Genocide of the Ingrian Finns

Genocide of the Ingrian Finns
Part of the population transfer in the Soviet Union and the Great Purge
Ingria and Karelia Isthmus in 1740s
LocationIngria
Date1920s–1930s
TargetIngrian Finns
Attack type
Mass murder, persecution, ethnic cleansing, deportation
Deaths18,800[1]
Victims60,000 to 105,000 victims of deportation and imprisonment[2][1]
Perpetrators Soviet Union
MotiveAnti-Finnish sentiment, Sovietization, Russification

The genocide of the Ingrian Finns (Finnish: Inkeriläisten kansanmurha) was a series of events triggered by the Russian Revolution in the 20th century, in which the Soviet Union deported, imprisoned and killed Ingrians and destroyed their culture.[3] In the process, Ingria, in the historical sense of the word, ceased to exist.[4] Before the persecution there were 140,000 to 160,000 Ingrians[5][6] in Russia and today approximately 19,000 (including several thousand repatriated since 1990.[7])

From 1935 onwards, the genocide manifested itself in deportations of entire Ingrian villages, mass arrests and executions, especially in 1937 and 1938 associated with the Great Purge. The reason for the genocide was the skeptical attitude of the Soviet Union towards the Ingrian people due to their close cultural and historical relations with Finland. At the same time, many other ethnic groups and minorities were also persecuted.[3]

The destruction process targeted at Ingrian Finns was centrally managed and considered. Russian legislation in the 1990s refers to it as genocide. The aim was, in particular, to assassinate the male population. Tens of thousands of Ingrians died due to deportations and in labor camps.[8]

  1. ^ a b D.M. Ediev (2004). "Demograficheskie poteri deportirovannykh narodov SSSR". Stavropol: Polit.ru. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  2. ^ "Historia ja kulttuuri". Inkeri (in Finnish). 28 February 2016. Archived from the original on 19 May 2021. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
  3. ^ a b Reuter, Anni (2019). "Neuvostovaltaa vastaan – Inkerinsuomalaisten hiljaista vastarintaa 1930-luvulla" (PDF). Tampere University Press: 131–162. Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 October 2020. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
  4. ^ Kaisalmi, Ahti (2018). ""Neuvostoliitosta suuntautuvasta paluumuutosta ei tarvitse mitään etukäteisselvityksiä" – Inkeriläisten paluumuuton käynnistymisen motiivit ja toteutus ulkoasiainministeriössä vuosina 1990–1991" (PDF). Pro Gradu, Department of Philosophy, Contemporary History and Political Science. University of Turku. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 February 2022. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
  5. ^ "Inkeriläiset – unohdetut suomalaiset" (PDF). The National Museum of Finland. 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 December 2021. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
  6. ^ Inkeri.ee. "Inkerinmaan historiaa". Inkeri (in Finnish). Archived from the original on 8 January 2014. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
  7. ^ "Репатриация ингерманландцев во многом изменила Финляндию". Новости. 10 April 2015. Archived from the original on 7 December 2022. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  8. ^ "Dokumentti Inkerinsuomalaisten kansanmurhasta" (in Finnish). Archived from the original on 7 April 2022. Retrieved 24 October 2020.