Migration, Faith, and Identity in the Caucasus: 1801-2025

As a space of ethnic, and religious diversity, the Caucasus region has historically been an often-violent laboratory of identity formation. How were identities shaped amid migrations, religious conflicts, and empire-building under Russian, Soviet, and post-Soviet control? In this course we will engage with questions like: Why did the Caucasus witness the first ethnic cleansing of local populations in the modern era? What role did religious belief play in this process? Why did Russian authorities re-label Russian peasants previously deemed "heretical" and "dangerous" as "representatives of civilization" when they migrated into the Caucasus? What relationship did the Soviet Republic of Armenia have with refugees displaced by the Armenian genocide? How has recent large-scale Russian immigration in the wake of Russia’s War in Ukraine affected local populations? Students will use historical scholarship to explore these questions, as well as participate in creating history by conducting oral history interviews. This course is part of the Axinn Center for the Humanities’ Mellon Foundation Public Humanities Labs Initiative.