Lev Falk-Segal’s academic work and exile in Pavlodar

In 1937, economist Lev Falk-Segal was exiled to Pavlodar Region. Before his exile, he taught political economy, worked at the International Lenin School and published books that were translated into other languages. Researcher Natalya Kubik reconstructed his life using records from the State Archive of Pavlodar Region and family recollections. 1

The case in Pavlodar

Falk-Segal was arrested in October 1938. A published archival order dated 13 March 1939 shows how investigators sought an extension of his detention. The document lists accusations made by the NKVD. These are accusations from an investigation file, rather than established facts about his life. 2

The investigation was not completed before Falk-Segal died in Pavlodar on 5 April 1939. According to Kubik’s study, the case was closed in 1956 for lack of the elements of a crime, and the scholar was rehabilitated. 1

Recovering his name

Kubik’s study brings together the case file and his daughter Tamara’s account of her parents’ lives. An earlier questionnaire completed by Falk-Segal as an employee of the People’s Commissariat for Nationalities also survives. The Electronic Library of Historical Documents publishes its catalogue entry with the State Archive of Russia’s reference code. The questionnaire records Falk-Segal’s earlier work; the investigation file covers the final months of his life; and his daughter’s recollections add a family perspective. 1 3