Open Access
Article
29 August 2025Vocabulary of Chinese Origin in the Language of Russian Residents of Harbin in the First Half of the 20th Century
The purpose of the article is to study the functioning of lexical units of Chinese origin in the speech of representatives of the Far Eastern emigration. The language of everyday communication is the first to respond to socio-cultural, ethnocultural, ethno-religious processes occurring in society. At present, when the culture of Far Eastern emigration in its close interaction with Chinese culture has become a fact of history, the reconstruction of the processes of intercultural communication between Russians and Chinese in Harbin causes great difficulties. This explains the relevance of studying the Chinese influence on the language of Russian emigrants who found refuge in Harbin in the first half of the 20th century. The novelty of the work is due to the lack of comprehensive studies dealing with Chinese borrowings in the everyday language of ordinary Harbin residents. An appeal to the memories and oral histories of Harbin residents allows us to trace how lexemes borrowed from the Chinese language and continuing to live in the linguistic consciousness of people who grew up in Harbin. The methodology of this article is based on historical-cultural, functional, linguocultural, and lexical-semantic approaches, as well as interviewing. The work uses materials from the authors’ field research among Harbin residents. Based on the results of the study, the authors conclude that although most Russians living in Harbin in the first half of the 20th century did not speak Chinese, Chinese borrowings were a constant part of their lives. This is especially true for various lacunae related to everyday realities, cooking, traditional culture, etc. Harbin residents organically assimilated such lexical units and preserved them in their speech for decades—even outside China. Of course, this testifies to close ethnocultural contacts between Russians and Chinese in Manchuria.
Open Access
Review
22 October 2025Beyond Genetics: Exploring Aspects of Non-Biological Kinship in Prehistoric Times
This article explores alternative ways of conceptualizing kinship in prehistoric contexts beyond the confines of genetic reductionism. While ancient DNA research has revitalized interest in the archaeology of kinship, it often privileges patrilineal or matrilineal models and risks obscuring forms of relatedness not grounded in biological ties. Drawing on comparative anthropological models and archaeological case studies, the paper highlights the complexity of kinship as manifested in practices of adoption, fosterage, commensality, co-residence, and non-biological affiliation within (non)nuclear households. By integrating socio-cultural, economic, and material dimensions, it demonstrates the diverse methodological and theoretical approaches necessary to move beyond descent-centered reconstructions. The discussion advocates for an interdisciplinary framework that challenges reductionist assumptions and opens new avenues for understanding relatedness in the deep past. Finally, the article emphasizes the village as a unit of analysis within a multi-scalar approach. It presents future directions and archaeological correlates of adoption, child circulation, and fosterage derived from archaeological, genetic, and ethnographic evidence.
Open Access
Article
28 October 2025Phylogeography and Microevolution of Y-Chromosome Haplogroup N-B482: Ancient Diffusion and Modern Relicts
N-M231 is a major human Y-haplogroup comprising the widespread haplogroup N-Z4762 and a rarer haplogroup N-B482. Due to the limited data available, N-B482 has not been previously studied. We have compiled and analyzed a dataset of 88 N-B482 Y-STR haplotypes, utilizing a vast collection of samples from the Biobank of North Eurasia and genetic data published elsewhere. According to the phylogenetic analysis of ancient and modern samples, N-B482 has 2 subhaplogroups that diverged at ~12,600 YBP: the Balkan subhaplogroup N-P189.2 and the Altaian subhaplogroup N-Y147969. According to whole-genome sequencing, N-Y147969 comprises the North Altaian (N-Y149059) and Mongolian (N-MF36295) branches. The analysis of 28 ancient genomes revealed that N-B482 was widespread in Eurasia during the Neolithic, Bronze, and Iron Ages, spanning from Baikal to Hungary and from the Arctic to Uzbekistan, but it is now considered a relict. The number of its modern carriers is vanishingly small: the analysis of our samples from North Eurasia’s indigenous populations (n ≈ 25,000) detects N-B482 presence only in North Altaians (Kumandins, Chelkans, Tubalars), Mongolians, and Kalmyks. The primary cause of extinction for N-B482 lineages is genetic drift. The Galton-Watson theory of branching processes suggests a high probability of extinction for lineages with uniparental inheritance.
Open Access
Review
29 October 2025Admixture of Amerindian, African and European Genes: Cuba, Mexico and Colombia as Study Cases
One hundred years after Columbus arrived in America in 1492, Amerindian population had fallen from 80 to 8 million in North and South America. The main causes were new microbes, slavery conditions and war. The people of San Basilio de Palenque (Colombia), close to Cartagena, in the Colombian Caribbean Coast, were established by runaway African slaves who built a refuge in San Basilio. The Spanish governors pressured the Spanish monarchs in Madrid to grant freedom to the Africans of San Basilio de Palenque, who became the first free Africans in the Americas. They speak the only Bantu-Spanish Creole and preserve African genetic traits according to HLA genes. Research also examined Cubans from Havana, showing that around 12% of the typical Amerindian HLA genes are present in Havana’s population. Cubans’ blood contains Amerindian genes in spite of that Amerindian physical traits do not exist now in the Cuban population. Amerindian HLA and other genes analyses and other cultural traits observed in Mexico—such as those of the Pacific Mayo/Yoreme and the Atlantic Huastecan/Teenek groups—suggest that the initial peopling of the American continent occurred much earlier than traditionally proposed, and that there was a bidirectional exchange of populations between the Pacific and Atlantic in relation to Europe (finding in America of European Paleolothic Solutrean traits) peoples may have occurred.
Open Access
Article
30 October 2025Postural Education Program for Indigenous Children in School: Case Study
To investigate whether a Postural Education Program (PEP) is capable of promoting changes in body knowledge and self-perception of posture among indigenous school-aged children. The study included 9 indigenous children with a mean age of 8 years, of whom 7 completed both the initial and final evaluations. The PEP consisted of four sessions, each lasting approximately two hours, which included an initial assessment, theoretical-practical classes on postural education, and a final assessment. Responses to the Self-bodpos questionnaire, collected at the beginning and end of the sessions, were tabulated using SPSS 22.0 and analyzed through descriptive statistics and the Wilcoxon test, with the significance level set at α ≤ 0.05. Verbal information collected from the focus group was analyzed using content analysis techniques. Among the 7 participants who completed both evaluations, 4 showed statistically significant differences in four of the seven items assessed by the Self-bodpos. In addition, positive outcomes were observed in the theoretical knowledge questionnaire and in the focus group discussions. The PEP was effective in promoting changes in body knowledge and self-perception of posture among indigenous school-aged children.
Open Access
Review
05 November 2025Mental Health Impacts Associated with Exposure to Climate-Sensitive Hazards in Pacific Island Countries: A Scoping Review
Pacific Island Countries (PICs) face some of the most severe health risks from climate change, with associated mental health impacts that remain under-recognized. This scoping review synthesizes peer-reviewed literature published by February 2025 to examine the mental health consequences of exposure to climate-related hazards across 22 PICs. The search identified 193 studies, 19 of which were included in the review. Most studies employed qualitative or mixed methods, focusing on storms, droughts, sea-level rise, planned relocation, and environmental changes. Reported mental health outcomes included increased depression, anxiety, grief, and distress, often linked to direct exposure and secondary effects such as displacement, resource insecurity, and social disruption. Risk and protective factors were identified, emphasizing broader social, cultural, spiritual, and environmental influences that mediate the relationships between climate-sensitive hazard exposures and mental health outcomes in PICs. Cultural mediators such as traditional knowledge, land connection, and community cohesion shaped both vulnerability and resilience. Common coping strategies included relocation, community-based support, and leadership-driven actions. However, access to mental healthcare remained limited due to a shortage of trained professionals, stigma, and preference for traditional healing methods. To address these challenges, it is essential to integrate mental health into national public health frameworks, enhance disaster preparedness, increase access to mental health services, and conduct context-specific research.
