The 1st volume of “History of Kalmykia”, based on materials from not only domestic but also many foreign studies, highlights the ethnogenesis and history of the Oirats, who played a significant role in the history of Central Asia, the Mongol Empire and the states of the Chinggisids. Much space is given to the history of the Dzungar Khanate, the reasons for the migration of part of the Oirats to the Russian state and the stages of their entry into it. The entry of the Kalmyks was not a simultaneous act; it took half a century and took place in several stages; it was a complex and contradictory process. Each side pursued its own goals. Rich factual material outlines the history of the Kalmyk settlement in the steppes of the Lower Volga region, Russian-Kalmyk, Kalmyk-Cossack, Kalmyk-Nogai connections. The relationships between Kalmyks, Russians, Cossacks and the peoples of the North Caucasus were complex, contradictory, there were skirmishes and raids, and the authors were able to thoroughly understand the realities of the 17th–18th centuries and the peculiarities of their relationships.