Author: Yelena Yu. Kazakova-Apkarimova, Dr. Sc. (History), Associate-Prof. of General & Economic History Dept.

Abstract: The article provides the analysis of the origins of the myth about the capitalness of Yekaterinburg in the second half of the XIX – early XX centuries principally relying on historical sources. The paper researches the impact of economic and social-cultural factors on formation of the unique image of the city and the search for its identity. The author concludes that the capital identification of Yekaterinburg as the centre of the macro-region has historically been closely linked with the growth of the regional identity.

Key words: Yekaterinburg; the Urals; identity; capital; “capitalness” (the quality of being a capital city); image; myth; social consciousness; culture.