Street Naming in the City of Kyzyl (Tuva)


Стрит нейминг города Кызыла (Тува)
Lamazhaa C.K.-O. Markova E.A. Buribayeva M.A.
1 December 2025Ch. K. Lamazhaa

New Research of Tuva
2025Issue 4190 - 209 pp.

This article presents a study of street naming policy in Kyzyl, the capital of the Republic of Tuva. The authors analyze a wide variety of urban toponyms, including not only streets but also lanes, squares, avenues, and parks, considering them as components of the city’s hodonymic landscape. The research employs an interdisciplinary approach, integrating philology, linguistic and cultural studies, geography, history, political science, and sociology. The sources for this study include the official database of addressable objects from the Kyzyl City Hall, normative documents issued by city authorities, materials from the National Archives of the Republic of Tuva, as well as local history research and publications in regional mass media. Several street name classification ation schemes are reviewed. Identified categories include: neutral Russian-language names (44%); anthroponymic names (17.3%); Soviet names (14.7%); toponyms based on Tuvan geographical names (11.3%); heroic (military) names (5.3%); names containing Tuvan words and concepts rooted in Tuvan culture and history (5.4%); toponyms based on place names of the country and world (3.2%); and names referencing personal names (mostly Tuvan) (1.3%). Linguistic classification shows that street names with Russian terms and personal names comprise the majority — 73.8%, while those with Tuvan names and terms account for 27.4%. The analysis examines street names through the perspective of significant ant Russian-Soviet influence, while also noting the emergence of local Tuvan names in recent years. The study highlights the situational nature of street naming policy, which has remained largely unchanged over time. The results make it possible to assess the degree of preservation of ethnic and historical specificity in contemporary urban toponymy of Kyzyl and to identify key trends in the politics of naming urban objects.

history of Tuva , Kyzyl , nomination , politics of memory , street name , street naming , toponym , Tuva

Text of the article Перейти на текст статьи

Scientific Research Institute of Turkology and Altaic Studies, Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, 71/27 Al-Farabi Ave., Almaty, 050000, Kazakhstan
Department of Foreign Languages, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, RUDN University, Off.502, 10 Miklukho-Maklay St., Moscow, 117198, Russian Federation
Research and International Relations, Korkyt ata Kyzylorda University, Office 303, 29A Aiteke bi St., Kyzylorda, 120000, Kazakhstan

Scientific Research Institute of Turkology and Altaic Studies
Department of Foreign Languages
Research and International Relations

10 лет помогаем публиковать статьи Международный издатель

Книга Публикация научной статьи Волощук 2026 Book Publication of a scientific article 2026