Carpentry in the economic activities of the Mordovians

Introduction. The article examines the role and importance of carpentry in the economic activity of the Mordovians. On the basis of pre-revolutionary statistical documents, reports of provincial and district zemstvo committees, the profitability of carpentry was studied. The main reasons for the development of fishing activities in the peasant environment and the places of permanent migrant workers among the Mordovians are identified. The author paid attention to the contribution of domestic and foreign researchers to the study of this topic. Materials and Methods. The research is based on the following methods: comparative-historical, historical-genetic, problem-chronological, structural-system. Of the general scientific research methods, logical, descriptive, narrative, generalization, classification and systematization were used. Traditional methods of ethnographic science were also used, such as polling and interviewing the population. To achieve the results of the study, archival sources, reports of county and provincial statistical committees, data from the All-Russian census of 1897, as well as field research materials collected by the author in Mordovian villages were used. Results. In the second half of the XIX - early XX century, in connection with the active development of commodity-money relations, handicraft industry and various types of otkhodniki, one of which was carpentry, acquired an important role in the economic activity of peasants. Carpentry not only provided the peasant economy financially, but also promoted interethnic dialogue and the enrichment of the traditional material and spiritual culture of the Mordovian people. Thus, the economic activity of the Mordovians is inextricably linked with its ethnic history. Industrialization and industrial development, the introduction of new technologies in the late 19th and early 20th centuries became important factors in increasing labor productivity and increasing the demand for labour. The construction of new industrial facilities and buildings required more people who owned carpentry. Many peasants, in order to find work, went to such large construction sites and sometimes remained to live in these places. Economic factors have become, in many ways, the reasons for the dispersed settlement of the Mordovians. In the pre-revolutionary period, a significant contribution to the study of traditional crafts and occupations was made by P. S. Pallas, I. I. Lepekhin, and others. Among Soviet and modern researchers, it is worth noting V. N. Kuklin, I. I. Firstov, A. S. Luzgin, N. F. Mokshin, G. A. Kornishina, E. N. Mokshina and others. Conclusion. Thus, carpentry was one of the lucrative occupations and was of great importance in the economic activities of the Mordovians.