Memorial narratives and symbolic images as a resource for the development of Northern urban space

Abstract

The article is devoted to the identification of symbolic markers and perception of the cognitive model of the space of the northern cities of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). The definition of “northern cities” is constructed based on the results of a study to identify various aspects of identity (national, territorial, ethnocultural) and is used by the authors when defining all cities of Yakutia. The main tools for constructing and regulating the cognitive map of a city are city monuments associated with historical memory and acting as components of state policy and a nation-building tool. The main research methods were historical and cognitive analysis and the method of questionnaire survey. The novelty of the article is a cross-cultural study of the perception of urban monuments as symbolic markers of urban space. The authors observe a difference in the perception of the symbolism of urban space between generational groups. It is concluded that each city, depending on its geographical and economic location, local characteristics, and national identity, has its own specific set of symbolic markers in the cognitive map of the city. The findings will contribute to the systematic study of the value attitudes of residents of modern Russian cities. Multilevel models of symbolic images associated with both national and territorial identities are being built.