Policy of „korenizacije” in Soviet Union
The term comes from the Russian language, where indigenous, indigenous peoples are referred to as “korennije. The policy of “korenizacije was continued by the post-civil war Soviet Bolshevik leadership in the 1920s. Although once advocated by the People’s Commissar for Nationalities, J. V. Stalin, he later abandoned the policy during the Great Transformation (1929-1933). His point of departure was that the radical socialist movement that had come to power in the former Tsarist Empire needed to win over the nationalities not only by federalism and the granting of autonomy, but also by supporting their native culture and raising up an intelligentsia loyal to socialist ideals. The former one also manifested itself in the assistance provided by Russian-speaking linguists in the creation of literacy among the various peoples of the periphery. The latter also meant that in the ethnic regions, the leading positions began to be occupied by the party cadres of the local majority ethnic group, also known as titular. The multi-ethnic but essentially Russian-speaking elite of the Soviet Union thus found it easier to imagine the great transformation that lay ahead. However, behind the newly raised national leaders were usually officials from the central regions, mostly of European origin. The main positive effect of this policy was to help eradicate illiteracy and raise the literacy levels of the underdeveloped provinces. It also helped to create locally born ruling elites in the peripheries. Although little attention was paid to these externalities during the years of Stalinism, Khrushchev’s personnel policy partly returned to this strategy. From the 1950s onwards, officials of local birth and culture were again at the head of each republic. This fact, together with the institutional legacy of Soviet federalism, greatly facilitated imperial disintegration and post-Soviet nation-state building during regime change.