Locals and immigrants on the Yamal Peninsula. Social boundaries and variations in migratory experience

Asian Ethnicity. 2018. Vol. 19. No. 2. P. 251–269.

Oparin D.

Western Siberia and the entire Arctic region have been a beacon for migrants from the European part of Russia, from the national republics and the southern regions of Siberia in the post-war era. In contrast with the other regions of Siberia, the oil- and gas-rich North remains a magnet for migration from the entire former Soviet Union to this day. This paper presents research into the contemporary socio-cultural environment of Yar-Sale, the administrative centre of the Yamal district of Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug. The research focuses on the migrational experiences of ‘new’ migrants and their relations with the native Nenets population. Special attention is paid to concepts such as ‘local’/‘immigrant’, and ‘insider’/‘outsider’. The author holds that the boundaries between these categories are flexible. An immigrant may become a local and an insider may become an outsider, with ethnicity far from always being the deciding factor.

Keywords: внешняя миграция, внутренняя миграция, Арктика, Islam, migration, Ямал, коренные малочисленные народы, Yamal

Publication based on the results of: Opportunities for socio-economic integration of migrants in Moscow: the main barriers and the strategies for overcoming (2017)