The Russian Geographical Society (), or RGO, is a

learned society A learned society ( ; also scholarly, intellectual, or academic society) is an organization that exists to promote an academic discipline, profession, or a group of related disciplines such as the arts and sciences. Membership may be open to al ...

based in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. It promotes geography, exploration and nature protection with research programs in fields including

oceanography Oceanography (), also known as oceanology, sea science, ocean science, and marine science, is the scientific study of the ocean, including its physics, chemistry, biology, and geology. It is an Earth science, which covers a wide range of to ...

ethnography Ethnography is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. It explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject of the study. Ethnography is also a type of social research that involves examining ...

ecology Ecology () is the natural science of the relationships among living organisms and their Natural environment, environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community (ecology), community, ecosystem, and biosphere lev ...

and

statistics Statistics (from German language, German: ', "description of a State (polity), state, a country") is the discipline that concerns the collection, organization, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of data. In applying statistics to a s ...

History

Imperial Geographical Society

The society was founded in

on 6 (18) August 1845. Prior to the

Russian Revolution of 1917 The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...

, it was known as the Imperial Russian Geographical Society. The order to establish the society came directly from Emperor Nicholas I. The motive for the establishment was to encourage geographical research on domestic topics, which has later been described as a

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 ...

political goal. The filial societies were established at the Caucasus (1850), Irkutsk (1851), Vilnius (1867), Orenburg (1868), Kiev (1873), Omsk (1877), and other cities. The Society organized and funded the expeditions of

Richard Maack Richard Otto Maack (; 4 September 1825 – 25 November 1886) was a Russian naturalist, geographer, and anthropologist. He is most known for his exploration of the Russian Far East and Siberia, particularly the Ussuri and Amur River valleys. ...

, Pyotr Kropotkin, Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky,

Nikolai Przhevalsky Nikolay Mikhaylovich Przhevalsky (or Prjevalsky;; , . – ) was a Russian geographer and a renowned explorer of Central and East Asia. Although he never reached his ultimate goal, the city of Lhasa in Tibet, he still travelled through regio ...

, Nikolai Miklukho-Maklai,

Pyotr Kozlov Pyotr Kuzmich Kozlov (; 3 October 1863 in Dukhovshchina – 26 September 1935 in Peterhof) was a Russian and Soviet traveller and explorer who continued the studies of Nikolai Przhevalsky in Mongolia and Tibet. Biography Although prepar ...

Vladimir Obruchev Vladimir Afanasyevich Obruchev (; – June 19, 1956) was a Russian and Soviet geologist who specialized in the study of Siberia and Central Asia. He was also one of the first Russian science fiction authors. Scientific research Vladimir Obr ...

, and

Lev Berg Lev Semyonovich Berg, also known as Leo S. Berg (; 14 March 1876 – 24 December 1950) was a leading Russian geographer, biologist and ichthyologist who served as President of the Soviet Geographical Society between 1940 and 1950. He is known f ...

. It helped set up the first

polar station Polar may refer to: Geography * Geographical pole, either of the two points on Earth where its axis of rotation intersects its surface ** Polar climate, the climate common in polar regions ** Polar regions of Earth, locations within the polar circ ...

s in

and was one of the first to publish detailed studies of the

Russian folklore The Russian folklore, i.e., the folklore of Russian people, takes its roots in the pagan beliefs of ancient Slavs and now is represented in the Russian fairy tales. Epic Russian bylinas are also an important part of Slavic paganism. The oldest ...

and Ukrainian fairs. The Society pioneered the systematic exploration of the Northern

Urals The Ural Mountains ( ),; , ; , or simply the Urals, are a mountain range in Eurasia that runs north–south mostly through Russia, from the coast of the Arctic Ocean to the river Ural (river), Ural and northwestern Kazakhstan.

in 18471850, of the farthest reaches of the

Amur River The Amur River () or Heilong River ( zh, s=黑龙江) is a perennial river in Northeast Asia, forming the natural border between the Russian Far East and Northeast China (historically the Outer and Inner Manchuria). The Amur ''proper'' is ...

in 18541863, of the vast areas of

Kashgaria Yettishar ( Chagatai: ; ; ), also known as Kashgaria or the Kashgar Emirate, was a Uyghur state in Xinjiang that existed from 1864 to 1877, during the Dungan Revolt against the Qing dynasty. It was an Islamic monarchy ruled by Yakub Beg, a ...

Dzungaria Dzungaria (; from the Mongolian words , meaning 'left hand'), also known as Northern Xinjiang or Beijiang, is a geographical subregion in Northwest China that corresponds to the northern half of Xinjiang. Bound by the Altai Mountains to the n ...

, and

Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...

from the 1870s onward. By 1917 the RGO was composed of eleven subdivisions and 1,000 members.

Members and presidents

The founding members of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society included: * * Friedrich (Fyodor) von Berg *

Karl Ernst von Baer Karl Ernst Ritter von Baer Edler von Huthorn (; – ) was a Baltic German scientist and explorer. Baer was a naturalist, biologist, geologist, meteorologist, geographer, and is considered a, or the, founding father of embryology. He was a m ...

Ferdinand von Wrangel Baron Ferdinand Friedrich Georg Ludwig von Wrangel (, Romanization of Russian, tr. ; – ) was a Russia Germans, Russia German (Baltic Germans, Baltic German) explorer and officer in the Imperial Russian Navy, Honorable Member of the Saint P ...

* *

Vladimir Dal Vladimir Ivanovich Dal (, ; 22 November 1801 – 4 October 1872) was a Russians, Russian Lexicography, lexicographer, Multilingualism, speaker of many languages, Turkology, Turkologist, and founding member of the Russian Geographical Society. Du ...

* Gregor von Helmersen *

Peter von Köppen Peter von Köppen (February 19, 1793- May 23, 1864), was a Russian ethnographer, historian, statistician, and geographer of German heritage, academician of the (now Russian Academy of Sciences), holding the civil rank of Active State Councillor. ...

* Adam Johann (Ivan) von Krusenstern * *

Fyodor Litke Fyodor, Fedor () or Feodor is the Russian-language form of the originally Greek-language name "Theodore" () meaning "God's gift" or "god-given". Fedora () is the feminine form. "Fyodor" and "Fedor" are two English transliterations of the same Ru ...

Mikhail Muravyov-Vilensky Count Mikhail Nikolayevich Muravyov (; 12 October 1796 in Moscow – 12 September 1866 in Saint Petersburg) was a Russian imperial statesman of the 19th century, most known for brutally putting down of Polish and Lithuanian uprisings and leading s ...

Vladimir Odoyevsky Prince Vladimir Fyodorovich Odoyevsky (, ; – ) was a Russian philosopher, writer, music critic, philanthropist and pedagogy, pedagogue. He became known as the "Russian E.T.A. Hoffmann, Hoffmann" and even the "Russian Johann Faust, Faust" on a ...

* Vasily Alekseevich Perovsky *

Pyotr Ivanovich Ricord Pyotr Ivanovich Ricord, also Petr Rikord (; – ) was a Russian admiral, traveller, scientist, diplomat, writer, shipbuilder, statesman, and public figure. Pyotr Ricord was born in 1776 in the family of the prime major of Carabinier Ingermanlan ...

* * Friedrich Georg Wilhelm (Vasily) von Struve The Society's official presidents were

Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich of Russia Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich of Russia (; 21 September 1827 – 25 January 1892) was the Emperor's Viceroy of Poland from 1862 to 1863 and a general admiral of the Imperial Russian Navy. Early life Konstantin Nikolayevich was born as ...

in 18451892 and

Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich of Russia Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich of Russia (; 26 April O.S. 14 April">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New Style dates">O.S. 14 April1859 – 28 January 1919) was the eldest son of Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich ...

in 18921917, but it was actually run by the Vice-Presidents: Fyodor Litke (18451850, 18551857),

Count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

Mikhail Muravyov Mikhail Nikolayevich Muravyov may refer to: * Mikhail Nikitich Muravyov (1757-1807), Russian poet and prose writer *Count Mikhail Muravyov-Vilensky (1796-1866), known for his suppression of the Polish-Lithuanian January Uprising of 1863 *Count Mikh ...

(18501857),

Pyotr Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky Pyotr Petrovich Semyonov or Semenov (; 2 January ''(New style: 14 January)'', 1827 – 26 February ''(New style: 11 March)'', 1914) was a Russian geographer and statistician who managed the Russian Geographical Society for more than 40 years. H ...

(18731914), and

Yuly Shokalsky Yuly Mikhailovich Shokalsky (; October 17, 1856 in Saint Petersburg – March 26, 1940 in Leningrad) was a Russian Empire and Soviet oceanographer, cartographer, and geographer. Career A grandson of Anna Kern, Pushkin's celebrated mistress ...

(19141931).

Constantine Medal

The Constantine Medal was a gold medal worth 200 silver roubles and was the highest award of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society. It was established and named after the Society’s first chairman, Great Duke Constantine and was awarded from 1849 to 1929 to explorers who had made a significant geographical discovery or to authors of outstanding publications in geography, ethnography or Russian statistics. From 1924 to 1929 the Medal was referred to as “The highest award of the Russian Geographical Society”. Recipients of the medal included: *1849

Ernst Reinhold von Hofmann Ernst Reinhold von Hofmann (, 8 January 1801 – 23 May 1871) was a Baltic German geologist, geographer, explorer, and lecturer. He was a geologist who accompanied Otto von Kotzebue and his crew during his travels around the world from 1823 to 1826 ...

, for his excellent work during the first expedition of the Russian Geographical Society to the Northern Urals (first award) *1858

Ivan Aksakov Ivan Sergeyevich Aksakov (; , village Nadezhdino, Belebeyevsky Uyezd, Orenburg Governorate – , Moscow) was a Russian littérateur and notable Slavophile. Biography Aksakov was born in the village of Nadezhdino (then Orenburg Governorate, no ...

, for his research into trade fairs in Ukraine *1859

Ludwig Schwarz Ludwig Schwarz, S.D.B. (born 4 June 1940) was the Catholic bishop of the Diocese of Linz, Austria from 2005 - 2015. Life Ludwig Schwarz was the first of nine children and grew up in Most pri Bratislave. After the expulsion of his family fr ...

*1863

Vladimir Dahl Vladimir Ivanovich Dal (, ; 22 November 1801 – 4 October 1872) was a Russian lexicographer, speaker of many languages, Turkologist, and founding member of the Russian Geographical Society. During his lifetime he compiled and documented the o ...

, for the Explanatory Dictionary of the Russian Language *1864 Ivashintsov Nikolay Alekseevich, for his long-term efforts to research the

Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, described as the List of lakes by area, world's largest lake and usually referred to as a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia: east of the Caucasus, ...

*1874

Nikolay Przhevalsky Nikolay Mikhaylovich Przhevalsky (or Prjevalsky;; , . – ) was a Russian geographer and a renowned explorer of Central and East Asia. Although he never reached his ultimate goal, the city of Lhasa in Tibet, he still travelled through regio ...

, for his pre-eminent scientific research, geographical discoveries and travels to Mongolia and the Tangut land *1878 Adolf Erik Nordensheld, for his voyage and research in the Arctic Ocean along the northern coast of Western and Eastern Siberia *1880

Ivan Mushketov Ivan Vasilʹevich Mushketov (; 1850–1902) was a famous geologist, tectonics, tectonist, explorer, and geographer from the Russian Empire. Biography Mushketov was born 9 (21 New Style) January 1850 in the Dango Cossack area of the Don River (Ru ...

, geologist and engineer, explorer of Central Asia *1898 Dr Gustav Radde *1900

, for his publications on Asian geology *1902

, for the 18991901 expedition to Tibet *1905

Alexander Kolchak Admiral Alexander Vasilyevich Kolchak (; – 7 February 1920) was a Russian navy officer and polar explorer who led the White movement in the Russian Civil War. As he assumed the title of Supreme Ruler of Russia in 1918, Kolchak headed a mili ...

, for participation in Baron E. Toll’s expedition, and for the journey to Bennett Island in particular *1905

Friedrich Schmidt Friedrich Schmidt may refer to: * Carl Friedrich Schmidt (geologist) (1832–1908), or Friedrich Schmidt, Baltic German geologist and botanist * Friedrich Schmidt-Ott (1860–1956), known as Friedrich Schmidt until 1920, German lawyer and science ...

*1907

Grigory Grum-Grshimailo Grigory Yefimovich Grum-Grshimailo (, 1860–1936) was a Russian zoologist best known for his expeditions to Central Asia ( Pamir, Bukhara, Tianshan, Gansu, and Kukunor), western Mongolia and Tuva, and the Russian Far East. In literature his na ...

, for all his works in Asian geography and for his ''Description of a Journey in Western China'' Volume III *1907

Fridtjof Nansen Fridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen (; 10 October 1861 – 13 May 1930) was a Norwegian polymath and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. He gained prominence at various points in his life as an explorer, scientist, diplomat, humanitarian and co-founded the ...

, for his remarkable feats, which constitute a whole era in the Arctic Ocean exploration *1914

Boris Vilkitsky Boris Andreyevich Vilkitsky () (22 March (3 April N.S.) 1885, Pulkovo – 6 March 1961) was a Russian hydrographer and surveyor. He was the son of Andrey Ippolitovich Vilkitsky. Career Born in Pulkovo, Tsarskoselsky Uyezd (now part of Saint ...

, for hydrographic expeditions in the Arctic Sea.

All-Union Geographical Society

The Society changed its name to the State Geographical Society in 1926 and to the Geographical Society of the USSR in 1938. After Shokalsky its presidents were

geneticist A geneticist is a biologist or physician who studies genetics, the science of genes, heredity, and variation of organisms. A geneticist can be employed as a scientist or a lecturer. Geneticists may perform general research on genetic process ...

Nikolai Vavilov Nikolai Ivanovich Vavilov ( rus, Никола́й Ива́нович Вави́лов, p=nʲɪkɐˈlaj ɪˈvanəvʲɪtɕ vɐˈvʲiləf, a=Ru-Nikolay_Ivanovich_Vavilov.ogg; – 26 January 1943) was a Russian and Soviet Union, Soviet agronom ...

(19311940),

zoologist Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the structure, embryology, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct, and how they interact with their ecosystems. Zoology is one ...

(19401950),

parasitologist Parasitology is the study of parasites, their hosts, and the relationship between them. As a biological discipline, the scope of parasitology is not determined by the organism or environment in question but by their way of life. This means it f ...

Evgeny Pavlovsky (19521964),

glaciologist Glaciology (; ) is the scientific study of glaciers, or, more generally, ice and natural phenomena that involve ice. Glaciology is an interdisciplinary Earth science that integrates geophysics, geology, physical geography, geomorphology, clim ...

Stanislav Kalesnik (19641977), and

polar explorer This list is for recognised pioneering explorers of the polar regions. It does not include subsequent travelers and expeditions. Polar explorers * Jameson Adams * Mark Agnew * Stian Aker * Valerian Albanov * Roald Amundsen * Salomon August ...

Aleksei Treshnikov (1977–1991). The Society has convened numerous congresses and has awarded four types of medals, the tri-annual Grand Gold Medal, three bi-annual medals named after Litke, Semyonov, and Przhevalsky, and also the bi-annual Semen Dezhnev prize. By 1970, it had published more than 2,000 volumes of geographical literature, including the annual ''Zapiski'' (since 1846) and ''Izvestiya'' (since 1865).

Post-Soviet era

The society reverted to its original name upon the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. The main offices of the Society are in St. Petersburg. Since 2002 the society has sponsored an annual seasonal ice base in the Arctic, Camp Barneo. In 2009, the Minister of Defence of Russia

Sergei Shoigu Sergei Kuzhugetovich Shoigu; , . (born 21 May 1955) is a Russian politician and military officer who has served as secretary of the Security Council since 2024. He served as Minister of Defence of Russia from 2012 to 2024. Shoigu has served a ...

was elected the President of the Society. , he is still in office. In 2010, the Board of Trustees of the Society was established. The

president of Russia The president of Russia, officially the president of the Russian Federation (), is the executive head of state of Russia. The president is the chair of the State Council (Russia), Federal State Council and the President of Russia#Commander-in-ch ...

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...

was appointed chairman of the Board. Other board members included Russian oligarchs, politicians and

Albert II, Prince of Monaco Albert II (Albert Alexandre Louis Pierre Grimaldi; born 14 March 1958) is Prince of Monaco, reigning since 2005. Born at the Prince's Palace of Monaco, Albert is the second child and only son of Prince Rainier III and Princess Grace. He attend ...

. The appointments of Shoigu and Putin resulted in the Society getting more subsidies from the Russian state. The

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

led to BP CEO Bernard Looney's resignation as a trustee of the Society, and membership of Russia within the

International Geographical Union The International Geographical Union (IGU; , UGI) is an international geographical society. The first International Geographical Congress was held in Antwerp in 1871. Subsequent meetings led to the establishment of the permanent organization i ...

(IGU) was suspended as of 7 March 2022, pending a formal decision on its membership at the next IGU General Assembly in July 2022. Nevertheless, while suspending Russia’s formal membership, the IGU maintains an open door for continued engagement with colleagues in Russia.

Divisions

The Imperial Society comprised four departments: Physical Geography, Mathematical Geography, Ethnography, and Statistics. Nikolai Nadezhdin was involved in the foundation of the Ethnography department, when the RGO was originally set up. During the 1850s and 1860s the

ethnographic Ethnography is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. It explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject of the study. Ethnography is also a type of social research that involves examining ...

division gathered and published material such as works of folklore and the ''byt'' or "way of life" which they regarded as reflecting the "essence" of the indigenous people of the Russian Empire. In 1909 Dmitry Nikolayevich Anuchin,

Vladimir Bogdanov Vladimir Leonidovich Bogdanov (; born 28 May 1951) is a Russian businessman and oil business magnate, tycoon. Biography and career In 1973, he graduated from Industrial University of Tyumen, Tyumen Industrial Institute with a degree in oil an ...

and Vsevolod Miller convened the ethnographic sub-section of the Twelfth Congress of Russian Natural Scientists and Physicians held in Moscow. Here they pushed for more professionalism to distinguish ethnographers from missionaries and amateurs. In 1917 David Zolotarev and Nikolai Mogilyansky of the RGO participated in the

Commission for the Study of the Tribal Composition of the Population of the Borderlands of Russia The Commission for the Study of the Tribal Composition of the Population of the Borderlands of Russia (, shortened to ''КИПС'', ''KIPS'') was set up in February 1917 under the auspices of the Russian Academy of Sciences.Pyotr Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky Pyotr Petrovich Semyonov or Semenov (; 2 January ''(New style: 14 January)'', 1827 – 26 February ''(New style: 11 March)'', 1914) was a Russian geographer and statistician who managed the Russian Geographical Society for more than 40 years. H ...

. ''История полувековой деятельности Императорского Русского географического общества''. Volumes 1-3. SPb, 1896. *

. ''Всесоюзное Географическое общество за 100 лет. 1845-1945''. Moscow-Leningrad, 1946. *''Географическое общество за 125 лет''. Leningrad, 1970. *Hirsch, Francine. 2005. ''Empire of Nations: Ethnographic Knowledge and the Making of the Soviet Union''. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.

References

External links

*
The contribution of the Russian Geographical Society to the history of ocean studies
{{authority control Science and technology in Russia History of geography Geographic societies Learned societies of Russia Organizations based in Saint Petersburg Organizations established in 1845 1845 establishments in the Russian Empire Cultural heritage monuments of federal significance in Saint Petersburg