SAMIZDAT

Samizdat: translation

The termsamizdat, from the Russiansam(myself) andizdat’(to publish), denotes the clandestine practices of generating, copying, and distributing texts that were otherwise forbidden in the Soviet Union and the formerEastern Bloc. It is also an umbrella term for other forms of unofficial information distribution, includingmagnitizdat(the duplication of records using tape recorders) andtamizdat(the publication of materials from abroad, or, literally, “over there”). Samizdat was an oppositional political activity since the state persecuted anyone involved in illegal distribution of political or artisticmedia. Those individuals who received a copy were normally expected to produce and distribute more copies, and thus join the unofficial network of the opposition. Samizdat was particularly widespread in the post-StalinUnion of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) and contributed to the ultimate demise of totalitarianism. Samizdat materials were integral to the early days ofglasnost, as numerous “forbidden” texts were published in official media organs. In the 1990s, and especially in the 2000s, samizdat practices have been continued in a modified form onRunet: Russian literary authors use it as a main platform for publication of their works, and oppositional political views are expressed with a larger sense of freedom online.