Vol 15, No 4 (2023)

The Mongolian peoples traditionally associated crucial events and processes with the name of Genghis Khan. Nonetheless, that name acquired a nominal significance in one sphere, specifically as a title or an auxiliary name to the first, where it became a special name. The Genghis Khan name itself held a holy and tabooed implication that guided its subsequent realization. The study aims to investigate the impact of religion on the utilisation of Genghis Khan’s title by the Mongolian leaders during the XVII- XVIII centuries. The study focuses on two leaders of Mongolian peoples, the Chakhar in the east and the Oirat-Hoshut in the west, to examine the uniformity and diversity of interpreting and implementing this name as a title. They were Ligdan and Lkhavzan, with Ligdan being a direct descendant of Genghis Khan and Lkhavzan was considered to be a descendant of Khabutu, the younger brother of Genghis Khan. The author came to the following conclusions: such use of Genghis Khan’s name became possible due to the influence of a number of factors that actualised Genghis Khan’s name: 1) the struggle against separatism under the influence of external force; 2) the desire to “start anew”, to lead a “new era of prosperity”; 3) the need to identify oneself as a true leader under the increasing role of religion. The scientific contribution is to determine the multidimensional meaning of Genghis Khan’s name; its use as a title had common grounds and characteristics, and in general had the expected (albeit in the short term) results.

The deterioration of political and ideological ties between China and the Soviet Union, known as the Sino-Soviet split, is considered a pivotal moment in Cold War history. Extensive scholarly study has been conducted over the past few decades to uncover its causes, but researchers have yet to reach a consensus. This study explores the views of Russian and Western academics regarding the origins of the communist superpowers’ split, with an emphasis on the part played by ideological, geopolitical, and subjective factors. The research findings indicate that the breakdown of their relationship cannot be attributed to a singular cause; rather, a multitude of factors, such as ideological differences, geopolitical interests, and interpersonal dynamics, interacted in a complex manner. Authors from both Russia and the West offer insightful accounts of the causes of the conflict. By working in concert, their differing perspectives create a thorough, inclusive and reliable narrative of how the division came about. In light of ongoing tensions between the US, China and Russia, a comprehensive understanding of the causes of the Sino-Soviet split provides valuable insights into the current state of international politics.

This study deals with the German community in Korea between the conclusion of Korea’s first international treaties in the early 1880s and the country’s annexation by the Japanese Empire in 1910 in the context of transnational and global history. In the decades around 1900 the circulation of people, ideas, goods and capital beyond and across the national borders increased. The Korean peninsula has gradually integrated into global economic and political processes. The result of it became the formation of the European community in Joseon (Choson). The German community in Korea made up of diplomats, foreign experts hired by the Korean government as well as merchants and missionaries. They were individuals who defined themselves as bourgeois (or middle-class) who actively interacted with representatives of the Korean elites, becoming agents of an imperialist policy in East Asia. German citizens influenced the development of German-Korean relations contributing into the cultural dialogue between the two countries and the subsequent modernization of Joseon.

This paper, for the first time in Russian historiography, provides information on the 6th-10th centuries history of Dagestan on the basis of translation, commentary and comparative analysis of excerpts in relation to the history of Caucasian peoples from AbūʿUbayd al-Bakrī’s (d.1094) Kitāb al-masālik wa-al-mamālik (A Book of Routes and Countries). This work presents a brief description of different polities: indicating trade routes, distances between towns etc. sort of the administrative directory. Kitāb al-masālik wa-al-mamālik is considered as one of the important sources on south-western and north-western Africa history, particularly, during the period of the Almoravids’ reign (1040-1147). As for the information about the Caucasus given by al-Bakri so it’s largely not original. The paper discusses the main aspects of al-Bakrī’s life and scholarly activities who was an expert in Islamic history and Arabic geography. He particularly outlines the history of different Caucasian polities like Derbent; describes the Caspian sea; gives detailed list of routes and distance between polities etc. Moreover, I compared some reports on Dagestan from Muruj az-zahab and Kitab at-tanbih by al-Mas‘udi and al-Bakrī’s work in order to find out whether the origin of the material is the same.

The significance of the topic under study is due to substantial advancements in Sino-Russian military cooperation amid the 2014 Ukrainian crisis and Russia’s deteriorating relations with the West. After the USSR collapse, Sino-Russian military relations and cooperation have significantly expanded through further development of form and content. Sino-Russian military diplomacy is playing an important part in comprehensive strategic partnership and coordination in the international arena. Since the onset of crisis in Ukraine in 2014, a confrontation have escalated between Russia and many Western countries, which indirectly prompted Russia’s pivot to Asia. In this context, military cooperation between China and Russia is getting increasingly closer. The purpose of this study is to clarify the state and prospects of Sino-Russian relations in the sphere of military diplomacy in the period between 2014 to 2022, as reflected on the pages the People`s Daily newspaper. A general analysis of the articles made it possible to identify major areas of cooperation and principal features of interaction in this sphere.

The study discusses the results of the excavations and the studies of the burial complexes of two local variants of the catacomb culture of the Middle Bronze Age of the Northwestern Caspian Sea region in the Remontnoye district (Rostov oblast). Being based on a comparative analysis, the author argues the validity of the allocation of local variants of catacomb culture - Eastern and Western that were adjacent to each other and entered into cultural contact. It is manifested in the use of similar tools, weapons, jewelry and dishes decorated in the same style but with the allocation of the local features of production technology figuration. According to the author, these features are the hallmark for determining the cultural identity of the burials of the Manych catacomb cultures.