The Altai region, which has been one of the historical hometowns of the Turks for centuries, after being taken over by the Tsarist Russia in the XVIIIth century, the non-Russian communities living in the Altai systematically have been subjected to the policy of Russification and Christianization. Altai Religious Mission was established in 1830 in Ulala under the presidency of Makari Gluharev in order to transform this assimilation policy into an institutional structure. The ultimate goal of the mission is to make the Russian language, culture and belief permanent in these lands, and to try to form a uniform nation within the borders of tsarist. The baptized Altai people started to live their lifestyle, social relations and economic activities in accordance with the Russian cultural life. The most effective way of missionary activities in the region was through educational institutions. The people of Altai will be raised in these educational institutions at a young age and will be grown in a way devoid of their own language, culture and beliefs, and will form the basis of the next Russianized generation. As a matter of fact, assimilation started with the training given in local language by the missionaries who mastered the regional dialects, and then continued with the missionaries recruited from the local. The educational activities, which were weak in the first years of the mission's establishment, expanded its impact year by year and resulted in the baptism of thousands of Altaians. The educational activities that started with a single school and 20 students in 1830 when it was established have reached tens of schools and thousands of students over time. In this study, after the general structure of the Altai Religious Mission, established in 1830, is presented, the importance of educational institutions in the Russification and Christianization of the people of the Altai region through the activities of the heads of mission is emphasized.
Primary Language | Turkish |
---|---|
Journal Section | Research Articles |
Authors | |
Publication Date | June 30, 2020 |
Published in Issue | Year 2020 Issue: 3 |