2026, vol. 14, no. 2. Gainutdinov A.M.

2026, vol. 14, no. 2, pp. 342-354

DOI: https://doi.org/10.22378/2313-6197.2026-14-2.342-354

EDN: https://elibrary.ru/OEGABH

   TATAR EPIGRAPHIC MONUMENTS OF THE VYSOKOGORSKY REGION
OF THE REPUBLIC OF TATARSTAN (13th – 16th CENTURIES):
THE HISTORY OF RESEARCH AND NEW FINDS

A.M. Gainutdinov
Marjani Institute of History of the Tatarstan Academy of Sciences
Kazan, Russian Federation
aydargm@yandex.ru

Abstract. The purpose of the study: To trace the historiography of the study of Tatar epigraphic monuments of the Vysokogorsky region of the Republic of Tatarstan and to present new finds, discovered during the author’s expedition, from the periods of the Golden Horde and the Kazan Khanate.
Research materials: The research was conducted on the basis of the works of Tatar epigraphists and materials from the author’s epigraphic expedition.
Results and scientific novelty: This article is devoted to the study of Tatar epigraphic monuments of the 13th–16th centuries preserved in the Vysokogorsky District of the Republic of Tatarstan. As a historical source collection, they play an important role in the study of the history, culture, and language of the Tatar people, as they contain information that cannot be obtained from other historical sources. The epigraphic monuments of this region have been studied by such scholars as Sh. Marjani, G. Rakhim, G.V. Yusupov, M.I. Akh­metzyanov, R.F. Mardanov, I.G. Khadiev, V.M. Usmanov, and others. In 2019, during an epigraphic expedition in the Vysokogorsky District, the author identified 45 tombstones dating from the 13th–16th centuries. The article presents the results of this work, describing and analyzing some epigraphic monuments of scientific interest. The earliest monument dates back to 1281–1282. No earlier Bulghar-Tatar tombstones inscribed with Arabic script have survived anywhere else. One was discovered by epigraphers in the village of Russky Urmat but is now housed in the Isk-Kazan State Historical, Cultural, and Natural Museum-Reserve. Monuments from the Golden Horde period also survive in the villages of Bol’shiye Bitamany and Yamashurma. More than 40 tombstones dating back to the Kazan Khanate period have survived in the Vysokogorsky District. The novelty of this study lies in the fact that some examples of this epigraphic heritage are being introduced into scholarly circulation for the first time, and the results of deciphering the Arabic and Tatar texts found on the stones are presented.

Keywords: epigraphic monuments, epitaphs, Vysokogorsk district, cemeteries, epigraphic heritage of the Tatars

For citation: Gainutdinov A.M. Tatar epigraphic monuments of the Vysokogorsky region of the Republic of Tatarstan (13th–16th centuries): The history of research and new finds. Zolotoordynskoe obozrenie=Golden Horde Review. 2026, vol. 14, no. 2, pp. 342–354. https://doi.org/10.22378/2313-6197.2026-14-2.342-354 (In Russian)

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Aidar M. Gainutdinov – Cand. Sci. (Philology), Senior Research Fellow of the Department of Modern History, Marjani Institute of History of the Tatarstan Academy of Sciences (7, Baturin Str., Kazan 420111, Russian Federation); ORCID: 0000-0002-7119-8830. E-mail: aydargm@yandex.ru

 Received  09.10.2025
Revised  08.05.2026
Accepted  15.06.2026