Topographic Landscape Of The Xviii Century: The Case Of Astrakhan Province

The article is devoted to the study of toponyms recorded in the archival documents dating back to 1742. The material attracted our attention because it is a document-based description of the activity of Tatishchev at the time when he used to be the head of the Kalmyk Commission at the Collegiate of Foreign Affairs and the Governor of the Astrakhan province. These documents are stored in the National Archives of the Republic of Kalmykia and they are undoubtedly important for studying the toponymic space of the Lower Volga Region. The aim of the study is to reconstruct the toponymic landscape of the Astrakhan province according to the route, known as a “military campaign” from Astrakhan to Tsaritsyn. Based on the study, the authors came to the conclusion that the toponyms recorded in the archival documents can be divided into 3 groups. Along with the original Russian terminology, the toponymy of the Lower Volga Region uses nomenclature terms of Turkic origin. Substrate toponyms found in the toponymy of the region are also encountered in a number of modern toposystems of the Russian regions and the eastern regions of Ukraine. The authors believe that the analysis of onomastics of the second quarter of the XVIII century based on the region example will be a new step in the development of historical onomastics in general. The analysis of the identified toponyms recorded in the archival documents can be of interest not only for linguists but also for geographers, ethnographers and cultural experts.