The demise of the Soviet Union brought many of these ethnic groups to the worlds attention because there were given their own state. Others, such as the Chechens and Adkhazians, came to the attention of the world through their fight for independence. The majority, including the likes of Ossetians in the Caucasus and the Tuva on the Mongolian border remain obscure.
The smallest ethnic group to gain (or regain as Estonia sees it as they had independence between the world wars) was Estonia, which possesses a mere one million native speakers. As an inheritance of Soviet efforts, approximately 400,000 ethnic Russians now also reside in Estonia, many of whom still don’t possess citizenship because they cannot pass the required language tests.
Tallinn is the beautiful medieval Estonian capital. Founded by Baltic Germans from the Sword of the Brethren it remained a predominantly German town until the later part of the 19th century when feudalism was abolished and precipitated a flood of Estonians into the city.
Tallinn’s history is still beautifully preserved in its buildings the old merchants’ house complete with the winches to raise and lower their goods into their third story storerooms. In fact, in the center of the city along the narrow, winding cobbled streets, it is hard to imagine that it was ever part of the Soviet Union. The new city also seem to point to Estonia’s future. Recently built, futuristic looking glass buildings, which look like they have been designed by the hippest new Norwegian designer, make up the new city center where the country’s business is conducted. Today, however, the ethnic make-up of the city is much different than in medieval times and approximately half of the 400,000 resident of Tallinn are Russian while the other half are Estonian.
The difference between the Russian and Estonian population is visible from the clothes they wear to their general attitude. In most of the places in the center of town, which are run by Estonians, I was greeted with politeness and often a slight smile. I was shocked when, after arriving on the overnight train from Moscow, I walked up the city walls to find a woman smiling at me at nine in the morning asking me “wouldn’t you like to buy a postcard, or have a free map.” I, having no Estonian currency, took the free map. Estonian people’s English, even the elderly’s, was impressive and people seemed glad that I had come to visit their country. On several occasions they mentioned that they had had Soviet occupation, and that they were very happy it was over.
The Russian minority, however, have retained their Russian heritage. I was greeted in the bus station by an older Russian woman with bleached blond hair with the familiar Chto? or What? The Russian population also appears to follow Moscow’s latest fashions. High heel boots, red lipstick and really short skirts easily point out the Russians. On the other hand, the Estonians seem to take their fashion queues from their linguistic brothers to the north, the Finns. Nordic hip seems to be the style of the day. North Face jackets, plastic glasses and dreadlocks are very popular.
Other aspects of Estonian culture are less savory. Everywhere it seemed was talking about the rebirth the of the Estonian coffee tradition. The coffee being mediocre in Moscow, I was looking forward to sipping cheap cappuccinos in Estonia. The coffee I paid a shocking two dollars for everywhere I went tasted like bath water, and the three-dollar cappuccinos only tasted marginally better. In fact, I think the Nescafe predominant in Moscow quite a bit better.
On a serious historical note, I was shocked to note that Estonians viewed their temporary liberation by the Nazis from the Red Army with happiness and was amazed at the deep hatred that all the people on the videos in the museum felt toward the Russians. In the Museum of Occupation; the Nazi occupation was seen as a time great relief. Displays in the museum depict Estonians being drafted into the Nazi army seemingly with no remorse at all. Of course, things were much better for the Estonians under the Germans, who, unlike the Russians, didn’t deport thousands of Estonians; however, the lack dialogue about the evilness of the Nazi regime was scary. Of course, the Estonians, much like the Slovaks, epitomized being stuck between a rock and a hard place and perhaps, like the Slovaks, they are not ready for a genuine discussion of their wartime actions, but I do hope a more critical approach comes soon.
Posted by Aaron at May 28, 2004 03:54 PM