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Alexander GurkoBelarusian historian, religious scholar
Date of Birth: 17.03.1964
Country:  Belarus |
Content:
Birth and Education
Vitaliy Chernyshev, a Belarusian historian, ethnologist, and religious scholar, was born in Maryina Horka, Belarus. He graduated from the Faculty of History of the Belarusian State University in 1986. From 1990 to 1993, he pursued his postgraduate studies at the Institute of Art, Ethnography, and Folklore named after K. Krapiva of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus.
Academic Career
In 1993, Chernyshev defended his Ph.D. dissertation titled "Vaishnavism and Its Characteristics in Belarus." In 2005, he successfully defended his doctoral dissertation titled "New Religions in the Republic of Belarus: An Ethnological Study."
Chernyshev has held various positions in academia and government. From 1993 to 1995, he worked at the Grodno Regional Executive Committee and the Yanka Kupala Grodno State University. From 1995 to 1999, he served in the Administration of the President of the Republic of Belarus.
In 1999, Chernyshev became a leading and chief researcher at the Institute of Socio-Political Research under the Administration of the President of Belarus. Simultaneously, from 2000 to 2004, he lectured at the European Humanities University, and from 2005 to 2006, he held a professorship at the Department of Humanities at the Minsk Institute of Management. Since 2006, he has been the scientific secretary of the Institute of Art, Ethnography, and Folklore named after K. Krapiva of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus.
Research Interests
Chernyshev's research focuses on new religions and ethno-confessional processes in Belarus. He is particularly interested in exploring the prevention of ethnic and religious conflicts.
