Uzbeks in the Southern Urals: between the local community and transnational practices (2002-2019)

The article is devoted to the formation and development of the Uzbek migrant’s community in the South Ural region at the present stage. The source base was the census data, information on international migration from Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, and the results of the author’s field studies. The time and circumstances of the Uzbek migrant’s arrival were established, their participation in internal Russian and cross-border migrations was shown, and the specific character of the Uzbeks migration from the two main countries of origin was revealed. The basis of the Uzbek community in the region comprised Kyrgyz Uzbeks from the Osh region, Kyrgyzstan. They are characterized by local groups, formed mainly from fellow countrymen, they often part with Kyrgyzstan when children move to Russia. Kyrgyzstan’s membership in the EAEU became an indisputable advantage in the process of integration into the host society. Labor migrants from Uzbekistan are more numerous. They constitute the main group of seasonal labor migration to the region from the states of Central Asia. They often change their place of residence and work moving between Russian regions and combining it with returning to their homeland. At the same time, the migration scenarios of immigrants from Uzbekistan turned out to be variable, with the changing mobility regime between Russia and Uzbekistan. The study reveals how migration scenarios can change from a one-time visit to earn some money to the repeated visits «to see the family».