If we look at the history of mankind as a whole, we can see how the different human groups or peoples have tended to group together under the roof of great civilizations or socio-cultural supersystems. These supersystems determine the movement in the socio-cultural ocean of all the other countries or peoples that make them up. One of the basic pillars on which each of these socio-cultural systems or civilizations rests, as Russian scientist Nikolay Danilevski established long ago, is determined by religion, which to a great extent conditions the worldview of that civilization and its energy. The supersystem that constitutes today’s West has an Anglo-Saxon-Protestant root base, a West that has, however, undergone a pathological overdevelopment that is blocking and preventing the development of other forms of civilization.

However, the first version of the West was not the Anglo-Saxon-Protestant, but the Hispano-Catholic one. The article seeks to reflect on the possibility of returning to this first version of the West, perhaps more inclusive and open to the simultaneous presence of alternative supersystems as opposed to the imposing and annihilating character of the Anglo-Saxon West. The result of this first notion of the West is what we can call «Hispanidad». Given the diffuse nature of this concept, a review of some of the definitions given by Spanish-speaking thinkers at different times is proposed, with the aim of pointing out possible ways of developing an updated version of this idea.

According to the concept of the author of the article, the forms of organization of the linguistic cosmos of Latin America, Iberian Europe and Russia are determined by the essential characteristics of the «borderline» civilizational type: the way of constructing the dialogic fabric of sociality, based on «inclusive» discourse and the dominant diversity determined by it (with the paradoxical preservation of the unity sui generis that corresponds to this dominant). The author identifies two forms of organization of the linguistic reality of the civilizational «borderlands»: linguistic variation and linguistic union. Stating that both of them are (each of them in its own way) an expression of the general civilizational dominant of diversity (and, accordingly, «inclusive» discourse), Ya.G. Shemyakin came to the conclusion that these forms not only do not exclude, but, on the contrary, mutually determine each other. Based on the original understanding of this term by N.S. Trubetzkoy, the author identifies a number of features that characterize a language union as a special sociocultural phenomenon, and proves, based on numerous examples and the results of the colleagues’ research, that all these signs (as well as the interdependence of language variation and the process of forming a language union) are found in Latin America, in Russia, and in Iberian Europe.

The article examines scientific approaches of Russian scholars to studies of Aztec state in the middle 18th – early 21st centuries. Since the 18th century when fragmentary and contradictory information about Prehispanic past of Mexico and Central America started to circulate in Russian historical science, sociаl organization of Nahuas, i.e. the largest ethnic group of Mesoamerica on the eve of the Spanish conquest, and the character of their political entities, particularly the Aztec «empire» union of three city-states in the Basin of Mexico (Tenochtitlan, Tetzcoco and Tlacopan) have been subjects of debate among Russian historians that specialize in studies of Pre-Columbian civilizations of the Americas. Over the last three centuries the «Aztec empire» was portrayed either as a feudal monarchy analogous to the Holy Roman Empire, or as a despotic state similar to the kingdoms of the Middle East, or as a confederation of primitive tribes that failed to establish their own state. The main objective of the author was to elucidate the factors that influenced scholar’s vision in each specific case. These factors included general knowledge of foreign languages, particularly Classical Nahuatl and Spanish, for most of primary sources for the study of the Prehispanic Nahua social organization were written in these languages, scholars’ theoretical approaches to social evolution and state-building, as well as the quality of materials used as sources of information. The works of Russian historians about Prehispanic Nahua social organization published in the middle 18th – early 21st centuries reveal that most authors lacked the necessary knowledge of primary sources’ languages, with excessive use of imprecise publications in French, English and German also bringing about numerous mistakes. According to the author, the Marxist ideology dominant in the Soviet period had negative influence on studies of the Prehispanic Nahuatl society, which led to false conclusions about the level of social development of the Prehispanic Nahuas on the eve of the Spanish Conquest.

The problem of revising the colonial past of countries and continents sparks great interest due to the «left-wing» agenda in international relations and the ever-increasing role of territories that were formerly dependent, such as India, South Africa, Brazil, Mexico, etc. Anticolonial narrative is again in the focus of scientific discussions. The controversy around the increasing demands on the former metropolises, including Spain, about «repentance», return of cultural property and compensation for abuses committed by the colonizers in the distant past is particularly acute. During the exploration of new lands during the 16^th and 17^th centuries the Spanish faced the challenge of managing vast territories with heterogeneous indigenous populations. The solution to this problem lay in the creation of an effective system of authorities, which throughout the 16^th and 17^th centuries was continuously modified and became more complex. Seeking to create a bureaucracy similar to that of Castile, the colonizers brought to America not only its advantages, but also its faults. Indigenous peoples’ traditional systems of government were either replaced by European systems or incorporated into the new pyramid of power as the lowest echelon. The administrative situation of that period can be classified as juridical pluralism. The administration and management of overseas territories was carried out by specially established government agencies, i.e. the Council of the Indies and Casa de Contratación. Local administration was entrusted to viceroys, captain-generals, governors, and Audiencias. The basic unit of the Spanish living in the New World was the urban municipality around which everyday life was built. Creoles became an increasingly influential and ambitious political force in society. The 16^th and 17^th centuries formed the premises that brought about the creation of independent states in the Americas after the collapse of Spain’s colonial rule.

The problem of dialogue between cultures becomes one of the central ones in the 20^th and 21^st centuries. The elaboration of the theory of dialogue of cultures, types of dialogical connections, identification of its characteristics and regional specifics have become the main research components in various fields of socio-humanitarian knowledge. Latin America turned out to be the cultural area where the above components were most vividly reflected. This work seeks to examine one of the most important subjects in the concept of Latin American culture by the Mexican thinker Leopoldo Zea. His «project approach» to the history and culture of Latin America, as well as the study of the main participants in the dialogue of cultures, contributed to the development of a typology of dialogic connections in the culture of Latin America. The types of dialogical relationships turned out to be directly related to the historical and cultural context of the Latin American region and are embodied in specific works of culture and art.

Cuba is one of those countries of the Western Hemisphere whose culture has been, throughout all of their history, and still is at present, under the influence of a potent factor: that of the African origin of a large portion of their population. This factor has been most active in all main domains of the spiritual life of Cuban people: in religion, in the intense functioning of the Abakuá cult and other mystical cults of African origin; in music, in dozens of genres of dance and song among which the Cuban son is most conspicuous, and, particularly, in the creative works of A. García Caturla, A. Roldán and other composers that transplanted African rhythms and melodies into the realm of classical music. And, finally, the African element is vividly reflected in Cuban prose and poetry, in the works of A. Carpentier, N. Guillén and their followers.

The scholars keep on searching for a definition of a «national identity» concept, while many states are trying to understand the essence of their national identity, and Latin American countries are no exception. The states reconsider their attitudes towards their own history, their cultural roots. The Mexican artist Frida Kahlo has become a world-famous brand: books and articles are written about her, plays and ballets are dedicated to her, her image is placed on bags and clothes. Frida’s popularity can be explained by her peculiar painting style, which absorbed the key elements of national culture and reflected the Mexican people’s character. At the same time, not only did Frida absorb and vividly reflect the national identity of the country, but she herself also became a symbol, a myth of Mexico for both the Mexicans, and for the outside world. Frida Kahlo’s paintings represent various elements of the Mexican style of life, namely retablo, the national costume, Mexico’s nature, and the traditional beliefs and customs of the Indian peoples. Frida was a borderline painter: she looked forward, fighting for equality, for women’s rights, she was a member of the Communist Party; whereas as an artist, though using new, revolutionary forms of painting, she looked back to the history and traditions of her country.

Carnival celebrations represent the image of Brazil, its national identity and the country’s potent «soft power». Carnival, whose origins date back to the 18th century as a celebration of Portuguese settlers from the Azores, the Cape Verde Islands and Madeira, has become an indispensable feature of national policy and economy. In the 1960s, when samba school parades started being televised and grandstands were built for the public, Brazilian Carnival has transformed into a lucrative business. With the construction of the Sambodrome in 1983, designed by the architect Oscar Niemeyer, and the creation of the «Samba City» in 2006, Brazilian Carnival has become the grandest entertainment show on Earth.

Sergei Dovlatov (1941–1990) is considered to be one of the most important Russian writers of the second half of the 20th century, whose work is studied both in Russia and in other countries in Europe, America, and Asia. The aim of this article is to analyze some peculiarities of his style and possible translation strategies to preserve it in translation using a semiotic approach to literary text analysis. The theme of alcohol is an integral part of the writer’s discourse, since, through references to drinking, Dovlatov describes both the characters in his works, whose worldview is built around drinking, and the reality around them. The semiotic approach allows us to discover additional meanings and sense involved in the construction of images in the literary text. At the same time, it is also effective for analyzing literary translations, as it draws the translator’s attention to the crucial elements for achieving communicative equivalence between the original and the translated text. The comparative analysis of the texts of «Pushkin Hills» and «The Compromise» and their translations into Spanish (Iberian version) and Brazilian Portuguese has shown that the greatest difficulties for the translators emerge due to a great number of references to cultural realities and phenomena of the Soviet culture, especially when the author’s humor is based on the references to such phenomena. Most often, in such cases, translators resort to the strategy of domestication, adapting the text to the culture of the translation, which can sometimes lead to the distortion of the author’s intentions and the loss of some of the meanings present in the original text.

The Abridged Encyclopedic Dictionary of Espasa-Calpe (Diccionario enciclopédico abreviado Espasa-Calpe) is one of the most popular and widespread encyclopedic publications in the Ibero-American world. In the 1950s it went through several editions, but retained all the official ideological guidelines of the Francoist regime. The purpose of this work is to identify, using the material presented in the entries of the Espasa-Calpe dictionary of the 1957 edition, the specifics of the perception of the Second Spanish Republic and its cultural heritage by the Francoist official ideology during the transition from the «first» to the «second Francoism», to assess the influence of the «cancel culture» politics towards the republican past and reflect the initial attempts to «reconcile» with it. The work uses a systematic approach, implemented through the use of traditional historical and interdisciplinary methods, as well as the textual method and content analysis. This study allows us to conclude that in the mid-1950s some of the Francoist ideological concepts formed during the civil war and in the early 1940s were preserved. They reflected in «cancelling» the republican culture and erasure of names and biographical facts of its representatives. At the same time, a number of entries in the dictionary, as well as some facts and names mentioned there, make it possible to discern certain changes, aimed at the partial return and rehabilitation of the republican heritage as a significant part of the integral Spanish culture.

The study of the evolution of Brazilian federalism, adopted on the occasion of the proclamation of the Republic, in 1889, is undertaken on the basis of the juridical and political analysis of the Brazilian constitutional texts of 1891, 1934 and 1937 and their respective amendments. The scrutiny of these juridical sources unveils the difficulties and advantages arising from the adoption of an imported federative model, emulated from the experience of the United States of America (USA), which had little connection with the country’s local reality and peculiarities. The evolution of Brazilian federalism produced juridical innovations in the Constitution, such as the inclusion of concurrent competences between federal entities, the elevation of Municipalities to the status of federal subject and changes in the regional division of the country. The anomalies that arose due to the excessive decentralization of the First Brazilian Republic led to the internal political crisis, but were compensated by a period of significant political centralization during the government of Getúlio Vargas. A pronounced trend towards the concentration of power in the hands of the State, which took place during the 1930s and 1940s, led to the establishment of a dictatorial model of government in the Brazilian «New State» period. In this context, the centralized government sought to change the existing regional division of the country to tackle a perceived hypertrophic influence of local authorities. It is revealed that, throughout its constitutional history, Brazilian law has oscillated between periods of political centralization and decentralization, with direct effects on the geographic and spatial organization of the country.

Book Review: History of Colombia from antiquity to the beginning of the 21st century. Responsible editors: A.A. Shchelchkov, Z.V. Ivanovsky. – Moscow: Nauka, 2022 (in Russian). – 739 p.

October and November 2023 saw a lot of various academic events dedicated to Ibero-American research, in which prominent experts from various Russian educational and research centers, as well as representatives of several Latin American countries, Spain and Portugal took part. The academic forums served as a platform for the exchange of ideas on the evaluation of the development of relations with the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean and the opportunities to expand academic contacts, better understanding and cooperation with Russia in various areas.