The "Paris Mysteries" of Komi's Capital: The Multiplicity of Images and Identities in the Cultural Space of a City

Abstract

The article discusses the historical and cultural development of Syktyvkar, the capital of the Komi Republic. The authors examine the dynamics of ethnic composition and the forms in which ethnicity is expressed in the urban milieu, as well as urban identity and city’s cultural space. They draw attention to the fact that ethnicity is manifested in the urban context both at the individual and the institutional levels, and it is actualized not only as a result of the activity of cultural institutions but also as an outcome of the republican community model accepted in Komi. Symbolic space of the city is a combination of ethnic and supra-ethnic cultural images and signs, where those related to the Komi culture (or understood as such) play the essential, although not dominant, part. The urban identity per se is not articulated saliently since the urban text appears of secondary importance and city space is fragmented.