Gumilev, Lev Nikolaevich

Iz istorii Evrazii: ocherk [From the History of Eurasia: An Essay]

Moscow: Iskusstvo, 1993. Item #1437

79 pages. Softcover. 21 cm. Fine copy.

This compact yet compelling essay by the eminent Russian historian, ethnologist, and geographer Lev Gumilev offers a sweeping, interpretive overview of Mongolian history, extending well beyond conventional ethnographic narrative. Framed through Gumilev’s distinctive and controversial theory of ethnogenesis and passionarity, the work traces the emergence and cultural development of the Mongol peoples as deeply rooted in the physical and environmental landscapes of the Eurasian steppe. Rather than merely recounting chronology, Gumilev presents a geohistorical synthesis that proposes a dynamic interplay between ecology, geography, and the historical fate of ethnic communities.

Accompanied by a brief biographical foreword written by one of Gumilev’s students, the text also serves as an introduction to the author's intellectual legacy. Gumilev's ideas, once marginalized during the Soviet period, gained wide popularity in post-Soviet Russia and continue to provoke scholarly debate. His view of Eurasia as a distinct civilizational and cultural sphere has also found resonance in contemporary Russian geopolitical thought. A succinct yet essential entry point into the larger Gumilevian corpus.

Price: $60.00