Palaeodemography of Bolgar Fortifi ed Settlement

Abstract

The article features the results of studying the palaeodemographic structures of Bolgar fortified settlement dating back to the Golden Horde period. The authors analyzed 4 necropoleis located in the following areas: 1) at the site of a former aerodrome (excavations 146, 154 and 155); 2) at the site of the contemporary Memorable sign (excavation 156); 3) encircling the mausoleum in the southern part of the fortified settlement (excavations 174 and 214); 4) necropolis in the northwestern part of the settlement (excavation 191). In order to obtain a comprehensive characteristic of the Bolgar population, the authors used previously published materials from Ust-Jerusalem burial mound. A mortality pattern was determined using a comparison of the palaeodemographic data of the population buried at five necropoleis in various parts of Bolgar fortified settlement. At the same time, the authors identified two necropoleis located near the mausoleum in the southern part of Bolgar settlement and the Ust-Jerusalem burial mound, with series of findings characterized by a relatively shorter lifetime of the buried and a high percentage of infant mortality. As explained by the authors, this feature is accounted for by the fact that the two burial mounds have been most thoroughly excavated, thereby the presented material better conveys the demographic pattern.

Keywords

• archaeology
• anthropology
• palaeodemography
• Bolgar fortified settlement
• Golden Horde towns
• Middle Volga region