Impact of external migration on changes in the Swedish religious landscape

For most of its history, Sweden has been a country dominated by the Lutheran Church, having the status of the official state religion. Starting in mid-to-late 20th century, mass immigration to Europe had a considerable impact on the confessional structure of Sweden’s population. The growing number of refugees from the Balkan Peninsula, the Middle East, and Africa has turned Sweden into a multi-religious state. Sweden has become one of the leaders among the EU countries as far as the growth rates of adherents of Islam are concerned. Immigrants are exposed to adaptation difficulties causing their social, cultural and geographical isolation and making relatively isolated migrant communities emerge. This study aims at finding correlation between the changes in the confessional structure of Swedish population (as a result of the growing number of non-Christians) and the geographical structure of migrant flows into the country. This novel study addresses the mosaic structure of the Swedish religious landscape taking into account the cyclical dynamics of replacement of Protestantism by Islam. The methods we created make it possible to identify further trends in the Sweden’s religious landscape. This study adds to results of the complex sociological and demographic studies of the confessional structure of the Swedish population

Refugees from Syria and Iraq in Sweden: resettlement during the migration crisis

The vast increase in the number of forced migrants during the European migration crisis has compelled the receiving countries to concentrate on the issues of migrant reception and accommodation. This study aims to demonstrate how the patterns of settlement of Syrian and Iraqi migrants changed in 2014-2019. We propose a new methodology, building on the Her­findahl-Hirschman index, an indicator of the level and direction of the spatial concentration - deconcentration of migrants, and the Ryabtsev index, which is used to measure the proximity between the settlement structures of migrants and the Swedes. It is established there was a deconcentration of migrants during the crisis (espe­cially in its ascendant phase), carried out by the Swedish authorities. However a reverse process took place in the descendant phase, as a result of self-arranged migrants’ resettlement. The deconcentration of Iraqis and Syrians led to the convergence between the settlement structure typical of immigrants and the Swedes, whilst concentration resulted in divergence accompanied by the emergence of close-knit immi­grant communities on the outskirts of Sweden’s largest cities. The formation of such communi­ties, seen as vulnerable by the national authorities and marked by a high crime rate, impedes the integration of Syrian and Iraqi immigrants into Swedish society

Intermittent Development of Central Place Systems: The Dynamics of Unification and Breakup

Relevance. The development of central place theory has been hindered by its static nature, as it fails to capture transitions between equilibrium states in central place systems. This long-standing problem remains unsolved since the theory's inception 90 years ago. This article presents a solution by examining the cases of system unification and system breakup, where previously independent systems merge or split.Research objective: The study aims to identify the conditions under which central place systems resume continual development following revolutionary transformations in their structure.Data and methods: The research analyzes census data from India (1947-2011) and Yemen (1973-2004) using equations based on the axioms of central place theory. The study also considers isostatic equilibrium as the foundation of central place system structures.Results: The effect of intermittence on the steady evolution of a central place system diminishes rapidly after the unification of two independent systems. In contrast, the adaptation of elements from a previously unified system to new conditions, including reinstating the former hierarchy and spatial structure, takes significantly longer after a system breakup. The study introduces a novel perspective, highlighting that the unification of central place systems tends to lead to progress, whereas the breakup of a unified system results in degradation.Conclusions: The true benefit to a central place system lies not solely in achieving isostatic equilibrium but in maintaining a secure and optimal structure. While these concepts share similarities, they may appear more distinct when examining the central place system as a whole. Equilibrium represents an optimal state for individual hierarchy levels rather than the entire system

中心地理论系统的离散发展：统一与瓦解

Received December 31, 2022; accepted March 20, 2023.Дата поступления 31 декабря 2022 г.; дата принятия к печати 20 марта 2023.Relevance. The development of central place theory has been hindered by its static nature, as it fails to capture transitions between equilibrium states in central place systems. This long-standing problem remains unsolved since the theory's inception 90 years ago. This article presents a solution by examining the cases of system unification and system breakup, where previously independent systems merge or split. Research objective: The study aims to identify the conditions under which central place systems resume continual development following revolutionary transformations in their structure. Data and methods: The research analyzes census data from India (1947-2011) and Yemen (1973-2004) using equations based on the axioms of central place theory. The study also considers isostatic equilibrium as the foundation of central place system structures. Results: The effect of intermittence on the steady evolution of a central place system diminishes rapidly after the unification of two independent systems. In contrast, the adaptation of elements from a previously unified system to new conditions, including reinstating the former hierarchy and spatial structure, takes significantly longer after a system breakup. The study introduces a novel perspective, highlighting that the unification of central place systems tends to lead to progress, whereas the breakup of a unified system results in degradation. Conclusions: The true benefit to a central place system lies not solely in achieving isostatic equilibrium but in maintaining a secure and optimal structure. While these concepts share similarities, they may appear more distinct when examining the central place system as a whole. Equilibrium represents an optimal state for individual hierarchy levels rather than the entire system.Актуальность. Главная проблема теории центральныхмест, которая не была решена за 90 лет, прошедших с момента ее возникновения - статический характер, не позволяющий описать переходы между равновесными состояниями систем центральных мест. В статье предлагается вариант решения этой проблемы на примере системы, образовавшейся в результате объединения самостоятельных систем, и систем, образовавшихся после распада целостной системы. Цель исследования. Исследование направлено на выявление условий возобновления континуального развития систем центральных мест после революционных преобразований их структуры. Данные и методы. Исследование примеров Йемена и Индии базируется на уравнениях, вытекающих из аксиоматического фундамента теории центральных мест, а также на представлении об изостатическом равновесии структуры соответствующих систем. Статистическую базу исследования составляют данные переписей населения Индии (1941-2011 гг.) и Йемена (1973-2004 гг.). Результаты. Влияние дискретизирующего поступательную эволюцию объединения двух систем центральных мест достаточно быстро сходит на нет. В случае распада адаптация части ранее единой системы к изменившимся условиям в виде восстановления прежних иерархии и пространственной структуры происходит дольше. Новизна исследования заключается в доказательстве авторской гипотезы о том, что объединение нескольких систем центральных мест определяет прогрессивную направленность эволюции, в то время как разделение единой системы на изолированные части ведет к регрессу. Выводы. Выгодным для системы оказывается не столько пребывание в состоянии изостатического равновесия, сколько закрепление оптимальной структуры. Эти понятия достаточно близки по своей сути, однако при рассмотрении системы в целом могут отличаться: оптимальным является равновесное состояние не всей системы, а отдельных уровней иерархии.现实性：中心地理论自提出以来的90年里仍未得到完全解决。理论的静态性不 能详尽描述中心地理系统平衡状态之间的转变。本文以独立系统合并后形成的 系统和整体系统崩溃后形成的系统为例，提出了解决这一问题的变通方案。研究目标: 该研究试图确定中央地方系统在其结构发生革命性转变后重新持续 发展的条件。 数据与方法：也门和印度的案例研究是基于方程（从中心地理论的公理基础 中得出）以及系统的等高线平衡结构概念。该研究的统计基础是印度（1941-2011）和也门（1973-2004）的人口普查数据。 研究结果：两个中心地点系统合并后逐步演变的离散化效果很快消失。系统一旦崩溃，以前统一的部分系统为恢复到以前的等级和空间结构形式，需要更长 的时间来适应条件变化。本研究的新颖之处在于证明了作者的假设，即几个中 心系统的统一决定了进化的前进方向，而单个系统的分裂导致了回归。研究结论：系统处于均衡平衡状态并不那么有利，保持一个最佳结构是最有利 的。这些概念本质上非常接近，但是，当将系统视为一个整体时，它们可能会 有所不同。最佳状态不是整个系统的平衡状态，而是层次结构中的各个层次的 平衡状态。The article was prepared within the project “Post-crisis world order: challenges and technolo­gies, competition and coopera­tion” supported by the grant from Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federa­tion program for research proj­ects in priority areas of scientific and technological development (Agreement № 075-15-2020-783).Статья опубликована в рамках проекта «Посткризисное мироу­стройство: вызовы и технологии, конкуренция и сотрудничество» по гранту Министерства науки и высшего образования РФ на проведение крупных научных проектов по приоритетным направлениям научно-техноло­гического развития (Соглашение №075-15-2020-783).该文章受俄罗斯联邦教育与 科学部资助，项目为“后危机世 界秩序：挑战与技术、竞争与合 作”。该项目旨在资助科学和技术 优先领域的大型科学项目（协议 号：075-15-2020-783）

Migration Management in the Western Balkan Region: The Case of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Introduction. For centuries, the Western Balkan region has been actively involved in international migration processes, mainly generating flows of migrants to other states. The European migration crisis has led to the region has become one of the main hub of transit migration from Asia and Africa to the European Union states. The European Union – a global center of gravity for migrants implement an active migration management policy in the region. The purpose of the article is to identify the impact of European Union policy towards the Western Balkans on the development of the migration crisis in the region as a whole and in Bosnia and Herzegovina in particular. Materials and Methods. The study is based on statistical materials on migration of international and regional organizations. The analysis of the features of political regulation of migration in the region is carried out on systematic approach and content analysis of numerous declarations and treaties, as well as published scientific research. Results. The study revealed that the externalization and securitization of migration policy carried out by the European Union leads to an aggravation of the crisis in the Western Balkans, which are actually turning into a buffer zone for deterring and filtering migrants. The strengthening of migration and border control in the region has led to the diversification of migration flows; as a result Bosnia and Herzegovina has become one of the main centers of transit migration. Discussion and Conclusion. Bosnia and Herzegovina, following the course of joining the European Union, systematically takes all imposed decisions in the field of migration management. However, these deals lead to an increase in migration pressure on the country that it is not prepared due to its internal political and economic problems. Contradictions between the central and regional authorities of the country in fundamental issues of migration policy reinforce the tendencies towards its disintegration. Data on the scale of migration in the region, its analysis and conclusions on the principles of European Union migration policy will be useful to researchers in the field of migration processes, and can be used by government agencies for developing a Russian strategy for managing immigration processes