The Skete on Tavajärvi — the Last Refuge of the Old Believers from Topozero

The article is devoted to the study of the history of the Old Believer skete on Lake Tavajarvi, where Russian monks from the Topozersky Monastery, destroyed by the authorities in the mid-19th century, found refuge. The objective of the study is to compare information from Finnish-language literature with data from Russian-language sources in order to shed light on the history of the Tavajarvi skete. The study uses textual, linguistic and comparative historical methods. The materials used are Finnish-language (published and archival) and Russian-language (archival) sources, as well as the results of the authors’ field trip to Lake Tavajarvi in 2023. During the work, all identified Finnish-language sources were translated into Russian and analyzed in comparison with data from Russian archival sources. This made it possible to clarify and correct many of the statements made by foreign writers, establish previously unknown facts, and also compile a history of the emergence, existence, and decline of the Old Believer skete on Lake Tavajarvi. It has been determined that the skete existed for 80 years from 1838 to 1918. The names and fates of many monks and laymen have been established. Their number, according to different sources, fluctuates between 10 and 50 people. All skete settlements with the center in the Hautaniemi estate and in the surrounding area at a distance of up to 25 km have been localized. The skete ceased to exist due to the natural death of its last resident, Vasily Lebedev

Estate · Human settlement · Real estate · European Linguistics and Anthropology · Folklore, Mythology, and Literature Studies · Indigenous Studies and Ecology