Siberia: Lost in Translation?

[John Dunn]

Brokgauz-Efron's Malyj enciklopedicheskij slovar', vol. IV, coll. 1441-3 (SPb, 1909), defines the eastern boundary of Siberia as being Russia's far-eastern coastline.  As far as I can make out from its concise account of the area's administrative history, Siberia stretching as far as the Pacific seems to have been a single administrative unit up until 1821 and even thereafter the three gubernii set up in that year seem to have been regarded as belonging to the same distinctive category. 

John Dunn.

-----
From: Josh Wilson <jwilson at SRAS.ORG>
To: SEELANGS at bama.ua.edu
Date: Wed, 26 Mar 2008 07:56:27 +0300
Subject: [SEELANGS] Siberia: Lost in Translation?

Dear Seelangers, 

 

I recently had the occasion to look up "Siberia" in Russian and English. It
seems that every English language dictionary defines Siberia as running from
the Urals to the Pacific. Russian dictionaries, however, have Siberia
running only "do gornyx khrbtov tikhookeanskogo vodorazdela." The difference
is fairly substantial. 

 

In speaking with Russians, it seems that none of them would consider
Chukotka, Kamchatka, or Khabarovsk to be Siberia. One woman who I know in
Blagoveshensk actually went on at length about how tour companies in her
city bill it as being in Siberia - and about how they are wrong - very, very
wrong. 

 

Does anyone know the historical explanation as to why "Siberia" in English
seems to be much bigger than "Sibir'" in Russian? 

 

 

Josh Wilson

Asst. Director

The School of Russian and Asian Studies

Editor-in-Chief

Vestnik, The Journal of Russian and Asian Studies

www.sras.org

jwilson at sras.org

 


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John Dunn
Honorary Research Fellow, SMLC (Slavonic Studies)
University of Glasgow, Scotland

Address:
Via Carolina Coronedi Berti 6
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Italy
Tel.: +39 051/1889 8661
e-mail: J.Dunn at slavonic.arts.gla.ac.uk
johnanthony.dunn at fastwebnet.it

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