Long Night at the Vepsian Museum ─ The Forest Folk of Northern Russia and the Struggle for Cultural Survival

Based on ethnographic fieldwork and archival research, this book takes readers to the village of Sheltozero in northern Russia. This tiny community is populated by an indigenous people known as Veps, colloquially referred to as the “forest folk” for their intense affiliation with forests on their ancestral lands. Davidov uses a tour of the local museum to introduce a cast of human and non-human characters from traditional Vepsian culture, and to explore various time periods under Russian, Finnish, Soviet, and post-Soviet rule. In the process, she examines how contemporary political struggles mesh with traditional beliefs while illustrating how Veps make meaning of their history and their unfolding future.