When we read the old Russian literature we can see that the folks in Russia went from one place to the other. Many Russians still are nomads at heart,
something that “radically distinguishes them from [their] European neighbors who tend to live in one place only. Russians on the other hand may live in Arkhangelsk but work elsewhere in central Russia or the Far East much of the year.From those many Russian stories we do have lots of ideas of those dachas. "Dacha" is one of those Russian words ("dacha" derives from the Russian verb "to give," dat') which entered many languages, giving people many dreams about that what seems to be more than just a place.
The dacha made itself integral to Russian life and culture. It is not any-more that what began as a token of elite status. Today society has totally changedit is a phenomenon that defies translation. {Putting the Dacha in Its Place}
The dramatic increase in the number of dacha owners – now some 60
million people – and the concomitant growth of the 40 to 50 million
people who support them represent another aspect of life outside
traditional Russian cities and villages. Such people are often far more
numerous on any given territory than are the original residents. {Rural Russia is alive and well}
In the cities people are seen and noticed also by federal institutions. There the state has still a lot in control. Outside the cities the state control seems to be less. That makes that those who do prefer an other way of living, than the previous state structures imposed on their citizens, escape to the country.
In the rural areas we may find more people who do not adhere to the traditional thought. We may find more people who have stepped away from communism, atheism but also from Russian Orthodox Church. As such in the rural areas you may find several Christadelphians doing everything to survive according to the Will of the Most High. Also the Jehovah Witnesses may find it easier to live in such areas. Furthermore we can find many sectarians who also found their way to the countryside.
There are some 10 million sectarians and almost as many more
agriculturalists who often take over villages that have become vacant.
In many cases, both groups remain “’outside the state’s field of
vision.’” But they are very much there in fact.
Many of these new or new-old settlements have no official status. That often means that any structures that are erected have no official status and that those who live “outside the state” are at least formally without the social services other Russians receive. {Rural Russia is alive and well}
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