Heterotopic Encounters: Meeting the Stranger on Frontiers

Abstract

-The Frontier of the Low Volga region has a special history that differs it from similar Frontier in Russia or for example in USA. The conquest of the Astrakhan Khanate by Muscovy changed geopolitical situation in the region but brought no changes to interethnic and gender relations. Constant migration of new ethnic groups to the region renovated the situation of interethnic and gender relations. In the Region we can find different forms of interethnic gender relations that can be characterized as a prefrontier or active frontier ones. In the pre-frontier stage the interethnic marriage is approved and is looked at as a mechanism of communication. During the active frontier any interethnic gender relations are accepted as negative and an Alien woman becomes a target of violation and rape. Due to constant mix of ethnic actors in the Region we can observe here coexistence of different forms when in one case an interethnic marriages is accepted and in another is rejected.