All-Russian Empire?

[Randolph, John W]

Dear colleagues,

I've been wondering about the following translation matter, and I would be grateful for someone who knows to set me straight, not being a language or translation scholar.

So in 1721, of course, the Russian senate and Synod urged Peter I to accept the title "Imperator vserossiiskii," in recognition of his achievements on behalf of the "Vserossiiskoe gosudarstvo", not least his victory in the Swedish War.

>From that point on, many sources date the foundation of the "Vserossiiskaia imperiia", or more simply the "Rossiiskaia imperiia" or Russian Empire.

So here's my question: most often, it seems to me, historians writing in English translate the "Vserossiiskoe" part as "All-Russian," leading to expressions like "All-Russian Empire" "Emperor," etc.

It's sometimes struck me that this is an ugly translation, since it seems to imply an ethnic unity (the empire is all Russian) rather than an imperial unification of various parts and / or peoples of Russia.  Here, I'm not so much worried about the famous rossiiskii / russkii problem (I'm happy with Russian here) but rather with the "All-" part.

I wonder what people think of "Pan-Russian" as a possible substitute.  As I understand it, pan- denotes "pertaining to all of or all of the parts of a continent, or a racial, or ethnic, or religious group."  This perhaps captures the geo-ethno-religio spirit of the original better? Or am I thinking too hard?

[Though I don't have an etymological dictionary handy at the moment, I suppose the "vserossiiskii" is in part a conversion of the old "vseia Rusi" of princely titles into the more modernized vocabulary of Rossiia, which I understand to be a late 16th / 17th century phenomenon.  Would it also be partly a Greekish coinage, perhaps partaking (in this sense) of "pan-" in its origins?]

In any event, just reactions or thoughts on how to handle this translation would be welcome.  I can compile private responses to the list, if you like.

Thanks!

John

PS: I would also be grateful for guidance as to when the term "vserossiiskoe gosudarstvo" entered usage.

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