Journal "Voprosy statistiki" is the successor of the journal "Vestnik statistiki" ("Bulletin of Statistics") that was founded in 1919. "Bulletin of Statistics" in its turn continued the tradition of earlier statistical periodicals, including "Statistical Journal" (published in the first decade of XIXth century within the executive branch of the Russian government) and the "Statistical bulletin" (published by the Imperial Moscow Universityin 1914-1917).
"Vestnik statistiki" was established in January 1919 as a specialized statistical publication, created as part of the information element of government management structure. Officially it was the body of the Central Statistical Board. Editorial for the first issue stated that "The supreme authority of state statistics - which is the Central Statistical Office … must have, in addition to the publications that are the result of the work conducted by various departments, a special body dedicated solely to the development of theoretical and organizational issues". This "special body" was meant to be a journal aimed at/which purpose is to: 1) regular coverage of activities of the Central Statistical Board, local statistical offices and statistical divisions of departmental and public organizations; 2) developing questions related to statistical methodology; 3) problems of the organization of statistical work, and 4) considering questions related to organization of scientific and educational statistical establishments. On the pages of the journal were supposed to be published instructions, regulations, orders relating to statistics. The structure of the journal consisted of the official part (laws, orders of the Government and the CSB, programs, budgets, workforce, programme of work, official reports on the activities of local statistical offices and CSB departments, provisions of statistical conferences, congresses and other official meetings) and informal part that was intended for articles on general issues of statistical methodology, organization of statistical observations and methods of processing the materials, dissemination of statistical knowledge; articles devoted to the analysis of individual publications, reviews of scientific literature and statistical compilations; covering the work of congresses, conferences, etc.; informing readers about the statistical life abroad.
"Vestnik statistiki" was published until1929. In1930, the state statistics system was completely subordinated to the State Planning Committee (Gosplan) system and the publication of the journal was suspended.
After the Great Patriotic War state statistics gained the status accordant to its role in government: in 1948, the CSB USSR was taken out from the structure of the Gosplan USSR and became an independent agency - the Central Statistical Board under the Council of Ministers of the USSR (CSB USSR). Since 1949, it was decided to renew the edition of "Vestnik statistiki" in accordance with the Resolution of the Council of Ministers of the USSR, from 10.08.1948 stating that the journal should be issued "to cover theoretical, methodological and organizational issues of statistics and to exchange practical experience in statistics". Though sharing similar aims at its founding, contents of the "Vestnik" turn out to be quite different. A sizable part of the journal was given to the presentation of the Resolutions of the TsK KPSS, CSBUSSR as well as to covering the progress of national economic plans (meet the plan).
1993 was the last year when "Vestnik statistiki" was published. In 1994, the journal "Voprosy statistiki" - which is the body of Goskomstat of Russia (now Rosstat) - was first published. It became the successor of "Vestnik statistiki".
Now, journal is a modern form of presenting and discussing issues and problems of theoretical and socio-economic statistics, statistical education, matters concerning the adaptation of international statistical standards to Russian conditions and information capabilities, national and foreign experience in the organizing national statistical activities and regional statistics. The journal plays an important role in strengthening cooperation between the scientific community and statistical practitioners in solving urgent issues in statistics, implementing modern tasks of official statistics associated with promoting the openness and transparency in the Russian society.
References:
1. Bibliograficheskii ukazatel' statei i materialov po statistike i uchetu. Zhurnal «Vestnik statistiki» za 50 let (1919-1968 gg.). Sost. G.K. Onoprienko, A.N. Onoprienko, B.C. Gel'fand [Bibliographical guide to articles and materials on statistics and accounting. Journal «Vestnik statistiki» for 50 years (1919-1968). Comp. by Onoprienko G.K., Onoprienko A.N., Gelfand B.C.].Moscow, 1971. (In Russ.).
2. Eliseeva I.I., Dmitriev A.L. 95 let obshcherossiiskomu statisticheskomu zhurnalu [95-th anniversary of the Russiastatistical journal]. Voprosy statistiki, 2014, no. 1, pp. 4-11. (In Russ.).
