The History of Ethnological Study of Old Believers in Belarus

DOI: 10.33876/2311-0546/2022-4/42-58

Abstract

The article presents a historiographic analysis of the works, devoted to the formation and ethnocultural specificity of the Old Believers living in Belarus. The author identifies the main stages in the history of ethnological study of this ethno-­confessional group, characterizes the research methods and reveals the significance of the works. The article attempts to generalize the published research on the topic, arranged in chronological order. A number of little-­known publications are introduced into scientific use. It is concluded that despite the rather large body of research carried out to date, a number of important issues have not been covered yet. The history Old Believers’ settlement in Belarus and the related demographic processes have been
studied rather fragmentarily. The traditional culture of the Old Believers has been studied only superficially. The ethnic and ethnocultural processes of Old Believers in Belarus in the 20th — early 21st centuries have received little attention. There is a notable bias towards studies of Old Believers in the south-­eastern part of the country, while in northern Belarus they are rather poorly studied.