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The National Identity of Russia

What is National identity? National identity is an illogical bound an individual have with its fellow nation members, a sense of belonging one have to a group of individuals. It plays a crucial factor in uniting the people of a national state. (Triandafyllidou, 1998, p.595) In the case of Russia this sense of belonging is greatly tied to its troubled past. The Russian identity is very much a new national identity that emerged in the late 1980’s, basing itself off Soviet and Pre-Imperial identity traits. Through drawing from pre-soviet Russian traits and maintaining a powerful external other, the Russian identity is able to quickly reassert its distinctiveness following the collapse of the Soviet Identity.

Religion

Nowadays the religion that defines Russia is Orthodox. Currently more than half of Russia belong to the Russian Orthodox church. Despite its status withing Russia nowadays, its rise to popularity is not all smooth sailing. Throughout Russia’s existence as a part of the Soviet Union, official policy was largely against traditional religion. Within the Soviet Union Communism act as a quasi-religion with its own distinct set of symbols, rights, and doctrines.  To prevent competition with the communist ideology the Soviet Union unofficially adopted the policy of State atheism and set up a variety of legislation to prosecute believers for their (real or perceived) opposition to the state ideology and policy. This harsh policy resulted in a state that mostly practices atheism. However, this status come to a turning point in the late 1980’s. “At the same time, public interest in religious issues and the public prestige of religion increased dramatically, galvanized by the simple fact that state control was removed.” (Agadjanian, 2001). Following this period Russia simultaneously experienced an secularization from the Communism and a revival of Russian Orthodox. The practice of Russian Orthodox is an identity traceable back to the 1400’s, when the Moscow church unofficially became independent by installing its own bishop without consent from consent from Constantinople. Russian Orthodox Church was then tied with the Russian identity until the formation of USSR. Russian Orthodox gained much momentum in recent years. In 2006 an estimated 15-20% of Russians practice Orthodox, whereas 15 years later in 2021 a poll conducted by researchers found 63% of Russians self-identify as an Orthodox practitioner. (fbi, 2022) The identity and practice of Orthodox helped Russia to distinguish itself from the west, which practice Catholic or Protestant. “Three sources of danger to the integrity of Russian culture are said to be Islam, Western mainstream denominations (both Catholic and Protes- tant), and new religious movements of Western origin” according to traditionalists in 1997’s Russia. The Orthodox Church is to Russians not merely a religion but also an identity by which they can differentiate themselves from their primary national “other”—the west. To differentiate itself from the western variants of Christianity Russian orthodox have several distinct features: Russian Orthodox view traditions to be equally a revelation as scriptures whereas other western branches only value scriptures, Virgin Mary don’t have a role in salvation, and Adam and Eve only bring death to the world compared to the western branches believe in original sin (change of human nature). These differences help draw the line between “The Russian Christianity” and “Western Christianity”, Making it a perfect anchor for a (perceived) distinct and authentic Russian identity. More radical viewpoints in Russia regard the practice of Orthodox as a "reliable barrier against the destruction of Russian statehood, the ideological aggression of westernization and liberalism," and then turns against any kind of Western religious presence as conveying "values openly contradictory to the most important Christian principles and to sacredness". This led to the biggest “other” in the Russian identity: the West.

Also a fun link showcasing some of the distinct features of Russian Orthodox Church: https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/06/24/news-from-russia-what-you-missed-over-the-weekend-16-a66115

The National Other Of Russia: The West

An “other” is a group a nation want to prove different from. Authenticity is a relative term; one cannot be unique if there is no one to compare to. The “other” of a nation is one that threatens or perceived to be threatening to the authenticity of the in-group, harm its interest, or outright threaten its physical security. From the perspective of Russia, the west fits all three criteria. “from the time of Peter Russia defined itself in opposition to 'the West' as its significant other” (Duncan, 2005). The antagonization of the west is one of the most-if not the most important aspect in creating the Russian identity. In 1991 when the Soviet Union collapsed, the new form Russia reach for the west for economic advising. With the help of western economists Russia adopted the “shock therapy”: rapid privatization of previously state owned enterprises. This era is characterized by widespread corruption withing the Russian government and the rise of oligarchs: business figures that monopolized the means of production. Eventually in 1998 the Russian currency (Ruble) collapsed, leaving the entire economy in shambled, significantly affecting the living standard of common Russians. The failure of “shock therapy” created widespread resentment against the west, who help formulated the plan. This resentment then embedded into the newly formed Russian identity. “Many Russian nationalists see Russia as a victim of a Western, or sometimes Jewish, conspiracy to destroy the USSR and thereby to weaken the Russian economy”. Russians also perceive the west as a direct threat to their security. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia seek to maintain its security by maintaining a sphere of influence, notably in ex-Soviet states. This comes at the cost of Russia’s smaller neighbors, hence NATO rejected this proposal and granted many ex-eastern block states NATO membership. Most notably the 3 Baltic states, Previously a part of the Soviet Union, they are now firmly allied with the west and hold NATO military exercise annually. Russians view this loss of buffer space a betrayal from the west. “Even among liberal Russians, a feeling of betrayal …by the West at the enlargement of NATO into Eastern Europe”. Russia is also in a constant state of internal debate on whether it should westernize or follow its own tradition, perceived as “unique”. While westernization is often seen as been progressive, pushback to preserve “Russianness” is no rare sighting. One notable way Russia distinct itself from the west culturally is by taking a conservative approach to contemporary issues as apposed to the more liberal view the west holds. This led to the passing of anti LGBTQ laws, conservative view on gender right…etc.

References

Agadjanian, A. (2001). Public Religion and the Quest for National Ideology: Russia's Media Discourse. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 40(3), 351-366.

Triandafyllidou, A. (1998). National identity and the 'other'. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 21(4), 593-612.

Duncan, P. (2005). CONTEMPORARY RUSSIAN IDENTITY BETWEEN EAST AND WEST. The Historical Journal, 48(1), 277-294.

Central Intelligence Agency. (n.d.). Russia. Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved February 10, 2022, from https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/russia/#people-and-society

The Moscow Times. (2022, February 11). News from Russia: What you missed over the weekend. The Moscow Times. Retrieved February 11, 2022, from https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/06/24/news-from-russia-what-you-missed-over-the-weekend-16-a66115