RUSSIAN COLONIZATION OF THE KAZAKH STEPPE: HISTORIOGRAPHY ON IMPERIAL EXPANSION AND COLONIAL TRANSFORMATION, РЕСЕЙДІҢ ҚАЗАҚ ДАЛАСЫН ОТАРЛАУЫ: ИМПЕРИЯЛЫҚ ЭКСПАНСИЯ МЕН ОТАРЛЫҚ ТРАНСФОРМАЦИЯНЫҢ ТАРИХНАМАСЫ, РОССИЙСКАЯ КОЛОНИЗАЦИЯ КАЗАХСКОЙ СТЕПИ: ИСТОРИОГРАФИЯ ИЗУЧЕНИЯ ИМПЕРСКОЙ ЭКСПАНСИИ И КОЛОНИАЛЬНОЙ ТРАНСФОРМАЦИИ

<jats:p>Introduction. During the XVIII–XIX centuries, Tsarist Russia increasingly expanded its control over the Kazakh Steppe. Three primary actions were taken within this process: forcing the Kazakh Zhuzes into submission, building military fortresses, and implementing what was referred to as “civil administration.” By the middle of the XIX century the Russian empire had completed the conquest and formally the Steppe became the part of it. Alongside this conquest, Tsarist Russia began to resettle people in the region, which was characterized by agrarian colonization, aggressive land seizure, and the strengthening of imperial control. The legacy of conquest and migration profoundly shaped the ethnic composition and linguistic-cultural identity of modern Kazakhstan. It also provides an important example for the study of colonialism and post-colonialism, showing how an imperial power used military, administrative, and demographic measures to establish and expand control over a nomadic society. Despite the substantial body of historical scholarship on this topic, Chinese studies and sources remain an important resource for understanding Russian imperial policies and actions in the Kazakh Steppe. Goals and objectives. This study aims to analyze the main stages of the Russian Empire’s expansion in the Kazakh Steppe and to examine the role of migration policy in consolidating its rule in the region through a review of the relevant historiography, with particular attention to Chinese scholarship. The article focuses on how Russia gradually established control over the Kazakh Zhuzes, constructed military fortresses, introduced administrative systems, and influenced the socioeconomic life of the Kazakhs through the arrival of Russian settlers. The article draws on materials from the Central State Archive of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the collection “Kazakh-Russian Relations in the XVIII–XIX Centuries,” I. F. Babkov’s memoirs “Memories of My Service in Western Siberia,” the works of Ch. Ch. Valikhanov, and M. A. Terentyev’s “History of the Conquest of Central Asia.” These materials are examined alongside the official chronicle of the Qianlong Emperor’s reign, Qing Gaozong Shilu. This important Qing source contains valuable information on the Kazakh Zhuzes and their relations with neighboring regions of Central Asia, providing an alternative perspective on imperial expansion in the Steppe. The study employs a combination of historical methods. Authors use the historical-comparative method to analyze different stages of Russian expansion into the Kazakh Steppe and to identify the changing balance between military, administrative, and migration policies. Comparative source analysis allows Russian archival and published materials to be examined alongside Qing documentary evidence, revealing similarities and differences in the interpretation of imperial policies and regional developments. The problemchronological method is applied to trace the successive stages of Russian penetration into the region, from the establishment of frontier lines and military outposts to the formation of administrative institutions and the implementation of peasant resettlement policies. In addition, historiographical analysis is employed to assess the contribution of Chinese scholarship to the study of Russian colonial expansion in the Kazakh Steppe. Source criticism is used throughout the study to evaluate the origin, context, reliability, and limitations of both Russian and Qing materials. Results. The analysis demonstrates that Russian conquest and settlement policies in the Kazakh Steppe constituted an integral component of the Russian Empire’s broader strategy of expansion in Central Asia. The examined Russian and Qing sources indicate that the establishment of military lines, administrative reforms, and peasant resettlement policies transformed traditional patterns of land use and significantly altered the socio-economic foundations of Kazakh nomadic society. These measures contributed to the weakening of customary institutions regulating access to pasturelands, increased social differentiation within the steppe population, and facilitated the gradual transition from a predominantly pastoral economy toward more sedentary and agricultural forms of economic activity. Conclusion. The historiography of Russian colonization of the Kazakh Steppe reveals that imperial expansion was a gradual and multifaceted process involving military conquest, fortress construction, administrative integration, migration, and social transformation. While Russian, Kazakh, Western, and Chinese scholars emphasize different aspects of these developments, their studies collectively demonstrate the complex nature of colonial rule in the region. The inclusion of Chinese historiography and source materials broadens existing interpretations and contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of the long-term transformation of the Kazakh Steppe under Russian imperial rule. </jats:p>