XVII Western Siberian archaeological and ethnographic conference in Tomsk: a new step in the 45-year history

The article is dedicated to the XVIII Western Siberian Archaeological and Ethnographic Conference (WSAEC) which took place in the April 2016 in Tomsk, where the problems of ethnic and cultural interaction from the Paleolithic to present day in the space continuum of the East and West were considered. We review the contribution of the WSAEC in the development of interdisciplinary synthesis of archaeology, ethnography, linguistics, and anthropology as one of the priority directions of science in the 21st century. Purpose. To show the contribution of the XVII WSAEC to studying Siberia history from the ancient times to the present. The WSAEC history started in 1970 and in 2015 it had a 45th anniversary. Up to the present, there were 17 forums held, which had all-Russian and international status for a long time. The XVII conference was dedicated to the memory of the outstanding scientists, such as the 110 anniversary of V. N. Chernetsov, the 110 anniversary of G. F. Debets, and the 115 anniversary of A. P. Dulzon, which reflects the interdisciplinary nature of WSAEC. The forum’s work in joint meetings mode included 4 areas that represented the process of ethno-cultural interactions and their historical specificity. Archaeological studies were devoted to Eurasian traditions in the genesis of sociocultural phenomena of the Western Siberia peoples and the peoples of the surrounding territories. Ethnographic studies were devoted to the ethno-cultural renaissance in the modern landscape of Northern Eurasia. Language studies were devoted to languages of the Western Siberian peoples in the context of the ethnocultural interaction. Anthropological studies were devoted to ethno- cultural contacts of the Northern Eurasia peoples as the sociobiological experience: paleoanthropological context. The WSAEC is acknowledged as one of the oldest and reputable conferences which has been gathering the major scientists and youth and providing continuity in the development of science for 45 years. The topic range of the forum and the accompanying seminar proclaimed as the ethno-cultural dialog in a wide space-time continuum created the conceptual and organizing basis that united specialists in different fields from different parts of the world and positioned Siberia as the key region connecting European West and Asian East. Results. There were 186 participants from 77 leading higher educational and research institutions of the Russian Federation and from 10 foreign centers (Hungary, Germany, Denmark, Poland, Estonia, and Ukraine). There were 96 oral reports given. The papers of the XVII WSAEC have been published in 2 issues of the Tomsk State University Journal of History, which is on the Higher Attestation Commission list and included in the Web of Science. Conclusion. The XVII forum has made a serious contribution to the studies of ethnic and cultural Western Siberia history and neighboring territories and has become an important step in the history of WSAECs as a significant phenomenon and an important integral part of science. It was decided to continue the tradition of holding WSAEC at Tomsk State University, with the time of the next XVIII Conference scheduled in 2020, which will be the year of the 50th anniversary of Western Siberian Archaeological and Ethnographic Conferences.