Under this name, on October 5, 2011, the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences hosted a "round table" organized by the Department of Comparative Cultural Studies. The stated topic aroused a wide interest of the scientific community and attracted employees from the Institute of Information Technology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, as well as from other academic and scientific-educational institutions and universities.

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Opening the discussion, S. V. Prozhogina (Institute of International Relations of the Russian Academy of Sciences) reminded the audience that the topicality of the topic was caused by the statements of the leaders of European states (Germany, France, and England), as well as the events in Norway about the collapse of multiculturalism in those countries where the policy of rapprochement of cultures (host societies and ethno-confessional formations within national states) The split is also experiencing an unprecedented crisis, which has worsened with the growth of fundamentalist claims within Muslim diasporas.

The prospects of "multiculturalism" in our country undoubtedly need to be highlighted and analyzed, taking into account the historical experience of the development of various states of both the West and the East, and therefore the knowledge and efforts of Orientalists in the search and development of new concepts and approaches to the problems of cultural differences, their coexistence and "reproduction" in the context of globalization can bring considerable It is also useful in solving one of the most important questions of our time: why exactly national and cultural problems are becoming so important in the obvious process of increasing interdependence (economic, financial, political) of peoples and states.

A. I. Kobzev (IB RAS), who participated in the discussion, noted that the very concept of the" collapse of multiculturalism " seems unclear. It is not clear whether it implies different cultures or civilizations and the extent to which they differ. Are we talking about a multitude of subcultures that are always capable of symbiosis within the same culture, or about obviously incompatible civilizations that sooner or later come into collision? And most likely, multiculturalism is the Western twin of the national "multinational", born in the conditions of the post-war idiosyncrasy on national segregation and discrimination and designed to express the solution of the national question in a politically correct way. But, as you know, the speaker clarified, euphemisms as much hide, so much highlight the degree of unsolved problems, so that the modern "collapse of multiculturalism" resembles the inglorious death of the" multinational in form and socialist in content of the Soviet people " at the parade of national sovereignties.

This point of view was quite convincingly answered by the head of the seminar of the Institute of Europe of the Russian Academy of Sciences "Dynamics of Interethnic Relations and Europe" A. I. Lipkin (RSUH), who drew attention to the need to distinguish, firstly, multiculturalism as a reality of the state of affairs, a special situation, and multiculturalism as a policy and / or ideology, and secondly-the old one intra-civilizational Western multiculturalism as a fruit of the 1970s-1980s, and a new inter-civilizational multiculturalism that has been coming to the forefront since the late 1990s.

The "old" multiculturalism associated with the movements of "blacks", aborigines (Indians), feminists, disabled people, and sexual minorities that emerged within Western civilization is characterized by postmodern moods and ideas that include pluralism and tolerance. It was within the framework of the "old" intra-Western multiculturalism that the policy of "multiculturalism" was born, implying the recognition and granting of certain special rights to certain minority groups. This policy and ideology is opposed to the policy of assimilation, the American idea of the "melting pot" and (close to it) French Republicanism.

The "new" multiculturalism is the emergence of non-civilizational, primarily Islamic, enclaves in European countries, which pose a number of threats: demographic (the"Kosovo effect", i.e. potentially they are not minorities), cultural (fears that they will displace the majority culture), economic (social dependents), political ("fifth column" in case of foreign policy conflicts) and terrorist. The latter is due to the fact that, for a number of socio-economic reasons (which require special consideration), a collectivist ideology is cultivated in the emerging Islamic enclaves, in which, unlike the communist and liberal ones, the individual's life means little; this creates a breeding ground for extremism. Therefore, when such enclaves become intolerant and aggressive and do not want to fit into the host society, big problems arise.

This "new" intercivilizational multiculturalism poses a serious challenge to the West. In relation to it, the politics and ideology of the "old" multiculturalism are inadequate. This is what the statements - "multiculturalism has failed" - of a number of leaders of European countries record.

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Religious values, once transferred to the private sphere, are being undermined in the modern process of globalization by the foundations of the nation-state. Traditional Islamic guidelines do not fit into the foundation of societies where secular law prevails. For a consensus between Islam and European secularism, which understands human rights in a civil sense, it is necessary to reform Islam, to try to create some form of "European Islam".

A. I. Lipkin's thoughts were clarified by the opinion of N. N. Zarubina, MGIMO (U) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation on the problems of "multiculturalism" and multiculturalism in the context of globalization, which, as the speaker noted, is a transnational world unity, the restructuring of the world, when the global level of socio-cultural interactions is "superstructured" over diverse civilizational, cultural, religious, national and other differences. In a number of Western countries, this real multiculturalism is shaped by the policy of multiculturalism, which, on the one hand, asserts the value of cultural identity and tolerant coexistence of various enclaves formed as a result of increased migration processes under the influence of globalization. On the other hand, it increases the fragmentation and heterogeneity of society, legitimizing local poverty and backwardness as a manifestation of "identity". Thus, the "tolerant coexistence" of cultures claimed by multiculturalism leads not to "shared prosperity", but to "exclusive development" (M. Castells ' term), which takes social and ethnic groups, as well as enclaves and entire regions beyond the limits of global flows of capital, information, etc., condemning them to the role of a deep periphery of the global world.

Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Deputy V. M. Alpatov, Director of the Institute of Information Technology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, confirmed that the ideas of "multiculturalism" emerged at about the same time as the ideas of globalization and are closely related to them, despite external differences. The" melting pot " of the United States forms a mass culture of globalization, which is quite eclectic, including elements of different origins, often non-Western, which, of course, is facilitated by the ideas of multiculturalism. However, at the same time, the cultures of small nations that are not competitors for the dominant culture of the State can receive recognition, but we also have to take into account the cultures of the" strengthened " peoples of the Far East. A wary attitude towards Muslim culture is actively maintained and is not recognized as a special Russian culture. In the field of language policy, multiculturalism manifests itself in measures to preserve endangered small languages, which in reality turn out to be ineffective, but these measures are combined with the expansion of the English language.

The problem of the dependence of polyethnicity and multiculturalism formed in a number of countries was shown in his speech by Yu. V. Lyubimov (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences). In particular, he noted that the coexistence of different cultures in the global space is beyond doubt and, moreover, ensures the optimal global redistribution of production and resources for developed countries. However, at the beginning of the XXI century, the question of the coexistence of multiple cultures in the context of a single socio-cultural space is becoming more relevant. Polyethnic space as a special way of integrating diverse ethnic groups was characteristic of many "old empires": British, French, Russian. Although, without going into the specifics of the various colonial systems, it is obvious that the differences in the socio-political development of the mother country and the colonies themselves were in some cases very noticeable. However, later migrants from colonies often adapted to the socio-cultural characteristics of metropolitan areas and became an element of the emerging socio-political mono-national culture.

In Russia, there was no visible border between the center and the periphery, despite the fact that migration from the central regions of the country began to enter the newly annexed lands. This, given the relatively small population of the "new lands", turned colonization into an expansion of its territory. Otherwise, the colonization of Central Asia and Kazakhstan took place, which turned out to be largely similar to the seizure of the "overseas territories" of European countries. But it took place rather late and could not have a significant impact on the socio-cultural development of the state.

For European States, significant changes have occurred as a result of decolonization. Significant waves of migration from the former colonies flooded into the metropolis. They represented, on the one hand, various ethnic and local cultures, on the other, marginal social strata that had assimilated the values of the Western world, but did not have the opportunities to achieve them. New communities were created on the basis of a new identity - "residents of the former Soviet Union".

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colonies". There were two possible paths for them. The first assumed the existence of the social assistance provided by the former metropolis. At the same time, it was possible to forget about the more or less realistic prospects of integration into the already established system of Western social culture. And, moreover, it provoked quite conscious European nationalism. The second set a different vector of development for the reconstruction of "ethnicity" in new conditions, the fundamentalization of "their" traditions.

Liberal-oriented politicians have fully invented the "politics of multiculturalism", trying to overcome the contradictions between the modern culture of the West and the cultures of the"inhabitants of the former colonies" that are marginal in relation to it, but retain the traditional mentality. However, such cohabitation turned out to be impossible, since it was really about the "integration" of foreign cultural communities into the more progressive system of the West.

Concerning the issue of multiculturalism in Russia, A. R. Vyatkin (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences) analyzed the phenomenon of ethno-cultural plasticity of the Crimean Tatar ethnic group. The ancestors of this people appeared on the Crimean Peninsula in the XIII-XIV centuries AD. After the annexation of this territory to the Russian Empire, a kind of "adaptability selection" took place, as a result of which at least a third of the Crimean Tatars migrated to the Ottoman Empire in the XVIII-XIX centuries. Those who remained adapted first to Russian rule, then to Stalin's version of socialism (1920-1941). During the Nazi occupation, they also managed to adapt to the administration of the Third Reich (1941-1944). Having endured all the hardships of deportation (May 1941) and the most difficult initial years of exile, the Crimean Tatars were able to adapt to the semi-feudal Central Asian socialism (1944-1991). In exile, they successfully practiced trilingualism (Crimean Tatar-at home, Russian and local-at work and on the street) and achieved economic prosperity. The rise of chauvinism in Central Asia after the collapse of the Soviet Union forced many Tatars to return to Crimea. Having found themselves in the position of a modest national minority (about 12% of the population), they were forced to adapt to the difficult circumstances of the depressed economy of the peninsula under the rule of "independent" Ukraine. In addition, in the traditionally multicultural Crimea, the Russian dominant is very strong (not only linguistic), which creates objective difficulties for preserving the Crimean Tatar identity.

Speaking about the problem of "multiculturalism" in Europe, A. M. Khazanov (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences) believes that it is necessary to take into account the legacy of colonialism. One of the parameters that distinguished the types of colonialism was the degree of racism of English, French, Dutch, Portuguese and other colonialists.

Thus, the British, Germans and Afrikaners (descendants of the Dutch) were racist colonialists, while the French and Portuguese colonialists were characterized by a certain racial tolerance and flexible racial policies. In a number of his works, A. M. Khazanov showed that these differences in the degree of racism of European colonialists were most associated with the influence of the religious and confessional factor on various varieties of European colonialism. Catholic colonizers were characterized by racial tolerance and ethnic tolerance. Catholicism has a strong egalitarian component: for it, everyone is equal before God. At the same time, Calvinism (and other forms of Protestantism) is characterized by the doctrine of absolute predestination, a complex of "God's choice" and intolerance towards representatives of other religions, races and ethnic groups. The legacy of colonialism also affects the current relations between Europeans and people of other races.

З. I. Levin (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences) spoke about the current situation of ethnic diasporas formed in Europe in the postcolonial era and showed the origins of conflict potential in multicultural society and tension in the policy of "multiculturalism", understood as just tolerance in the acceptance of the"other".

The condition for the possibility of peaceful coexistence of peoples, Z. I. Levin emphasized, is primarily the presence of a common interest. Globalization is objectively aimed at the formation of a synthesized planetary culture. But as long as there are ethnic "massifs", multiculturalism will also exist, especially since the integration potential of globalization and the awareness of common interests by the peoples of the world are opposed by the multiplication and aggravation of conflicts on the basis of a clash of interests generated by a sharp discrepancy in the pace of development of productive forces, industrial relations and public consciousness on the planet. As a result, despite the fact that the world is becoming more interconnected and interdependent-

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However, it remains divided, conflicted, and unequal. Although the process of cultural integration is already taking place only because of the territorial limitations, relatively small population on a planetary scale, and the adoption of basic principles of community by different peoples. At the same time, the cultures of ethnic minorities are strongly influenced by the culture of the dominant ethnic group, losing those elements of ethno-cultural specificity that hinder adaptation. Z. I. Levin drew special attention to the fact that diasporas can disrupt stability in the country. While the relationship between immigrants and society is based on mutual interest, immigrants have their own unique interest, which does not always coincide with the interests of the recipient society. There is a potential for conflict in this clash of interests. The growing number of immigrants creates difficulties for the host country related to problems of social integration: as the position of diasporas becomes stronger, they increasingly act as a social and political actor in the struggle for privileges, the right to cultural and religious identity, which is sometimes unacceptable for the host society and increases social tension.

P. A. Kutsenkov (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences) explained the" conflict potential " of multiculturalism by reasons of an anthropological nature. Conflicts between different human groups (ethnic, class, religious, etc.) are a constant in world history. It is the persistence of conflicts that makes us suspect something more than cultural conflicts. The question arises: are such conflicts not biologically determined in a certain sense? If we try to look at the early history of mankind from this point of view, then our biological species (Homo sapiens sapiens) appeared in North-East Africa about 200 thousand years ago, and for a very long time co-existed with other species of higher hominids, from which it probably originated throughout the Middle and most likely Upper Paleolithic. it didn't differ much in behavioral terms. In Africa, Homo sapiens sapiens co-existed with late Homo erectus (Homo rhodesiensis lived up to 120 thousand years ago), in Europe and Northern Asia-with Neanderthals and, probably, with the man from the Denisova Cave in the Altai, in Southeast Asia - with the same late Homo erectus (apparently, they survived, as well as Neanderthals in Europe, up to 30 thousand years ago. with Homo floresiensis (up to 12 thousand years ago). However, the latter species, which is considered an island degraded form of Homo erectus, was isolated on Flores Island. Thus, for 150-170 thousand years, modern man co-existed with several species of higher hominids, superficially similar to him, in the same areas. It was inevitable that competition would develop between these species; later, the relations that developed between archaic Homo sapiens sapiens and groups consisting of representatives of other species could be transferred to relations between different groups of people of the already modern species. Indirectly, this assumption is confirmed by the fact that archaic human collectives are characterized by treating neighboring groups as "wrong" people or even non-people at all. At the same time, the first unmistakable traces of military clashes are recorded only in the Postglacial period (about 12 thousand years ago). No distinct traces of intergroup conflicts have been preserved from either the Middle or Upper Paleolithic. All this makes the stated assumption only a guess, which, perhaps, has nothing to do with reality, the speaker clarified.

Reflecting on the problem of the "conflict potential" of multiculturalism, A. P. Nazaretyan (IB RAS) showed the perspective of "cultural diversity" within the framework of a system-synergetic approach. In particular, the speaker noted that anthropologists, often advocating the artificial preservation of each ethnic identity, appeal to one of the basic laws of systems theory - the law of "necessary diversity". However, the straightforward understanding of this law in anthropology, as in other sciences, leads to obviously absurd conclusions. Therefore, in modern system-synergetic models, an additional law of "hierarchical compensation" is formulated: the growth of diversity at the upper level of a complex system is ensured by limiting diversity at the lower levels.

At the current stage of historical development, the growth of aggregate cultural diversity implies the unification of macro-group-national, confessional, class-cultures (always built in the mental matrix "they - we") as a prerequisite for the diversification of microgroup crops. The information revolution provides a promising opportunity for the erosion of national states and macro-group identities and the restructuring of the world community according to the network principle. With modern development and cheaper prices-

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The trend of national and religious fundamentalism is one of the greatest threats to the existence of a planetary civilization.

The idea of the attractiveness of a "universal civilization", largely based on Western principles of freedom, responsibility and individual choice, is close to the work of the Nobel laureate, English - language writer Vidyadhar Naipaul-an ethnic Indian, a native of the island of Trinidad, whose position was highlighted by N. V. Kolesnikova (IB RAS). She noted that, observing life in countries that were once conquered by the Arabs and converted to Islam, V. S. Naipaul came to the conclusion that in these countries faith determines everything, fills everything with itself, leaving no free corner in the mind, soul and will. He saw that the" new converts " of Muslims have nothing but a religion that is not capable of solving the problems facing people in the current era. And the more they rely on Islam, the more they fall behind the modern world. According to V. S. Naipaul, Islam both nationally and culturally depersonalized the peoples who adopted it, which determined the backwardness of these countries. And the psychology of laggards breeds extremism. That is why, in the fall of 1990, V. S. Naipaul gave a lecture on "Our Universal Civilization" at the Manhattan Institute for Political Studies (New York, USA).

In this speech, V. S. Naipaul contrasts two spaces: the open world of Europe and the closed world of Islam. The former is characterized by "philosophical timidity", i.e. fear of hurting someone's innermost feelings, or so-called political correctness; the latter is characterized by" philosophical hysteria", i.e. religious fundamentalism. According to V. S. Naipaul, the world of Europe offers what the writer himself values most in the world: the idea of individuality and vocation, responsibility and choice, intellectual life and opportunities for improvement.

A certain universalist vision of the world, based primarily on the spiritual unity of human diversity, was proposed in the report of T. P. Grigorieva (IB RAS). Philosophically comprehending the dependence of changes in the surrounding reality on changes in people's consciousness, the researcher offers the concept of a" true person", open to the whole world. Thus removing the very problem of "friend and foe" from the agenda, T. P. Grigorieva is confident in the "initially good nature of man", designed to connect people, and not divide them. Only in this way is the goal of Unity achieved and Opposition disappears. In the world, continues T. P. Grigorieva, where one thing is opposed to another, everything is doomed to extinction. Therefore, the ancient commentary on the Yijing says: "One Yin, one Yang is the Tao. Following It, they go to the Good." And then - " The purpose of man, gaining spirituality, to enlighten things." And Zen Buddhists say, "One in all, and all in One," following the Buddha's precept. There is no "one" without "the other", " T. P. Grigorieva emphasized. And in Russia there was a philosophy of Unity, starting with Vladimir Solovyov: the idea of Unity in many ways. Every person, every nation is a Whole. Half a century later, spiritual philosophers exiled from Russia found the movement of Eurasianism, appealing to the "Symphonic Personality", which is not only individual, but also universal, open to the whole world. And this is the key to "positive" multiculturalism.

Examples of historically established positive regional multiculturalism were contained in the speeches of Orientalists who found in the collapse of the concept of modern European multiculturalism confirmation of their ideas about the need to integrate different ethno-cultural principles on the basis of a policy of not so much indifferent tolerance as real "acceptance" and assimilation of the spiritual values of the "other world" in order to create a certain civilizational harmony. A similar state of the social world order was mentioned in a speech by R. G. Landa (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences), using the historical example of Al-Andalus, where for a long time - almost eight centuries (from the VIII to the XV centuries) - such diverse cultures as Spanish, Arab, Berber, such religions as Christianity, islam and Judaism.

In the report of O. E. Etingof (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences), the problems of Christian symbolism as a "supra-ethnic language" connecting different peoples and their cultures were touched upon. The Acts of the Apostles, the researcher recalls, tells how the Descent of the Holy Spirit took place in the upper room of Zion in Jerusalem: "And there appeared to them tongues parting as if of fire, and they rested one on each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance "(2:2-4). And this event was the starting point for the gospel message: all the twelve apostles? speaking in languages unknown to them before, they carried the Good News to numerous ethnic groups around the world. The words of the Apostle Paul from

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Colossians 3: 11 is also well known:"...There is neither Greek, nor Jew, nor uncircumcised, Barbarian, Scythian, slave, or free, but Christ is all and in all." This verse is repeated almost verbatim in Galatians 3: 27-28. Thus, the new world religion appealed to all ethnic groups. In addition to knowing the languages of different ethnic groups, a single, universal language was needed that everyone could understand. The preaching of Christianity began in Palestine among Jews and Gentiles. To facilitate the perception of the preaching of a new religion, imagery was used, drawn from both the Old Testament and the ancient arsenal. With the help of interpretations, Christian meaning was attached to the messages of the Biblical prophets. Both in early Christian literature and in the visual arts, there are images drawn from the cultures of the Ancient World and reinterpreted in the Christian context. The famous formula "The Bible for the Illiterate", referring to the pictorial cycles illustrating the Holy Scriptures, implied an appeal not only to the illiterate, but also to native speakers of languages of different ethnic groups. The narration of the Old and New Testaments in visual images was conceived as a system of universal pictorial language accessible to all Christians. The tradition of a single image and symbolism as a common language of all Christians, despite schisms and schisms, has served for many centuries as the basis not only of the Christian religion, but also of the entire Christian civilization, the scientist claims.

This kind of" supra-ethnic language " can also be considered the language of music, which was described in the speech of M. A. Esipova (Institute of Art Studies). With regard to the musical cultures of Asia, we can speak of multiculturalism as a consequence of the polyethnicity of states (as a rule, each nation retains some kind of musical traditions, has if not its own musical instruments, then at least one or several musical instruments that are peculiar cultural markers of this people). But we can also talk about multiculturalism as a specific state policy in the field of musical culture. The most striking historical example is the court music of China of the Sui and Tang eras, when foreign orchestras or ensembles functioned at the court. Thus, in the Tang era, out of the ten court orchestras or "ten types" of music approved in 640-642, eight (!) were of foreign origin (these are the music of Bukhara, Bapnom, India, Kashgar, Korea, Kuchi, Samarkand, and Turfan), and one represented "combined" music, i.e., music of the same name. which included Chinese and non-Chinese elements. The attitude of many ancient Asian cultures to music as a material object (music can be given as a gift, taken as a trophy, etc.such phenomena as, for example, the preservation in the culture of the Nasi (Tibeto-Burmese people of Southwestern China) of the ancient style of music of the high Baixia Xiyue tradition, dating back to the Mongolian court music of the Yuan era (XIV century), when Kublai Khan, as a sign of gratitude for his help, presented the ruler of the people of Mailiang with part of his court the orchestra (the instruments included both Mongolian and Chinese instruments and instruments of East Turkestan common in China), and since then this orchestral music has been performed by nasi (with the orchestra members performing in Mongolian national costumes). Another example: the repertoire of classical vocal and instrumental music of Myanmar, defined as maha giso (in Pali - "great songs"), includes songs of the yowdaya style (the name is associated with the Thai state of Ayutthaya), it appeared in the XVI century, then actively developed from the XVIII century. in connection with the conquest of Thailand and the capture of the Thai territories. musicians and actors as a trophy. And there are quite a lot of similar examples in the cultures of Southeast Asia, the scientist notes.

In the historical and cultural space, as the speakers at the round table testified, there has long existed (since the XIV century) a certain Western-Eastern synthesis, which in its own way "supplemented" the intra-regional fusion of different Eastern traditions. E. A. Ryauzova's report (IMLI RAS) emphasized the prerequisites of Portuguese-African and Portuguese-Asian multi-nationalism as a consequence of Portuguese colonization, whose features were determined by the geographical position of Portugal itself on the" backyards " of Europe, as well as the characteristic features of the cultural and historical type of its inhabitants - the extraordinary plasticity of the sociopsychological stereotype of the Portuguese, their ability to adapt to any situation, even to the disastrous tropical climate, the inexhaustible love of the land and the ability to cultivate it well, which they, alone among Europeans, learned from the Moors. At the same time, the "reverse influence" of Afro-Asian culture and literature on

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the culture of Portugal (which was promoted by the most important feature of Portuguese culture since the time of geographical discoveries, namely its appeal "to the other", to the cultural values of other continents) is still noticeable to this day, for example, in the literature of the Portuguese. Portugal's close cultural and historical contacts with Afro-Asian regions were one of the ways to overcome the "small nation complex" during the period of social decline; but even at the present stage, the attempts of African states to preserve their national identity in the era of globalization indicate the tenacious traditions of a long-established synthesis of cultures (on the example of Kaboverdian Romanistics of the first decade of the XXI century).

The fact that self-identification based on one's own traditional and foreign cultural values is unthinkable in the modern multi-faceted world without the ability to adequately understand the value orientations of the "Other", and that non-conflict interaction of different cultures is impossible without mutual understanding, the ability to dialogue, and intercultural communication, M. V. Nikolaeva (IB RAS) emphasized in her speech.

Lebanon belongs to a part of the world where the constant interaction of different civilizations has created a very special linguistic and cultural situation. Using the history of Lebanese culture as an example, we can see how closely intertwined the threads of mutual exchange, community, and understanding are stretched from one coast to the other of the Mediterranean. Throughout history, Christian communities have been an influential force in the country, although modern Lebanese are divided into almost two dozen different religious communities. It is no accident, therefore, that when a foreigner asks about their faith, the inhabitants of the country today answer: "I am Lebanese." Both Christians and Muslims have long maintained close contacts with Western European countries. Active missionary activity of Western missions began in the 17th century. The activities of Christians in Lebanon contributed to the development of culture and education. In the XIX century. The secular influence of the West is also increasing, and European and American schools have become the forerunners of universities. Most of them are now trilingual. At the same time, for centuries, the activities of the largest representatives of the Arabic philological tradition in Lebanon and Syria of the XVII-XIX centuries refuted the well-known principle of "al-Arabiya le tatanassar" ("the Arabic language cannot be Christianized"). As a result of the long coexistence of Eastern and Western civilizations on this land, the Lebanese people have developed a traditional "spirit of cultural coexistence", a special biculturalism, and bilingualism as a standard of living. Today, bilingual (Arabic-French) Lebanese make up more than a third of the population, speak Arabic and English - about 20%, and their number is increasing. About 7% of the Lebanese population is trilingual (Arabic-French-English), and more than a third of the country's population (36%) speaks various languages other than Arabic (including Russian, Armenian, etc.). The most important factor in cultural life was the flourishing of French-language and English-language literature of the Lebanese of the XX century. At the same time, the bicultural intelligentsia of Lebanon has a legitimate pride in the Arab tradition. Understanding Lebanon as a space of dialogue is key to the country's contemporary culture. Arab and Mediterranean at the same time, Lebanon shows the world its unique essence as the fruit of the synthesis of Arab-Muslim civilization with the world of the sea common to various peoples, understood, in the words of the diplomat and poet Salah Stetje, as a "space of humanism". This unique phenomenon of historical community needs to be protected today as our common spiritual heritage and cultural heritage of all mankind, the scientist reasonably believes.

E. Yu. Vanina's speech (IB RAS) was devoted to India - one of the most ethnically, confessionally and culturally heterogeneous countries on the planet, which is much closer to Russia in terms of its multiculturalism than to the modern West, since all the ethnic groups and confessions inhabiting it are local (some of them, of course, migrated to India, but it happened, many centuries ago). From the first years of life, an Indian, the researcher noted, gets used to the fact that people live next to him who are different in lifestyle, religion and traditions, and this is quite natural. Differences within one denomination, especially Hinduism, by caste and social group are no less than between faiths. From the Middle Ages to the present day, two trends collide in India. One of them is expressed by the formula "unity in diversity": this slogan, which is essentially a national idea, is not only proclaimed by the authorities, but also relies on the millennial tradition of coexistence of culturally, ethnically and religiously different groups of the population, on the experience of developing mutually acceptable conditions for coexistence, resolving frequent conflicts, and interacting in various spheres,

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including even religious (more than half of the pilgrims to the tombs of Muslim saints are Hindus; Muslims often participate in Hindu festivals, and vice versa), literary forms in culture, literature, and art. Another trend is related to the claims of one denomination (in the Middle Ages - the Muslim elite; in modern India - the Hindu majority) to dominance and the perception of others as "conquered" or "alien", respectively. The government, regardless of the party configuration, declares loyalty to "unity in diversity", but in practice this declaration often conflicts with electoral interests, which force us to deviate from this principle in order to ensure the support of the population, which still thinks in terms of castes and religious communities. As a result, the most serious and bloody conflicts in independent India were often provoked by the "electoral opportunism" of the authorities, who took various measures to enlist the support of fundamentalists of a particular religious community or caste group.

E. E. Nosenko-Stein spoke about the difficulties of the multiculturalism policy in modern Israel. She noted that many of the claims that are currently being made against immigrants in European countries, in medieval Europe, which was mainly multicultural de facto, were made against Jews: ghettoization ("state within a state"), lack of loyalty to the host society, poor knowledge of the language of this society, adherence to their customs and style life, etc. With the emergence of nation states and the concept of the nation-state, in which Jews were Germans, French, etc., although adhering to the "law of Moses", the Jewish population of Western Europe as a whole successfully integrated into the societies that adopted them (which did not prevent the emergence of political anti-Semitism and the tradition of the Holocaust). In Israel, the American-style "melting pot" and "cultural pluralism" concepts and policies have consistently succeeded each other, and each has failed. At first, the so-called Sephardim and Jews from the East (not to mention the Arabs) did not want to "melt down" and turn into the average Ashkenazi Israeli. This led to increased inter-communal tensions and protests. But the policy of tolerant multiculturalism was also unsuccessful - the differences between different "sectors" of Israeli society are too great. As a result, the State of Israel is at a crossroads, looking for a compromise solution.

R. R. Sikoev (IB RAS) spoke about the peculiarities of the problem of multiculturalism and tolerance in the difficult conditions of Afghanistan. The first state formation on the territory of modern Afghanistan, he noted, appeared in the middle of the XVIII century in the form of the Durrani empire. However, it was not a "national state", but a conglomerate of various races, ethnicities and faiths, and, like any empire, it constantly tended to split, which ultimately led it to collapse. In the last quarter of the 18th century, Emir Abdurrahman managed to use military force to subdue ethnic minorities and create a " multinational patchwork state squeezed by the hoop of absolutism." The dominant ethnic group was the Pashtuns, who considered themselves a state-forming nation and on this basis suppressed any speeches and claims to equality of other ethnic groups that inhabited Afghanistan: Tajiks, Uzbeks, Hazaras, Nuristanis, and tried to assimilate them. For almost two centuries, internecine wars on an ethno-confessional basis have torn apart Afghanistan, which today can be called a "country of divided peoples", which was largely facilitated by interethnic tolerance. Despite the 6 basic laws passed from 1923 to 2004. The Institute of multiculturalism has never worked, as is clearly demonstrated by the current (2011) internecine war, which is clearly interethnic in nature, between the Pashtun Taliban and government forces, mainly represented by Tajiks, Uzbeks, and Hazaras. Cultural intolerance is compounded by foreign interference. Moreover, the five wars that the Afghans have waged against foreign invasions have developed a strong sense of xenophobia. Thus, attempts by authoritarian rulers or popularly elected presidents to eradicate interethnic cultural intolerance and create a democratic multicultural society where all ethnic groups would have the same rights to power and to equal socio-economic life have so far proved unrealistic, and even the new 2004 Constitution, which is called the Democratic Constitution of the Republic of Moldova, has proved unrealistic.-

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It has not helped create at least the beginnings of a multicultural society in Afghanistan.

In the current conditions of cultural and religious differences in Egypt, E. A. Krivets (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences) sees the uniqueness of the situation, which consists in the fact that the indigenous population of the country, i.e., the population of the Republic of Egypt, is very different.e. representatives of the same nationality, divided on religious grounds into Muslims and Christians. During the last decade of the 20th century, approximately 6 million Copts were targeted by Islamic groups. The problem is the conversion of young Christians to Islam: from 7 to 10 thousand Christians annually convert to Islam, before this conversion they were raped and taken by rapists in marriage. The Egyptian Government, by imposing state controls on the media, has created an image of the Copt as a dangerous and hostile element within society that seeks to undermine national unity. Christians are not allowed to teach in public schools or public universities. There are no Copts who are appointed to government positions, such as governors, mayors, police chiefs, heads of city councils, or deans of universities and institutes. Egyptians who have converted to Christianity are being arrested on charges of "undermining national unity" and"insulting the faith." They are killed and imprisoned (mostly women) until they convert to Islam again. The fight against Christians and Christianity is conducted by closing churches, refusing to repair them. However, the Egyptian Government does not recognize discriminatory policies against Copts. Some terrorists are arrested and convicted for attacks, but the police protection of the attackers does not correspond to the gravity of their crimes. The researcher believes that the persecution of Copts in Egypt is part of a general trend of persecution of dissent in Egypt. Despite the fact that the Egyptian government itself is actively fighting against terrorists, it allows the persecution of Copts by extremist Islamic groups. E. A. Krivets believes that lobbying for the Coptic issue abroad only increases tensions in Egypt between Copts and the government, Copts and Muslims. As for the declarative nature of the legally formed non-conflict of Christianity and Judaism with Sharia, this does not make it possible to use the legislation in court cases to protect Christians. The Copts who emigrated from the country (30 million), despite widespread attempts to preserve their religious and national identity (the construction of museums, churches), are experiencing a process of loss of self-identification. But this happens, as E believes. Krivets, not as a result of mixing with other national communities, but from Coptic contact with some "faceless entity" of Western "civil society" trying to assimilate the "other".

If we recall once again the concept of the "melting pot" as a special model of American multiculturalism, which rather cruelly (referring to the racial segregation of African-Americans up to the mid-70s of the XX century) "ground up" and "melted down" the ethno-cultural traditions of the peoples who settled in the United States, then, perhaps, from its positive side "projection" is more likely to be found in modern Australia. This topic was discussed by A. S. Petrikovskaya (IB RAS). Multiculturalism as a state policy, she noted, in the field of ethnic relations has been implemented in Australia for the last 40 years. The transition to it in the 1970s of the reformist-Labor government was caused by the transformation of the British resettlement colony (dominion) into a multi-ethnic entity and immigration problems. Strictly speaking, Australia was not mono-ethnic even at the dawn of its existence due to the aboriginal substrate (Australian Aborigines and Islanders are residents of nearby Pacific islands, currently a total of 750 thousand people out of more than 20 million people). Aborigines were long left out of the general cultural characterization of Australia, until traditional society was perceived as an integral part of the national identity. The revision of the attitude to ancient culture made itself felt already in the 30s of the XX century.

Immigrants of various nationalities from Europe and Asia were attracted by the gold rushes of the XIX century. The specifics of the distant outpost of the British Empire made immigration policy always relevant. Immigration gained momentum after the Second World War (an influx of 6 million people, including more than 600 thousand refugees). In 2005, one out of every four Australians was born abroad, and 43% had the same ancestry as one or both parents. In the first post-war decades, preference was still given to British immigrants, and among residents of continental Europe - to Germans and Dutch, but already in the 1960s, Italians, Greeks, and Yugoslavs joined the flow, and in the 1970s-residents of the South-East-

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New Asia. Currently, immigrants from the British Isles make up only 5.5% of the population. Australia is home to people of over 150 nationalities, from 200 countries. The largest communities are: Italian, Greek, Chinese, Yugoslav, Arab, and German. At the same time, the predominant religion is Christian, and the official language is English. There is no clear segmentation by nationality. With the abolition of immigration restrictions based on citizenship, race, and skin color, multiculturalism is becoming a practice. Its main meaning is to preserve the cultural identity of ethnic groups while ensuring their unity within the framework of the highest country community. The policy of assimilation of a foreign-cultural immigrant is considered outdated, giving way to integration. Mechanisms have been established: the Department of Immigration and Ethnic Affairs, advisory bodies, ethnic representations, information support (Translation Service and National Service of Ethnic Radio and Television Broadcasting-SS), multicultural supplements in education programs, ethnic schools in communities. Achieving a socio-cultural balance, however, is complicated by the contrast of multicultural changes with the British specifics of the Australian ethnicity, the danger of destroying the national legend, finally, outbreaks of nationalism and domestic racism, as well as the influence of international relations, especially what is happening in the historical homeland of the immigrant.

Ya.O. Zakhariev (IB RAS) spoke about Singapore as one of the countries that is an example of successful multicultural interaction at the beginning of the XXI century. An important factor, he noted, is the solution of the problem of linguistic diversity. The country has four official languages: Malay, Tamil, English (British English, which has some differences in office management and terminology from American), Chinese (despite the fact that it is a dialect of Mandarin (Putonghua), which is also the official language of the PRC, but in the Singapore version there are significant differences: other characters, another transliteration). This also leads to the solution of another problem - nationality: all residents of the island state call themselves Singaporeans. This state of affairs brings positive results, preventing the increase of polarization within the state, which is often based on the idea of national juxtaposition in other countries of the Southeast Asian region and the world as a whole. Ethnic composition of the State: 74% are Chinese, 8% are Indian (mostly Tamils), 12% are Malay, and 6% are other (this category includes Asians and Europeans who are residents of Singapore). Having solved the problems of multicultural interaction over the years, creating a stable economic basis, the state faced another important problem: in 2006, the country registered a natural population growth of 1.2 people per year, against 2.10 in previous years. This prompted the government to take urgent measures to stimulate natural growth (finalizing programs to help young families-organizing additional benefits, increasing the insurance policy package, etc.). An important step was also the "Bonus Child / Baby bonus" program, aimed at stimulating natural growth among migrants whose children are legally citizens of the state. This caused a positive reaction from neighboring countries where migrants come to the island on work visas (mainly Huaqiao Chinese, who are looking for a better life in this state), and also strengthened the position of the ruling party among non-Chinese citizens, whose rights, as well as the rights of Chinese people, are equal under the Singapore constitution. The success of this course is best illustrated by the parliamentary elections in which the Popular Action Party (the country's ruling party since independence in 1957) won 82 out of 84 seats. This indicates a general "multicultural" trust, and can also serve as a good example for other countries with clearly expressed titular wealth of the population.

Real evidence of real processes of a certain "fusion" of cultures within the framework of multiculturalism that has already developed in the postcolonial era and in the territories of former metropolises and a positive outcome of the multiculturalism policy is the nature and degree of intensity of development, for example, of Berov literature (the second generation of North African emigrants in France), S. V. Prozhogina (IB RAS) noted, the formation of a special layer of artistic creativity of ethnic Arabs and Berbers who write in French and actively represent the" new " literature of France. The same can be said about the works of Lebanese, Turks, Afghans, Egyptians, and even (especially recently) Chinese who have long lived in Europe and America, as well as their French pen counterparts, who often become laureates of prestigious European awards. In itself, this can not fail to pro-

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It contradicts the statement about the" collapse " of the very concept of multiculturalism. From colonial acculturation to the modern cultural integration of the peoples of the former colonies and "overseas territories" - the distance is huge, and the experience of the" meeting of civilizations " is considerable. Therefore, the failures of the economic and social plan in the policy of integration of immigrants should not be confused with the already obvious achievements of multiculturalism, S. V. Prozhogina emphasized, if we keep in mind the possibility of fruitful coexistence of "cultural differences", and not their opposition and opposition within the borders of one society.

A. A. Sokolov (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences) in his report on Vietnamese literature "abroad", in particular, noted that it was in the second half of the 1990s that discussions on how to name the literature of Vietnamese living outside their homeland became particularly active. Thus, Nguyen Quoc Hung, a leading literary critic of the Vietnamese diaspora living in Australia, believes that until recently, along with emigrant literature (van hoc luu vong), there was also literature of Vietnamese "just living abroad" (van hoc cua kieu), i.e. those who supported the official authorities of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Often writers representing these two opposing ideological positions live in the same cities. But with the collapse of the socialist system that began at the turn of the 1980s and 1990s, this division gradually became less pronounced, especially since new forces began to flow into the Vietnamese diaspora: young people and workers who remained in Eastern Europe. In one way or another, they also became part of Vietnamese culture outside of their historical homeland. That is why the term foreign literature is now more often used.literary abroad, devoid of ideological coloring. It has a distinctive aspect - geographical. And it is methodologically correct to use this term in relation to the literature of the Vietnamese diaspora since the late 1980s, taking the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 as a starting point. Earlier than this date, the term emigrant literature was preferred.

The experience of integrating into a new life has become the main theme of the works (mainly short stories) of second - generation writers writing in Vietnamese and living in the West. The question of language is constantly discussed in the Vietnamese diaspora: if the author is of Vietnamese origin, but creates his works in English or French, then does he belong to Vietnamese literature?

Nevertheless, outside Vietnam, there are already streams of bicultural writers who belong simultaneously to two cultures - the Vietnamese and the country of residence of the writer, whether it is the United States or France. They attract the attention of book publishers and critics, and receive international awards.

Thus, the evidence of Orientalists is more likely to provide abundant food for thought not so much about the difficulties as about the possibilities of multiculturalism and the ways of a positive policy of "multiculturalism". But the main thing that was noted in almost all reports was the need to avoid a stable confrontation between "one's own" and "another's"in the modern conditions of globalization. In the human "we-they" paradigm, the main thing is the ability to reach a certain consensus in order to avoid a conflict that is almost predetermined in the origins of humanity.

That is why, in his closing speech at the round table, Sh. M. Shukurov (IB RAS) recalled the Greek word "xenophilia", which was well expressed in Russian by Osip Mandelstam:"alien love". Alienness, said Sh. Shukurov, this is love for another through self-knowledge, it is a sacrifice, but also a difficult and grateful work. In order to know, and even more so to love, the "Other", "Alien", it takes effort. The easiest thing to do is to humiliate a "stranger", banish them, and it's much harder to be ready to accept them and ask them what they think about you. You can't get to know and love a "stranger" without an objective assessment of your values. And it is impossible to fully know yourself without knowing the "stranger". The Greek philia (philia), about which Plato and Aristotle have said quite a lot, has become the focus of modern philosophy not only because friendship is a force and procedure for internal communication of people, but also because friendship is immanent, it lies in the foundations of any culture. Aristotle, in his Metaphysics, spoke of friendship as the cause of Being. Friendship, combining things into a single One, created an understanding of the "other" no longer as an external character, but something internal present in thought, as a condition for its very possibility. Sh. M. Shukurov noted that one should make one reservation: one should not think that the "Other" is accepted completely and unconditionally. They don't look at the "Alien" part.

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just with interest, you should look at it axiologically, value-wise. Dissent with responsibility should bring a new perspective on already familiar things, on the way of life, i.e. not only on the ontic attitude towards oneself and one's neighbor, but even on different dimensions of ontology, i.e. changing the very measure of being - enriching the perception of the world and God.

At the end of the review, we can say that the scholars of Oriental studies gathered at the round table, having made their contribution to the diversity of assessments of the crisis of the concept of "multiculturalism" taking place in modern Europe, showed their vision and knowledge of many problems related to the coexistence and interaction of cultures and civilizations, and offered their arguments in solving acute issues of national Issues related to ethnic, confessional and cultural differences have expanded the range of discussions that took place in various academic institutions and other research centers that discussed important aspects of the life of multiethnic societies.

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