Kuznetsov I.A., Grishin E.S.  A.V. Chayanov as a researcher of the three-field system: A publishers’ preface // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2019. V.4. №2. P. 57-61.

DOI: 10.22394/2500-1809-2019-4-2-57-61

Annotation

This is an article of Alexander Chayanov (1888–1937) first published in 1910 in the Agriculture and Forestry. The article is based on the graduate work of Chayanov written at the Moscow Agricultural Institute under the guidance of the Professor of agricultural economy and agricultural statistics A.F. Fortunatov. The article considers farming systems used by peasants on communal lands in the provinces of European Russia in the late 19th—early 20th centuries. Chayanov grouped main systems of the peasant economy into five types: three-field, two-field, many-field, transient (lea tillage), and upland farming. The key sources for the definition and localization of farming systems were the data of non-government (zemstvo) statistics and the descriptions of farming systems provided by local agronomists in a number of provinces. Chayanov also used the ratio of the sown and fallow lands as an indicator of the farming system. He calculated this ratio on the basis of the land statistics data collected by the Central Statistical Committee in 1881 and 1893 in 46 gubernias of European Russia. The results of his work are presented in the cartogram indicating the southern and eastern borders of the prevailing three-field system of farming. This publication is mainly for historians focusing on the agrarian history and the works of Chayanov.

Keywords

Agrarian history, historical geography, three-field system, peasant economy, A.V. Chayanov.

About the authors

Igor A. Kuznetsov, PhD (History), Senior Researcher, Research Laboratory for Economic and Social History, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, Vernadskogo Prosp., 82.
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Evgeny S. Grishin, Head of the Department of Historical Cartography and GeoInformation Systems, Research Laboratory for Economic and Social History, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, Vernadskogo Prosp., 82.
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Kuznetsov I.A. The agrarian revolution of 1917 in Russia: Is it worth studying economic history and forgetting the sad end? // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2019. V.4. №1. P. 22-44.

DOI: 10.22394/2500-1809-2019-4-1-22-44

Abstract

The article considers the possible further studies of the economic history of agriculture and the peasantry of the Russian regions in 1861–1914. The author analyzes the theory of Russian revolutions developed by Boris Mironov and identifies logical contradictions in his argumentation. This theory overvalues the significance of random and subjective factors and underestimates the agrarian overpopulation and economic contradictions determined by the agrarian development. The author’s criticism of the “optimistic” paradigm in the economic history of post-reform Russia outlines the objectives of the study of agricultural development and its social consequences for the peasantry. The article proposes to discuss the idea that economic progress and growth of agricultural production in the Black-Earth regions of the South and South-East with their low production costs were the key factors of the crisis due to the relative overproduction of grain in Russia. Many small peasant farms in the old agricultural center could not compete in the grain market and, thus, were pushed out of it and marginalized, reinforced the natural-consumer activities and lost incentives for intensification of production. Market restrictions determined by the overproduction of grain became an important factor of agrarian overpopulation in the central regions. Institutional constraints that existed long before the Stolypin reform were aggravated by agrarian overpopulation that also created the social base for revolution. The agrarian revolution of 1917 was to strengthen the position of the family-labor economy by eliminating payment for the access to land as the main factor of production.

Keywords

history of Russian revolutions, agrarian revolution, agrarian overpopulation, peasant economy, modernization, B.N. Mironov

About the author

Igor A. Kuznetsov, PhD (History), Senior Researcher, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, prosp. Vernadskogo, 82.
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Kerblay B. A.V. Chayanov. Evolution of the Russian agrarian thought from 1908 to 1930: At the crossroads (Article of B. Kerblay) // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2018. V.3. №4. P. 17-68.

DOI: 10.22394/2500-1809-2018-3-4-17-68

Annotation

The Russian Peasant Studies presents a collection of archival documents related to the publication of Alexander Chayanov’s works in 1967 in France and England, which was prepared by the Professor of Sorbonne University Basile Kerblay. This collection includes the correspondence of Olga Gurevich, the widow of Chayanov, with Basile Kerblay in 1966-1970, and her translation from French of Kerblay’s article on the work of Chayanov. Kerblay’s article was published as a preface to the collected works of Chayanov and became classic. This is the first serious study of the biography and work of Chayanov and of the theory of the Russian organization-production school of the 1920s in Western sociology. This article is published in Russian for the first time. The letters of Kerblay and Olga Gurevich reveal some additional circumstances of the publication of Alexander Chayanov’s works in 1967 and some features of the ideological atmosphere of the USSR at that time. The collection of archival documents in the Russian Peasant Studies includes comments and a brief biography of Olga Gurevich. These documents are a part of the funds of the Russian State Archive of Economics. This publication is dedicated to the anniversary of Chayanov. The publication with comments was prepared by I.A. Kuznetsov and T.A. Savinova.

Keywords

A.V. Chayanov, rural Russia, peasant studies, interdisciplinary research, agrarian policy, Russian revolution, collectivization.

About the authors

Basile Kerblay
Editors: Igor A. Kuznetsov, PhD (History), Senior Researcher, the School of Public Policy, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, Vernadskogo Prosp., 82.
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Tatyana A. Savinova, PhD (Economics), Head of Organizational-Methodical and Personnel Work Chair, Russian State Archive of Economy; 119992, Moscow, B. Pirogovskaya St., 17.
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Translator: Olga E. Gurevich

Gurevich O.E., Kerblay B. “I thank you heartily for bringing the works and the name of Alexander Vasilyevich Chayanov from oblivion” // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2018. V.3. №4. P. 9-16.

DOI: 10.22394/2500-1809-2018-3-4-9-16

Annotation

The Russian Peasant Studies presents a collection of archival documents related to the publication of Alexander Chayanov’s works in 1967 in France and England, which was prepared by the Professor of Sorbonne University Basile Kerblay. This collection includes the correspondence of Olga Gurevich, the widow of Chayanov, with Basile Kerblay in 1966-1970, and her translation from French of Kerblay’s article on the work of Chayanov. Kerblay’s article was published as a preface to the collected works of Chayanov and became classic. This is the first serious study of the biography and work of Chayanov and of the theory of the Russian organization-production school of the 1920s in Western sociology. This article is published in Russian for the first time. The letters of Kerblay and Olga Gurevich reveal some additional circumstances of the publication of Alexander Chayanov’s works in 1967 and some features of the ideological atmosphere of the USSR at that time. The collection of archival documents in the Russian Peasant Studies includes comments and a brief biography of Olga Gurevich. These documents are a part of the funds of the Russian State Archive of Economics. This publication is dedicated to the anniversary of Chayanov. The publication with comments was prepared by I.A. Kuznetsov and T.A. Savinova.

Keywords

Theory of peasant economy, history of economic thought, organization-production school, Chayanov, Kerblay, Gurevich.

About the authors

Gurevich Olga, Kerblay Basile

Editors: Igor A. Kuznetsov, PhD (History), Senior Researcher, the School of Public Policy, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, Vernadskogo Prosp., 82.
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Tatyana A. Savinova, PhD (Economics), Head of Organizational-Methodical and Personnel Work Chair, Russian State Archive of Economy; 119992, Moscow, B. Pirogovskaya St., 17.
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Translator: Evgeny N. Blinov, Associate ERRAPHIS, University of Toulouse 2.
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Kuznetsov I.A., Savinova T.A. Basile Kerblay and Alexander Chayanov: At the crossroads of knowledge // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2018. V.3. №4. P. 6-8.

DOI: 10.22394/2500-1809-2018-3-4-6-8

Annotation

The Russian Peasant Studies presents a collection of archival documents related to the publication of Alexander Chayanov’s works in 1967 in France and England, which was prepared by the Professor of Sorbonne University Basile Kerblay. This collection includes the correspondence of Olga Gurevich, the widow of Chayanov, with Basile Kerblay in 1966-1970, and her translation from French of Kerblay’s article on the work of Chayanov. Kerblay’s article was published as a preface to the collected works of Chayanov and became classic. This is the first serious study of the biography and work of Chayanov and of the theory of the Russian organization-production school of the 1920s in Western sociology. This article is published in Russian for the first time. The letters of Kerblay and Olga Gurevich reveal some additional circumstances of the publication of Alexander Chayanov’s works in 1967 and some features of the ideological atmosphere of the USSR at that time. The collection of archival documents in the Russian Peasant Studies includes comments and a brief biography of Olga Gurevich. These documents are a part of the funds of the Russian State Archive of Economics. This publication is dedicated to the anniversary of Chayanov. 

Keywords

Theory of peasant economy, history of economic thought, organization-production school, Chayanov, Kerblay, Gurevich.

About the authors

Igor A. Kuznetsov, PhD (History), Senior Researcher, the School of Public Policy, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, Vernadskogo Prosp., 82.
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Tatyana A. Savinova, PhD (Economics), Head of Organizational-Methodical and Personnel Work Chair, Russian State Archive of Economy; 119992, Moscow, B. Pirogovskaya St., 17.
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Round table “Organization-production school in the Russian agrarian-economic thought: History and the present time” // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2018. V.3. №1. P. 74-98.

DOI: 10.22394/2500-1809-2018-3-1-74-98

Annotation

The round table “Organization-production school in the Russian agrarian-economic thought: History and the present state” at the Center for Agrarian Studies of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration gathered historians, sociologists, economists, and culturologists for an interdisciplinary discussion of the relevance of the scientific legacy of A.V. Chayanov and his colleagues not only for agrarian science, but also social sciences and humanities on the eve of the anniversaries of the organization-production school representatives. The participants of the round table focused on the genesis and historical prerequisites of the organization-production school, and on the ideas of the Chayanov’s school as influencing the rural development of Russia and the world in the past and present. The participants of the round table were particularly interested in the recently discovered unique archival papers, such as the responses of A.V. Chayanov and N.P. Makarov to criticism of L.N. Litoshenko and A.A. Manuylov considering the theoretical-methodological foundations of the organization-production school’s idea of peasant economy; and the Chayanov’s texts for the German, French and American journals comprehensively describing features of the Russian and Soviet agrarian-economic science development. The intellectual legacy of A.V. Chayanov and his colleagues A.A. Rybnikov, A.N. Chelintsev, B.D. Brutskus, N.P. Makarov, A.N. Minin, and G.A. Studentsky was considered from the perspective of populist, socialist and liberal traditions in the development of Russian and international peasant studies. The participants of the round table also mentioned theories of other remarkable agrarians that can be called predecessors and followers of the organization-production school.

Keywords

Peasant studies, interdisciplinary studies, organization-production school, theory of peasant economy, populism; socialism, liberalism, rural development.

About the authors

Valery G. Vinogradsky, DSc (Philosophy), Senior Researcher, Center for Agrarian Studies, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, Prosp. Vernadskogo, 82.
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Alexander V. Gordon, DSc (History), Head of the East and South-East Asia Branch, Institute of Scientific Information in Social Sciences of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
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Igor A. Kuznetsov, PhD (History), Senior Researcher at the School of Public Policy Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, prospect Vernadskogo, 82.
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Alexander A. Kurakin, Senior Researcher at the Center for Agrarian Studies of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, Higher School of Economics, 101100, Moscow, Myasnitskaya, 20.
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Alexander M. Nikulin, PhD (Economics), Head of the Center for Agrarian Studies, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration; 119571, Moscow, Prosp. Vernadskogo, 82.
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Lyubov A. Ovchintseva, PhD (Economics), Senior Researcher, Department of Sustainable Rural Development and Rural Cooperation, Alexander Nikonov All-Russian Institute of Agrarian Issues and Informatics; 105064, Moscow, Bolshoi Kharitonievski Per., 21–1.
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Alexander V. Petrikov, DSc (Economics), Academician of RAS, Head of the Alexander Nikonov All-Russian Institute of Agrarian Issues and Informatics; 105064, Moscow, Bolshoi Kharitonievski Per., 21–1. In 2007–2016 — Deputy Minister of agriculture.
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Tatyana A. Savinova, PhD (Economics), Head of Organizational-Methodical and Personnel Work Chair, Russian State Archive of Economy; 119992, Moscow, B. Pirogovskaya St., 17.
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Teodor Shanin, Professor, President of the Moscow School of Social and Economics Sciences, chairman of the Advisory Board of the journal “Russian Peasant Studies”. 119571, Moscow, Prosp. Vernadskogo, 82.
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Chayanov A. The history of the current state of science of organization of agriculture and taxation in the USSR (Article of A.V. Chayanov) // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2018. V.3. №1. P. 63-73.

DOI: 10.22394/2500-1809-2018-3-1-63-73

Annotation

This is the first publication in Russian of the article of the classic of the Russian agrarian-economic thought and the leader of the organization-production school Alexander Vasilievich Chayanov (1888–1937), which was written in 1929 and published in an abridged version in English in 1930 in the “American Journal of Agricultural Economics”. The full Russian version of the article is published according to the original kept in the archives of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The article considers the history of agrarian-economic science in Russia from the eighteenth century and the system of agrarian-economic education in the USSR in the late 1920s. The comments were prepared by I.А. Kuznetsov.

Keywords

History of agricultural sciences, history of economic thought, organization-production school, A.V. Chayanov.

About the author

Alexander V. Chayanov
Igor A. Kuznetsov, PhD (History), Senior Researcher at the School of Public Policy Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, prospect Vernadskogo, 82. E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

Chayanov A.V. To the Board of the State Institute of Agricultural Economy (Letter of A.V. Chayanov) // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2018. V.3. №1. P. 54-62.

DOI: 10.22394/2500-1809-2018-3-1-54-62

Annotation

This is a publication of an archival document—a letter of Alexander Vasilievich Chayanov (1888–1937) written in 1928 to the administration of the Research Institute of Agricultural Economy as a response to the criticism of his theory of peasant economy by an agrarian-Marxist and employee of the Institute Ivan Vermenichev. The letter reveals the circumstances of writing and publishing Chayanov’s article “The current state of agriculture and agricultural statistics in Russia”. This publication characterizes the atmosphere of ideological discussions and persecution of the non-communist scientific thought in the USSR in the late 1920s. The comments were prepared by I.А. Kuznetsov.

Keywords

History of economic thought, organization-production school, peasant studies, A.V. Chayanov, I.D. Vermenichev.

About the author

Alexander V. Chayanov
Igor A. Kuznetsov, PhD (History), Senior Researcher at the School of Public Policy Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, prospect Vernadskogo, 82. E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

Chayanov A.V. The current state of agriculture and agricultural statistics in Russia (Article of A.V. Chayanov) // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2018. V.3. №1. P. 41-53.

DOI: 10.22394/2500-1809-2018-3-1-41-53

Annotation

This is the first publication in Russian of the article of the classic of the Russian agrarian-economic thought and the leader of the organization-production school Alexander Vasilievich Chayanov (1888–1937), which was written in 1928 and published in the same year in French in the journal “Revue d’Economie Politique”. The Russian original is kept in the archive of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The article describes the state of the agricultural science in the USSR, provides an overview of the main directions of agrarian-economic studies in the late 1920s, and summarizes Chayanov’s theory of peasant economy. The comments were prepared by I.А. Kuznetsov.

Keywords

History of economic thought, history of science in Russia, organization-production school, peasant studies, A.V. Chayanov.

About the authors

Alexander V. Chayanov
Igor A. Kuznetsov, PhD (History), Senior Researcher at the School of Public Policy Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, prospect Vernadskogo, 82.
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Chayanov A.V. On the new trends of the Russian economic thought (Article of A.V. Chayanov on the Proceedings of the Higher Seminary of Agricultural Economy and Policy) // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2018. V.3. №1. P. 34-40.

DOI: 10.22394/2500-1809-2018-3-1-34-40

Annotation

This article of the classic of the Russian agrarian-economic thought and the leader of the organization-production school of the 1920s Alexander Vasilievich Chayanov (1888–1937) was first published in 1922 in the journal “New Russian Book” (Berlin). The article describes the work of the scientific institution created by Chayanov, the Higher Seminary of Agricultural Economy and Policy, and the general state of economic sciences in Russia after the end of the civil war and transition to the NEP. The publication with comments was prepared by I.А. Kuznetsov and T.A. Savinova.

Keywords

History of economic thought, history of science in Russia, organization-production school, peasant studies, A.V. Chayanov.

About the authors

Alexander V. Chayanov
Kuznetsov Igor A., PhD (History), Senior Researcher at the School of Public Policy Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, prospect Vernadskogo, 82. E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 
Tatyana A. Savinova, PhD (Economics), Head of Organizational-Methodical and Personnel Work Chair, Russian State Archive of Economy; 119992, Moscow, B. Pirogovskaya St., 17.
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