Suomalaiskylästä neuvostokyläksi

Kurkijoen sotienjälkeisistä muutoksista

Abstrakti

The settlement of Kurkijoki is located in Ladoga
Karelia, a territory Finland ceded to the Soviet
Union in 1940 and again in 1944. It was resettled
by Soviet citizens, and remained practically out-ofbounds
to foreigners till the collapse of the Soviet
Union. Nowadays the Finnish visitor to the territory
is confronted with the lack of care for the
buildings together with erosion of the immediate
surroundings. In the course of 60 years also the
villagescape of Kurkijoki and its individual buildings
have undergone substantial changes, yet retaining
exceptionally many features of countryside village
typical in pre-war Finland. The aim of this paper is
to trace back the processes that have moulded the
villagescape of Kurkijoki to its present appearance,
how the pre-war building stock has been utilized
and adjusted to suit the Soviet way of life, and ultimately,
how the collapse of the Soviet Union has
been reflected upon Kurkijoki.1