Lost Estonian settlements in the Caucasus: Aivar Jürgenson, ‘The National Epic as a Source of Place Names: The Toponymy of Estonian Settlements on the Black Sea Coast of the Caucasus’, Philological Researches, 2025 | settler colonial studies blog

Lost Estonian settlements in the Caucasus: Aivar Jürgenson, ‘The National Epic as a Source of Place Names: The Toponymy of Estonian Settlements on the Black Sea Coast of the Caucasus’, Philological Researches, 2025

27Jun25

Abstract: The article examines changes in place names in areas along the Black Sea coast of the
Caucasus where Estonian settlers were relocated in the 1880s. Following the conquest of the Black Sea
coast, Tsarist authorities sought to assert their power by introducing new place names, thereby
inscribing their ideology onto the foreign territory. The names assigned by the authorities typically
reflected the names of “heroes” of the Caucasian War, high-ranking representatives of the Russian
administration, or members of the Tsar’s family. However, the authorities also allowed settlers
significant freedom in naming their new settlements. Although the settlers’ chosen names did not reflect
the colonial ideology of the Russian Empire, the names were influenced by the prevailing ideology in
the settlers’ homeland. For Estonians, this was national romanticism, which drew inspiration in part
from Estonian mythology. The article explores which mythological figures were used in the names of
Estonian settlements in the Caucasus and the purposes behind such naming. It also investigates the
motivations behind the creation of local microtoponyms.

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