KHAZAR KHAGANATE IN THE REALMS OF SOVIET ACADEMIA: FROM M. I. ARTAMONOV TO L. N. GUMILEV AND RUSSIAN NATIONALISTS

Abstract

This paper deals with the reception of M. I. Artamonov's (1898–1972) and L. N. Gumilev's
(1912–1992) works focused on the history of Khazar Khaganate and their position in the
context of Soviet academia. The paper is based on the prosographical approach to the topic
and comparative analysis of primary texts published by Gumilev and Artamonov, mainly in
the 1960s and 1970s. The main aim of the study is to analyze and reflect on their findings in
the broader context of the Soviet academic discourse and intellectual milieu of Russian
nationalists. I argue that Gumilev’s radical revision of the history of Khazar Khaganate far
exceeded previous Artamonov’s findings and attracted the attention of Russian nationalist
groups of the post-Stalinist era mainly due to its antisemitic narrative. Furthermore, despite
the ever-present ambivalence of Gumilev’s contact with Russian nationalists during the 1970s,
he was heavily affected by the unstable relationship between Russian nationalists and the
official Soviet regime. During that time, Gumilev faced strong censorship of his texts, and his
most radical revisionist study focused on the Khazaria was eventually published only
posthumously in 1993.