Purpose. This paper shows some results of implementing e-Learning in Novosibirsk State University. The project «Terra Prehistorica. Archaeology online» is a series of webinars offering free professional development opportunities for students, young researchers and archaeologists seeking to enhance their skills or knowledge. It is a collaborative project of the Science and educational center «New archaeology», Department of Archaeology and Ethnography (Novosibirsk State University) and the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of SB RAS. The project «Terra Prehistorica» was launched in 2015. For two years, we have arranged more than 30 lectures of famous archaeologists from around the world (Russia, France, Japan, USA, Germany, Canada, etc.). Currently the total audience counts over 500 viewers from Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Korea, United Kingdom, France, Poland, etc. This project includes lectures for students as a part of their educational program, open lectures and courses of lectures, broadcast of conferences and workshops. We use GoToWebinar for broadcasting. This is a simple and handy application that can demonstrate slideshow presentations where images are presented to the audience, and markup tools and a remote mouse pointer are used to engage the audience while the presenter discusses the slide content; live or streaming video; meeting recordings; text chat and desktop sharing where participants can view anything the presenters currently show on their screen. Such engaging events help us keep up to date on developments in archaeology and anthropology with the help of leading experts in archaeology and allied sciences. It is a good opportunity to enhance skills and knowledge base for students who chose archaeology as a specialty and for online participants. Results . We developed a project including free webinars available to anyone interested in the newest results of investigation in archaeology. The experience of implementing this project shows that such a format is effective enough to enhance skills in archaeological and multidisciplinary investigations. Conclusion . During the period of two years while implementing the project «Terra Prehistorica. Archeology online», we observe an increase in the educational level of students (BA, MA and PhD). The courses of online lectures allow drawing attention to the key problems in archaeology and ways of their solution as well as getting acquainted with the latest research and results of archaeological and multidisciplinary investigations. The accumulated experience in organizing lectures in the form of webinars facilitates the development of online course for training archaeologists at NSU.

Purpose. One of the key rules in the organization of practices is to create conditions for students to have the opportunity to study. The question arises: how much is this understood (accepted) by student interns? The article was prepared on the basis of reports on field archaeological practices submitted by students of Novosibirsk and Tomsk State Universities, which were held on the basis of West Siberian and Toguchin detachments. We chose archaeological practice as the subject matter because archaeological practice completes the first year of studying at university, and it is a unique outcome and an opportunity to get some results and identify an educational route for the future. Archaeological practice has not yet become the subject of close study of researchers, as well as other practices. The main tasks formulated by the head of the archaeological practice to students are reduced to three provisions: 1. To consolidate, deepen, expand knowledge on archeology and history of Siberia learnt at lectures and seminars, show the diversity of archaeological sources; 2. To lay the foundations of professional skills and organization of work in the archaeological expedition, field and financial documentation, primary cameral processing of materials, field restoration and conser vation of findings, preliminary interpretation of the data; 3. To develop professional skills that facilitate the formation of interns as independent researchers. Results. In their practice reports, freshmen indicate the tasks that they faced. All noted that the first task had been successfully accomplished. It can be stressed that students build additional knowledge gained in practice into the system of knowledge that resulted from the training in the first year; and that a backlog for future practices is formed. The success of the second task was also stated. The vast majority of trainees had a field archaeological experience for the first time, and in the shortest possible time they mastered many practical skills that they had not previously had. The implementation of the third task in the reports was not as clear as the first two. Many students either did not reflect the results of its implementation, or limited the description to some general phrases. Conclusion. Bearing in mind that «practice should not only be a place for approbation of abilities, but also a platform for problematizing future professional activity», the latter point requires close attention and further work, as we conclude from the reports of the trainee students.

Russian specialist literature is not abundant in research investigating the technologies for jade treatment. Foreign historiography explores this aspect much better. Researchers describe their experiments, apply use-wear analysis and more broadly traceology (studies of both aspects, not only use-wear but also technological evidences). However, these studies tend to concentrate on the features of processing found on certain archaeological items. Basic techniques and possibilities for modifying such raw material as jade, which is quite difficult to process, are not described in details even in special research involving experiment. This paper gives some results of experimental and traceological studies of Transbaikalian raw material, in particular jade, from the deposit Ulan-Khada. We recorded characteristics of traces on the experimental pieces processed by us stage by stage. This information allows us to understand the ways and mechanisms of jade surface treatment in a macro- and micro scale. Such approach can help explain the major principles of processing such raw material as jade, which is rigid enough and difficult to transform, and to identify the simplest tools used for jade processing in ancient times. During our experiments we used different techniques, such as grinding, polishing, sawing and drilling with different tools, movements and supplementary means, such as abrasive. In every case of the experimental series we registered not only every change of the general form of the item but also traceological features in a macro- and micro scale. Another aim was to register labor costs at every stage of treating the raw material. With such information available, we can talk about different phases of processing the material and the degree of effectiveness of the simplest tools that could be used for jade treatment from the Neolithic period onwards or, maybe, even earlier. Our research makes it possible to compare the archaeological items available with our traceological samples at different stages of the process. Purpose . The purpose of the present research is to show the simplest ways of jade treatment. It is important for understanding the techniques used for producing the items discovered at the sites of Transbaikalia and the Far East during the period from Neolithic to Middle Age. This work helps to reveal different stages of treating raw material and to estimate approximately the amount of time spent on one jade piece. Results . During the series of experiments we realized that certain operations in jade treatment, such as making wide holes, required the use of special instruments. On the other hand, simpler operations, such as sawing, drilling, grinding and polishing, could be done with the simplest tools. The latter operations do not require special skills. Conclusion . Our experiments show that even without special mechanisms or sophisticated instruments people could process such special and hard raw material as jade as early as the Neolithic period. Most operations could be performed in a short time, for example, not more than one day of continuous work, and resulted in a finished product.

Purpose. The Neolithic sites of the Baraba forest-steppe have always been in the focus of the archaeological scientific community. In the current millennium, the study of the Neolithic settlements and cemeteries significantly enriched the science with new, sometimes completely unexpected discoveries, such as a version that some artifacts found in the area belong to the Artynskaya culture, singled out by L. L Kosinskaya, or a discovery of a series of burial complexes of developed Neolithic with original funeral practice at Vengerovo-2A and Avtodrom-1 sites, etc. The concept of historical and cultural development in the region started to develop at a new level. In this respect, we reviewed the descriptions of the sites with flat-bottomed Neolithic ceramics, which their discoverers had identified as complexes of the Boborykinskaya culture. Our goal was to prove that the identification was misleading. Results. We can summarise that the Neolithic complex at the time-based and multicultural site Tartas-1 was opened as a result of using solid excavations with the orientation toward magnetic surveying. The complex includes two structures and a set of deep and large in diameter pits used probably for sifting fish stocks and waterfowl. In construction number 6, a thermo-technical structure used as a smokehouse was fixed. Fragments of ceramics and three vessels with flat-bottomed morphology of their form and ornamentation, similar to dishes from Avtodrom-2/2, were found in residential structures and pits. In order to date and describe the artifacts in more details, we used radiocarbon analysis. Eight measurements were taken. The dates were obtained by analyzing the bones of animals. All samples were taken from the stratigraphically flawless cultural horizons of both buildings and pits. The earliest were three indicators referring to the system of pits number 991. According to Sigma 1, the first is determined within 7063-6838 years BC, the second - 7025-6710 years BC, and the third - 6658-6596 years BC. If we focus on Sigma 2, all three dates have a common ground. Four more dates show very close indicators, and according to sigma 2 they are correlated. For structure 7, the first horizon in Sigma 1 shows the exponents of 6470-6446 years BC, the second - 6477-6260 years BC, and the third horizon dates back to 6375-6260 years BC. For pit number 1220, dates of 6240-6108 BC were obtained. A bone sample taken from the filling of dwelling number 6 gave a date of 5977-5888 years BC, according to Sigma 1. Thus, in terms of dates, all 8 samples taken from the complex under investigation fit within the limits of the 7^th millennium BC, touching the boundaries of the 6^th and 8^th millennium BC. At Vengerovo-2, a sample of the animal bone from the Neolithic pit was dated by Sigma 1 as 6426-6385 years BC, and according to Sigma 2 - 6440-6266 years BC. This series of radiocarbon dates proved to be incomparable with the dating of similar ceramics from the Avtodrom-2/2 settlement obtained by direct dating: the latter shows an age of 5460 ± 100; 5967 ± 100; 5884 ± 100 BP. Their calibrated values range between the last quarter of the 6^th and the middle of the 5^th millennium BC. Conclusion. The complex with flat-bottomed dishes of the Tartas-1 site belongs to the earliest stage of the Neolithic period and can be qualified as the early Neolithic of the Baraba forest-steppe. This conclusion coincides with the chronological evaluation of the Neolithic monuments in West Siberian North. Calibrated radiocarbon dates place our group of early Neolithic sites within the range between the end of the 7^th and the first half of the 6^th millennium BC. In general, Neolithic of Western Siberia (taiga and forest-steppe zone) with flat-bottomed ceramics should be assessed as a phenomenon of a general historical and stadial nature. Its origin is considered autochthonous.

It has been considered for a long time that rock art discovered at open-air sites cannot be attributed to the Upper Paleolithic because such ancient petroglyphs could not resist the processes of erosion and eolation. After some significant open-air sites in Western Europe were reliably dated and attributed to the Upper Paleolithic, there is no doubt that open-air rock art of prehistoric period could persist, and what is discovered nowadays may well belong to that period. New research of the most ancient petroglyphs of the Tsagaan-Salaa and Baga-Oigur, located on the border with the Ukok plateau (Russia), helps to compare the petroglyphs discovered on the site with the previously known and new petroglyphs of archaic appearance, such as figures of mammoths, horses, bulls, rams, etc. The petroglyphs were examined using the methods of mapping, copying and traceological study where possible. The images of animals analyzed demonstrate similar traits with the petroglyphs of the Kalgutinsky Rudnik (on the Ukok plateau). According to our concept, this layer of petroglyphs is the most ancient for Altai and refers to the end of the Upper Paleolithic. Purpose. The field research on the border with the Ukok plateau (Russia) was held with the aim of obtaining comparative data on the most ancient petroglyphs of the Tsagaan-Salaa and Baga-Oigur, which are very similar to the figures of animals from the site of the Kalgutinsky Rudnik (on the Ukok plateau) in their style and the method of carving. We introduce materials of rock art of the earliest period on this territory and analyze similar traits in style and technology of carving petroglyphs on the border of Mongolian and Russian Altai. Results. We observe a great similarity between stylistic and technological characteristics of the earliest petroglyphs in Russian and Mongolian Altai discovered at the sites located as far as 20 km away. We discovered a series of figures made in the same specific technique of grinding and superficial pecking as some petroglyphs discovered recently at the site of Kalgutinsky Rudnik (on the Ukok plateau). The previously known data on the earliest rock art have been enriched with new engravings which obviously represent Pleistocene fauna, such as mammoths and rhinoceros, and some images of horses which have archaic appearance as well. Conclusion. Our results support the concept of academician A.P. Okladnikov on the Central-Asian province being the birthplace of prehistoric rock art of Upper Paleolithic and add new valuable arguments to the discussion on the issue.

Purpose. Modern field archaeological studies allow recording a large number of different burning traces: fireplaces, combustion features, hearths, etc. There is a problem of determining the genesis of these objects during excavation and desktop processing of materials. Burning traces from the fires of ancient man and burnt stumps can seem outwardly similar when discovered at the excavation site. Analytical and experimental studies have shown that the traces of burning differ in the thickness of filling, where the thickness from 5 to 15 cm can be a «dividing line» between the controlled and permanent use of fire. Our monitoring of the buried evidences of forest fires has shown that burning traces of burnt stumps and other object have the filling depth of about 2-5 cm. The purpose of this study is to verify the thickness of filling as a differential feature. The subject matter of the study is to identify the signs associated with the thickness of filling, provide the analysis of their interrelations, and give the definition of «threshold requirement». This was done by means of statistical analysis on a wide range of objects. Substantial archival sources were involved in this study. Results. We conducted statistical analysis of 220 burning traces in order to verify our assumption. The objects were identified in 19 settlements of Neolithic, Bronze and Early Iron Age in the Northern Angara region. We established interrelationships between individual morphometric features of the samples and determined that the filling depth correlates with the angle compliance coefficient and lamination of filling. The use of statistical methods has made it possible to determine the «threshold requirement» for differentiating the objects under study. The traces of controlled use of fire have a multilayered filling capacity of more than 9 cm and an angular compliance coefficient of more than 0.6. The traces of burning with a fill depth of less than 9 cm and an angular matching coefficient of less than 0.6 are interpreted as traces of uncontrolled use of fire, which indicates that no external influence was exerted on the process of combustion. Conclusion. Presently, archaeology faces issues of interpreting the use of fire by man in antiquity. As our research shows, they can be solved by a comprehensive study of the burning traces that can be differentiated into traces of controlled and uncontrolled use of fire identified with instrumental methods. We can study combustion features by methods of statistical analysis, verify the hypotheses on the nature of burning traces at a certain archaeological site and reconstruct individual pyrotechnic devices. The results of statistical analysis are applied to the interpretation of combustion features. An unambiguous assessment study of combustion features is impossible if we have not obtained all the necessary measurements.

Purpose. The early Iron Age cultures of Western Siberia are characterized by well-developed metal working with highly specialized foundry. There was a wide range of products made, and they had to keep up to certain standards. Among findings, castings of one form or those produced after one model are extremely rare, but the stability of production traditions and decorative techniques of this period presupposes that the production was standardized. This contradiction exists because of insufficient information on molding and casting foundry equipment in most cultures of the region. We aimed at identifying the attributes of standardization in foundry production and the level of specialization in bronze casting in the Bol’sherechye culture of the early Iron Age in Western Siberia. Results. Complex analysis of the materials belonging to the Bol’sherechye culture revealed indirect signs that massive bronze production existed during that period. One of the evidences is the discovery of a bronze casting model of a hatchet hummer in the Novosibirsk Ob’ Region. According to the results of trace evidence analysis, this product was manufactured using a combined model including plastic (wax) and hard (metal and wooden) parts. In general, metal foundry models were typically used while producing large series of castings as otherwise their production would not be profitable. Another sign of replicating is the fact of our finding a virtually identical hatchet hummer at the Bol’sherechye burial ground Novyi Sharap-2. We conclude that similar techniques and an equivalent set of instruments were used in manufacturing these products. Their similarity is so significant that we assume that they were made according to the same model, in the same workshop and, possibly, by one master. It should be noted that Bol’sherechye casters used highly professional models designed for large series of castings. Another evidence of bronze casting production oriented to the mass-market is our finding of castings from the Upper Ob’ region made in one form or after one model. One of them comes from the Novyi Sharap-2 burial ground, the second was found at the Novoaltaisk burial ground, located 300 km upstream of the Ob’ River. Both are dated as the 5-4^th centuries BC. Conclusion. All the findings of the serial production of foundry in the Bol’sherechye culture discovered are dated within the 5-4^th centuries BC. Apparently, there were workshops focused on the production of large series of highly elaborated castings, which served large groups of consumers, and they were located on the territory where this culture was spread during that period. Products were transported from those workshops many hundred kilometers away, which suggests the presence of an extensive trade network. One of the possible areas where production centers could be localized was the zone of pine forests along the Ob River, which was the main traffic waterway of the region.

Purpose. We describe the technology of thin-walled casting of the «blind» bronze celt bush, which was different from the Bronze Age celts. This technology had been developed in the Early Iron Age in Siberia. The celts we studied differed in the way of fastening the stoppers on the core, as a result of which they had through holes on their wide edges. Due to peculiarities of the casting technology, the core of the celt was almost always destroyed after casting. Therefore, morphological analysis of this part of the mold is impossible. The analysis of museum collections and published materials made it possible to reveal a variety of incisions, protrusions, incisions, etc., on inner walls of the celt bush, which allows us to expand our understanding of casting production and reveal some morphological features of the core. Results. Dozens of diverse features, 6 types of internal design of the bush and more than 20 variants of making cores were distinguished by the analysis of more than 300 items of bronze celts from the territory of Western and Middle Siberia. Morphological analysis is used as the basis of classification as it formalizes the characteristics of the object under study. The classification scheme is divided into 4 taxonomic clusters (cells): group, type, subtype, variant. The lower stage of the classification pyramid contains the maximum set of options for the internal structure of the bush. There are five special features of the celt bush among the products of the Early Iron Age from the territory of Siberia: «spiked» protrusions (at the bottom of the bushing), transverse partition, «corner», «skids» located on wide walls plus a combination of features. For several specimens of the celts, several techniques were noted applied at once (depression + incision). This allowed us to distinguish the «combined» method for the design of the core. Conclusion. We managed to isolate features typical for a certain territory or having a territorial character. Such features as «corner» and «spiked» protrusions are found only on the products of Middle Siberia. We identified the continuity of some technological methods used in manufacturing a hollow bush. Thus, the transverse septum, which is fixed as a feature of the West Siberian metallurgical tradition, appears on Tagar products. Using the typology presented, we can draw conclusions not only about the presence of established traditions of bronze casting production in a certain region, but also about the existence of masters who used non-standard approaches in manufacturing. This, in turn, is a great marker. The ratio of the availability of products with a «clean» bush and the presence of additional elements in it does not exceed 10%. This phenomenon seems to us not only a cultural phenomenon, but an overall technological response to a specific need or problem related to manufacturing technology.

Purpose. We considered archaeological findings of quite uncommon objects of armament and military equipment discovered in the area of medieval ancient settlement Shelji or Sadyr-Korgon. This medieval archaeological site is located in the Talas Valley of Kyrgyzstan. Results. The items found include a curved iron plug with a chain fragment attached to it, debris of an iron axe and an iron hook of quiver among several other archaeological findings. All these objects of armament and military equipment were found at different times on the surface of that ancient settlement by schoolboys from Kyzyl-Adyr Village in the Talas Region of the Kyrgyz Republic. These archaeological findings are kept at the moment in the school museum, which is located in the secondary school in this village. We described these objects and traced the spread of analogous findings among archaeological items discovered during excavations and gathered on contiguous territories of the Central Asian region. We used traced analogies to define the chronology and cultural identity of these archaeological findings of the ancient settlement Shelji. The iron plug with a torn chain might have served as a top of a handle; it is fastened to that chain with an iron fighting weight and flail. This finding of a deformed iron plug with a fragment of chain can be dated by the era of the Late Middle Ages. There are two fragments of the same iron battle-axe that had a sharp iron back and narrow elongated wedge with a sharp blade discovered among the findings in Shelji. Another finding was an iron hook that could be hung to a quiver strap. Conclusion. These objects of armament and military equipment, namely the battle-axe and a quiver hook, can be related to the complex of armament and military equipment of the population of Tian Shan Region in the era of the High Middle Ages. The studied objects of and military equipment allow us to widen the concepts about military science of medieval population of Tian Shan available at the moment. The considered in the article archaeological findings, including fragments of the battle-axe, the hook for suspension of quiver and the iron plug with a chain should be related to the time of the medieval city of Shelji, that was a significant trade center on the territory of Central Asia in the valley of the Talas River. Merchant caravans delivered goods from that ancient settlement to several Turkic and Mongolian people, who populated the steppe areas of Inner Asia, including the Sayan and Altai Mountains and southern regions of Western Siberia.

Purpose. We considered a quite uncommon practice of medieval Turkic stone statues getting second use at a modern cemetery in terms of studying the anthropomorphous statuary tradition in Central Asia. The statues discovered were set up as at the cemetery of Tuura-Suu Village in the Issyk Kul Hollow in Kyrgyzstan. We aimed at promoting studies of ancient and medieval stone statues on the territory of Tian Shan and Jetysu within the borders of Central Asian historical and cultural region in the course of research of these statues. There are some well-known cases in the history of research of ancient and medieval Central Asian cultures when Turkic nomads used ancient stone steles and anthropomorphous statues related to the Bronze Age and initial stage of the Early Iron Age much later, in the Early Middle Ages. Now, the Middle Age statues were used in Modern Time. The statues themselves are quite rare and deserve additional studying. Conclusion. The special features of design on the stone statues from the cemetery of Tuura-Suu Village include traditional types of clothes and vessels in the hands of the figures depicted on these sculptures. The figures’ heads are missing, so we cannot conclude if they were two men or a man and a woman. As a result of conversation with locals, we determined that one of sculptures used to be located in the courtyard of a rural school in Village, and then it was transported to the present location at the cemetery and was used as a tombstone. The gender of the people on these statues cannot be identified because of the absence of their heads and no images of weapons. Despite both the statues were used as tombstones on modern graves, the inhabitants of the Tuura-Suu Village who gave the statues the second use saved the primary medieval images on the front side of the statues. Modern archaeologists were able to specify the chronology and cultural identity of the statues set up at the modern cemetery of Tuura-Suu Village because of remaining special features of outer clothing and the vessel form in the hands of both statues. Results. According to our analysis, both sculptures are likely to have been produced by the same master or a group of craftsmen who adhered to similar traditions of sculpting. Probably, they used to be set up initially at some Old Turkic memorial complexes, placed in honor of the immediate family. Utilization of medieval Turkic stone statues as tombstones at modern Kyrgyz cemeteries is quite a rare occasion in the modern funereal tradition of the Kyrgyz ethnos. The Old Turkic stone sculptures discovered at the cemetery of Tuura-Suu Village are the rare instance of second use of medieval stone statues.

Purpose. In the scientific literature on the ethnicities of the Sayan Uplands there are no particular works which cover the specificity of their economic types, especially in comparison and contrast. It is possible to find only separate descriptions. The author provides contrastive-comparative analysis and describes peculiar features of the economy of the ethnicities studied, paying special attention to their original way of leading household activities. The following ethnic groups are known to belong to the indigenous Turk-Mongolian peoples of the Sayan Uplands: the Tuvans, Khalkha-Mongols, Buryats, Soyots, Tofalars, Dukhans (Tsaatan), Tuvans-Todzhins and others. For many of them, the reindeer was the main domestic animal, being their food, clothes and transport. Reindeer breeding remains relevant for the peoples in the region at present, as well, despite the use of different types of transport. Results. The article gives extensive characteristics of some economic types of the Turkic-Mongolian people inhabiting the Sayan Uplands. We drew some conclusions about the causes and development of various economic and cultural types based on the analysis of source study and field work data. We see that the cultures of the identical economic type were formed in different geographical zones during the period when ethnic unions and early states consisting of various ethnic groups arose and broke up. The Sayan region is one of striking examples where such processes took place. Its feature is that the domestic reindeer of the Karagas breed helped its peoples settle in the vast territories of the highland tundra and mountainous taiga. This is how reindeer breeding originated and became a specific branch of livestock production in the area. The author shows an exceptional role of reindeer breeding in everyday life of indigenous peoples not only in the Sayan region, but also in Mongolia. Special attention is given to the peculiarities of using reindeer as pack-andriding animals by the Turkic small-numbered peoples. Also, the author describes deer grazing features and provides the analysis of food supply. The article is significant in that it draws our attention to fragility, uniqueness and originality of the nomadic culture, its close interrelation and dependence on climatic conditions. Conclusion. Reindeer breeding of the Turkic-Mongolian Sayan peoples can be defined as a special Sayan pack-and-riding type which has been traditionally and harmoniously combined with nomadic hunting and reindeer breeding in the conditions of the mountainous taiga.

Purpose . We aimed at characterizing the specific migration of the Kumandins from the village to the city at the beginning of the 21^st century. Dynamics of migrations by year, sex-age structure and migration trends of the Kumandins is described in details. Results . The migration resource of the Kumandins exhausted in the preceding decades. As a result, in the 2000-2010 migration to the cities was insignificant and, apparently, tends to decrease. The most migratory active were men and people at the economically active age of 17-40. The most attractive for migrants was the nearby city of Biysk. The number of the Kumandins in Biysk is declining, though, despite the continuing inflow of migrants from rural areas. It can be explained by assimilation of the Kumandins as a consistent trend. Conclusion . Based on the field materials of the author, data on economic books and All-Russian population censuses of 2002 and 2010, we came to the conclusion that the territorial scope of migration destinations is limited to district centers. Currently, a significant part of rural Kumandins live in district centers. As a result of the liquidation of vanishing villages in the second half of the 20^th century, the Kumandins moved to cities and large villages. According to the All-Russian Population Censuses of 2002 and 2010, there was a reduction in the number of the Kumandins, including urban and rural areas in Altai. The main reason for the decline in the number of urban Kumandins is their assimilation with Russian population. A certain demographic stability is characteristic of the Kumandins of the Altai Republic. In the previous years, two centers of destination for rural Kumandins were formed: the cities of Biysk and Gorno-Altaisk. At the beginning of the 21^st century, the direction of migration somewhat changed. Most of the migrants now go to Biysk. We also identified the initial points which the Kumandins leave. Most of the migrants are from the Krasnogorsk district, a little fewer left the Soltonsky district. The low level of migratory activity is from the Turochak district, which is associated with a more stable economic situation in the district and development of tourism. In general, in the period of 2000-2010 the intensity of the Kumandins migration from the village to the city was not high. Among the migrants, men predominated, as well as people in the economically active age of 17-40. Thus, in years to come, absolute numbers of the Kumandin migrants from the village to the city will decrease. At the same time, the number of the Kumandins in the cities will continue to decline.

Purpose. The article reconstructs the traditional views on the underwater world spread among the Buryats. Results. In the Buryat culture, water is considered as a special substance with complicated characteristics. The underwater world is perceived as a part of the Middle world inhabited by mythical and real creatures. According to folk beliefs, water had ambivalent properties connected with life (fertility) and death. The Buryats were aware of mineral springs’ healing influences, but they also believed that water of other water sources had some healing effect as well. Shamanic rites practiced among the families of the Predbaikal’sky Buryats (those living around Lake Baikal) included ritual purification and healing with water. The Buryat mythology demonstrates a hierarchy in the underwater world among the mythical characters inhabiting it. The superior creatures are Ukhan khats (water rulers). On the basis of these beliefs, the Buryats had a cult of the water rulers, who required seasonal sacrifices and rites of worship. The cult had some local variants. Among the Pribaikal’sky Buryats there was a fishery cult. It developed due to the impact of the economic factor as in addition to cattle breeding they practiced fishing, mainly in Lake Baikal. In the Buryat worldview, fish is associated with fertility. They believed in lycanthropy, when mythical water-rulers and people could turn into fish. Some Buryat groups worshiped only such fish as burbot and taimen (lax). At the same time, fish was not considered patronizing people. Having a commercial value, fishing was not banned. In the rites practiced by separate groups of the Buryats, fish was represented as both a victim and an attribute. For instance, the Predbaikal’sky Buryats had a tradition of collective sacrifice to Ukhan khats and performed a ritual of feeding them with fried fish. This fish was a victim in the rites of worship for some spirit-owners of the area. The attributive function of fish was in considering fish as a live ongon (animal devoted to a particular deity or spirit-owner). Buddhism greatly influenced the attitudes of the Zabaikal’sky Buryats concerning fish and changed their traditional beliefs and rituals associated with water and water rulers. In contrast to the Buddhist Buryats, Shamanist Buryats attributed only positive connotations to fish. Conclusion. In the traditional Buryat worldview, the underwater world played a great role. A whole body of ideas about Ukhan hats and other mythical characters, as well as fish, was associated with it. On the basis of such beliefs, the Buryats formed local cults of water rulers and performed different ceremonies worshipping them. These rituals and world views underwent a transformation under the influence of religious and economic factors such as the introduction of Buddhism and development of fishing among the Pribaikal’sky Buryats.

The results of the VI International scientific conference, which was held in November, 2017 in the city of Yeniseysk and was dedicated to the 400^th anniversary of the city, are presented in the paper. The forum hosted meetings arranged in seven sections (workshops), where the results of the archaeological study of Yeniseysk were analyzed, new methodological developments in the study of Russian culture were proposed, reconstruction of cultural heritage and measures for its protection were discussed. The work of the section on anthropology and genetics of the Russian population was of particular scientific importance. At the steel section, researchers presented achievements in the study of Russian culture and its influence on the world of archaeology. Materials used for the life support systems of the Russian population were described and analyzed. New results were obtained in the study of urban culture, written sources and ethnography. The conference made a significant contribution to the development of scientific directions in Russian archaeology.

The capital of the Republic of Khakassia, the city of Abakan, and the Askiz region of Khakassia hosted the IV International Scientific and Practical Conference «Peoples and Cultures of SayanAltai and Adjacent Territories» from September 27 to 30, 2017. The Conference was dedicated to the 155-th anniversary of the birth of the outstanding son of the Khakasses, a prominent Orientalist, a Turkologist, a doctor of comparative linguistics, a professor at the Kazan Imperial University, Nikolai Fedorovich Katanov (1862-1922). Purpose. We review the work of the conference in order to inform the researchers on this important event. The work was organized in several sectional sessions. The subject matter was various aspects of the history of Southern Siberia and the adjacent regions of Eurasia since ancient times, as well as some issues of linguistics, folklore and literature of the peoples of Central Asia. In addition, it was planned to determine the tasks of studying the large-scale scientific heritage of N. F. Katanov. Results. Work of this scientific forum was led by the Heads of the Government and the Supreme Council of the Republic of Khakassia, with participating teachers and scientists from Turkey, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tatarstan, Bashkortostan, Yakutia, Tuva, Altai, Khakassia, Moscow, Novosibirsk, Krasnoyarsk, Kemerovo and Tyumen. Novosibirsk State University was represented by the head of the Humanitarian Research Laboratory, Associate prof. S. G. Skobelev. By the beginning of the conference, the Organizing Committee, which was represented by the spokespeople from the Government and the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Khakassia, the Administration of the Askiz Region and the Khakass Research Institute of the Language, Literature and History, had prepared the forum materials in the form of a collection of articles «Peoples and Cultures of Southern Siberia and Adjacent Territories» (Abakan, 2017, 292 p). Within the frameworks of the conference, there was a presentation of two previously unpublished works by N. F. Katanov: 1) «Journey through Siberia, Dzungaria and East Turkestan». Diary of a journey made on behalf of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society in 1890 by an associate member N. F. Katanov; Tatar (Khakass) language (Sagay dialect). Grammar (Etymology and Syntax) (1882); 2) Monograph «The Epistolary Heritage of N. F. Katanov (devoted to the 155^th anniversary of his birth)». During the conference, its participants visited several museums and archaeological sites of different eras on the territory of the Askiz Municipal District of Khakassia, where N. F. Katanov came from. Conclusion. The conference was an important stage both in the work on studying the rich scientific heritage of N. F. Katanov and in solving a number of topical problems of archaeology, ethnography and the history of the peoples of Southern Siberia and adjacent territories.