Which History Matters? Surveying Russian Youth and Their Understandings of the Past

Abstract

To what extent do elite narratives about history shape what citizens make of the past? This article focuses on young Russians’ understanding of history and provides insights into the effects of memory politics in authoritarian settings. The research uses original survey data of urban youth and demonstrates that the regime successfully determines what events are considered important. However, conflicts over their interpretation persist, particularly with regard to less emotionally charged signifiers and those to which respondents can relate personally. Given low variation by age, I suggest that we observe a period effect upon historical memory, rather than a generational effect.