Refugees in Karelia during the First World War

In the twentieth century, the ethnic situation in Karelia repeatedly changed because of internal and external migration. The first significant influx of non-ethnic population into the region was the arrival of refugees from the enemy-occupied western provinces in the summer and autumn of 1915. Migration practices of the Soviet era and internal migration to Karelia in the 1990s were reflected in the research literature. At the same time, the presence of refugees in Karelia during the First World War is a little-studied issue, which determines the novelty of the article. The author analyzes archival and published sources using both general historical and statistical methods. It was established that the number of refugees in Karelia did not exceed 550 people, which was 0.1 % of the region's population on the eve of the war. Despite the diverse ethnic origin of the immigrants, they could not significantly affect the ethnic and religious composition of the population of Karelia. In addition, it was found that due to a number of factors the refugees did not make any visible contribution to the economy of the region, although local zemstvos wanted to see more active participation of migrants in the economic life of Karelia.