The phraseological meaning "bear corner" is a remote, deserted, deaf place, originally wooded - one that bears choose for their habitat.
The original and modern meaning
As you know, in East Slavic mythology, the forest, especially impassable, was contrasted with human habitation as a hostile, animal, wild environment. The word "corner" also played a role in enhancing the meaning (compare, for example, a similar expression - "drive into a corner").
For a Russian hunter, a bear has always been considered one of the most dangerous predators - large, strong, unpredictable in behavior.
Nowadays, this expression is used ironically - under the meaning of the phrase “bear corner” lies a provincial town, a wilderness, not necessarily wooded, of course, but certainly far from the capitals with their civilization and cultural level.
About the origin of the expression
Among the pagans, the bear was an animal especially revered, sacred. A bear cult was common among many peoples, hence the name of the settlements.
There is, for example, an old historical document - "The Legend of the City of Yaroslavl." So, according to this "Yaroslavl legend", where the river Kotorosl flows into the Volga, on the coast, there was a settlement called the Bear Corner. In ancient times, pagans lived in this village, who worshiped the god Veles and robbed merchant ships sailing by. Prince Yaroslav the Wise had to call these robbers to order, and after a short resistance, a new city was laid down, and some of the locals converted to Christianity. But the bear is still depicted on the coat of arms of Yaroslavl as a kind of reference to the "Bear Corner".
In general, the history of the combination "bear angle" is much richer when it comes to the origin of toponyms. The case is not limited to Yaroslavl alone. Mention of all sorts of "bear angles" is often found in manuscript sources dating back to the 14th century. For example, the name of the city of Vorkuta from the Nenets language can be translated as "a place where there are a lot of bears," "a bear's corner." The same with the names: Kondopoga (Karelian language), Khomutovo (Evenki language), Aban (Asan language), Kurapta - settlement and river (from one of the northern dialects).
Historians know an old business document ("vacation memory"). She was discharged to a certain Fedosya Ivanovna, the daughter of a peasant, a native of the Bear's Corner, who married and moved to another settlement.
Traditionally, it is believed that the expression came into wide use after the story of the Russian writer P. I. Melnikov-Pechersky's "Bear Corner" was published in 1857, in which he told about the life and traditions of a small provincial town with that name.
Words and phrases with a similar meaning
Briefly, the meaning of phraseology “bear angle” can be explained by choosing a synonym. There are many of them in the Russian language - probably because there are plenty of places in Russia.
So, the meaning of phraseology “bear corner” in one word: wilderness, wilderness, outback, darkness, hole, swamp, slum.
And you can pick up synonymous phraseological units: “where Makar did not feed the calves” (“where Makar did not chase the calves”), “near the devil on the sandpipers”, “wolf land”.