The head of the Caucasus Educational District, K.P. Yanovskii, epitomized the liberal minded reformers in the Russian Empire who saw the reform of pedagogy – introducing modern sciences, languages, critical thinking and emphasis on the... more
The head of the Caucasus Educational District, K.P. Yanovskii, epitomized the liberal minded reformers in the Russian Empire who saw the reform of pedagogy – introducing modern sciences, languages, critical thinking and emphasis on the individual – as a means to bring modernity and civilization while respecting ethnic, linguistic and religious diversity. The Caucasus Educational District became a sort of refuge for liberal reformers among educational administrators, beyond the grasp of conservative elements in St. Petersburg. Yet under their administration language education policies for local nationalities in the Caucasus shifted from encouraging local languages to demanding instruction in Russian, and Yanovskii and his colleagues in the Caucasus Educational District came to be viewed in the narratives of nationalists as instruments of Russification and assimilation. Using archival sources and other contemporary, this article examines the intersection of reform and nationalism in the question of language pedagogy in schools in the Caucasus at a time of state directed centralization in the Russian Empire and seeks to understand the often complex motives behind the changes in policy and their unexpected consequences.
Unlike the Asian and North American Pliocene record, fossil occurrences of Canidae in Europe (and Africa) are uncommon and fragmentary. The revision of canid material from the late Pliocene site of Kvabebi (eastern Georgia) revealed the... more
Unlike the Asian and North American Pliocene record, fossil occurrences of Canidae in Europe (and Africa) are uncommon and fragmentary. The revision of canid material from the late Pliocene site of Kvabebi (eastern Georgia) revealed the contemporaneous occurrence of three different taxa: (1) Nyctereutes megamastoides (a derived species of the Eurasian Pliocene raccoon dog-like canids); (2) Vulpes cf. V. alopecoides (representing the first occurrence of a member of the vulpine taxon V. alopecoides, a species that was the most widespread fox in the early Pleistocene in western Europe); and (3) Eucyon sp. The latter occurrence at Kvabebi completes our knowledge of the late Pliocene evolutionary history of the latest representatives of the genus in Western Europe and Central Asia. Our revision of Kvabebi canids registers a previously undocumented case of established niche partitioning among early Pliocene sympatric Canidae.
Shulaveri Shomu sites (c.6000 BCE – 5,000 BCE), found across Southern Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan are characterized by interconnected round mudbrick structures that create a series of compounds. Ongoing investigations at sites in the... more
Shulaveri Shomu sites (c.6000 BCE – 5,000 BCE), found across Southern Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan are characterized by interconnected round mudbrick structures that create a series of compounds. Ongoing investigations at sites in the Kvemo Kartli Region (Gerogia) suggest the intentional abandonment and resettlement of Shulaveri Shomu sites during the Neolithic. The enigmatic occupational history of these sites continues to pose obstacles to interpreting the use of space in round structure based solely on macroscopic remains. To better understand the use of space, micro-refuse analysis has been conducted at the site of Gadachrili Gora. Floor samples were collected using a radial grid, plotting concentric rings. A radial grid was selected in order to exercise meaningful control over the round spaces. 1.4-2.0mm size-class particles were sampled with replacement and observed by student volunteers. This poster presents the preliminary results of our analysis.
Pope Francis, the spiritual leader of the Roman Catholic Church and the head of state of Vatican City, will make an official visit to Azerbaijan on October 2. This will be the last leg of Pope Francis Caucasus region visit. This visit is... more
Pope Francis, the spiritual leader of the Roman Catholic Church and the head of state of Vatican City, will make an official visit to Azerbaijan on October 2. This will be the last leg of Pope Francis Caucasus region visit. This visit is important for multiple reasons.
Unlike the Asian and North American Pliocene record, fossil occurrences of Canidae in Europe (and Africa) are uncommon and fragmentary. The revision of canid material from the late Pliocene site of Kvabebi (eastern Georgia) revealed the... more
Unlike the Asian and North American Pliocene record, fossil occurrences of Canidae in Europe (and Africa) are uncommon and fragmentary. The revision of canid material from the late Pliocene site of Kvabebi (eastern Georgia) revealed the contemporaneous occurrence of three different taxa: (1) Nyctereutes megamastoides (a derived species of the Eurasian Pliocene raccoon dog-like canids); (2) Vulpes cf. V. alopecoides (representing the first occurrence of a member of the vulpine taxon V. alopecoides, a species that was the most widespread fox in the early Pleistocene in western Europe); and (3) Eucyon sp. The latter occurrence at Kvabebi completes our knowledge of the late Pliocene evolutionary history of the latest representatives of the genus in Western Europe and Central Asia. Our revision of Kvabebi canids registers a previously undocumented case of established niche partitioning among early Pliocene sympatric Canidae.
