Daily life in Almaty from 1920 till 1930 is a changing of family values

Dariya Assimova

In modern Kazakhstan the major national problems is a prestige of maternity paternity, creation of conditions for favorable birth and upbringing of children. Increasing of attention to the problems of modern family requires specifically historical research, to identify changes of family relations over a long period of time. The experience of the family during the period of socio-economic and cultural change in 20-30s provides an opportunity to take attention to the important lessons in the current reform of the country. The modern stage of development of historical science is characterized by revival of research activity in the sphere of human relations, ability to live of individual, change of mentality. Attention of historians, sociologists, demographers attracts the problem of reproduction of population which includes the questions of birth rate, marriage and family, mortality. Researchers of the post-Soviet States in this case are trying to make up the missed, to fill gaps in studying of the problems of the family and marriage relationships, which in Soviet times were expelled out of social science.

The family is one of the most important and ancient social institutions. The influence of it affects all aspects of our lives. In the family occurs reproduction of new generations and their primary social formation, and also realizes other important functions: spiritual relation, social control, financial and house hold. Disorganization of it could result the destruction of the family but a human always requires in it. In relationship between a man and a woman is the most fully realized human’s aspiration to happiness, therefore, the family remains the greatest value of society. In the considered period of political transformation and historical developments peoples went on to build their mutual relations, to marry, give rise and bring up children. [1, 211p]

The studying of daily life of Almaty is actualized by the modern problems of government reform of social sphere, and also increased interest to the specifics of daily life in that moment of new Soviet city , which was a model of the Soviet new buildings of the first Stalin’s five-years period. This city gives information about mentality of town’s peoples as a whole and also separate men as representative of special inhabitancy. For researching of the history of Almaty in industrialization period in the “daily aspect" should seriously turn attention to the life and relations of people who looking on what went on to build relationships, which were indicative of the process of occurrence of the similar habits and norms of behavior. The researching of the daily life of Almaty as the most multioccupied city and the capital of the Kazakh SSR shows how was rebuilding the Kazakh society to the Soviet society, and how deeply was affected the traditional foundation of the family, transferring to nucklear form of the family, refusal of polygamy, and so on, and it’s consequence. [2, 7 p.]

Allocation of this period coincides with the beginning and finish of the Stalin modernization, «building of the bases of socialism» in the USSR. During this period the main requirements to the Soviet family have been formulated. Their value remained during all Soviet history. Way of life changed not completely, old got in new, people not at once perceived a new way of life. In a new society laws were methods of citizens’ education, they regulated mutual relations between husband and wife, parents and children. Human were offered new family ceremonies and holidays instead of traditional. In periodicals there were a lot of notes, articles devoted to formation of new norms in interpersonal relations. The presented literature basically had emotional, propaganda character, but its abundance gives the chance to feel vivacity of discussion, importance of these problems for the given period. [3, 593p.]

Problem of the first decrees in the sphere of family relations in the conditions of the Soviet power and its influence on a family daily life were discussed and covered only casually in scientific works. It is presented in the "turned" kind and it was investigated exclusively in aspect of studying of successes of the Soviet power in struggle against of norms of adat¹. It was also reflected in treatment of the usually-legal inheritance of the people which has been reduced basically to its old norms and from for it was considered in through a prism of its negative displays. Before, positive, it is possible to carry all to a common law, all were transferred for the pre-revolutionary period of its existence, and negative – on послереволюционное life. From here followed that on time of a fulfillment of proletarian revolution in Russia the adat consisted ostensibly only of the become obsolete norms and institutes which demanded replacement with new statutes. The common law has existed in the conditions of the Soviet Kazakhstan, in the beginning as an official source of the right, and further as informal, only fifteen seventeen years. During the named period of time it operated as one of the basic regulators of behavior of people, as internally organized, rather independent system of traditional norms and the institutes, leaving with the roots deep into centuries. Subsequently the common law has been subjected violent demolition. In Almaty process of transition from an adat to decrees of the Soviet power accepted from January, 17th, 1921 passed settlement of intermarriage relations slightly more intensively rather than in rural suburbs. Sharp differentiation of indicators in early marriages which is observed observed around the city Almaty and countryside. [4, 20-24 p.].

Table 1 – total of townsmen of Almaty on census on December, 17th, 1926

[5, 2,6 items]

The date of carrying out of population census	Total population	sex		Indicator %
		male	female	male	female
Data of population censuses dated December, 17th 1926y.	45,400	22,600	22,800	49,8	50,2

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1.Adat is a norms of a common law, the codification of customs has been carried out during Kazakh khan Tauke-khan (1680-1718) was running . They were Collected together and named Zhety Zhargy (Seven foundation).

Table 2 – national structure of Almaty by census dated December, 17th, 1926

[6, 5,7 items]

nationality	Ammount 1926 y.	Indicator % 1926 y.
Russian	24996	55,1
Kazakh	3006	6,6
Ukrainian	4870	10,7
Tatar	2321	5,1
Uigur	5459	12,0
Byelorussian	217	0,5
Uzbeks	1611	3.6
Other nationality	2784	6Д
Total	45395	100,0

Table 3 - Number of marriages of sex aged till 16 year inclusive 1926 year

Sex and age	Total population			Kazakh				Russian				Ukrainian
	Republic	city	village	Republic		city	village	Republic		city	village	Republic	city	village
Males 10-14 yy.	1,5	0,2	1,6	2,6	0,9		2,6	0	0		0	0	0	0
15 y.	13,3	1,5	14,4	21,2	4,2		21,7	0,9	0		1,2	1,2	0	1,2
16 y.	23,7	4,0	25,7	41,3	9,1		42,4	3,4	0,5		4,1	2,5	5,0	2,4
Female 10-14 yy.	3,1	0,7	3,3	5,8	3,6		5,8	0,1	0		0,2	0,1	0	0,1
15 y.	41,0	8,8	44,5	77,8	41,0		78,3	1,6	0		2,1	1,1	0	1,1
16 y.	108,0	45,8	115,4	204,6	287,9		203,2	19,5	14,5		21,0	23,2	15,8	23,5

It is possible to note a tendency of preservation of early marriages all over the republic is basically on countryside. Take into consideration all positions, it is possible to make following conclusions, there are more married girls of these nationalities, at the age of 10 till 14 years and 15 years in countryside then in the city. The similar disproportion among marriage of both sexes shows that girls in countryside, were married from 10-14 years age, but in a city observance of new law rules constrained early marriages. As a rule girls in cities were married, when they achieved of age of sixteen years. The difference in early marriages among the Kazakh population in the city and countryside confirms that traditional relations to early marriages at the city inhabitance (Almaty) is present, but observance of new decrees and norms corrected it. Introduction of new decrees have changed the family relations and early marriages is one of many indicators, there were the achievement in it, has changed the internal maintenance of customs and traditions. It allows noting positive value of the accepted legislative measures, but also it is necessary to note that in many respects the century traditions which had in a basis good intentions, began to directly depend from property relations. Other question, how difficult was process of changing of the settled representations and norms of a common law, considerable time and the big explanatory work was required for accepted new, even progressive norms. Everything we had said before is interesting that the answer to the questions about problems of nowadays life we should search through a prism of daily occurrence and knowledge of life of the simple person - the society mechanism. [7, 15-18p.]

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Literature:

1. Engels F. «The Origin of a family, a private property and the state» Marks K. and Engels F. «The elected products» in 3 Toms; т.3 Moscow 1985y. 211-370 pp.

2. Kosybaev M. K «Demographic researches in Kazakhstan: results and prospects» Vestnik Academy of science of Kazakh SSR, 1991y., № 11, 7p.

3. Socialist building in Kazakhstan during the regenerative period (1921-1925yy.) the Collection of documents and materials under G. F. Dahshlejgera edition Almaty, 1962 – 593p.

4. History of the population of the USSR 1920-1959 yy. The Express information. «The history of statistic », released in tom 3-5 Part.1 Moscow, 1990 y. - 20-24p.; Argynbayev H. «The Kazakh otbasy» Almaty, Kajnar 1996 y. – 25p.

5. Central government archive of RK,F.248, Document 1, item 2,6

6. Central government archive of RK,F 460 D.77, item 5,7

7. Rosljakova M. V. «History of family relations of workers of verhnevolzhsk area (1920 -1930 yy.) Ivanova 2005y. 3-15p.; Ualieva S.K.”Family relations in Kazakhstan in the end of XIX – the first quarter ХХ century “Ust-kamenogorsk 2003y. – 25-30 p.; Rysbekova S.T. «the Soviet experience of social Modernizations of a traditional society lessons and historical value (1920-1936yy.)» Ust-kamenogorsk 2010 y. – 15-18p.

Резюме

Современный этап развития исторической науки характеризуется оживлением исследовательской активности в сфере человеческих отношении, жизнедеятельности индивида, изменение менталитета. В этом плане проблемы воспроизводства населения к которым относятся вопросы рождаемости, брака и семьи, смертности привлекают повышенное внимание демографов, историков, социологов. Исследователи постсоветских государств в данном случае, в известной мере пытаются наверстать упущенное, восполнить пробелы в изучении проблем семьи и семейно-брачных отношений, которые в советский период были вытеснены на перефирию обществоведения.