Vyugovskaya E. V., Malkova E. E. Access barriers to health care: A comparative analysis of Russia’s urban and rural areas // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2026. V.11. №2. P. 191-207.

EDN: UHVRPS

Annotation

The article considers the subjective perception of healthcare accessibility in Russia, focusing on two key dimensions of inequality — type of settlement and age group, is based on the survey conducted in April 2025 as part of the annual monitoring “Social Position and Behavior of Population in Current Conditions” (N=1623, 18+, All-Russian sample, telephone survey) and supplemented with narratives from telephone interviews. The results show persistent territorial polarization: while 51% of residents in large cities (with population over 100,000) assess the quality of healthcare positively, only 40% do so in small towns and rural areas. In major urban centers, the primary access barrier is long wait, while in smaller settlements — a shortage of highly specialized specialists, geographic remoteness of medical institutions, and financial constraints associated with transportation costs. The authors pay special attention to the 55+ group with significantly lower estimates of healthcare quality compared to younger respondents (18–34-year-olds), which can be explained by the elders’ higher need for medical services and, as a result, more critical and frequent contact with the healthcare system. The most vulnerable group are residents of small settlements with family members in need of constant care: 62% negatively assess healthcare accessibility. Interview narratives confirm and illustrate these findings, highlighting such structural problems as staff shortage, logistical and financial difficulties for patients, especially those with limited mobility and the elderly.

Keywords

Accessibility of health care, territorial differences, rural health care, age groups, access barriers, shortage of specialists, remoteness of medical facilities, financial constraints.  

About the authors

Elena V. Vyugovskaya, Researcher, Field Research Laboratory, Center “Institute for Social Analysis and Forecasting”, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. Prechistenskaya Nab., 11, bldg. 1, Moscow, 119034, Russia.
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Evgeniya E. Malkova, Junior Researcher, Field Research Laboratory, Center “Institute for Social Analysis and Forecasting”, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. Prechistenskaya Nab., 11, bldg. 1, Moscow, 119034, Russia.
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Parilova V. D., Gavrilyeva T. N. Patterns of the traditional dishes consumption among rural population in the Sakha Republic (Yakutia): Zonal, ethnocultural and seasonal differences // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2026. V.11. №2. P. 170-190.

EDN: QNTRHC

Annotation

The article provides a systematic quantitative description of the rural population’s diet in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) based on the household survey conducted in 2021–2023 in 18 rural settlements (N = 400). The authors focus on 40 traditional dishes, for which self-reports on regular and seasonal consumption were collected. The diet is considered in three dimensions: everyday consumption, regional differences (social-economic zones), and seasonality. The findings show a stable group of technologically simple dishes — meat soup, pancakes, jams and drinks made from local berries — that form common everyday consumption in all settlements. Regional differences are determined primarily by local subsistence practices: venison in Arctic and southern settlements, dairy and horse-meat dishes in central and western settlements, northern fish in Arctic villages of Russian old-settlers and Evenki. A particularly notable finding is the substantial gap between seasonal-peak and regular frequencies of consumption for several dishes (kumys — 43.5% in June vs 1–4% regularly; stroganina — 76.3% in December vs 2–31% regularly), which indicates a seasonally distinct regime of their consumption. A comparison of the observed seasonal structure with the classical periodization of the Yakut food practices by A. A. Savvin (based on the 1930s–1940s data) reveals substantial continuity of the four-phase calendrical rhythm despite the disappearance of initial material conditions that once made this rhythm necessary. 

Keywords

Sociology and anthropology of food, indigenous peoples of the North, Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), traditional dishes, food seasonality, food systems.  

About the authors

Varvara D. Parilova, PhD Student, Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Tohoku University (Japan); Institute of Finances and Economics, North-Eastern Federal University. Belinskogo St., 58, Yakutsk, 677000, Russia.
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Tuyara N. Gavrilyeva, DSc (Economics), Chief Researcher, Head of the Department, Arctic Research Center of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). Kurashova St., 22, Yakutsk, 677000, Russia.
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Alimdzhanov B. A. Cotton as a resource for (de)modernization and  a source of nationalism in Uzbekistan // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2026. V.11. №2. P. 155-169.

EDN: OQZTNS

Annotation

The article considers the role of cotton as a resource for modernization and de-modernization of social life in Uzbekistan from the late 1980s to the present day. The author argues that cotton was a key product in the colonial period, and its perception as a de-modernizing force changed from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s; that cotton has become an integral part of the Uzbek political ideology, and every type of Uzbek nationalism is based on the perception of cotton. The article presents the changing interpretations of cotton’s role in the Uzbek history as determined by cultural-political contexts, raising the following research questions: how cotton growing turned from a modernization project to a de-modernization project; how this transformation affected culture and worldview of the intellectual elite; how cotton once again become a source for modernization in independent Uzbekistan in the 2000s; why cotton has not become a de-colonial project of “national awakening”. The author refers to the works of S. N. Abashin on nationalism, describing Uzbek nationalism as situational and depending mainly on the historical context and interests of elites: cotton is perceived as part of de-modernization project in Uzbekistan and as a failed Soviet experiment; at the same time, the perception of cotton became a catalyst for nationalism of the “blame-the-Soviets” type, i.e., the Soviet modernization project is blamed for all the troubles and declared a “de-modernization” project. Uzbek nationalism of the 1980s was very different from that of the 2000s: the former emphasized the need to “fix” the Soviet system, while the latter was rather utopian due to its focus on modernization and perception of cotton as Other.

Keywords

Cotton, modernization, Uzbekistan, “nationalism of intellectuals”, S. N. Abashin, G. Balandier.  

About the author

Bakhtiyor A. Alimdzhanov, PhD (History), Senior Researcher, Institute of Anthropology of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan. Mirzo Ulugbek St., 81, Tashkent, 100170, Uzbekistan.
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Anh The Phung, Nghia Minh Bui, Chung Quang Le, Quyet Thi Nguyen. From fields to cities: Social-economic and ideological transformations in Vietnam’s peasant communities // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2026. V.11. №2. P. 135-154.

EDN: PJPTSK

Annotation

Vietnam’s rapid rural urbanization has determined complex social-economic, cultural and ideological changes in peasant communities. The article considers these transformations through the economic restructuring of rural labor and land use, cultural adaptation of traditional practices, and evolving ideological representations of the Vietnamese peasantry. The article is based on secondary sources (ethnographic studies, policy documents, and statistical data) and a comparative thematic approach combining rural sociology and critical discourse analysis. The findings reveal that while urbanization contributes to economic diversification and social mobility, it also creates persistent challenges such as land grabbing, growing inequality, and cultural erosion. Contrary to linear modernization theories, the study identifies hybrid rural-urban realities with smallholder farming, kinship networks, and symbolic land relations. Ideologically, rural population combines traditional communal ethics and individualist, marketoriented logics. The comparative analysis of Russian, Chinese and other transitional economies proves the universality of such dilemmas, particularly the tension between modernization and rural continuity. The study concludes with policy recommendations for inclusive and culturally sensitive rural development, emphasizing the need to integrate formal reforms with grassroots agency and local knowledge, which contributes to ongoing debates in rural sociology and peasant studies with relevance for both Vietnamese policymakers and the global agrarian thought.

Keywords

Cultural adaptation, hybrid rurality, ideological change, land grabbing, peasantry, rural urbanization, Vietnam.  

About the authors

Anh The Phung — PhD (History), Deputy Head, Faculty of Political Science and Law, Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology and Engineering, Vo Van Ngan St., 01, Thu Duc Ward, Ho Chi Minh City, 71300, Vietnam.
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Nghia Minh Bui — Lecturer, Institute of International Political Economy, University of Finance–Marketing, Nguyen Kiem St., 778, Duc Nhuan Ward, Ho Chi Minh City, 71300, Vietnam.
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Chung Quang Le — Lecturer, Faculty of Political Science and Law, Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology and Engineering, Vo Van Ngan St., 01, Thu Duc Ward, Ho Chi Minh City, 71300, Vietnam.
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Quyet Thi Nguyen — PhD (Philosophy), Associate Professor, Faculty of Political Science and Law, Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology and Engineering, Vo Van Ngan St., 01, Thu Duc Ward, Ho Chi Minh City, 71300, Vietnam.
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Suthar S. K., Singh Sh. “New” rural-agrarian movements in India: Continuities and shifts // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2026. V.11. №2. P. 119-134.

EDN: GTERCR

Annotation

Political mobilization of farmers in India has always interested and puzzled scholars studying agrarian change. The major political phenomenon in India’s agrarian history were farmers movements in the 1980s, which showed the strength of organization and mobilization of such leaders as Mahindra Singh Tikait and Sharad Joshi. This phenomenon gradually faded away by the 1990s. However, in recent decades India once again witnessed farmers protests with three major demands: waiving off agricultural loans; more rationalized Minimum Support Price covering more crops and input costs; implementation of the Swaminathan Committee report’s recommendations1. The national magazine’s cover called these protests “farmers revolt”. In the interview, Yogendra Yadav, a political activist associated with Swaraj Abhiyan, called them a historical moment and a move towards “peasant rebellion”. The article considers the nature of farmers mobilization from 2014 to 2020, focusing on the initial phase of this movement and emphasizing that farmers protests should not be seen as sporadic, scattered and short-term unrest, as they appear prima facie. Instead, these protests reflect a major shift in the nature of social movements in India in general and agrarian movements in particular, being different from the 1980s farmers movements. Recent protests show that the new rural youth want to reimagine Indian rural society, develops new methods of protests and negotiations and new class distinctions, considering diverse ideological positions on the rural-agrarian question. This new rural social class is against the right-wing populism and neo-populism of the 1980s farmers movements, but it is also against the Indian left-wing idea of modernity and the definition of rural India in terms of class politics. The authors argue that recent protests should be characterized as rural-agrarian rather than farmers, since they suggest the rural-agrarian dominance in the Indian political economy and define the new rural and post-green revolution as agrarian. Given the growing sense of losing identity under urbanization and corporatization, the new rural-agrarian class faces a serious existential threat that leads to protests and their culmination in the form of movement. The authors make some conclusions about this movement, highlighting its recent trends. The article consists of four sections: foundations of this movement evolution; concept of rural-agrarian movements; features of new farmers unrest, different from movements in the 1970s and 1980s; critical analysis in the context of existing theories.

Keywords

Political mobilization of farmers, India, new rural-agrarian movement, rural youth, farmers’ protests, political economy, new rural social class.  

About the authors

Sudhir Kumar Suthar, PhD (Political Science), Assistant Professor, Centre for Political Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University. New Mehrauli Road, New Delhi, 110067, India.
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Shailza Singh, PhD (Political Science), Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, Bharati College, University of Delhi. C-4, Dada Satram Mamtani Marg, Janakpuri, New Delhi, 110058, India.
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Markov A.V. Maika Lunevskaya: In search of new rural poetry // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2026. V.11. №1. P. 187-202.

EDN: OREOXO

Annotation

Maika Lunevskaya is a contemporary Russian poet, artist and musician, whose works connect peasant and post-peasant poetic traditions. She was born in Tambov but spent most of her life in the village of Pervaya Berezovka. Her works embody the “new rurality” — a conscious choice of rural life as a form of aesthetic and existential resistance to urbanization. Her poetry combines folklore motifs, ecological ref lection and digital scenography, creating a unique artistic world at the intersection of peasant tradition and postmodern sensibility. By considering her book Not Enough Memory (2024) in the context of depeasantization theories (Shanin, Vinogradsky and Vinogradskaya) and ecocriticism (Morton), the author shows how Lunevskaya reinterprets the legacy of peasant poetry (Klyuev, Yesenin, Rubtsov). Her poetry is not a return to pastoral idyll but an exploration of rural life as a space of labor, loss and creative survival in the anthropocene. Her poetry, graphics and music imply a dialogue between tradition and the present time. The book Not Enough Memory shows how peasant motifs (nature, cyclical time, folk imagery) are intertwined with ideas of ecological crisis, rural decay and digitalization. Lunevskaya avoids romanticizing rural life, instead presenting it as a space of existential reflection. A distinctive feature of her work is its multimedia nature: poems are accompanied by marker drawings, music (self-composed songs) and visual content on social media — rural life is presented as a performance, which the author describes as a fairground poetics — a fusion of traditional and contemporary art forms. Lunevskaya reinterprets the legacy of peasant poets, freeing it from naivety and exoticization. Her texts are “anti-pastoral”, since nature does not console but silently watches the decline. An ecocritical reading reveals ideas of anthropogenic impact, “nature-as-ruin”, and a non-anthropocentric worldview. Thus, Lunevskaya’s works form a new canon of post-peasant poetry relevant for the era of ecological and cultural transformations.

Keywords

Maika Lunevskaya, post-peasant poetry, contemporary Russian literature, ecocriticism, folklore motifs, anti-pastoral, rural life, multimedia art, existential lyricism, visual poetry, tradition and the present time, fairground poetics.  

About the author

Alexander V. Markov, DSc (Philology), Professor of the Department of Cinema and Contemporary Art, Russian State University for the Humanities. Miusskaya Sq., 6, Moscow, 125047, Russia.
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Koldobskaya N.A. Regional aspects of embroidery as Russia’s intangible cultural heritage // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2026. V.11. №1. P. 161-186.

EDN: ICUUTR 

Annotation

The article considers embroidery as the Russian intangible cultural heritage, focusing on its regional features: each culture gives embroidery its unique characteristics, reflecting the historical, social and cultural features of the region. Under globalization and rapid technological development, the task of preserving and popularizing traditional embroidery becomes especially relevant. The article aims at identifying geographical patterns and regional features of the Russian traditional embroidery. To achieve this goal, the author conducted a search for embroidery in the registers of intangible cultural heritage and folk crafts to create a database of regional features of Russian embroidery, supplemented by the methods of participant observation and field ethnographic study. The article presents the historical transformation of embroidery traditions as intangible cultural heritage and considers the activities of folk-art enterprises. The author identifies the role of geographical factors in the development of regional embroidery traditions, presents a typology of Russian regions based on such traditions, shows their differences between the city and the countryside. The article emphasizes the importance of preserving and transmitting knowledge about embroidery as a key aspect of the cultural identity of the peoples of Russia. Embroidery is considered not only as a decoration for clothing and household items, but also as a bearer of deep symbolism reflecting the worldview and spiritual values of the people.

Keywords

Embroidery traditions, intangible cultural heritage, folk crafts, regions of Russia, historical analysis, geographical factors, typology.  

About the author

Natalia A. Koldobskaya, PhD (Geography), Associate Professor, Department of Economic and Social Geography of Russia, Faculty of Geography, Lomonosov Moscow State University. GSP-1, Leninskie Gory, Moscow, 119991, Russia. 
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Petukhova I.S., Parfenova O.A., Galkin K.A. Health of the elderly in the Russian village // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2026. V.11. №1. P. 137-160.

EDN: HCRFEU

Annotation

The article considers the perception of health and health-preserving behavior by the elderly rural residents. Today Russian villages are viewed as crisis-prone spaces characterized by poor infrastructure and limited access to medical care. In 2024, the authors conducted in-depth interviews with the elderly (60+) (N=42) and rural care organizers (N=23) and prepared detailed descriptions with photographs of nine villages in the Leningrad Region, Novgorod Region, and the Republic of Karelia. The elderly define their health as spatial functionality — the ability to maintain one’s home, one’s household, and oneself. As mobility decreases, the space of functionality narrows — from the village to the household, and at the last stage to one’s home and body. Despite the declining functionality, there remains a need for autonomy, and a system of external support becomes increasingly important — assistance from relatives, neighbors, medical and social workers is vital in the countryside with its crisis conditions and a required wide range of necessary assistance. The rural medical worker can play a key role as a medical care organizer provided necessary infrastructure (for example, a first aid station and a special medical vehicle with a driver). However, the presence of infrastructure does not guarantee expanded access to medical care or its improved quality, as it may be difficult to find medical personnel willing to work in the village. Thus, the health-preserving behavior of the rural elderly is a crisis adaptation tactic in which the close social circle and local community play a significant role.

Keywords

Aging in rural areas, health of the elderly, medicine in the village, accessibility of medicine for the elderly, rural infrastructure, state healthcare policy.  

About the authors

Irina S. Petukhova, PhD (Sociology), Senior Researcher, Sociological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences — Branch of the Federal Research Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences. 190005, Saint Petersburg, 7th Krasnoarmeiskaia st., 25/14, Associate Professor, Petrozavodsk State University. 185910, Petrozavodsk, Prosp. Lenina, 33. 
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Oksana A. Parfenova, PhD (Sociology), Senior Researcher, Sociological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences — Branch of the Federal Research Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences. 190005, Saint Petersburg, 7th Krasnoarmeiskaia St., 25/14.
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Konstantin A. Galkin, PhD (Sociology), Senior Researcher, Sociological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences — Branch of the Federal Research Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences. 190005, Saint Petersburg, 7th Krasnoarmeiskaia St., 25/14.
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Starodubrovskaya I.V. Post-Soviet social transformation of the North- Caucasian rural communities (on the example of Dagestan) // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2026. V.11. №1. P. 113-136.

EDN: GWEAFK

Annotation

The article considers social transformations in Dagestani rural communities based on the results of the long fieldwork in 18 villages of different size, location and ethnic composition and on the interpretation of the traditional society model developed within early modernization theories. Thus, Dagestani rural communities go through multidirectional social transformations, but emancipation is the dominant trend. Generational and gender hierarchies weaken, kin and community impose less restrictions for individual choices, the closeness of communities is gradually overcome. All social regulations (adat, Saria, secular legislation) function less efficiently, and symptoms of anomie are evident even in rural areas, which determines the spread of administrative and violent mechanisms for conflict resolution. Islam in general and its contemporary globalized forms in particular play controversial role in social transformations by both preserving traditions and stimulating changes. In Dagestan, Islam became the language of generational emancipation but led to the rejection of many soviet modernization achievements in gender relations. Religious confrontation in rural communities, provoked by the spread of fundamentalist Islam, led to acute generational conflicts, destruction of family and community ties, and legitimation of violence, which is still observed in Dagestan.

Keywords

Rural community, social transformation, traditional society, modernization, multiple modernities, generational hierarchy, gender hierarchy, Islam, Dagestan.  

About the author

Irina V. Starodubrovskaya, PhD (Economics), Professor, School of Arts and Social Sciences, Narxoz University. Zhandosov St., 55, Almaty, 050035, Kazakhstan.
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Baturina O. S. The relationship of economic and spiritual-axiological aspects in the life of the Russian village (an exploratory project in a regional ‘case’) // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2025. V.10. №4. P. 246-259.

EDN: VSYEDO

Annotation

The article presents the results of an exploratory sociological study aimed at identifying the relationship between economic determinants and axiological-spiritual orientations of the rural population (on the example of a specific regional case). In the f irst part of the article, the author explains the categorical apparatus, conceptual foundations and sampling criteria for the empirical study, in the second part briefly summarizes its findings, showing that the financial well-being of the local community has a direct impact on social activity and communicative richness of rural life, level of societal trust, and motivation to participate in public initiatives. Tense confrontation between economic rationality (pragmatic considerations) and moral-ethical guidelines for collective life proves to be a determining factor in the preservation or destruction/loss of local value systems and cultural-historical heritage, and, consequently, in the perception of traditional foundations (on the scale from ‘sacred’ to ‘utilitarian’) and in value conflicts. On the one hand, the study confirms well-known principles of local community sustainability, such as favorable economic conditions as a factor in retaining young workers and effectively reproducing social and human capital in rural areas. On the other hand, the author identifies significant contradictions between (a) the values   of environmental responsibility and traditional collectivism declared by rural representatives and (b) the actual economic situation characterized by a lack of material, financial and resource opportunities to realize the declared life priorities. This leads to the degradation of social capital, erosion of local identity, strengthening paternalistic orientation, and decreasing confidence in the ability to influence the situation, which weakens the potential of rural self-government institutions. Thus, rural respondents consider the improvement of economic living conditions not only as a necessary means of achieving material well-being but also as a crucial tool for restoring social and cultural potential of the local community.

Keywords

Russian village, economic development, social well-being, traditional way of life, spiritual-moral values, case study, social/cultural/human capital.  

About the author

Oksana S. Baturina, PhD (Psychology), Head of the Scientific Department, Birsk Branch of the Ufa University of Science and Technology; Head of the small innovative enterprise “Academy of Personal and Corporate Development”. Internatsionalnaya St., 10, Birsk, Republic of Bashkortostan, 452451, Russia.
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