This article presents a theoretical analysis of the educational policies for ethnic minorities, using the example of Russia. To this end, the Russian educational minority policies are analyzed from the perspective of a theory of cultural transmission in minorities recently proposed by the author. It is argued that the theory is able to explain important aspects of the educational policies of a majority for indigenous minorities that are not easily accounted for by existing theoretical approaches, and can therefore contribute to a better understanding of the Russian educational policy for minorities during history and more generally, the educational policies of nation states for ethnic minorities.Keywords: Russia; minorities; minority politics; educational policies; nationalities policy; cultural transmission in minorities