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A seemingly new geopolitical term appeared in post-Soviet political discourse during the 90’s of the last century: Russkij Mir (Russian Peace). Generally formulated, this term stands for a large international community of people who share a sense of belonging to Russian culture and Russian language and share a “devotion to the values of Russian civilization”. The formation of the concept of Russkij Mir by the Russian elite and its implementation into politics can be interpreted as the result of efforts to overcome the deep crisis that hit, after the break-up of the Soviet Union, the Russian Federation and other post-Soviet states. Moreover, it can be seen as one of the results of the search for a new Russian identity under new social, political and international conditions that appeared after 1991. The aim of this study is to outline the creation of this important Russian project though a historical sketch and ethnocultural argumentation. Moreover, this study points out its current social relevance by describing examples from Russian, Belarussian and Ukrainian environments.

The article presents an overview of the problem of fundamental rights during the First Czechoslovak Republic and focuses especially on the role played by the fundamental rights catalogue of the 1920 Czechoslovak Constitutional Charter. Section 2 presents the 1920 catalogue itself, methods of specification and of limitations of rights (usually by particular laws) and postulates continuity with pre-1918 Austrian and Hungarian law. Section 3 is dedicated to opinions of Czechoslovak legal doctrine (mainly Czech authors) on the role of the 1920 catalogue. Section 4 examines the case-law of the Supreme Administrative Court protecting fundamental rights and tries to show that some fundamental rights were applied directly by this Court and that direct application sometimes leads also to a limited form of constitutional review of pre-1918 law.

This paper deals with the application of deposition analysis to an unusual type of features in the Late Bronze Age settlements in Central Europe. These are long narrow trenches (referred to as ‘long pits’ in this text) with characteristic standard form and alignment, as well as find contents, including high amounts of secondary-burned pottery fragments. In the context of prehistoric research, these features represent a relatively new phenomenon that has attracted attention in the last two decades due to new excavations in Bohemia and Bavaria. Based on the finds from Březnice (Czechia), the authors conclude that the long pits were connected with the closing rituals following the abandonment and burial of dwellings. Although no houses were directly documented on this site, their presence must be assumed, and their cultural biography can be reconstructed from the depositional characteristics of the accompanying finds. In order to fully understand the processes of deposition, the authors find it useful to focus not only on human agency but also on the relationships between the things themselves. This way, houses are understood as the central element of a hybrid actor-network. Their role may have been strengthened by their ontological status of living beings.

For the last century, archaeologists have surveyed and studied archaeological sites on the Swahili coast of East Africa, that represent the remains of past Swahili settlements and, in few cases, living historical towns. This paper is the first discussion of a collection of the names under which these past towns have been known, some of which may date back to the precolonial period. The present enquiry is concerned with the analysis of linguistic features, folk etymology and the conceptual content of these toponyms. It considers the recognised important themes in archaeology and history of the Swahili society, such as the political functioning of these towns as city states and the attested social and economic relevance of trade, the built environment and the ocean. Utilising this knowledge, it reflects on how the names contributed to place-making and defining the identity of these towns both as individual entities and as part of the Swahili cultural sphere. The interdisciplinary approach and perspectives (linguistic and archaeological) help to elucidate the connection between the socio-historical relevance of these sites with their cultural conceptualisations. Kervan. International Journal of African and Asian Studies, V. 26 N. 1 (2022): Kervan 26 (2022)

Because of economic and environmental issues' importance in the energy field, moving toward smart energy systems and energy hubs (EHs) has accelerated. The impacts of uncertainties, e.g., stochastic behaviors of renewable distributed generations (DGs), on EHs are fundamental challenges that should be considered carefully. Although several studies have been done in the area of EHs, a knowledge gap exists about developing an approach considering uncertainties under different EHs' structures and topologies. This research purposes of responding to such a research gap. In this research, a scenario-based approach for EHs' optimal operation considering wind turbine (WT) and photovoltaic (PV) uncertainties is proposed. The proposed approach is applied to EH under different schemes. Using the k-means clustering algorithm decreases the computational burden, while the appropriate accuracy is achievable. The proposed stochastic optimization problem is solved using the genetic algorithm (GA). The comparative view is considered to investigate the impacts of cooling and heating components like the heat pump (HP), absorption chiller (AC), and heat storage (HS) on EH's optimal operation and energy cost. According to this research findings, the EH's daily energy cost under a scheme using the AC, HP, and HS is approximately 6.5% less than a scheme only using HP. Also, using the HS and HP alongside the AC leads to 5.6% and 6.4% cost-saving, respectively. But for a better comparison, the investment and operation and maintenance (O&M) cost are considered, in which case Structure 3 (AC þ HP) is more efficient both in terms of energy consumption and investment costs.

The paper deals with the development of law in Czechoslovakia from its inception to the existence of the so-called First Republic, focusing in particular on the development of criminal law. The primary question addressed in the paper is whether there is legal continuity with the previous Austro-Hungarian legal system. Given that there were several legal orders in force in the aftermath of the establishment of Czechoslovakia, the next necessary question is how this situation was addressed. The paper presents examples from selected areas of criminal law, such as juvenile justice, national security laws, or military criminal norms, and intends to document the main legislative trends, namely the introduction of completely new legal regulations, the adoption of the original Austrian regulation and its nationwide application, or, last but not least, the adoption of both Austrian and Hungarian regulations with their simultaneous application. The codification attempts in the Criminal Code, which were not completed in the relevant period, have not been overlooked.

This paper concerns of the doctrine of versio in rem (or actio de in rem verso) in the legal discussion in interwar Czechoslovakia. The paper presents a brief overview of the origin and field of application of actio de in rem verso in classical Roman law and the transformation of the doctrine of versio in rem i n the frame of Corpus Iuris Civilis. The scope of the changes made by the compilers is still uncertain and was a subject of extensive discussion among the legal scholars of the 19th century. The paper describes the nature of versio in rem in the Austrian Civil Code (provision of §1041) and presents legal statements of the prominent exponents of the various legal schools of interwar Czechoslovakia, the legal traditionalists and the supporters of the School of Pure Law Theory. The doctrine of versio in rem is still in the centre of attention of the modern legal scholars in the Czech Republic. The doctrine of versio in rem was adopted in the new Czech Civil Code, but without reflecting the results of the interwar discussion.

Abstract The Self-Strengthening Movement that started in China at the beginning of the 1860s included, along with other steps and measures, new plans for importing modern weapons from the West. This reform process therefore provided a new opportunity for foreign arms producers, including the German firm Fried. Krupp. This article analyses Krupp’s first activities in China, describes significant circumstances affecting the arms trade, evaluates the rivalry with British and French companies in the Chinese market and assesses the significance for the German company of its involvement in building a modern Chinese navy. The article’s approach is comprehensive and it is based on extensive research focusing on mostly unpublished sources, especially materials from German archives, often used here for the first time.

AbstractAustrian chancellor Metternich's Europeanism is often disputed. It has been claimed that he strove only to strengthen Austrian power within the German Confederation and to establish Austrian hegemony in Central Europe, with European interests and the Concert of only secondary concern. The objective of this article is to analyze Metternich's opinions and acts during selected European crises and events between 1840 and 1848, arguing that his approach to resolving them or dealing with their consequences shows that during this period his primary objective was to maintain European peace. He wanted to achieve this by demonstrating the moral consensus of, ideally, all the great powers by abating tense nationalist sentiments, calling for the observance of international agreements and the respect of rights, adopting preventive measures, and warning against or drawing attention to possible negative consequences of the crises for peace in Europe. Metternich's attempt at preserving European peace at all costs was mainly a result of his personal experience of revolution and almost a quarter century of warfare with France. By the 1840s, however, Metternich's style of peace management was rejected as anachronistic, resulting in several military conflicts in subsequent years. Considering the events of the last century that led to European integration, however, his Europeanism deserves a more forgiving evaluation.

Abstract Site formation processes at ancient tells in the southern Levant have been the focus of several micromorphological studies, contributing to the differentiation of anthropogenic remains from long-term natural sedimentation, occurring post-abandonment. This paper discusses how the study of sedimentary processes and chemical compositions of sediments can be used within the context of an ongoing archaeological project, and how they can contribute to archaeological, historical and geomorphological interpretations. Sedimentary processes were studied implementing POSL, granulometry and PXRF as part of the archaeological research at Tel Burna, Israel. Focusing on the area along the northwestern fortification walls (Area B2), data was collected from multiple strata inside and outside the casemate fortifications dating from the Late Bronze Age to the Late Iron Age. The gradual increase of OSL values obtained inside the casemate wall, indicate accumulation of sediment during a long period of time. Whereas similar values along the entire profile outside the casemate wall indicate sediment accumulation in one-time event. This might be related to defensive preparations, allegedly in response to advances made by Sennacherib's army in 701 BCE. In addition, results from the PXRF studies demonstrated correlation between human activities and the Cu, P, K, Zn, Mn values. Specifically, it was found that as K content increased from younger to older periods, it can be used as a pseudo-dating element. Ca content decreased as sampling descended from the tell's surface, suggesting its origin in long-term aeolian processes. The results show that the use of POSL and PXRF on archaeological contexts are useful for determining sedimentary processes. Furthermore, chemical content enabled pseudo-dating of strata and facilitated the distinction between natural and anthropogenic processes in archaeological sites and landscape.