Northern Man () is a Russian far-right,

nationalist Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation,Anthony D. Smith, Smith, A ...

Islamophobic Islamophobia is the irrational fear of, hostility towards, or hatred against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general. Islamophobia is primarily a form of religious or cultural bigotry; and people who harbour such sentiments often stereot ...

and

anti-immigrant Opposition to immigration, also known as anti-immigration, is a political position that seeks to restrict immigration. In the modern sense, immigration refers to the entry of people from one state or territory into another state or territory in ...

political organization founded in 2022 by Russian rapper (real name Mikhail Nitz).

Ideology

The stated goals of the organization are "consolidation of citizens based on the Slavic ethnicity," "popularization and preservation of

traditional values Traditionalist conservatism, often known as classical conservatism, is a political and social philosophy that emphasizes the importance of transcendent moral principles, manifested through certain posited natural laws to which it is claimed ...

," "patriotic education of youth," "support for physical and spiritual development," and assistance to Russian soldiers in Ukraine. Northern Man has been described as adhering to

far-right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on the far end of the ...

Russian nationalist Russian nationalism () is a form of nationalism that promotes Russian cultural identity and unity. Russian nationalism first rose to prominence as a Pan-Slavic enterprise during the 19th century Russian Empire, and was repressed during the early ...

national-conservative National conservatism is a nationalism, nationalist variant of conservatism that concentrates on upholding National identity, national and cultural identity, communitarianism and the public role of religion. It shares aspects of traditionalist c ...

views. Ideologically, Northern Man is close to

Russian Community The Russian Community (; RO) is a Russian far-right nationalist political organization founded in late 2020. It has been described as anti-Islamic, anti-immigrant, anti-Caucasian, and pro-government. The Russian Community is known for its fight ...

, with which it has an alliance.

History

Misha Mavashi expressed the idea of creating the organization back in 2021, amid rising anti-migrant sentiments in Russia. The organization's stated start date is 25 November 2022, although it was already registered as an autonomous non-profit organization on 18 May 2022. The organization's name coincides with Mikhail Mavashi's song "Severny Chelovek" (Northern Man), which was posted in March 2021. In April 2024, Northern Man joined the Ethno-Confessional Council under the

Governor of Astrakhan Oblast The Governor of Astrakhan Oblast () is the Governor (Russia), head of government of Astrakhan Oblast, a Federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia. The position was introduced in 1991 as ''Head of Administration of Astrakhan Oblast''. ...

as a representative of ethnic

Russians Russians ( ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Eastern Europe. Their mother tongue is Russian language, Russian, the most spoken Slavic languages, Slavic language. The majority of Russians adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church ...

. That same month, mayor of

Vladivostok Vladivostok ( ; , ) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai and the capital of the Far Eastern Federal District of Russia. It is located around the Zolotoy Rog, Golden Horn Bay on the Sea of Japan, covering an area o ...

expressed solidarity with the organization's members in a pre-campaign for the launch of the city branch of the organization. The movement also collaborated with Governor of Vologda Oblast Georgy Filimonov, who is known for his ultra-conservative views. The organization also had a connection through a common director with the charitable Center for Social Projects, Yevgeny Khamin, a businessman and deputy of the Voronezh Oblast Duma from

United Russia The All-Russian Political Party United Russia (, ) is the Ruling party, ruling List of political parties in Russia, political party of Russia. As the largest party in the Russian Federation, it holds 325 (or 72.22%) of the 450 seats in the St ...

Actions

In March 2023, Northern Man activists from the organization published a video in which a teenager from Perm apologized to "Russian Orthodox people" for burning an icon. Before this, the teenager was flogged. In the spring of 2024, activists of the movement, together with the

, supported the protest against the construction of a mosque in the

Kosino-Ukhtomsky District Kosino-Ukhtomsky District () is an administrative district (raion) of Eastern Administrative Okrug, and one of the 125 raions of Moscow, Russia. Moscow Districts in Eastern Administrative Okrug city Moscow and the same name Municipalities Moscow ...

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

. In September 2024, Northern Man took part in the Orthodox fundamentalist procession along

Nevsky Prospect Nevsky Prospect ( rus, Не́вский проспе́кт, r=Nevsky Prospekt, p=ˈnʲɛfskʲɪj prɐˈspʲɛkt) is a main street ( high street) located in the federal city of St. Petersburg in Russia. Its name comes from the Alexander Nevs ...

together with the

and the Movement of Academists. In November 2024, the organization filed a complaint with law enforcement about a rap artist's concert in

, calling his work "antisocial," and successfully got the concert cancelled. Members of the organization often act as people's druzhinas. In March 2025, members of Northern Man, together with the

, took under protection residents of the outskirts of

Zelenograd Zelenograd (, , ) is a city and administrative okrug of Moscow, Russia. The city of Zelenograd and the territory under its jurisdiction form the Zelenogradsky Administrative Okrug (ZelAO), an exclave located within Moscow Oblast, north-west ...

who were receiving threats from a network of drug dens. The organization also conducts sports training in various cities of Russia.

Membership

During the first year, branches of Northern Man appeared in

Perm Perm or PERM may refer to: Places * Perm, Russia, a city in Russia **Permsky District, the district **Perm Krai, a federal subject of Russia since 2005 **Perm Oblast, a former federal subject of Russia 1938–2005 ** Perm Governorate, an administr ...

Lipetsk Lipetsk (, ), also Romanization of Russian, romanized as Lipeck, is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Lipetsk Oblast, Russia, located on the banks of the Voronezh (river), Voronezh River in the Do ...

Khabarovsk Khabarovsk ( ) is the largest city and the administrative centre of Khabarovsk Krai, Russia,Law #109 located from the China–Russia border, at the confluence of the Amur and Ussuri Rivers, about north of Vladivostok. As of the 2021 Russian c ...

Murom Murom (, ) is a historical types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Vladimir Oblast, Russia, which sprawls along the west bank of the Oka River. It borders Nizhny Novgorod Oblast and is situated from the administrative center Vladimir, ...

Astrakhan Astrakhan (, ) is the largest city and administrative centre of Astrakhan Oblast in southern Russia. The city lies on two banks of the Volga, in the upper part of the Volga Delta, on eleven islands of the Caspian Depression, from the Caspian Se ...

and other cities of Russia. In early 2024, a branch appeared in Tyumen, which in September held a

march March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March. The March equinox on the 20 or 2 ...

in the city center, which the authorities did not approve but did not interfere with either. In February 2025, a branch of the organization appeared in

Bratsk Bratsk (, ; ) is a Types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Irkutsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Angara, Angara River near the vast Bratsk Reservoir. It had population of . Etymology The name of the city, which is from the same ro ...

. In total, 45 branches of the organization have been declared in different cities of Russia. The organization's membership, according to its own statements, is about 185 thousand people.

Criticism

In April 2024,

MMA Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting sport based on striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-stylistic contests took place t ...

fighter criticized Northern Man for the fact that a person of non-Slavic nationality cannot become a member of the organization.

References