Laboratory for Interdisciplinary Research in Oriental Studies

Scientific results:

As a result of the implementation of the project, a laboratory for the interdisciplinary research in Oriental studies that conducts a comprehensive study of the intercivilizational and intercultural of the peoples of cross-border regions in the spatio-temporal continuum. The Laboratory includes a chemical and a genetic block furnished with state-of-the-art equipment, as well as a collection storage facility meeting the modern requirements for the storage of paleoanthropological and paleozoological material collected in archaeological excavations conducted for decades by archaeologists of the Kalmyk Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences. A comprehensive cameral processing and cataloging was preformed over osteological materials of 1160 anthropological items from 1135 burials belonging to 43 mound groups, as well as craniological materials containing 1048 anthropological units from 1035 items from 45 burial grounds.

In the laboratory opened within the project a genetic analysis of skeletal remains from the Bronze Age, the Early Iron Age and the Middle Ages. Relying on the results of this analysis we conducted research and published a number of articles in Q1–Q4 Web of Science and Scopus journals. We have conducted a research of paleosoils from archaeological excavations at the Bashanta settlement. We are conducting systematic work to collect blood samples from tribal groups of Kalmyk men to conduct a genetic analysis and conduct a «genetic portrait of the nation».

We have conducted a research related to the reconstruction of cultural and historical memory of the peoples of the cross-border regions in the aspect of their intercultural interaction; the study of daily life on the material of written monuments of the peoples of cross-border regions and the peculiarities of material and spiritual culture in the aspects of the stagewise development of  economy on materials of folklore text.

Our researchers have conducted an analysis of the lexicon of Mongolian languages for the purpose of reconstructing the picture of the world.

We have introduced into academic circulation new sources in ancient written languages.

Implemented results of research:

We have obtained a patent for the developed database «Osteologic materials of archaeological monuments of the Republic of Kalmykia» (registered on 13 October 2021).

Education and career development:

• A number of lecture courses and internships have been conducted.
• We have prepared and staged four major international conferences: «Pathways and roads in the „own“ and „alien“ disposition» (25‒27 November 2020), «Mongolian studies in the beginning of the 21st century: the current state and prospects of development» (6–9 October 2020), «Buddhist education: problems and prospects of development» (28–30 April 2021); the 13th All-Russian Meeting of Orientalists (5–8 October 2021 on the grounds of the Kalmyk Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences).
• 5 Candidate of Sciences and 5 Doctor of Sciences dissertations on the topic of the program have been prepared and defended.
• We have opened a postgraduate school with the new education program «Literature of the peoples of the Russian Federation (Kalmyk literature)» (within the training direction «45.06.01 — Linguistics and literature»). We have obtained an appendix to the licence that confirms that educational activities are conducted in the training direction «39.06.01 — Sociological sciences» (Decree of the Federal Service for the Supervision of Education and Science (Rosobrnadzor of 09 November 2020 No. 1097).

Other results:

As part of the implementation of the project, members of the academic team have submitted a number application to Russian state research foundations as well as other foundations. In 2020  we received 5 grants, in 2021 we won applications for 5 projects.