%0 Journal Article
%T Siberia on Russian mental maps: The imperial and national space
%A Suboti£¿ Milan
%J Filozofija i Dru£¿tvo
%D 2012
%I Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory, Belgrade
%R 10.2298/fid1202205s
%X Starting from the theoretical problem of understanding the nation-building process within continental empires, this paper investigates the various meanings of ¡®Siberia¡¯ in the Russian imperial and national imagination. Analyzing discursive practices that create various representations of the geographical space, this study shows the changes in Russian perceptions of Siberia from the ¡®alien¡¯ space and the ¡®colony¡¯, to an unalienable part of the national territory (¡®Russian land¡¯ or ¡®homeland¡¯). Tracing the creation of ¡®Russianness¡¯ of Siberia, the author interprets this concept as a part of broader debates about ¡®Russian identity¡¯ and the relationship between ¡®European¡¯ and ¡®Asiatic¡¯ Russia. Therefore, the principal aim of the present study is to examine one of the most important aspects of the process Russia¡¯s transformation from imperial to a ¡®nationalizing State¡¯.
%K Siberia
%K Russia
%K Empire
%K Nation
%K Symbolic geography
%K mental maps
%U http://www.doiserbia.nb.rs/img/doi/0353-5738/2012/0353-57381202205S.pdf