History has shown us that human language, and the media and mechanisms used to record it, are changeable. The languages of Uzbek and Kazakh are currently experiencing such transformation in the...Show moreHistory has shown us that human language, and the media and mechanisms used to record it, are changeable. The languages of Uzbek and Kazakh are currently experiencing such transformation in the form of an alphabet transition, in both cases from Cyrillic to the Latin alphabet. Uzbekistan officially commenced this reform in the early 1990s, with Kazakhstan following suit in 2017. Historically, both nations have switched alphabets on several occasions. Uzbekistan’s most recent attempt is widely considered a failure due to the length of time already involved, alongside the fact that it still remains far from complete. An examination of the shortcomings with Uzbekistan’s reform allows us to chronicle key factors involved in facilitating successful change; public opinion, education, politics, and linguistics. This thesis explores those factors within the Kazakhstani context through primary research. A survey was created with questions relating to the four factors and was taken by seventy-five respondents consisting of Kazakhstanis, Kazakh speakers, and several experts in the field of linguistics and alphabet reform. Quantitative and qualitative data was sought and compared to prior scholarship concerning Uzbekistan’s reform, in order to determine the likelihood that Kazakhstan’s reform would be more successful. Kazakhstan’s policymakers have no doubt attempted to learn from Uzbekistan’s mistakes. However, complications caused by COVID-19, in addition to a lack of public information coming from the government as well as an incomplete version of the Kazakh Latin alphabet could lead to Kazakhstan’s alphabet reform being dragged out over a long period of time, implying a potential failure akin to Uzbekistan’s. However, the study also determined that recently-elected Kazakhstani President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev is dedicated to completing the reform in a conscientious and unhurried manner, thereby increasing Kazakhstan’s chances of successful Latinization. Serbia’s system of synchronic digraphia, officially utilizing both the Latin and Cyrillic alphabets, is a potential failsafe – or solution – in the outcome of a failed reform.Show less
The political history and lived experience of Russians in the Baltic states of Latvia and Estonia plausibly constitutes an historic example of civic Othering. The hybrid, multi-layered identities...Show moreThe political history and lived experience of Russians in the Baltic states of Latvia and Estonia plausibly constitutes an historic example of civic Othering. The hybrid, multi-layered identities and subjective perceptions of nationality amongst these communities have been covered by academic research. At the same time, Latvia and Estonia have engaged in the political dialogue of ‘Europeanization’ as Member States of the European Union, as part of a top-down process to understand and, at times, promote a common ‘European identity’, which has also been frequent analyzed and discussed in academic literature. While both these aspects of research have been extensive, there has been less contemporary investigation at their crossroads: European identity amongst Russians in Estonia and Latvia. This paper performs a ‘research synthesis’ type of meta-analysis on academic and policy papers to shed light on this potential gap between academic literature and policy research. Its conclusions have implications for researchers and practitioners of both kinds, as well as grounds to consider the gap as a form of ‘methodological Othering’ itself.Show less
In this thesis, it is researched how local initiatives regarding national identity in the city of Lida relate to the official political rhetoric about national identity. The ideas of Belarus as a...Show moreIn this thesis, it is researched how local initiatives regarding national identity in the city of Lida relate to the official political rhetoric about national identity. The ideas of Belarus as a European nation, Belarus as a neutral and self-sufficient nation and Belarus as a geopolitically predetermined nation are used as a framework in which the official political rhetoric and local initiatives in Lida are analysed. The conclusion of the thesis is that there is a discrepancy in Belarusian society regarding the official form of national identity and the local form present in Lida's society.Show less
This thesis analyzes the representation of Kazakhstan as a multiethnic nation in contemporary Kazakhstani cinema. Although much has been made of how the state has attempted to build the image of...Show moreThis thesis analyzes the representation of Kazakhstan as a multiethnic nation in contemporary Kazakhstani cinema. Although much has been made of how the state has attempted to build the image of Kazakhstan as inherently multiethnic, in focusing on film, this thesis hopes to go some way to exploring the representation of Kazakhstani mnogonational'nost' (multinational-ness) at the popular level. In doing so, the thesis argues that there are several competing representations of 'multiethnic Kazakhstan'. One, arguably the more prominent, represents Kazakhstani mnogonational'nost' in a totalized, essentialized and depoliticized manner reminiscent of Soviet categories of nationality. Other emerging representations, meanwhile, appear to offer more complexity.Show less
This research examines whether Russia would rather conduct an offensive or a defensive military action in the Baltic states. In order to examine this, the research employs a combined AHP-SWOT...Show moreThis research examines whether Russia would rather conduct an offensive or a defensive military action in the Baltic states. In order to examine this, the research employs a combined AHP-SWOT analysis. This analysis examines Russia's military capabilities, the operational environment in the Baltic states and the combination of the two.Show less
This master thesis focusses on four internationally acclaimed Russian films, namely The Major (Major, 2013) and The Fool (Durak, 2014) by Yuri Bykov, and Leviathan (Leviafan, 2014) and Loveless ...Show moreThis master thesis focusses on four internationally acclaimed Russian films, namely The Major (Major, 2013) and The Fool (Durak, 2014) by Yuri Bykov, and Leviathan (Leviafan, 2014) and Loveless (Nelyubov’, 2017) by Andrei Zvyagintsev. These films have been subject of controversy within Russia, and have often been associated with chernukha; a naturalistic, dark and cynic trend that first appeared in public discourse during the late 1980s. By analysing these four films and discussing the public debate surrounding them, this thesis focusses on the continuity and discontinuity in both socio-critical Russian films and the criticism on these films.Show less
This thesis seeks to analyse the institutional framework guiding Russia’s growing interest in Arctic development. In particular, the research aimed to answer the question: How much agency do the...Show moreThis thesis seeks to analyse the institutional framework guiding Russia’s growing interest in Arctic development. In particular, the research aimed to answer the question: How much agency do the constituent entities of the Russian Federation have in the socio-economic development of the Arctic? The focus of the research is on transport infrastructure, the reason being that Arctic development hinges on the creation of an effective transport system so that other, more lucrative economic interests can be accessed and exploited. The research engaged with the legislative and strategic documents of both the federal authorities and the regions through a doctrinal analysis of policy mechanisms. The thesis contends that regions do have significant agency in the development of transport infrastructure, in so far as said transport infrastructure forms a part of the Support Zone mechanism. In doing so, the thesis shows that the Arctic regions enjoy the independence necessary to identify areas of economic interest in their regions, formulate a cluster of development projects, implement a corresponding program, and monitor the program’s progress. Additionally, the thesis was able to identify the limits of regional agency, which exist depending on the importance of a given socio-economic development project to the federal authorities. We see this determinant in practice in the hierarchical distinction between the Northern Sea Route and the land-based transport systems (including river and air transport). Due to the geopolitical potential of the Northern Sea Route, it occupies a place of supreme importance in Arctic development, and is therefore governed by the Centre. In contrast, land-based transport systems are principally of national, and economic importance, and thus their development is delegated to the regions.Show less
This analysis seeks to find out whether state support measures have resulted in increased inequality in the Russian agricultural sector in the last 10 years. Based on firm-level data, several...Show moreThis analysis seeks to find out whether state support measures have resulted in increased inequality in the Russian agricultural sector in the last 10 years. Based on firm-level data, several measures of inequality are constructed in section 4. All measures point to an increase in industry concentration, particularly in the livestock subsector. Several factors which may offer possible explanations for this increase are presented in section 3: stakeholders have a preference for larger farms, transaction costs for land and markets were higher for smaller farmers, and agricultural support measures give more support to larger farms. Lastly, the top 5 agroholdings in Russia were described. These holdings had particular advantages: special access to regular state support, excellent access to capital, and alternative state support in quasi-legal ways.Show less
Since the Euromaidan uprising of 2013-2014, Ukrainian political leaders have made serious commitments to strengthening ties between Ukraine and the EU, and this is one of the main guiding...Show moreSince the Euromaidan uprising of 2013-2014, Ukrainian political leaders have made serious commitments to strengthening ties between Ukraine and the EU, and this is one of the main guiding principles for contemporary Ukrainian politics. This thesis seeks to understand how a pro-European attitude is reflected in the everyday, private living space of ordinary Ukrainians, which was and often still is heavily influenced by the Soviet past, but is moving toward Europe along with the rest of Ukrainian society. This thesis explores what the ‘European life’ means for Ukrainians living in Kyiv, and aims to understand how the generally pro-European political orientation in Ukraine is reflected in the construction of new housing and the desires Ukrainians have for their living space.Show less
First Ladies are often misunderstood, in particular those of the Soviet era. This thesis focusses on the life of Raisa Gorbacheva, the only First Lady the Soviet Union ever knew, her life before...Show moreFirst Ladies are often misunderstood, in particular those of the Soviet era. This thesis focusses on the life of Raisa Gorbacheva, the only First Lady the Soviet Union ever knew, her life before and after becoming the First Lady and the ways in which she was percieved. Whereas Gorbacheva was loved in the West, she was hated by her own people. This phenomenon is explained through an extensive analysis of the dominant feminine ideal throughout the Soviet period.Show less
The present thesis addresses the local memory of the 2nd of May events in Odesa, Ukraine, a culmination of fights between supporters and opponents of the Maidan government that obtained power in...Show moreThe present thesis addresses the local memory of the 2nd of May events in Odesa, Ukraine, a culmination of fights between supporters and opponents of the Maidan government that obtained power in February 2014. The respective street clashes in Odesa killed six individuals, while 42 lost their lives in a fire in the Trade Union Building. At the surface, these clashes were a contraposition between groupings favoring a Ukrainian nationalistic vector and their opponents desiring pro-Russian policies. However, the local element of these clashes seems to transcend this binary approach. Situated in memory theory, the present thesis addresses the way the memory of these events among Odesans fits into the spectrum spanned by a pro-Ukrainian and a pro-Russian frame of interpreting history. Through a month of field work, during which 41 semi-structured interviews were conducted with Odesans, the thesis answers the central research question: “How do individual and collective memory regarding the 2nd of May events in Odesa interact?”. The thesis identifies four narratives regarding the 2nd of May events: a pro-Ukrainian, an ‘old-Odesan’, an apolitical, and a pro-Russian narrative. Analysis of these narratives provides the following conclusions. Firstly, the use of history as an argument to explain for the present varied widely. Some built their perception of the present events on analogies to events dating to World War II, while others situate their memory more in relation to contemporary events. Secondly, the absence of an authoritative source of information regarding the 2nd of May events is identified, leading to a construction of the interviewees’ memory on personal accounts and hearsays from others. This has resulted in wildly divergent accounts and theories of what happened on the respective day. Thirdly, the specific character of the 2nd of May events, which consisted of two largely disjunct sets of events, is argued to facilitate the inclusion of narratives regarding these events into coherent storylines for both conflicting sides. Fourthly, the different layers of identification that are expressed through the different narratives are analyzed. It is argued that shared belief systems account for shared memories in a more overarching way than membership of specific social groups does. The negotiation of the city of Odesa throughout the different narratives is analyzed in a closing argument.Show less
