The Russian Community of the Golden Horde City of Ukek

Abstract

The existence of a large Russian community in the Golden Horde city of Ukek is evidenced in written sources. Excavations have revealed that there were two Russian quarters in the city existed (perhaps not simultaneously): the southwestern and the northern ones. In the southwestern quarter, the ruins of a monumental building dated by the 1280-1290s have been found, which probably used to serve as an Orthodox church. Hoards of items of pronounced Christian character, and Old Russian star-shaped kolts (part of female headgear) have been discovered as well. Some of the Christian cult objects were manufactured locally. All this indicates that in the Golden Horde city of Ukek, the Russians had been represented not only as slaves, but also as free dwellers. At the same time, the Russian population of the city constituted a minority and was greatly influenced by Oriental cultures.

Keywords

• the Lower Volga river region
• the Golden Horde period
• Ukek
• Russian population
• Orthodox church building
• Christian cult items
• intercultural ties