“Cultural Upbuilding” in People’s Republic of Tuva in documents preserved at National Archives of Republic of Tuva

Abstract

Our study makes use of a bulk of documents from the National Archives of Republic of Tuva (prior to 07.04.2020 known as the State Archives) to examine specific features of “cultural upbuilding” in People’s Republic of Tuva (PRT) from 1930 to 1942. The fonds in question are related to administrative measures in the fields of cultural policy, healthcare and ideology. The historiography of the topic is quite well-developed, but there still remain some archival fonds which historians have not covered. The article for the first time introduces a number of documents from ff. 93, 102, 114, 144 which have not received an adequate level of interpretation or never used by anyone. We describe the composition of the fond, as well as provide some details of the documents. Analyzing the documents helped discover some unknown facts of cultural life under PRT, and compare them with the data found in historical research. Documents reveal that the young republic was seriously focused on “cultural upbuilding” among the nation in the shortest possible terms. PRT achieved that goal with the help of the USSR, by using the forms and methods of work already tested throughout the USSR and copying the USSR reform policies. Many of the administrative choices of the young state appear to have great historical potential from present-day perspective, some ideas being relevant up to present day.

Keywords

• тувинская народная республика
• архивный документ
• культурное строительство
• история тувы
• тува
• тувинская культура
• государственный архив республики тыва
• национальный архив республики тыва