the lives of Buryat intellectuals that give insights into the nature of relationships within certain communities and/or with the Russian or Qing imperial states, Soviet Union, theocratic Tibet, and/or Mongolia.
The book aims to touch upon the following topics:
- Buryat intellectuals in the exchange of knowledge between Europe and Asia;
- Buryats’ contribution to the critique of Russian imperialism and colonialism;
- Belonging to intersecting networks of imperial scholars and indigenous literati
- Buryat anti-colonial and national narratives
- National political activism of the Buryat intelligentsia
- Buryat versions of Buddhist modernism
- Buryat contributions to Soviet nationalities policies
Accepted chapters will be due on December 15, 2023.
Interested contributors should send a 300-500 word abstract and a short bio by May 15, 2023 to Melissa Chakars mchakars@sju.edu