Migration losses and reproduction of the population of small and medium cities of north-west Russia

The article is devoted to the analysis of trends in two components of population change – its reproduction and migration in small and medium-sized cities in the north-west of European Russia (using the example of cities in the Vologda and Novgorod regions). Following the demographic compression of rural settlements and their disappearance, a similar process affect the small and medium-sized cities of the ancient cultural, historical and economic centers of Russia. The causes and consequences of socio-economic deformations of traditional Russian territories identified. It is proposed to reconsider key approaches to the development of the urban settlement network in the region, measures of stabilization of the population and labor resources, improvement of the age structure, and increasing the migration attractiveness of small and medium-sized cities.