The first academic journal in the Russian Far East

• Khisamutdinova N.V.

  N. V. Khisamutdinova. Vladivostok State University of Economics and Service. Vladivostok. Russia

The article concentrates on the first scientific journal in the Russian Far East, "Notes of the Amur Region Studies Society", that has been published for over 100 years, since 1888 to the present day. It was organized to disseminate information about the work of local amateur researches and to popularize their ideas and knowledge about the region. Thus, the journal has incorporated the research results in the variety of fields, e.g. geology, biology, hydrography, archeology, ethnography, and others. The analysis of publications allows us to understand
how the content and the authors' lineup changed in different periods. The early, pre-Soviet period was characterized by amateur researchers’ publications who studied the region along with their major duties. Their notes and observations not only provided previously unknown
information, but also outlined the directions of new research that were of great importance for the development of the region. In the mid-20s, with the development of higher education and science in the Far East, the regional research acquired a more substantive character, and
scientists predominated among the journal authors. After 1936, the "Notes" issuing was interrupted for almost 30 years due to political factors and internal problems of the Amur Region Studies Society. In 1965–69, when the Society worked under the patronage of the USSR
Academy of Sciences, it managed to publish several volumes, reflecting mainly the research of the academic institutes opened by that time in the Far East. The journal issuing was resumed on a regular basis in 1992, mainly for the local amateur researchers’ publications.

The conclusion is made about the importance of the "Notes" as a wide platform for research materials on the Far East studies.
Keywords: "Notes of the Amur Region Studies Society", academic journals, Russian Far East,
regional studies, amateur researchers.