Russia

Russia

Pre-History and Settlement

Several finds of Neolithic Stone-Age tools prove that the Amur and Ussuri regions were already inhabited by human beings during the transition from the Diluvial to the Alluvial period. Among the tools found there are simple hatchets, chisels, spear points, scrapers, and knives, all chipped out of stone (Solovyov, 2001). In addition there were already some ground tools similar to those known from the Neolithic age of North Germany. Further finds from the more advanced Stone Age include coiled pottery similar to that from Europe's corresponding cultural epoch. We get the first historical information about these same regions from old Chinese literature which goes back to the year 800 BC According to this source the eastern part of the Amur and Ussuri regions was inhabited by the Suches, the centre of Manchuria by the Hueis (also called the Hueimai), and the west by the Tonghus. All three peoples (who were subdivided into numerous smaller tribes) are mentioned again later as living in the same areas up to the second century BC. (Paszkiewicz, 1963)

The most recent research on the subject indicates that the Suches and Hueis were the ancient Tungus, and that the Tonghus were the pre-Mongolians. Traces of a Neolithic culture of the latter tribe are distributed over the whole of eastern Mongolia. The Suches and Hueis lived mainly in the forest regions, while the Tonghus preferred the wide open spaces, so that even in the most ancient times the division between the Tungus forest-people and the Mongolian steppe-people was already clearly marked. The Tungus have spread out from northern Manchuria and the Ussuri region (which we must regard as their original native country) over the larger part of East and Central Siberia. In doing so, they pushed the Palaeo-Asiatic people who lived to the north of them and with whom they partly mixed more and more to the north and north-east. The Tungus showed great ability in adjusting themselves to numerous different types of country and to a great variety of different ways of life, making the best of their surroundings and trying to build up their own culture. In the course of time various branches developed along different lines, and today they are generally divided culturally into horse-, reindeer-, and dog-Tungus (Solovyov, 2001).

Most of the Tungus now live in the region of the two eastern tributaries of the Yenissei the Upper and Lower Tunguska which were named after the Tungus. They are also scattered all over the Far Eastern territories, with the sole exception of the extreme north-east, which was used by the Palaeo-Asians as their place of retreat. The advance of the Tungus towards the north had some advantages for the retreating peoples, since it enabled them to adopt many of the Tungus cultural achievements. For instance, it can be assumed that the various Palaeo-Asiatic tribes only learned about raising reindeer from the Tungus.

Moscow: Religion and Politics

Politically, Russia is very strong. its culture and religion is supporting its idelogical ...