The Steppes of Kazakhstan in Adolf Januszkiewicz's "Diary of a trip to Siberia" (1846)

Abstract

The article presents the writings of Adolf Januszkiewicz, a Polish exile to Siberia, who was one of the first to describe Kazakhstan and Kazakhs to Polish readers. Januszkiewicz, on the one hand, carried out the administrative tasks of tsarist Russia, and on the other hand, he carefully watched the community of the steppe peoples. The descriptions of the Kazakhs recorded by the Polish exile in letters to friends and family and in his private diary show his respect for foreign nations, admiration for their ability to live on the steppe and fascination with music and poetry. Januszkiewicz, however, was not a naive man, he also criticized the Kazakh community for the unequal treatment of women and men and for the selfishness of rich families.