RUSSIAN CENSUS

Evening Post, Volume CXIX, Issue 98, 27 April 1935, Page 10

RUSSIAN CENSUS

MIXTURE OF RACES

THE ASIATIC ELEMENTS

EFFECT ON POLICY

The old saying, "Scratch a Russian and find a Tartar," only tells a small part of the story, according to a recent publication of the Soviet Government, which lists 180 different nationalities speaking 150 different languages and dialects within the country, says the "San Francisco Chronicle.", Of these various races the Russians proper are the most numerous, with 77,791,124,-1^ the Ukrainians next with 31,194,976. From these major groups and a number of relatively small groups of other European nationalities within the country, the population shades off from pure white to yellow and various shades of brown races of Central Asia. A knowledge of the heterogeneous nature of the population of the country assists in considerable measure towards an understanding with some of the Soviet's recent policies with respect to Asiatic races. The references in the old saying about the Tartars (or Tatars) probably dates back to the Mongolian, or "Mogul" conquest of Russia by Genghis Khan and his successors in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Although generally referred to as the "scourge" of Asia and Europe, the Mongol conquerors performed one important service for the Russians; it was largely due to the iron rule of the Khans that the then wild semi-barbarous tribes of Russia were unified. With the exception of the Chinese, who have absorbed innumerable races into their 400,000,000, the Russians probably have a more diversified population than any other country. For example, the statistical list of nationalities shows six classifications of the Jews, the largest being those in the section known as White Russia, which adjoins the Polish border, the number being approximately 3,000,000. Considerable of the later Jewish emigration to the United States came from this group. In addition, there are in Russia five other Jewish; groups, including Crimean, Georgian, Central Asian, Qaraite, and Mountain Jews. THE TARTAR ELEMENT. ■ The so-called Tartars number 2,916,536, and while they are supposed to have come originally from' Asia, most of them now live on the Volga and in the Crimea. Lenin was supposed to have been of Tartar stock. There are, however, several Tartar tribes, most primitive peoples, on the lower Sungari and Amur Rivers in Siberia and Manchuria. Other large groups are the Kazaks, ' 3,968,289, and the Uzbeks, 3,904,622, and the Turks, 1,706,605, who occupy a considerable portion of Russian Turkestan in Central Asia. Many of them are still nomadic, although the Soviet authorities in recent years have been trying with some success to train them in cotton growing. Another important group is the Mordva, a Finnish nationality, which is located in the vicinity of Nizhni-Novgorod, to the east of Moscow. They number 1,340,415. The Georgians, who produced the "marrying" Mdivani princes, well known in the United States, occupy the most southern part of the. country between the Black and Caspian Seas. The most noted Georgian is .Dictator Stalin. They are generally a brownskinned race of herdsmen and are noted in Russia for the beauty of their women. The Georgians number 1,821,184. The: Armenians, .another .South Russian group, number 1,567,568. Their outstanding representative is. .Kara Khan, former Ambassador to. China and now Ambassador to Turkey. AN INDIAN KACE. One of the most interesting racial groups is the Yakut Indian tribe, which occupies a vast district in the Arctic to the west of Behring Strait. The Yakuts are close cousins of the American Indians, and according to their racial traditions they originally were of Turkoman stock and lived in Central Asia, probably ,near Persia. One of their educated leaders told the writer that their tribe was moved, to the Arctic from Central-Asia before the twelfth century, but has continued to grow despite the change in atmospheric environment. They now number about 250,000. Another group which has contributed towards 'the presentday population of the United States are the Karelians, a Finnish group who are interested chiefly in the timber industry in the Leningrad area. They number 248,000. There are 29 different racial groups with populations exceeding 100,000, and some running to populations of 500,000, and many of which are practically unknown outside .of Russia. Of these the Buryats are of Mongolian stock and occupy, the Lake Baikal district of Central Siberia, the Turkomans in the vicinity of the Caspian, and so on. Apparently there are no negroes within the confines of the U.S.S.R., excepting a few jazz entertainers from the United States. There are 61,234 Gipsies, 61 Hindus, and numerous small groups listed as Veps, Vods, Lakis, Goldis, .Tekis, Didois, Tindits, Altians, Aleuts, Amy, Tats, etc. KOREANS AND CHINESE. Of interest in connection with racial rivalries in the Far East the Census lists 87,000 Koreans as Soviet citizens, although the Japanese claim there are more than 300,000 Koreans residing on Russian soil, mostly in the regions between Vladivostok and Khabarovsk, in the recently-created Far Eastern province. The Census also lists 10,247 Chinese as Soviet citizens and 93 Japanese. Owing to the Soviet's interest in Asia the Moscow leaders constantly "play up" to their Oriental subjects in the Far East, particularly the Chinese, Koreans, and Mongolians, for whom f separate schools are maintained in their native languages and for whom native language newspapers and* considerable literature is published. The total population is given as 146,637,530, and according to the Census estimates is increasing from three to five millions annually.