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WORLD ANTHROPOLOGICAL UNION

CONGRESS 2024​

Paper

Virtual representation of the Seto people in the Russian internet space in its current dynamics

presenters

    Ksenya Maretina

    Nationality: Russia

    Residence: Saint Petersburg

    Peter the Great Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography (Kunstkamera) of the Russian Academy of Sciences

    Presence:Online

The study is based on recent field and cyber-field research on the Seto people living in Russia. Methodically, it combines approaches of multi-sited ethnography and adaptive listening, to explore the heterogeneous nature of online platforms and social media, in their interconnectedness with the offline world. 1) The rich cultural heritage of the Seto people is represented in the Russian online space both on specialised research, museum, and tourism websites and in social media. The cooperation between the public and private sectors in preserving and popularising Seto culture is discussed through projects that stretch between the online and offline worlds. 2) In recent years the Pskov region, where the majority of Russian Seto live, has been developed as a tourist destination. Tourist itineraries include sites related to the culture and traditional economy of the Seto people. The presenter discusses the new tourist route "Pechory Side" (https://xn--80aanuqdcadmdico2e5g.xn--p1ai/), which is presented on the Internet as an online platform with an interactive map and information on the tourist sites and infrastructure. Unlike otherwise quite similar Estonian tourist portal "Visit Setomaa" (https://www.visitsetomaa.ee/en), which main tourist route "Seto Village Belt" relies specifically on Seto-ness as its main formative element, Russian "Pechory Side" integrates Seto culture sites as one of its elements. 4) The representation of the key markers of Seto culture - language, folklore, festivals and festive dress - in offline and online spaces is also addressed. 5) The importance of the internet and the specifics of its use, in maintaining communication, interaction, joint celebration among Seto people from the Pskov region, Estonia and Siberia, which has grown in the last few years, is explored. The research was funded by the grant of the Russian Science Foundation No. 23-78-10079 "Minor Indigenous Peoples of Russia: Virtual Ethnicity and Network Experiences"

Keywords:

Glocalisation of digital technologies, Seto people, digital culture, multi-sited ethnography, adaptive listening