MAPPING THE TRADITIONAL DRESS TYPES OF SOUTHWESTERN SIBERIAN OLD BELIEVERS (late 1800s–early 1900s)

Abstract

This article addresses the traditional domestic clothing of various groups of southwestern Siberian Old Believers. Professing the same Priestless Old Belief, they came from various parts of European Russia (“Poles”, Belarusian “Muscovites”, Kerzhaks, etc.). The study is based on the sarafan set of women's wear representing the most typical element of the traditional Russian apparel. Sarafan features vary across populations, making it possible to identify separate ethnic groups and indicate their possible sources of migration. Mapping the ethnological data collected during field studies has shown significant cultural variability of Old Believer groups, and their affinity to either northeastern or northwestern Russian traditions. Ethno-cultural diversity was maintained owing to the stability of marriage circles until the 1920s.