Yu. G. Lipets and Soviet and Russian Human Geography

Scientific works and ideas of Yu.G. Lipets (1931–2006) had a great impact on the development of the Soviet and Russian human geography in the last third of the 20th – early 21st century. Lipets began his scientific career in the early 1960s as an expert in the geography of African countries. He has left a rich scientific legacy in geographical African studies. Lipets was the author of pioneering economic and geographical works on the countries of Southeast Africa, economic regionalization of Africa, urbanization, population migration, labor resources, formation of labor markets in African countries. Later, over the years of his work at the Central Economic Mathematical Institute and the Institute of Geography (within the Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union and Russian Academy of Sciences), Lipets became a prominent scientist in the field of system modeling and implementation of quantitative methods in human geography. The spectrum of his scientific studies ranged from the key issues of theoretical geography to the theory of equilibrium prices. Lipets has initiated the “geography of world development” as an interdisciplinary research area in contemporary Russian human geography. This research direction has become the pinnacle of the scientific activity of Lipets. It has integrated the previously separate scientific disciplines such as “geography of world economy,” “problematic country studies” and “geographical global studies.” Lipets formulated the concept of three aporias of modern geography – the key methodological difficulties of its development. These three aporias dealt with issues of the unity of geography, the role of spatial analysis in the study of nature and society, as well as uniqueness and typicality in geography. The article also discusses the activities of Lipets as a scientific manager and organizer. He played an important role in establishing a seminar on new methods in human geography in Moscow, in the Russian Geographical Society, organized scientific conferences, led scientific research of the Economic and Geographical Section of the International Academy of Regional Development and Cooperation.

1. Aleksandrov Yu.A., Lipets Yu.G. Zambiya [Zambia]. Mos-cow: Mysl’ Publ., 1973. 63 p.

2. Ekonomicheskaya geografiya mirovogo razvitiya: XX vek [Economic Geography of World Development: XX Century]. Lipets Yu.G., Puluarkin V.A., Shlikhter S.B., Eds. St. Petersburg: Aleteya Publ., 2003. 396 p.

3. Farewell Words. Demoskop Weekly, January 2007, nos. 271– 272. Available at: http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/2007/0271/nauka02.php (accessed: 16.05.2021). (In Russ.).

4. Geografiya mirovogo razvitiya [Geography of World Development]. Sintserov L.M., Ed. Moscow: Inst. Geogr. RAN, 2009, vol. 1. 606 p.

5. Geografiya mirovogo razvitiya [Geography of World Development]. Sintserov L.M., Ed. Moscow: KMK Publ., 2010, vol. 2. 496 p.

6. Geografiya mirovogo razvitiya [Geography of World Development]. Sintserov L.M., Ed. Moscow: KMK Publ., 2016, vol. 3. 486 p.

7. Gornung M.B., Lipets Yu.G., Oleinikov I.N. Istoriya otkrytiya i issledovaniya Afriki [History of Discovery and Exploration of Africa]. Moscow: Mysl’ Publ., 1973. 454 p.

8. Haggett P. Locational Analysis in Human Geography. London: Edward Arnold, 1965. 339 p. [Russ. Transl.: Hag-get P. Prostranstvennyi analiz v ekonomicheskoi geografii. Moscow: Progress Publ., 1968. 391 p.].

9. Isard W. Methods of Regional Analysis: an Introduction to Regional Science. New York, Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press, 1960. 832 p. [Russ. Transl.: Isard W. Metody regional’nogo analiza: Vvedenie v nauku o regionakh. Moscow: Progress Publ., 1966. 660 p.].

10. Konovalov E.M., Lipets Yu.G. Malawi. Moscow: Mysl’ Publ., 1966. 80 p.

11. Lipets Yu.G. Aporiae of Modern Geography. In Metodologicheskie aspekty vzaimodeistviya obshchestvennykh, estestvennykh i tekhnicheskikh nauk v svete reshenii XXV s’’ezda KPSS [Methodological Aspects of Interaction of Social, Natural and Technical Sciences in the Light of the Decisions of the XXV Congress of the CPSU]. Moscow, Obninsk, 1978, pp. 403–406. (In Russ.).

12. Lipets Yu.G. Ecology of science. In Vtorye Sokraticheskie chteniya po geografii [Second Socratic Readings in Geography]. Shuper V.A., Ed. Moscow: Univ. Ross. Akad. Obrazovaniya, 2001, pp. 115–122. (In Russ.).

13. Lipets Yu.G. Economic zoning as a method for coordinating the economic development of Africa. In Papers of International Symposium on Industrial Development. ID/Conf. 1/G. 39. Moscow: USSR Acad. of Sciences. Central. Inst. of Mathematical Economics, 1967. 21 p.

14. Lipets Yu.G. Energy sector of the South-East African Countries (the Zambezi River basin). In Strany i narody Vostoka [Countries and Nations of the Orient]. Vol. 7: Strany i narody Afriki [African Countries and Peoples]. Ol’derogge D.A., Ed. Moscow: Nauka Publ., 1969, pp. 273–282. (In Russ.).

15. Lipets Yu.G. External factor of regional transformation: Pricing terms for region, the country and clusters of countries with similar price systems. In Shestye Sokraticheskie chteniya: Postindustrial’naya transformatsiya sotsial’nogo prostranstva Rossii [Post-industrial Transformation of Russia’s Social Space. Sixth Socratic Readings]. Shuper V.A., Ed. Moscow: Eslan Publ., 2006, pp. 115–123. (In Russ.).

16. Lipets Yu.G. Geographic view on the historical development of Russia. In Problemnoe stranovedenie i mirovoe razvitie [Problematic Regional Studies and World Development]. Smolensk: Smolensk Univ., 1998, pp. 130–146. (In Russ.).

17. Lipets Yu.G. Problems of macroeconomic zoning of Africa. In Problemy ekonomicheskogo raionironiya v razvivayushchikhsya stranakh [Problems of Economic Zoning in Developing Countries]. Moscow: IMEMO AN SSSR, 1966, pp. 28–29. (In Russ.).

18. Lipets Yu.G. On the issue of macroeconomic zoning of Africa. In Voprosy geografii [Problems of Geography]. Vol. 76: Ekonomicheskoe raionirovanie razvivayushchikhsya stran [Economic Zoning of Developing Countries]. Moscow: Mysl’ Publ., 1968a, pp. 142–149. (In Russ.).

19. Lipets Yu.G. Problems of transport services for the mining basins of Central and Southern Africa. In Voprosy geografii [Problems of Geography]. Vol. 61. Moscow: Geografgiz Publ., 1963, pp. 201–221. (In Russ.).

20. Lipets Yu.G. Regions of Russia under new pricing terms. In Rossiiskie regiony v novykh ekonomicheskikh usloviyakh [Regions of Russia under New Economic Conditions]. Moscow: Ross. Akad. Nauk, 1996, pp. 6–11. (In Russ.).

21. Lipets Yu.G. Sistemnoe modelirovanie v ekonomicheskoi i sotsial’noi geografii (Teoreticheskie i obshchie problemy geografii) [System Modeling in Human Geography (Theoretical and General Problems of Geography)]. Moscow: All-VINITI, 1987, vol. 5. 167 p.

22. Lipets Yu.G. South-East Africa: Experience of economic and geographical characterization. Cand. Sci. (Geogr.) Dissertation. Moscow: Inst. Geogr. Acad. Sci. USSR, 1965.

23. Lipets Yu.G. Stadiality in production location dynamics: Concepts of August Lösch and Boris Zimin. In Sed’mye Sokraticheskie chteniya. Avgust Lyosh kak filosof ekonomicheskogo prostranstva: k stoletiyu so dnya rozhdeniya [Papers of the Seventh Socratic Interdisciplinary Work-shop: August Lösch as an Economic Space Philosopher: to His Centenary]. Shuper V.A., Ed. Moscow: Eslan Publ., 2007, pp. 14–159. (In Russ.).

24. Lipets Yu.G. Strany Yugo-Vostochnoi Afriki: Ekonomikogeograficheskaya kharakteristika stran basseina Zambezi (Zambii, Malavi, Mozambika, Yuzhnoi Rodezii) [Countries of Southeast Africa: Economic and Geographic Characteristics of the Zambezi Basin Countries (Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique, Southern Rhodesia)]. Moscow: Mysl’ Publ., 1968b. 399 p.

25. Lipets Yu.G. System modeling in human geography. Theory and methods. Doctoral (Geogr.) Dissertation. Mos-cow: Inst. Geogr. Acad. Sci. USSR, 1990. 56 p.

26. Lipets Yu.G. The economic ties of Northern and Southern Rhodesia under the collapse of colonial imperialism. In Voprosy geografii [Problems of Geography]. Vol. 64: Ekonomiko-geograficheskie problemy stran Afriki, Asii i Latinskoi Ameriki [Economic and Geographical Problems of Countries of Africa, Asia, and Latin America]. Moscow: Mysl’ Publ., 1964, pp. 112–120. (In Russ.).

27. Lipets Yu.G. The inherited problems and new horizons. In Chetvertye Sokraticheskie chteniya po geografii. Nauchnye teorii i geograficheskaya real’nost’ [Scientific Theories and Geographical Reality. Fourth Socratic Readings in Geography.]. Shuper V.A., Ed. Moscow: Eslan Publ., 2004, pp. 187–192. (In Russ.).

28. Lipets Yu.G. Unstable development of the world economy and Russia’s place in it. In Tret’i Sokraticheskie chteniya po geografii. Rossiya v sovremennom mire: poisk novykh intellektual’nykh podkhodov [Russia in the Modern World: The Search for New Intellectual Approaches. Third Socratic Readings in Geography]. Shuper V.A., Ed. Moscow: Sputnik+ Publ., 2002, pp. 94–107. (In Russ.).

29. Lipets Yu.G., Pulyarkin V.A. Nonlinear processes of world development. Izv. Akad. Nauk, Ser. Geogr., 2001, no. 4, pp. 31–37. (In Russ.).

30. Lipets Yu.G., Pulyarkin V.A., Shlikhter S.B. Geografiya mirovogo khozyaystva: uchebnoe posobie [Geography of the World Economy: Textbook]. Moscow: Vlados Publ., 1999. 399 p.

31. Postindustrial’noe razvitie kapitalisticheskikh stran: geograficheskii prognoz [Post-Industrial Development of the Capitalist Countries: Geographical Forecast]. Zimin B.N., Shlikhter S.B., Eds. Moscow: Nauka Publ., 1993. 192 p.

32. Shuper V.A. Yulii Grigor’evich Lipets (1931–2006). In V nashem dome na Staromonetnom, na vyselkakh i v pole [In our Staromonetny Homestead, in Hamlets and in the Fields]. Kotlyakov V.M., Ed. Moscow: KMK Publ., 2012, pp. 413–420. (In Russ.).

33. Strany i narody. Nauchno-populyarnoe geografo-etnograficheskoe izdanie (v 20 tomakh) [Countries and Nations. A Popular Scientific Geographical and Ethnographic Edition (in 20 vols.)]. Vol.: Vostochnaya i Yuzhnaya Afrika [East and South Africa]. Gornung M.B, Starushenko G.V., Andrianov B.V., Chizhov N.N., Eds. Moscow: Mysl’ Publ., 1981. 269 p.