The Kalmyks

The Kalmyks
Author: Elza-Bair Mataskovna Gouchinova
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 274
Release: 2013-01-11
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1135778876

The Kalmyks are in a unique position among the peoples of Europe in several respects, most conspicuously as being the only Buddhist people group in Europe. Until recently they had been a nomadic people, grazing their flocks and herds in the steppe lands north of the Caspian Sea, between the Volga river and the Caucasus mountains. Nowadays, with Russia’s transition to a post-Communist state, the relatively young President of Kalmykia stands out as being a self-made millionaire who has helped put his region 'on the map' not only by promoting economic ties with Japan and the West but also by hosting an international chess Olympiad. This practical guide written by a Kalmyk anthropologist, provides a comprehensive introduction to the Kalmyk people. The wide-ranging chapters give an overview of the Kalmyks, focusing on many facets of the Kalmyk culture, including language use, the traditional nomadic economy and dwellings, Kalmyk family and gender relationships, rites of passage, food and clothing, folk crafts, Kalmyk religion and the role of folklore and epic in Kalmyk culture. The Kalmyks provides an original and fascinating perspective on little-known Asiatic people whose history and culture have become intertwined with that of Europe.

Oirat and Kalmyk Identity in the 20th and 21st Century

Oirat and Kalmyk Identity in the 20th and 21st Century
Author: Johannes Reckel
Publisher: Universitätsverlag Göttingen
Total Pages: 492
Release: 2020
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 3863954645

Oirat-Kalmyk are Western Mongols that since the late 14th century stand in opposition to the Eastern Mongols like Khalka, Tümed, Buryat etc. They dominated for hundreds of years the western Central Asian steppes often in a fighting competition with Khazaks, Nogai and other Turkic nomadic tribes. The Dzungar Khanat of the Oirat was destroyed by Manchu China in 1757, but the death throes for the Oirat and Kalmyk community came in the middle 20th century when the limitless steppes became divided between socialist states with closed or at least fixed borders. Different groups of the Oirat-Kalmyk today live in four different states in a diaspora that threatens their common ethnic identity. In recent years borders that had been closed for decades opened again for mutual contacts and the Oirat again are looking for a common identity across borders, an identity that focuses on a common language, script and religion. The Oirat-Kalmyk are embedded in multi-ethnic social structures in which they have developed a great deal of adaptability to the environment as much as a conception of the own identity. This book presents various topics discussed at the international conference on Oirat and Kalmyk Identity in the 20th and 21st century at the Göttingen State- and University Library. The authors investigate Oirat cultural and linguistic heritage from different perspectives such as youth culture, internet language, dances and songs, as well as history, literature, linguistics and religion. The book contributes to the latest research trends in Mongolian and Central Asian Studies and their related disciplines.

Peace Ethology

Peace Ethology
Author: Peter Verbeek
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 368
Release: 2018-05-08
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1118922522

A scholarly collection of timely essays on the behavioral science of peace With contributions from experts representing a wide variety of scholarly fields (behavioral and social sciences, philosophy, environmental science, anthropology and economics), Peace Ethology offers original essays on the most recent research and findings on the topic of the behavioral science of peace. This much-needed volume includes writings that examine four main areas of study: the proximate causation of peace, the developmental aspects of peace, the function and systems of peace and the evolution of peace. The popular belief persists that, by nature, humans are not pre-disposed to peace. However, archeological and paleontological evidence reveals that the vast majority of our time as a species has been spent in small hunter-gatherer bands that are basically peaceful and egalitarian in nature. The text also reveals that most of the earth’s people are living in more peaceful societies than in centuries past. This hopeful compendium of essays: Contains writings from noted experts from a variety of academic studies Offers a social-psychological perspective on the causation of peaceful behavior Includes information on children’s peacekeeping and peacemaking Presents ideas for overcoming social tension between police and civilians Provides the most recent thinking on the behavioral science of peace Written for students and academics of the behavioral and social sciences, Peace Ethology offers scholarly essays on the development, nature, and current state of peace.

Multiethnic Societies of Central Asia and Siberia Represented in Indigenous Oral and Written Literature

Multiethnic Societies of Central Asia and Siberia Represented in Indigenous Oral and Written Literature
Author: Merle Schatz
Publisher: Universitätsverlag Göttingen
Total Pages: 151
Release: 2022
Genre: Folk literature
ISBN: 3863955544

Central Asia and Siberia are characterized by multiethnic societies formed by a patchwork of often small ethnic groups. At the same time large parts of them have been dominated by state languages, especially Russian and Chinese. On a local level the languages of the autochthonous people often play a role parallel to the central national language. The contributions of this conference proceeding follow up on topics such as: What was or is collected and how can it be used under changed conditions in the research landscape, how does it help local ethnic communities to understand and preserve their own culture and language? Do the spatially dispersed but often networked collections support research on the ground? What contribution do these collections make to the local languages and cultures against the backdrop of dwindling attention to endangered groups? These and other questions are discussed against the background of the important role libraries and private collections play for multiethnic societies in often remote regions that are difficult to reach.

Studies in Population Genetics

Studies in Population Genetics
Author: M. Carmen Fusté
Publisher: BoD – Books on Demand
Total Pages: 182
Release: 2012-08-22
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 9535105884

This book deals with central concepts in population genetics, describing the main evolutionary processes that influence the allele frequency distribution and change. The different chapters discuss topics such as population size and structure, migration, inbreeding and interbreeding, mechanisms of extinction and speciation, along with different data techniques and molecular methods used for detecting DNA sequence variation in the study of genetic polymorphisms. Part of the book includes statistical and computational methods commonly used to process population genetics data, which constitute an essential tool for understanding the concepts discussed. The book will be a useful reference for graduate students and researchers working on population genetics, and other related areas including microbiology, genetics, molecular biology, ecology, anthropology and others.

Forensic Biology

Forensic Biology
Author: Richard Li
Publisher: CRC Press
Total Pages: 558
Release: 2015-03-11
Genre: Law
ISBN: 1439889724

Focusing on forensic serology and forensic DNA analysis, this book introduces students to the methods and techniques utilized by forensic biology laboratories. Using schematic illustrations to clarify concepts, this second edition explores the latest DNA profiling tools, contains three new chapters, and provides 200 new images. It also includes new tables for many chapters. Covering the full scope of forensic biology, the book uses an accessible style designed to enhance students education and training so they are prepared, both in the laboratory and in the field.

Sowing the Word

Sowing the Word
Author: Stephen K. Batalden
Publisher: Sheffield Phoenix Press
Total Pages: 396
Release: 2004
Genre: Bible
ISBN: 9781905048083

A Bronze Age Landscape in the Russian Steppes

A Bronze Age Landscape in the Russian Steppes
Author: David W. Anthony
Publisher: Cotsen Institute of Archaeology Press
Total Pages: 537
Release: 2016-12-31
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1938770323

The first English-language monograph that describes seasonal and permanent Late Bronze Age settlements in the Russian steppes, this is the final report of the Samara Valley Project, a US-Russian archaeological investigation conducted between 1995 and 2002. It explores the changing organization and subsistence resources of pastoral steppe economies from the Eneolithic (4500 BC) through the Late Bronze Age (1900-1200 BC) across a steppe-and-river valley landscape in the middle Volga region, with particular attention to the role of agriculture during the unusual episode of sedentary, settled pastoralism that spread across the Eurasian steppes with the Srubnaya and Andronovo cultures (1900-1200 BC). Three astonishing discoveries were made by the SVP archaeologists: agriculture played no role in the LBA diet across the region, a surprise given the settled residential pattern; a unique winter ritual was practiced at Krasnosamarskoe involving dog and wolf sacrifices, possibly related to male initiation ceremonies; and overlapping spheres of obligation, cooperation, and affiliation operated at different scales to integrate groups defined by politics, economics, and ritual behaviors.