In the latter half of the 20th century, the assimilation (Russification) of the Vepsian people was exceptionally rapid. In 1939, 31.500 of them were counted in the territory of the Russian SFSR, and in 1989 only 12,000. The main reasons for this assimilation were the nationalities policies imposed on the Vepsians – lack of ethnic territorial autonomy, the complete exclusion of the Vepsian language from local public life and education, the lack of a Vepsian literary language, and non-recognition of the Vepsians as an ethnic group at the regional level.

This article examines the causes and mechanisms of assimilation from the point of view of the Vepsians. Why did people decide to change their ethnic identity? Why did they abandon their mother tongue? The primary source is the material collected during fieldwork in Central and Southern Vepsian villages in the Leningrad and Vologda oblasts between 2010 and 2015.

The prestige of inherited ethnic identity and mother tongue plays a key role in assimilation and language exchange. The prestige of the Vepsian identity and language was influenced primarily by the nationalities policy of Soviet central and regional authorities, which in turn set an example for the Russian majority in the region. The role of the latter in the assimilation of the Vepsians has so far received little attention. The attitude of the authorities towards Vepsians encouraged disdainful, arrogant, and hostile attitudes on the part of local Russians, which were manifested in the form of harassment, threats, and insults. This, in turn, influenced the ethnic self-esteem of Vepsians, pushing them to feel ashamed and conceal their ethnic background and mother tongue, and ultimately to assimilate.

It was relatively easy for Vepsians to become Russians because the only thing that clearly distinguished them from their Russian neighbours was the Vepsian language. The low social status, poor prestige, and very limited range of use of the Vepsian language encouraged the abandonment of their mother tongue. Russian was acquired in Russian-language schools, and early attempts were made to get rid of the Vepsian accent when they spoke Russian. Vepsians were attracted by the opportunity to escape ethnic stigmatisation – as Russians, they were promoted from the lowest rung of the semi-official hierarchy of Soviet nationalities to the highest.

The assimilation of the Vepsians was also facilitated by their small numbers, by Vepsians moving into Russian-speaking towns, and by widespread interethnic marriage. Additionally, some state measures contributed to this: the campaign of non-prospective villages, and alteration of district boundaries. These steps were probably not intended as nationalities policy measures, but nevertheless accelerated the assimilation of Vepsians. On the one hand, many of the smaller and more remote Vepsian villages were eradicated, while on the other hand, the entire Central and Southern Vepsian area was transformed into the periphery of districts populated mainly by Russians.