Alaskan Russian: Cultural and Historical Trace of the Russian Expansion in North America

Abstract

The article analyzes approaches to creating a chronology of Russia’s exploration of Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, highlights historical periods relevant for the main purpose of our research. The goal is to describe the Russian language as a dynamic and integral part of a unique culture formed in the Creole communities, uniting the paternal culture of Russian colonists and the maternal cultures of the indigenous population. This culture lies in the center of social interactions and makes its core. The issue is topical for the present study, since it contributes to our understanding of the phenomena of the interaction of cultures. The Russian period of Alaska is recognized by researchers, both domestic and international, as an important and special epoch in the life of the American state, an epoch which to a great extent determined its history. Alaskan Russian was an intermediary language for the people from the continent and the native speakers of indigenous languages. It was used in communication until the middle of the 20th century. At the moment, the Alaskan Russian language exists as a cultural artifact: to a certain extent, it is known by a few descendants of Creoles of very advanced age. The purpose of this study is to create a historical context of the formation of the Alaskan Russian language and to describe conditions for its uprise and preservation on the territory of Russian America. We show that the existence of permanent functional settlements in which Russian language was spoken – in the family, in the community, and for trade and professional contacts – determined consolidation of the Russian language, in a number of places in Alaska up to the middle of the XX century. The data presented in the article confirm that the Orthodox tradition and the Russian language that have survived to this day are the main features of Russia’s long-term cultural influence in Alaska. The study used both universal scientific methods and special methods of historical research determined by the specifics of the problem, namely: the problem-chronological method, the method of comparative analysis, the systematic method. Exploring the influence of language on social life, the author adheres to the methods of linguistic anthropology and historical anthropology