Population of Siberia: number, density, composition. Indigenous peoples of Siberia. Indigenous peoples of Western Siberia
At present, the overwhelming majority of the population of Siberia are Russians. According to the 1897 census, there were about 4.7 million Russians in Siberia. (more than 80% of its total population). In 1926, this figure increased to 9 million people, and during the time that has elapsed since the 1926 census, the Russian population in Siberia has increased even more.
The modern Russian population of Siberia has developed from several groups, different in their social origin and in the time of their resettlement in Siberia.
Russians began to populate Siberia from the end of the 16th century, and by the end of the 17th century. the number of Russians in Siberia exceeded the number of its heterogeneous local population.
Initially, the Russian population of Siberia consisted of service people (Cossacks, archers, etc.) and a few townspeople and merchants in the cities; the same Cossacks, industrial people - hunters and arable peasants in rural areas - in villages, zaimkas and settlements. Arable peasants and, to a lesser extent, Cossacks formed the basis of the Russian population of Siberia in the 17th, 18th, and first half of the 19th centuries. The main mass of this old-timer population of Siberia is concentrated in the regions of Tobolsk, Verkhoturye, Tyumen, to a lesser extent Tomsk, Yeniseisk (with the Angara region) and Krasnoyarsk, along the Ilim, in the upper reaches of the Lena in the regions of Nerchinsk and Irkutsk. A later stage of Russian penetration into the steppe regions of southern Siberia dates back to the 18th century. At this time, the Russian population spread in the steppe and forest-steppe regions of southern Siberia: in the Northern Altai, in the Minusinsk steppes, as well as in the steppes of the Baikal and Transbaikalia.
After the reform of 1861, millions of Russian peasants moved to Siberia in a relatively short period of time. At this time, some regions of Altai, Northern Kazakhstan, as well as the newly annexed Amur and Primorye were settled by Russians.
The construction of the railway and the growth of cities in Siberia in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. led to a rapid increase in the Russian urban population.
At all stages of the settlement of Siberia by Russians, they carried with them a culture higher than that of the indigenous population. Not only the peoples of the Far North, but also the peoples of southern Siberia are indebted to the laboring masses of Russian settlers for the spread of higher technology in various industries material production. The Russians spread in Siberia developed forms of agriculture and cattle breeding, more advanced types of dwellings, more cultured everyday skills, etc.
In the Soviet era, the industrialization of Siberia, the development of new regions, the emergence of industrial centers in the north, and rapid road construction caused a new, very large influx of the Russian population into Siberia and its spread even to the most remote regions of the taiga and tundra.
In addition to Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusians, Jews (Jewish Autonomous Region) and representatives of other nationalities live in Siberia Soviet Union who moved to Siberia at different times.
Numerically, a small part of the entire population of Siberia is its non-Russian local population, numbering about 800 thousand people. The non-Russian population of Siberia is represented by a large number of different nationalities. Two autonomous Soviet socialist republics have been formed here - Buryat-Mongolian and Yakutsk, three autonomous regions - Gorno-Altai, Khakass, Tuva and a number of national districts and regions. The number of individual Siberian peoples is different. The largest of them, according to 1926 data, are the Yakuts (237,222 people), Buryats (238,058 people), Altaians (50,848 people), Khakasses (45,870 people), Tuvans (62,000 people). ). Most of the peoples of Siberia are the so-called small peoples of the North. Some of them do not exceed 1,000 in number, while others number several thousand. This fragmentation and small number of indigenous peoples of northern Siberia reflects the historical and natural geographical conditions in which they were formed and existed before the Soviet regime. The low level of development of productive forces, harsh climatic conditions, vast impenetrable expanses of taiga and tundra, and in the last three centuries, the colonial policy of tsarism prevented the formation of large ethnic groups here, conserved the most archaic forms of economy, social system, and culture in the Far North until the October Revolution itself. and life. The larger peoples of Siberia were also relatively backward, although not to the same extent as the small peoples of the North.
The non-Russian indigenous population of Siberia belongs in their language to various linguistic groups.
Most of them speak Turkic languages. These include Siberian Tatars, Altaians, Shors, Khakasses, Tuvans, Tofalars, Yakuts and Dolgans. The language of the Mongolian group is spoken by the Buryats. In total, Turkic languages are spoken by approximately 58%, and Mongolian by 27% of the non-Russian population of Siberia.
The next largest language group is represented by the Tungus-Manchu languages. They are usually divided into the Tungus, or northern, and Manchu, or southern, languages. The Tungus group proper in Siberia includes the languages of the Evenks, Evens, and Negidals; to Manchu - the languages of the Nanai, Ulchi, Oroks, Orochs, Udeges. In total, only about 6% of the non-Russian population of Siberia speaks the Tungus-Manchu languages, but territorially these languages are quite widespread, since the population speaking them lives scattered from the Yenisei to the coast of the Sea of Okhotsk and the Bering Strait.
Turkic, Mongolian and Tungus-Manchu languages are usually combined into the so-called Altaic family of languages. These languages have not only similarities in their morphological structure (they are all of an agglutinative type), but also great lexical correspondences and common phonetic patterns. Turkic languages are close to Mongolian, and Mongolian, in turn, is close to Tungus-Manchu.
The peoples of northwestern Siberia speak Samoyedic and Ugric languages. The Ugric languages are the languages of the Khanty and Mansi (about 3.1% of the total non-Russian population of Siberia), and the Samoyedic languages are the languages of the Nenets, Nganasans, Enets and Selkups (about 2.6% of the non-Russian population of Siberia in total). The Ugric languages, which, in addition to the languages of the Khanty and Mansi, also include the language of the Hungarians in Central Europe, are included in the Finno-Ugric group of languages. The Finno-Ugric and Samoyedic languages, which show a certain closeness to each other, are united by linguists into the Uralic group of languages. In the old classifications, the Altaic and Uralic languages were usually combined into one Ural-Altaic community. Although the Uralic and Altaic languages are morphologically similar to each other (agglutinative system), such an association is controversial and is not shared by most modern linguists.
Languages of a number of peoples of northeastern Siberia and Far East cannot be included in the large linguistic communities indicated above, since they have a sharply different structure, peculiar features in phonetics, and many other features. Such are the languages of the Chukchi, Koryaks, Itelmens, Yukagirs, Nivkhs. If the first three reveal significant closeness to each other, then the Yukagir and, especially, Nivkh languages have nothing in common with them and have nothing to do with each other.
All these languages are incorporating, but incorporation (the fusion of a number of root words into a sentence) in these languages is expressed to varying degrees. It is most typical for the Chukchi, Koryak and Itelmen languages, to a lesser extent - for the Nivkh and Yukaghir. In the latter, incorporation is preserved only to a weak degree, and the language is mainly characterized by an agglutinative structure. The phonetics of the listed languages is characterized by sounds that are absent in the Russian language. These languages (Chukotian, Koryak, Itelmen, Nivkh and Yukagir) are known as "Paleoasian". In this term, which was introduced into the literature for the first time by Academician JI. Schrenk, correctly emphasizes the antiquity of these languages, their surviving character on the territory of Siberia. We can assume a wider distribution of these ancient languages in the past in this territory. Currently, about 3% of the non-Russian population of Siberia speaks Paleo-Asiatic languages.
An independent place among the languages of Siberia is occupied by the Eskimo and Aleut languages. They are close to each other, are characterized by the predominance of agglutination, and differ from the language of the northeastern Paleoasians territorially close to them.
And, finally, the language of the Kets, a small people living along the middle reaches of the Yenisei in the Turukhansky and Yartsevsky regions of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, stands completely isolated among the languages of northern Asia, and the question of its place in the linguistic classification remains unresolved to this day. It is distinguished by the presence, along with agglutination, of inflections, the distinction between categories of animate and inanimate objects, the distinction between feminine and masculine gender for animate objects, which is not found in all other languages of Siberia.
These isolated languages (Ket and Eskimo with Aleut) are spoken by 0.3% of the non-Russian population of Siberia.
The purpose of this work is not to consider the complex and insufficiently clarified details of the specific history of individual language groups, to clarify the time of formation and ways of their distribution. But one should point out, for example, the wider distribution in the past in southern Siberia of languages close to modern Ket (the languages of the Arins, Kotts, Asans), as well as the widespread distribution in the 17th century. languages close to Yukaghir in the Lena, Yana, Indigirka, Kolyma and Anadyr basins. In the Sayan Highlands in the XVII-XIX centuries. a number of ethnic groups spoke Samoyedic languages. There is reason to believe that from this mountainous region the Samoyed languages spread to the north, where these languages were preceded by the Paleo-Asiatic languages of the ancient natives of northwestern Siberia. One can trace the gradual settlement of Eastern Siberia by Tungus-speaking tribes and their absorption of small Paleo-Asiatic groups. It should also be noted the gradual spread of the Turkic languages among the Samoyedic and Ket-speaking groups in southern Siberia and the Yakut language in northern Siberia.
Since the inclusion of Siberia into the Russian state, the Russian language has become more and more widespread. New concepts associated with the penetration of Russian culture to the peoples of Siberia were acquired by them in Russian, and Russian words firmly entered the vocabulary of all the peoples of Siberia. At present, the influence of the Russian language, which is the lingua franca of all the peoples of the Soviet Union, is becoming more and more powerful.
In historical and cultural terms, the vast territory of Siberia could in the recent past be divided into two large areas: the southern one - the area of ancient cattle breeding and agriculture, and the northern one - the area of commercial hunting and fishing and reindeer breeding. The boundaries of these areas did not coincide with the geographical boundaries of the landscape zones.
The data of archeology draw us the different historical destinies of these two regions already from ancient times. The territory of southern Siberia was inhabited by humans already in the era of the Upper Paleolithic. In the future, this territory was an area of ancient, relatively high culture, was part of various state-political temporary associations of the Turks and Mongols.
The development of the peoples of the northern regions proceeded differently. Severe climatic conditions, difficult-to-pass taiga and tundra, unsuitable for the development of cattle breeding and agriculture here, remoteness from the cultural regions of the southern regions - all this retarded the development of productive forces, contributed to the disunity of individual peoples of the North and the conservation of their archaic forms of culture and life. While the southern region of Siberia includes relatively large peoples (Buryats, Khakasses, Altaians, West Siberian Tatars), whose language and culture are closely related to the Mongolian and Turkic peoples of other regions, the northern region is inhabited by a number of small peoples whose language and culture occupy a largely isolated position.
However, it would be wrong to consider the population of the North in complete isolation from the southern cultural centers. Archaeological materials, starting from the most ancient, testify to the constant economic and cultural ties between the population of the northern territories and the population of the southern regions of Siberia, and through them - with the ancient civilizations of the East and West. The precious furs of the North are beginning to enter the markets not only in China, but also in India and Central Asia very early. The latter, in turn, influence the development of Siberia. The peoples of the North do not stand aside from the influence of world religions. Particular attention should be paid to the cultural ties that, apparently starting from the Neolithic, are established between the populations of western Siberia and eastern Europe.
Ethnic groups of the indigenous population of Siberia in the XVII
I-parody Turkic language group; II - the peoples of the Ugric language group; TII - the peoples of the Mongolian language group; IV - northeastern Paleoasians; V - Yukagirs; VI - the peoples of the Samoyed language group; VII - the peoples of the Tungus-Manchu language group; VIII - peoples of the Ket language group; IX - Gilyaks; X - Eskimos; XI - Ainu
Historical events in the southern regions of Siberia - the movement of the Huns, the formation of the Turkic Kaganate, the campaigns of Genghis Khan, etc. could not but be reflected in the ethnographic map of the Far North, and many, as yet insufficiently studied, ethnic movements of the peoples of the North in different eras are often reflected waves of those historical storms that played out far to the south.
All these complex relationships must be constantly kept in mind when considering the ethnic problems of North Asia.
By the time the Russians arrived here, the indigenous population of southern Siberia was dominated by a nomadic pastoral economy. Many ethnic groups also had agriculture of very ancient origin there, but it was carried out at that time on a very small scale and had the value of only an auxiliary branch of the economy. Only later, mainly during the 19th century, did the nomadic pastoral economy among the peoples of southern Siberia, under the influence of a higher Russian culture, begin to be replaced by a settled agricultural and pastoral economy. However, in a number of regions (among the Buryats of the Aginsky Department, the Telengits of Gorny Altai, and others), nomadic pastoralism persisted until the period of socialist reconstruction.
By the time the Russians arrived in Siberia, the Yakuts in northern Siberia were cattle breeders. The economy of the Yakuts, despite their relative northern settlement, was transferred to the north, to the relict forest-steppe of the Amginsko-Lena region, an economic type of the steppe south of Siberia.
The population of northern Siberia, the Amur and Sakhalin, as well as some backward regions of southern Siberia (Tofalars, Tuvans-Todzhans, Shors, some groups of Altaians) were at a lower level of development until the October Socialist Revolution. The culture of the population of northern Siberia developed on the basis of hunting, fishing and reindeer breeding.
Hunting, fishing and reindeer herding - this "northern triad" - until recently determined the entire economic appearance of the so-called small peoples of the North in the vast expanses of taiga and tundra, supplemented on the sea coasts by hunting.
The northern trade economy, being basically complex, combining, as a rule, hunting, fishing and reindeer herding, nevertheless makes it possible to distinguish several types in it, according to the predominance of one or another industry.
Various ways of earning a livelihood, differences in the degree of development of the productive forces of individual Siberian peoples were due to their entire previous history. The various natural-geographical conditions in which certain tribes were formed or in which they found themselves as a result of migrations also had an effect. Here it is necessary, in particular, to take into account that some ethnic elements that became part of the modern Siberian peoples fell into the harsh natural and geographical conditions of northern Siberia very early, while still at a low level of development of productive forces, and had little opportunity for their further progress. Other peoples and tribes came to northern Siberia later, already at a higher level of development of productive forces, and therefore, even in the conditions of the northern forests and tundra, were able to create and develop more advanced methods of obtaining a livelihood and at the same time develop higher forms social organization, material and spiritual culture.
Among the peoples of Siberia, according to their predominant occupation in the past, the following groups can be distinguished: 1) foot (that is, who did not have any transport deer or draft dogs) hunters-fishers of the taiga and forest-tundra; 2) sedentary fishermen in the pools big rivers and lakes; 3) sedentary hunters for sea animals on the coasts of the Arctic seas; 4) nomadic taiga reindeer herders-hunters and fishermen; 5) nomadic reindeer herders of the tundra and forest-tundra; 6) pastoralists of the steppes and forest-steppes.
The first of these types of economy, characteristic of foot hunters-fishermen, can be traced in various parts of the vast forest and forest-tundra zone, even in the oldest ethnographic materials, only in the form of relics and always with a noticeable influence of more developed types. The features of the type of economy under consideration were most fully represented among the so-called foot Evenks of various regions of Siberia, among the Orochs, Udeges, certain groups of Yukaghirs and Kets and Selkups, partly among the Khanty and Mansi, and also among the Shors. In the economy of these taiga hunters and fishermen, hunting for meat animals (moose, deer) was very important, combined with fishing in taiga rivers and lakes, which came to the fore in the summer and autumn months, and existed in the winter in the form of ice fishing. This type appears before us as less specialized in a particular branch of the economy in comparison with other economic types of the North. A characteristic element of the culture of these deerless hunters-fishermen was a hand sled - light sledges were dragged by the people themselves, skiing, and sometimes harnessing a hunting dog to help them.
Sedentary fishermen lived in the pools pp. Cupid and Ob. Fishing was the main source of subsistence throughout the year, hunting was only of secondary importance here. We rode dogs that were fed fish. Since ancient times, a sedentary lifestyle has been associated with the development of fishing. This economic type was characteristic of the Nivkhs, Nanais, Ulchis, Itelmens, Khanty, part of the Selkups, and the Ob Mansi.
Among the Arctic hunters (settled Chukchi, Eskimos, partly settled Koryaks), the economy was based on the extraction of sea animals (walrus, seal, etc.). They also had draft dog breeding. Hunting for sea animals led to a sedentary lifestyle, but, unlike fishermen, Arctic hunters settled not on the banks of rivers, but on the coasts of the northern seas.
The most widespread type of economy in the taiga zone of Siberia is represented by taiga reindeer herders, hunters and fishermen. Unlike sedentary fishermen and Arctic hunters, they led a nomadic lifestyle, which left an imprint on their entire way of life. Reindeer were used mainly for transport (under the saddle and under the pack). The deer herds were small. This economic type was common among Evenks, Evens, Dolgans, Tofalars, mainly in the forests and forest-tundras of Eastern Siberia, from the Yenisei to the Sea of Okhotsk, but also partly to the west of the Yenisei (Forest Nenets, Northern Selkups, Reindeer Kets).
Nomadic reindeer herders in the tundra and forest-tundra developed a special type of economy in which reindeer herding served as the main source of subsistence. Hunting and fishing, as well as marine fur hunting, were only of secondary importance to them, and sometimes they were completely absent. Deer served as a transport animal, and their meat was the main food. The reindeer herders of the tundra led a nomadic life, moving on reindeer harnessed to sleds. Typical tundra reindeer herders were the Nenets, reindeer Chukchi and Koryaks.
The basis of the economy of the pastoralists of the steppes and forest-steppes was the breeding of cattle and horses (among the Yakuts), or cattle, horses and sheep (among the Altaians, Khakasses, Tuvans, Buryats, Siberian Tatars). Agriculture has long existed among all these peoples, with the exception of the Yakuts, as an auxiliary industry. Among the Yakuts, agriculture appeared only under Russian influence. All these peoples were partly engaged in hunting and fishing. Their way of life in the more distant past was nomadic and semi-nomadic, but already before the revolution, under the influence of the Russians, some of them (Siberian Tatars, Western Buryats, etc.) switched to settled life.
Along with the indicated basic types of economy, a number of the peoples of Siberia had transitional ones. Thus, the Shors and Northern Altaians represented hunters with the beginnings of settled cattle breeding; The Yukaghirs, Nganasans, and Enets in the past combined (wandering in the tundra) reindeer herding with hunting as their main occupation. The economy of a significant part of the Mansi and Khanty was of a mixed nature.
The economic types noted above, with all the differences between them, reflected on the whole the low level of development of the productive forces that prevailed before the socialist reconstruction of the economy among the peoples of Siberia. This was consistent with the archaic forms of social organization that existed here until recently. Being part of the Russian state for almost three centuries, the tribes and nationalities of Siberia did not, of course, remain outside the influence of feudal and capitalist relations. But on the whole, these relations were poorly developed here, and it was here that, in comparison with other peoples of tsarist Russia, the remnants of pre-capitalist ways were preserved to the fullest extent; in particular, among a number of peoples of the North, the remnants of the primitive communal tribal system were very distinct. Among the majority of the peoples of the North, as well as among some tribes of the northern Altai (Kumandins, Chelkans) and among the Shors, forms of the patriarchal-clan system of various degrees of maturity dominated and peculiar forms of the territorial community were observed. At the stage of early class patriarchal-feudal relations were pastoral peoples: Yakuts, Buryats, Tuvans, Yenisei Kirghiz, Southern Altaians, including Teleuts, as well as Transbaikal Evenk horse breeders. Feudal relations of a more developed type were among the Siberian Tatars.
Elements of social differentiation already existed everywhere, but to varying degrees. Patriarchal slavery, for example, was quite widespread. Social differentiation was especially clearly expressed among reindeer herders, where reindeer herds created the basis for the accumulation of wealth in individual farms and thereby caused ever-increasing inequality. To a lesser extent, such differentiation took place among hunters and fishermen. In a developed fishing economy and in the economy of marine hunters, property inequality arose on the basis of ownership of fishing gear - boats, gear - and was also accompanied by various forms of patriarchal slavery.
The disintegration of the tribal community as an economic unit undermined the communal principles in production and consumption. Neighboring communities, territorial associations of farms connected by joint hunting for land and sea animals, joint fishing, joint reindeer grazing, and joint nomadism appeared to replace tribal collectives. These territorial communities retained many features of collectivism in distribution as well. A vivid example of these survivals was the custom of nimash among the Evenks, according to which the meat of a killed animal was distributed among all the farms of the camp. Despite the far-reaching process of the decomposition of the primitive communal system, the hunters, fishermen and cattle breeders of Siberia retained remnants of very early maternal-tribal relations.
The question of whether in the past the peoples of the North had a clan based on maternal law is of great methodological significance. As you know, the so-called cultural-historical school in ethnography, contrary to evidence, came up with a theory according to which matriarchy and patriarchy are not successive stages in the history of society, but local variants associated with certain “cultural circles” and characteristic only of certain areas. This concept is completely refuted by concrete facts from the history of the peoples of Siberia.
We find here, to varying degrees, traces of the maternal clan, reflecting a certain stage in the social development of these peoples. These remnants are found in the traces of matrilocal marriage (the husband's migration to the wife's family), in the avunculate (the special role of the uncle on the maternal side), in many different customs and rites, indicating the presence of matriarchy in the past.
The problem of the maternal clan is connected with the question of the dual organization as one of the most ancient forms of the tribal system. This question is regarding northern peoples was first staged and basically resolved by Soviet ethnography. Soviet ethnographers have collected considerable material testifying to the survivals of a dual organization among various peoples of northern Siberia. Such, for example, are data on phratries among the Khanty and Mansi, among the Kets and Selkups, among the Nenets, Evenki, Ulchi, and others.
By the beginning of the XX century. the most developed peoples of southern Siberia (Southern Altaians, Khakasses, Buryats, Siberian Tatars) and the Yakuts also developed capitalist relations, while others, especially the small peoples of the North, retained patriarchal relations and their characteristic primitive forms of exploitation. The Altaians, Buryats, Yakuts already had feudal relations, intricately intertwined with patriarchal tribal relations, on the one hand, and the embryos of capitalism, on the other.
The study of these differences is not only of theoretical interest to the historian and ethnographer - it is of great practical value in connection with the tasks of the socialist reconstruction of the economy, culture and life of the peoples of Siberia. The fulfillment of these tasks required specific consideration of all the peculiarities of the national way of life and the social structure of individual peoples.
Creation in 1931-1932. nomadic and rural councils, district and national districts, built on a territorial basis, completely undermined the importance in the social life of the peoples of the North of their former tribal organization and those social elements that led it.
At present, the village council has become the main local unit of Soviet authorities among the peoples of the North, and the collective farm has become the main economic unit everywhere. Sometimes nomadic and rural councils include several collective farms, sometimes the entire population of a village or nomadic council is united into one collective farm.
Collective farms are organized in most cases on the basis of the charter of the agricultural artel, but in some areas also on the basis of the charter of the fishing artels.
As a rule, in national terms, collective farms usually include people of the same nationality, however, in areas with a mixed population, collective farms of mixed national composition are found and even predominate: Komi-Nenets, Enets-Nenets, Yukaghir-Even, Yakut-Evenki, etc. The same position in village councils. Along with the councils, the entire population of which belongs to one nationality, there are councils that include two and three nationalities. This leads to a complete break with the former tribal traditions.
It should also be noted that everywhere in Siberia, even in the northern national districts, there is a large Russian population; Russians are included in the same districts, village councils and collective farms, in which the indigenous population is also united. This convergence and living together with the Russians are important factors in the cultural and economic upsurge of the peoples of Siberia.
Socialist construction among the peoples of Siberia was initially hampered by general cultural backwardness. It took a huge mass political and educational work in order to overcome, for example, a backward religious ideology.
Almost all the peoples of Siberia, with the exception of the Eastern Buryats, among whom Lamaism was widespread, the Chukchi, parts of the Koryaks, Nganasans and Eastern Nenets, who remained outside the sphere of influence of the Orthodox Church, were formally considered Orthodox. But all of them, until recently, retained their ancient religious ideas and cults.
The pre-Christian religions of the peoples of Siberia are usually generally defined by the concept of shamanism. In Siberia, shamanism was very widespread, appeared in particularly striking forms and was associated with certain external attributes (shaman tambourines and costumes). Shamanism in Siberia was far from being a homogeneous complex of beliefs and cults. Several types of it can be distinguished, reflecting different stages of development: from more ancient family and tribal forms to developed professional shamanism.
The external attributes of shamanism were also not the same. According to the shape of the tambourine, the cut of the costume and the headdress of the shaman, several types are distinguished, to a certain extent characteristic of certain regions. This side of shamanism is of great scientific interest not only for understanding the social role and origin of shamanism itself, but also for studying the historical and cultural relationships between individual peoples. The study of these relationships, as shown by the work of Soviet scientists, sheds light on some questions of the origin and ethnic ties of the peoples of North Asia.
Shamanism has played an extremely negative role in the history of the peoples of Siberia.
Almost all the peoples of Siberia had shamans by the beginning of the 20th century. into real professionals who performed their rituals, as a rule, by order and for a fee. According to their position, nature of activity and interests, shamans were completely connected with the exploitative elite of the indigenous population. They brought economic harm to the population, requiring constant bloody sacrifices, the killing of dogs, deer and other livestock necessary for the hunter.
Various animistic ideas were widespread among the peoples of Siberia, there was a cult associated with spirits - the "masters" of individual natural phenomena, there were various forms tribal cult. Not all peoples these cults were within the scope of the shaman.
Contrary to the opinion expressed in the literature about the absence of traces of totemism in Siberia, its remnants are found in almost all Siberian peoples. The reader will find examples of this in the chapters on individual peoples. The cult of the bear, which had an almost universal distribution in Siberia, also goes back to totemism.
The cult of the bear took two forms: firstly, in the form of rituals associated with a bear killed on a hunt, and secondly, in the form of a special cult of bear cubs brought up in captivity and then ritually killed at a certain time. The second form was limited to a certain area - Sakhalin and Amur (Ainu, Nivkh, Ulchi, Orochi). The custom of keeping a revered animal in captivity and then ritually killing it takes us far south, where some other elements in Ainu culture also lead.
The all-Siberian form of veneration of the bear goes back, apparently, to the totemism of the ancient taiga hunters and fishermen of Siberia, to that economic and cultural complex, which appeared even in the Neolithic of the taiga zone.
The spiritual culture of the peoples of Siberia was not limited, of course, only to the images and concepts of religious consciousness, although the low level of development of the productive forces led to the backwardness of spiritual culture. Various types of folk practical knowledge and folk art speak convincingly about this.
Almost every ethnic group has original folklore works, the diversity of which finds its explanation in the difference in historical destinies, in the different origins of these peoples.
Highly big influence the folklore of the peoples of the North was influenced by the oral creativity of the Russian people. Russian fairy tales, sometimes somewhat modified due to local conditions, and sometimes almost without any changes, make up a significant part of the folklore wealth of most peoples of the North, and often the most popular.
During the years of Soviet construction, the peoples of Siberia have new works of folk poetry on the topics of collective farm life, the Great Patriotic war 1941 -1945, about Lenin and Communist Party.
The fine arts of the peoples of Siberia are rich and varied. Here it is necessary to note decorations by sewing and appliqué on clothes, in particular, embroidery with reindeer hair from the neck (one of the archaic methods of ornamentation), appliqués from pieces of leather, skins and fabrics, silk embroidery and beading.
The peoples of Siberia have achieved great success in creating ornamental motifs, selecting colors, inlaying and carving metal.
A special area of applied fine arts is mammoth bone carving and walrus tusk and metal, metal inlay on household items - bone parts of reindeer harness, pipes, flint, etc. Fine applied art It also finds application in decorating birch bark utensils with ornaments, which is widespread mainly in forest areas (mainly in the Ob basin). It should also be noted woodcarving - decoration with carvings of wooden utensils and utensils, which has received the greatest development in the Amur region.
The study of all types of art of the peoples of Siberia is not only of historical interest and significance. Studying it under Soviet conditions should help raise this art to an even higher level, help make it integral part socialist culture of the peoples of Siberia.
The Great October Socialist Revolution found in Siberia a rather variegated picture of the socio-economic development of the non-Russian population, starting from various stages of the decomposition of the primitive communal system and ending with the embryos of capitalist relations. The local population was multilingual, small in number, scattered over vast expanses, more often in small tribal and tribal groups (especially in the northern part of Siberia). These small tribes and peoples (Khanty, Mansi, Enets, Nganasans, Selkups, Evenks, Orochs, Oroks and many others) were mainly engaged in hunting and fishing, partly reindeer herding. As a rule, they lived a closed primitive life, spoke their own local languages and dialects and did not have their own written language and literature. In conditions national policy Under tsarism, the process of their historical development proceeded extremely slowly, for the tsarist policy slowed it down, conserved tribal fragmentation and disunity.
Along with small tribal groups in Siberia, there were well-established nationalities with a well-defined class composition of the population, with a more developed economy and culture, for example, the Yakuts, Buryats, Tuvans, Khakasses, Southern Altaians, etc.
It should be noted that the tribal groups and peoples of Siberia under the conditions of tsarism did not remain unchanged. Many of them, as it were, were in a transitional state, that is, they were partially assimilated, partially developed. Such peoples as the Yakuts, Buryats, Khakasses developed not only due to their own natural population growth, but also due to the assimilation of various minor, for example, Tungus-speaking, Samoyed-speaking tribal groups in their environment. There was a process of merging of some small groups with Russians, for example, Kotts, Kamasinians in the former Cape, Kumandins and Teleuts in the Biysk districts, etc. Thus, on the one hand, there was a process of consolidation of tribal groups in the nationality, on the other hand, their fragmentation and assimilation. This process proceeded before the revolution at a very slow pace.
The Soviet state system opened a new era in the history of the tribes and nationalities of Siberia. The Communist Party set the task of drawing the tribes and nationalities of former Tsarist Russia, belated in their development, into the general channel of the higher culture of the Soviet people. The party has widely involved the forces of the Russian working class in the work of eliminating the centuries-old political, economic and cultural backwardness among the Siberian tribes and nationalities. As a result of practical measures, socialist construction began among the backward tribes and nationalities of Siberia.
Under the conditions of the Soviet state system, the national policy of the Communist Party, the vast majority of the non-Russian population of Siberia received a special form of state structure in the form of administrative (for autonomous regions, national districts and districts) or political (for autonomous republics) autonomy. This contributed to the development and strengthening of its economic life, the growth of culture, as well as national consolidation. In Siberia, to this day, along with such relatively large nationalities as the Yakuts and Buryats, numbering in the hundreds of thousands, there are small nationalities numbering only a few thousand and even several hundred people.
Thanks to the special attention and care of the Soviet government and the Communist Party, they are gradually liquidating their economic and cultural backwardness and joining the socialist culture. However, they still have a lot to do on the path of economic and cultural development. Profound economic and cultural backwardness, small numbers and disunity, inherited from the pre-revolutionary period of their history, create many different difficulties for further development under the conditions of the socialist system. The economic and cultural construction of such peoples requires a very careful consideration of their historical past, the specifics of culture and way of life, and the specifics of the geographical conditions in which they live. These small nationalities, having centuries-old experience of life in harsh conditions north, are unsurpassed hunters and reindeer herders, connoisseurs of local natural conditions. No one but them can use it so well and rationally. natural resources vast taiga and tundra spaces through the development of hunting and reindeer herding. It is quite natural, therefore, that the economic and cultural development of these peoples bears peculiar features. A careful study of this peculiarity will help to more quickly complete the process of the final initiation of the peoples of Siberia into the treasures of the socialist culture of the Soviet people and, in turn, to transfer the enormous wealth of the distant Siberian outskirts to the cause of the socialist construction of the entire state.
Khanty - indigenous Ugric people, living in the north of Western Siberia, mainly in the territories of the Khanty-Mansiysk and Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrugs of the Tyumen Region, as well as in the north of the Tomsk Region.
The Khanty (the outdated name "Ostyaks") are also known as Yugras, but the more accurate self-name "Khanty" (from the Khanty "Kantakh" - a person, people) in Soviet time was made official.
Until the beginning of the 20th century, the Russians called the Khanty Ostyaks (possibly from "as-yah" - "the people big river"), Even earlier (until the XIV century) - Yugra, Yugrichs. The Komi-Zyryans called the Khanty Egra, the Nenets - Khabi, the Tatars - Ushtek (ashtek, expired).
The Khanty are close to the Mansi, with whom the Ob Ugrians unite under the common name.
There are three ethnographic groups among the Khanty: northern, southern and eastern. They differ in dialects, self-name, features in the economy and culture. Also, among the Khanty, territorial groups stand out - Vasyugan, Salym, Kazym Khanty.
The northern neighbors of the Khanty were the Nenets, the southern neighbors were the Siberian Tatars and the Tomsk-Narym Selkups, the eastern neighbors were the Kets, Selkups, and also nomadic Evenks. Huge territory of settlement and, accordingly, different cultures neighboring peoples and contributed to the formation of three quite different ethnographic groups within one people.
Population
According to the 2010 census, the number of Khanty in the Russian Federation is 30,943 people). Of these, 61.6% live in the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug, 30.7% - in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, 2.3% - in the Tyumen region without Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug and YNAO, 2.3% - in the Tomsk region.
The main habitat is limited mainly by the lower reaches of the Ob, Irtysh rivers and their tributaries.
Language and writing
The Khanty language, together with Mansi and Hungarian, forms the Ob-Ugric group of the Ural family of languages. The Khanty language is known for its extraordinary dialect fragmentation. The western group stands out - the Obdorsky, Ob and Irtysh dialects and the eastern group - the Surgut and Vakh-Vasyugan dialects, which in turn are divided into 13 dialects.
Dialectal fragmentation made it difficult to create a written language. In 1879, N. Grigorovsky published a primer in one of the dialects of the Khanty language. Subsequently, the priest I. Egorov created a primer of the Khanty language in the Obdorsk dialect, which was then translated into the Vakh-Vasyugan dialect.
In the 1930s, the Kazym dialect served as the basis of the Khanty alphabet, and since 1940, the Sredneob dialect was taken as the basis of the literary language. At this time, writing was originally created on the basis of the Latin alphabet, and since 1937 it has been based on the Killillic alphabet. Currently, writing exists on the basis of five dialects of the Khanty language: Kazym, Surgut, Vakh, Surgut, Sredneobok.
In modern Russia, 38.5% of the Khanty consider Russian as their native language. Some of the northern Khanty also speak Nenets and Komi languages.
Anthropological type
The anthropological features of the Khanty make it possible to attribute them to the Ural contact race, which is internally heterogeneous in the territorial correlation of Mongoloid and Caucasoid features. The Khanty, along with the Selkups and Nenets, are part of the West Siberian group of populations, which is characterized by an increase in the proportion of Mongoloidity, compared with other representatives of the Ural race. Moreover, women are more Mongolian than men.
According to their disposition, the Khanty are of average or even below average height (156-160 cm). They usually have straight black or brown hair, which, as a rule, is long and worn either loose or braided, the complexion is swarthy, the eyes are dark.
Thanks to a flattened face with somewhat protruding cheekbones, thick (but not full) lips, and a short nose that is depressed at the root and wide, turned up at the end, the Khanty type outwardly resembles the Mongolian. But, unlike typical Mongoloids, they have correctly cut eyes, more often a narrow and long skull (dolicho- or subdolichocephalic). All this gives the Khanty a special imprint, which is why some researchers tend to see in them the remnants of a special ancient race that once inhabited part of Europe.
ethnic history
In historical chronicles, the first written references to the Khanty people are found in Russian and Arabic sources of the 10th century, but it is known for certain that the ancestors of the Khanty lived in the Urals and Western Siberia already 6-5 thousand years BC, subsequently they were displaced by nomads in lands of Northern Siberia.
Archaeologists associate the ethnogenesis of the Northern Khanty based on the mixing of aboriginal and newcomer Ugric tribes with the Ust-Polui culture (end of the 1st millennium BC - beginning of the 1st millennium AD), localized in the Ob River basin from the mouth of the Irtysh to the Gulf of Ob. Many traditions of this northern, taiga fishing culture are inherited by modern northern Khanty. From the middle of the II millennium AD. the Northern Khanty were strongly influenced by the Nenets reindeer herding culture. In the zone of direct territorial contacts, the Khanty were partially assimilated by the Tundra Nenets (the so-called "seven Nenets clans of Khanty origin").
The southern Khanty settled up from the mouth of the Irtysh. This is the territory of the southern taiga, forest-steppe and steppe, and culturally it gravitates more towards the south. In their formation and subsequent ethno-cultural development, a significant role was played by the southern forest-steppe population, layered on the general Khanty basis. The Turks, and later the Russians, had a significant influence on the southern Khanty.
The Eastern Khanty are settled in the Middle Ob region and along the tributaries of the Salym, Pim, Trom'egan, Agan, Vakh, Yugan, Vasyugan. This group, to a greater extent than others, retains the North Siberian features of culture dating back to the Ural traditions - draft dog breeding, dugout boats, the predominance of swing clothes, birch bark utensils, and a fishing economy. Another significant component of the culture of the Eastern Khanty is the Sayan-Altai component, which dates back to the time of the formation of the southwestern Siberian fishing tradition. The influence of the Sayan-Altai Turks on the culture of the Eastern Khanty can also be traced at a later time. Within the limits of the modern habitat, the Eastern Khanty quite actively interacted with the Kets and Selkups, which was facilitated by belonging to the same economic and cultural type.
Thus, in the presence of common cultural features characteristic of the Khanty ethnos, which is associated with the early stages of their ethnogenesis and the formation of the Ural community, which, along with the mornings, included the ancestors of the Kets and Samoyedic peoples. The subsequent cultural "divergence", the formation of ethnographic groups, was largely determined by the processes of ethnocultural interaction with neighboring peoples.
Thus, the culture of the people, their language and the spiritual world are not homogeneous. This is explained by the fact that the Khanty settled quite widely, and different cultures were formed in different climatic conditions.
Life and economy
The main occupations of the northern Khanty were reindeer herding and hunting, less often fishing. The deer cult can be traced in all spheres of life of the Northern Khanty. The deer, without exaggeration, was the basis of life: it was also a transport, the skins were used in the construction of dwellings and tailoring. It is no coincidence that many norms of social life (ownership of deer and their inheritance), worldviews (in the funeral rite) are also associated with the deer.
The southern Khanty were mainly engaged in fishing, but they were also known for agriculture and cattle breeding.
Based on the fact that the economy affects the nature of the settlement, and the type of settlement affects the design of the dwelling, the Khanty have five types of settlement with the corresponding features of the settlements:
The Khanty, who were engaged in hunting and fishing, had 3-4 dwellings in different seasonal settlements, which changed depending on the season. Such dwellings were made of logs and placed directly on the ground, sometimes dugouts and semi-dugouts were built with a wooden pole frame, which was covered with poles, branches, turf and earth from above.
Khanty-reindeer herders lived in portable dwellings, in tents, consisting of poles placed in a circle, fastened in the center, covered on top with birch bark (in summer) or skins (in winter).
Religion and beliefs
Since ancient times, the Khanty have revered the elements of nature: the sun, the moon, fire, water, and wind. The Khanty also had totemic patrons, family deities and ancestral patrons. Each clan had its own totem animal, it was revered, considering it one of the distant relatives. This animal could not be killed and eaten.
The bear was revered everywhere, he was considered a protector, he helped hunters, protected from diseases, and resolved disputes. At the same time, the bear, unlike other totem animals, could be hunted. In order to reconcile the spirit of the bear and the hunter who killed him, the Khanty held a bear festival. The frog was revered as the guardian of family happiness and an assistant to women in childbirth. There were also sacred places, the place where the patron lives. Hunting and fishing were forbidden in such places, since the patron himself protects the animals.
To this day, traditional rituals and holidays have come down in a modified form, they have been adapted to modern views and timed to coincide with certain events. So, for example, a bear festival is held before the issuance of licenses for shooting a bear.
After the Russians came to Siberia, the Khanty were converted to Christianity. However, this process was uneven and affected, first of all, those groups of Khanty who experienced the versatile influence of Russian settlers, these are, first of all, the southern Khanty. Among other groups, the presence of religious syncretism is noted, expressed in the adaptation of a number of Christian dogmas, with the predominance of the cultural function of the traditional worldview system.
On the ethnic map of Russia, Siberia occupies a special position, determined by the level of socio-economic development of the indigenous population, the policy of the state authorities in relation to it, the demographic situation and geography of the region.
From a geographical point of view, Siberia is a subregion of North Asia, within which it occupies an area of 13 million square kilometers. km, which is about 75% of the territory of Russia. The western border of Siberia corresponds to the geographical border between Europe and Asia ( Ural mountains), eastern - the coast of the seas of the Pacific Ocean basin.
In natural terms, Western Siberia (West Siberian Plain), Eastern Siberia (Middle Siberian Plateau and mountain systems of the North-East of Siberia), Southern Siberia, Primorye and Amur Region form a separate region - the Far East. The climate is sharply continental, severe, with a negative balance average annual temperatures. Up to b million sq. km of the surface of Siberia is occupied by permafrost.
Siberia is well watered. Most of the great rivers of Siberia belong to the basin of the seas of the Arctic (Ob, Yenisei, Lena, Yana, etc.) and Pacific (Amur, Kamchatka, Anadyr) oceans. Here, especially in the zone of forest-tundra and tundra, there are a large number of lakes, the largest of which are Baikal, Taimyr, Teletskoye.
The territory of Siberia is distinguished by a rather diverse latitudinal zonality. With the dominance of the taiga zone - the main territory of the commercial economy, in high latitudes, the forest-tundra strip passes to the north into the tundra zone, in the south to the forest-steppe and further to the steppe and mountain-steppe areas. Zones south of the taiga are often defined as mostly plowed.
Features of the natural environment largely determined the nature of the settlement and the characteristics of the culture of the population who had mastered this region.
At the end of the XX century. The population of Siberia exceeded 32 million people, of which about 2 million were indigenous people of the region. These are 30 peoples, of which 25 with a total number of about 210 thousand, form a community of "indigenous peoples of the North and Siberia." The latter are united by such signs as small number(up to 50 thousand people), the preservation of special types of economic management of nature (hunting, fishing, reindeer herding, etc.), nomadic and semi-nomadic lifestyles, maintaining traditional social norms and institutions in public life.
The All-Russian population census of 2010 gives an idea of the size of the indigenous population of Siberia. Of the relatively large peoples, these are the Yakuts (478 thousand), Buryats (461 thousand), Tuvans (265 thousand), Khakasses (73 thousand), Altaians (81 thousand), Siberian Tatars (6.8 thousand). In fact, the small peoples are the Nenets, including European groups (44.6 thousand), Evenks (37.8 thousand), Khanty (30.9 thousand), Evens (22.4 thousand), Chukchi (15.9 thousand), Shors (12.9 thousand), Mansi (12.2 thousand), Nanais (12 thousand), Koryaks (7.9 thousand), Dolgans (7.8 thousand), Nivkhs (4 6 thousand), Selkups (3.6 thousand), Itelmens and Ulchis (about 3 thousand each), Kets, Yukagirs, Eskimos and Udeges (less than 2 thousand each), Nganasans, Tofalars, Enets, Aleuts, Orochi , Negidals and Uilta/Oroks (less than 1,000 each).
The peoples of Siberia differ from each other linguistically, anthropologically, as well as culturally. These differences are based on the relative independence of ethnogenetic and ethnocultural lines of development, demography, and the nature of settlement.
With a fairly certain dynamics of modern linguistic processes in Siberia, which for small peoples demonstrate almost complete mastery of their native language in older age groups and the transition to Russian in younger ones, linguistic communities have historically formed here, most of which are of local origin.
Within the territory of Western Siberia, peoples who speak the languages of the Ural-Yukagir language family are settled. These are the Samoyeds - the Nenets (a zone of forest-tundra and tundra from the Polar Urals in the west to the Yenisei Bay in the east), the Enets (the right bank of the Yenisei Bay), in Taimyr - the Nganasans. In the West Siberian taiga on the Middle Ob and in the river basin. Taz - Selkups.
The Ugric group is represented by the Khanty languages, which are widely settled in the Ob basin and its tributaries from the forest-tundra to the forest-steppe. The ethnic territory of the Mansi extends from the Urals to the left bank of the Ob. Relatively recently, the Yukaghir language was included in the Uralic language family. Back in the 19th century linguists noted the uraloid substratum in the language of this people, that, despite the territorial remoteness, the Yukagirs live in Eastern Siberia in the basin of the river. Kolyma - allows, as a reflection of the ancient migrations of the Ural-speaking peoples, to single out the Yukaghir language group among the Urals.
The largest in terms of the number of native speakers in Siberia is the Altaic language family. It consists of three groups. The Turkic group includes the languages of the peoples of the Sayano-Altai. Altaians settled from the west to the east of Southern Siberia. They include a number of ethno-territorial groups, which, according to the 2002 census, were for the first time recorded as independent ethnic groups (Teleuts, Tubalars, Telengits, Kumandins, etc.). Further to the east - Shors, Khakasses, Tuvans, Tofalars.
In the forest-steppe zone of Western Siberia, West Siberian Tatars are settled, which include groups of Baraba, Chulym, Tara and other Tatars.
A significant part of the territory of Eastern Siberia (the basins of the Lena, Anabara, Olenek, Yana, Indigirka) is inhabited by Yakuts. The northernmost Turkic-speaking people of the world, the Dolgans, live in the south of Taimyr. The Mongolian-speaking peoples of Siberia are Buryats and Soyots.
The Tungus-Manchurian languages are widely spoken in the taiga zone of Eastern Siberia from the Yenisei to Kamchatka and Sakhalin. These are the languages of the northern Tungus - Evenks and Evens. South, in the river basin. Amur, live peoples who speak languages belonging to the southern, Amur or Manchurian branch of the Tungus-Manchurian group. These are Nanai, Ulchi, Uilta (Oroks) of Sakhalin Island. Along the banks of the left tributary of the Amur, the river. The Amguns are settled by the Negidals. In Primorsky Krai, in the mountains of Sikhote-Alin and to the coast Sea of Japan Udege and Oroch live.
The northeast of Siberia, Chukotka and Kamchatka, is inhabited by Paleo-Asiatic peoples - the Chukchi, Koryaks and Itelmens. The concept of "Paleo-Asiatic" is quite consistent with the idea of antiquity and the autochthonous nature of the origin of their cultures. The fact of their genetic linguistic unity is not obvious. Until recently, without using the concept of "family", linguists united their languages into a "group of Paleoasiatic languages". Then, taking into account a number of signs of similarity, they were separated into the Chukchi-Kamchatka language family. Within its framework, a greater relationship is observed between the languages of the Chukchi and Koryaks. The Itelmen language, in relation to them, demonstrates not so much a genetic as an areal correspondence.
Native speakers of languages belonging to the Eskimo-Aleut family (Escaleut) are mainly settled outside of Russia (USA, Canada). In the North-East of Siberia live small groups of Asian Eskimos (the coast of the Gulf of Anadyr, the Chukchi Sea, Wrangel Islands) and Aleuts (Komandorsky Islands).
The languages of two Siberian peoples, the Nivkhs (the Amur Estuary and the north of Sakhalin Island) and the Kets (the Yenisei River basin), are classified as isolated. The Nivkh language, due to the fuzzy expression of the genealogical beginning in the Paleo-Asiatic languages, was previously assigned to this group. The Ket language represents a legacy that linguists trace back to the Yenisei language family. Speakers of the Yenisei languages (Asans, Arins, Yarintsy, etc.) in the past settled in the upper reaches of the Yenisei and its tributaries and during the 18th–19th centuries. were assimilated by neighboring peoples.
The historical connection of linguistic communities with certain territories is confirmed by the facts of racial polytypy, which is established at the level of anthropological classification. The peoples of Siberia belong to the local population of northern Mongoloids, which is part of the great Mongoloid race. The taxonomic assessment of the variations of the Mongoloid complex makes it possible to single out several small races in the population of the region.
Carriers of complexes of the Ural and South Siberian races settle in Western Siberia and in the north-west of the Sayano-Altai. AT general classification such taxa are defined by the concept of "contact". They are characterized by a combination of at least two complexes of signs of racial types adjoining geographically. Representatives of the Ural (Ugrians, Samoyeds, Shors) and South Siberian (Northern Altaians, Khakasses) races are characterized by a weakening of Monhaloid features in the structure of the face and eye area. Unlike the Urals, for whom lightening (depigmentation) of the skin, hair, eyes is typical, the South Siberian groups are more strongly pigmented.
The population of Eastern Siberia, including the areas of Primorye and the Amur region, demonstrates almost the maximum degree of expression of Mongoloid features, even at the level of the Mongoloid race as a whole. This concerns the degree of flattening of the face and nose, a significant proportion of the epicanthus ("Mongolian fold" that covers the lacrimal tubercle and is a continuation of the upper eyelid), the structure of the hairline, etc. These signs are characteristic of representatives of the North Asian race. It includes Baikal (Evenks, Evens, Dolgans, Nanais, and other peoples of the Amur region) and Central Asian (Southern Altaians, Tuvans, Buryats, Yakuts) anthropological types. The differences between them are manifested primarily in the increased pigmentation characteristic of the Central Asian Mongoloids.
In the north-east of Siberia, the Arctic race is widespread, whose representatives, relative to the anthropological features of the Baikal type, on the one hand, demonstrate a weakening of the Mongoloid complex in the structure of the face (more protruding nose, less flat face), on the other hand, increased pigmentation, protrusion of the lips. The last signs are associated with the participation in the formation of the Arctic race of the southern groups of the Pacific Mongoloids. The internal taxonomy of the Arctic race suggests the possibility of distinguishing continental (Chukchi, Eskimos, partly Koryaks and Itelmens) and insular (Aleuts) groups of populations.
The originality of the two Siberian peoples is fixed in special anthropological types. These are the Amur-Sakhalin (Nivkhs), most likely, mestizo, which arose on the basis of the interaction of the Baikal and Kuril (Ainu) populations, and the Yenisei (Kets), dating back to the anthropological features of the Paleo-Siberian population.
In many respects, the similar level of socio-economic development and geographical zoning of Siberia, as well as the historical and cultural interaction of northerners with neighboring peoples, determined the formation of a cultural landscape specific to the region, which is represented by the classification of the peoples of Siberia according to the KhKT.
In the historical sequence, it is customary to distinguish the following complexes: wild deer Arctic and Subarctic; foot taiga hunters and fishermen (in a later period this type was modified due to the introduction of transport reindeer herding into its composition); sedentary fishermen of the Siberian river basins (partly the Ob, Amur, Kamchatka); hunters of the sea animal of the Pacific coast; South Siberian commercial and cattle-breeding forest complex; pastoralists of Siberia; nomadic reindeer herders in the tundra of Siberia.
Classification estimates demonstrate the regional correspondence of language features, anthropology, and economic and cultural characteristics, which makes it possible to single out territories within which the commonality of historical destinies gives rise to the stereotyping of a number of cultural phenomena of peoples with different ethno-genetic origins in the past. This state of ethnic cultures is described within the boundaries of the IEO. For Siberia, these are the West Siberian, Yamalo-Taimyr, Sayan-Altai, East Siberian, Amur-Sakhalin and North-Eastern IEOs.
Man began to explore Siberia quite early. On its territory there are archaeological sites dating back to different periods of the Stone Age in the range from 30 to 5 thousand years ago. This was the time of the formation of Paleo-Siberian cultures, in the final of which there is a territorial isolation of local cultural traditions, corresponding to the placement noted above HKT. On the one hand, it demonstrates the tendencies of "cultural radiation", the development of optimal, from the point of view of the ecological characteristics of the regions, adaptive strategies. In the history of the indigenous population of Siberia, it was rather a cultural and genetic period. On the other hand, there is a correspondence of local cultural dynamics to the location in Siberia of future large ethnolinguistic communities - Ural, Altai, including Tungus, Paleo-Asiatic.
The ethnogenesis and ethnic history of the peoples of Siberia is most often comprehended in the process of developing the so-called ethnogenetic problems.
For Western Siberia it is "Samoyed problem ", which was formulated at the beginning of the 18th century. Scientists of that time tried to establish the ancestral home of the Samoyeds. Some of them settled in the north (modern Nenets, Enets, Nganasans and Selkups), while others (Kamasins, Mators, etc.) in the foothills of Altai and Sayan. In the 18th-19th centuries, the South Siberian groups of the Samoyeds were either Turkified or Russified. Thus, mutually exclusive hypotheses were formulated about the Arctic (F. I. Stralenberg) and the Sayan (I. E. Fisher) ancestral home of the Samoyeds. The last hypothesis, in in the form of the formula "The Samoyeds came from Altai", owned by the Finnish researcher M.A. Kastren, has become dominant since the middle of the 19th century.
Domestic Siberian researchers during the 20th century. concretized the picture of the ethnogenesis of the North Samoyedic peoples. It is believed that this was not a simple migration, with the subsequent adaptation of the southern (pastoral) culture of the newcomers to natural environment high latitudes. Archaeological monuments in the north of Western Siberia indicate the existence of a pre-Samoyed (folklore "Siirtya") population here, which also took part in the formation of modern Samoyed peoples. Migration to the north covered a significant period of time, possibly the entire 1st millennium AD. and was determined by the ethnic processes of the formation and settlement of the Central Asian peoples - the Huns, Turks, Mongols.
There is currently a resurgence of interest in the concept of the northern ancestral home of the Samoyeds. The genesis of the archaeological cultures of the Pechora and Ob region, presumably proto-Samodian, starting from the Mesolithic, demonstrates their gradual movement to the south, to the Middle Ob (Kulai archaeological community, the middle of the 1st millennium BC - the middle of the 1st millennium AD) and further to the Sayano-Altai regions. In this case, the Kulays are considered as the ethno-cultural basis for the formation of both northern and southern Samoyeds.
"Ugric problem "is formulated in connection with the existence of two linguistic communities - the Danube (Hungarians) and Ob (Khanty and Mansi) - Ugrians, as well as the presence in the culture of the latter of the steppe pastoral layer. The general scheme of the ethnogenesis of the Ob Ugrians was developed by V. N. Chernetsov. He believed that natives of the West Siberian taiga - hunters-fishermen and newcomers from the more southern, steppe regions - nomadic herders - Ugrians-Savirs, took part in their formation. .e to the first half of the II millennium AD in the taiga zone of Western Siberia.On the one hand, it developed along the line of dominance of the taiga commercial economy and material culture, on the other hand, the preservation of certain phenomena dating back to the steppe in different spheres of the culture of the Ugrians. cattle-breeding tradition (bread oven, horse handling skills, ornamental plots, individual characters of the pantheon, etc.).
At present, it is believed that such a culture could be formed along the line of integration of traditions of different ethnic origin within the boundaries of the entire territory of the settlement of the Khanty and Mansi and flowing synchronously. The path of local adaptation and formation of the proper Ugric culture is possible in a relatively limited area of the forest Trans-Urals, Tobol, Irtysh in the south of the forest zone of Western Siberia. In this area, the continuity of archaeological cultures can be traced from the Late Bronze Age to the first centuries of the 2nd millennium AD. in the formation of an integrated commercial and livestock economy. The Ob Ugrians moved to the north from the end of the 1st millennium AD. under the pressure of the Turkic-speaking population. In the new territories, the ancestors of the Khanty and Mansi adapted to the new conditions in the direction of strengthening the taiga fishing complex and the loss of the skills of the cattle breeding component, which led to a change in their cultural appearance. Already in the conditions of high latitudes and in interaction with the Samoyedic-speaking neighbors, the process of formation of ethnographic and territorial groups of the Ob Ugrians took place.
"Ket problem". It is formulated in connection with the presence in the culture of the Kets of the so-called South Siberian elements, which allows us to consider modern Kets as descendants of one of the Yenisei peoples, or even a single Yenisei people who lived in South Siberia in the past. These are arins, asanas, yarintsy, baikogovtsy and kotty, which during the XVIII-XIX centuries. were assimilated by the peoples around them. Thus, the Yenisei components took part in the formation of separate groups of Khakasses (Kachins), Tuvans, Shors, and Buryats. Migration processes, which in Southern Siberia were associated with the ethnopolitical history of the Turks, also affected the Yenisei peoples. The beginning of the migration of the ancestors of the Kets is associated with the 9th-13th centuries, which led to the settlement of a few groups of the Ket-speaking population along the banks of the Yenisei and its tributaries. It was here, in contact with the Khanty, Selkups and Evenks, that the original Kst culture was formed.
The East Siberian and Amur regions are inhabited by peoples who speak the Tungus-Manchu languages. The vast territory, developed by relatively small peoples, the similarity of many elements of culture, including language and anthropological proximity, in the presence of ethnic and cultural local specifics, gave rise to Siberian studies "Tunguska problem".
It boils down to the search for the ancestral home of the Tungus-Manchurian peoples, within whose borders a marked unity was formed. It was localized by various researchers within "those countries that they occupy to this day" - the autochthonous hypothesis of G. F. Miller (XVIII century). Supporters of the migration hypothesis established the ancestral home locally - the left bank of the lower and middle reaches of the Amur and the adjacent regions of Manchuria, the forest-steppe regions of the Southern Baikal region, Transbaikalia and Northern Mongolia, and even in the interfluve of the Yellow River and Yangtze.
By the middle of the XX century. domestic researchers based on data from anthropology, archeology, linguistics, ethnography, etc. created a general scheme of the ethnogenesis of the Tungus-Manchurian peoples of Siberia. Their ancestral home, on the basis of archeological data, is associated with the genesis of the hunting Neolithic Baikal culture of the southern regions of Lake Baikal, and the very process of the formation of individual peoples of the Tungus-Manchu community, with the consistent differentiation of the Altai language community from the 3rd millennium BC. until the turn of our era.
The content of this process consisted in the primary separation in its composition of the ancestors of the Tungus (north) and the southern steppe population, on the basis of which the Turks and Mongols subsequently formed, and the subsequent isolation already within the boundaries of the Tungus-Manchu community of the speakers of the Manchu languages, who by the turn of our era had mastered the Amur basin and its tributaries. Around the same time, in connection with the advancement of the steppe, pastoral population to Baikal, the northern Tungus were divided into western and eastern, relative to the river. Lenas, communities. The Evens stand out in the eastern part, having mastered the eastern regions of Yakutia and the coast of the Sea of Okhotsk, and in the 19th century. a small group of Evens moved to Kamchatka. An important moment in the history of the northern Tungus is their development, presumably in the 6th-7th centuries. AD, transport reindeer breeding. There is an opinion that it was the deer that "inspired the Tungus" and allowed them to master the vast expanses of Eastern Siberia. The breadth of settlement and constant contacts with neighboring peoples led to the formation of local features of the culture of the Tungus-speaking population of Siberia. This is clearly evidenced by the early Russian written sources, which mention "foot, deer, horse, cattle, seated Tunguses."
"The Paleoasian Problem" stems from the territorial isolation of the Paleo-Asiatic peoples, the specific position of their languages (the group of Paleo-Asiatic languages), and many cultural features. These peoples are considered to be the natives of the region. In Kamchatka and Chukotka, archeological sites of the Upper Paleolithic era were discovered, indicating the formation of the foundations of the culture of hunters of wild deer in the region, which existed here until the end of the 17th - beginning of the 18th centuries under fairly stable natural and climatic conditions. There are several lines of ethnocultural development of Paleoasians.
So, the Chukchi and Koryaks are divided into ethnographic groups of coastal (sea St. John's wort) and deer, and therefore, there are numerous parallels in the culture of these peoples. Starting from the middle of the 1st millennium AD, the basis for the formation of the culture of the coastal Chukchi was determined by their contacts with the Eskimos. It was the interaction of two hunting traditions, continental and coastal. AT initial period, due to differences in almost all areas of culture, it took place in the form of an exchange. Subsequently, part of the Chukchi, continental deer hunters, switched to a settled way of life and engaged in marine hunting.
The history of the coastal Koryaks is associated with the autochthonous basis for the formation of their culture. In the basin of the Sea of Okhotsk, archaeologists have discovered sites of the so-called Okhotsk culture (1st millennium AD), which is defined as "the ancient Koryak culture of the Okhotsk coast." This is the culture of marine hunters, fishermen, and wild deer hunters, in which, in relative chronological continuity up to the ancient Koryak settlements of the 16th–17th centuries, features of the Koryak cultural tradition can be traced.
The history of the formation of the deer groups of the Chukchi and Koryaks is not so obvious, since this problem is connected with the history of Siberian reindeer herding as a whole. According to one point of view, reindeer husbandry in Chukotka arises convergently with respect to other Siberian centers of reindeer domestication on the basis of the local culture of wild deer hunters. According to another position, it is assumed that Paleo-Asians borrowed reindeer husbandry from the Tungus, with its subsequent evolution from transport (Tungus) to large-herd (Paleo-Asians) already among the Chukchi and Koryaks.
A separate position among the Paleo-Asiatic peoples of the North-East of Siberia is occupied by the indigenous inhabitants of Kamchatka, the Itelmens, which is manifested in the language, anthropological and cultural features. The most ancient archaeological sites of the region were found in Central Kamchatka, testifying to the ties of its population with the American continent (a tool complex), here (Ushki I site) perhaps the oldest on Earth was found - about 14 thousand years ago - the burial of a domestic dog . These were cultures typologically similar to Chukotka and Kolyma, which probably influenced the correspondence between the culture of the Itelmens and their northern neighbors.
It includes a number of common elements characteristic of most of the Paleo-Asiatic peoples of the North-East of Siberia (the main types of economic activity, some types of residential and outbuildings, partly transport and winter clothing). Along with this, the direction and intensity of cultural contacts led to the interaction of neighboring peoples, or the adaptation by one of them of the cultural elements of another. Such connections of the Itelmen culture are established with the Ainu, Aleuts. The strongest links were between the Itelmens and their northern neighbors, the Koryaks. This is fixed anthropologically - the Koryaks and Itelmens oppose the Chukchi and Eskimos within the mainland group of populations of the Arctic race, the same is noted in the sphere of language. Interaction with the Russians, which began at the end of the 18th century. led to a radical transformation of their culture in the direction of syncretization. With fairly intense marital contacts, a perceived ethnic group of Kamchadals was formed, which in ethnocultural terms differs from the Itelmens proper and gravitates towards the Russians.
"Escaleut problem". The history of the Eskimos and Aleuts, who mainly live outside the territory of Russia, is connected with the problem of the formation of the coastal cultures of Chukotka and Alaska. The relationship between the Eskimos and the Aleuts is recorded in the form of a proto-Esco-Aleutian community, which in ancient times was localized in the zone of the Bering Strait. Its division, according to various estimates, took place from 2.5 thousand to 6 thousand years ago at the stage of continental culture, since the vocabulary of the Eskimos and Aleuts associated with marine hunting is different. This was due to the process of development by the ancestors of the Eskimos and Aleuts of various territories of Beringia and the American North.
The initial stage of the formation of the Eskimos is associated with a change at the beginning of the 2nd millennium BC. ecological situation in the regions of Beringia - increased coastal migrations of sea animals. Their further development can be traced in the evolution of local and chronological variants of ancient Eskimo cultures. The Okvik stage (1st millennium BC) reflects the process of interaction between the continental culture of wild deer hunters and the culture of marine hunters. The strengthening of the role of the latter is recorded in the monuments of the ancient Bering Sea culture (the first half of the 1st millennium AD). In the southeast of Chukotka, the Old Bering Sea culture passes into the Punuk culture (VI–VIII centuries). It was the heyday of whaling and, in general, the culture of marine hunters in Chukotka.
The subsequent ethno-cultural history of the Eskimos is closely connected with the formation of the community of the coastal Chukchi, who came into contact with them at the beginning of the 1st millennium AD. This process had a pronounced integration character, which found expression in the interpenetration of many elements of the traditional everyday culture of the coastal Chukchi and Eskimos.
At present, the point of view about the formation of the Aleuts in the Aleutian Islands is more preferable. The most ancient archaeological evidence found here (Anangula site, about 8 thousand years ago) indicates the genetic connection of the local population with Asian cultures. It was on this basis that the Aleuts themselves subsequently formed. The insular nature of their formation is also confirmed by the anthropological specificity (an insular group of populations within the Arctic race), which develops as a result of insular isolation and adaptation to local conditions.
The history of the Russian Aleuts inhabiting the Commander Islands (Bering and Medny Islands) begins no earlier than 1825, when 17 Aleut families were resettled to Bering Island. This resettlement was associated with the development of the commercial territories of Beringia by the Russian-American Company.
The number of the indigenous population of Siberia before the beginning of Russian colonization was about 200 thousand people. The northern (tundra) part of Siberia was inhabited by tribes of Samoyeds, in Russian sources called Samoyeds: Nenets, Enets and Nganasans.
The main economic occupation of these tribes was reindeer herding and hunting, and in the lower reaches of the Ob, Taz and Yenisei - fishing. The main objects of fishing were arctic fox, sable, ermine. Furs served as the main commodity in the payment of yasak and in trade. Furs were also paid as bride price for the girls who were chosen as their wives. The number of Siberian Samoyeds, including the tribes of the southern Samoyeds, reached about 8 thousand people.
To the south of the Nenets lived the Ugrian-speaking tribes of the Khanty (Ostyaks) and Mansi (Voguls). The Khanty were engaged in fishing and hunting; in the region of the Gulf of Ob they had reindeer herds. The main occupation of the Mansi was hunting. Before the arrival of the Russian Mansi on the river. Toure and Tavde were engaged in primitive agriculture, cattle breeding, and beekeeping. The area of settlement of the Khanty and Mansi included the regions of the Middle and Lower Ob with tributaries, pp. Irtysh, Demyanka and Konda, as well as the western and eastern slopes of the Middle Urals. Total population Ugrian-speaking tribes of Siberia in the 17th century. reached 15-18 thousand people.
To the east of the settlement area of the Khanty and Mansi lay the lands of the southern Samoyeds, the southern or Narym Selkups. For a long time, the Russians called the Narym Selkups Ostyaks because of the similarity of their material culture with the Khanty. The Selkups lived along the middle reaches of the river. Ob and its tributaries. The main economic activity was seasonal fishing and hunting. They hunted fur-bearing animals, elk, wild deer, upland and waterfowl. Before the arrival of the Russians, the southern Samoyeds were united in a military alliance, which was called the Pegoy Horde in Russian sources, led by Prince Voni.
To the east of the Narym Selkups lived tribes of the Ket-speaking population of Siberia: the Kets (Yenisei Ostyaks), Arins, Kotts, Yastyns (4-6 thousand people), who settled in the Middle and Upper Yenisei. Their main occupations were hunting and fishing. Some groups of the population extracted iron from ore, products from which were sold to neighbors or used on the farm.
The upper reaches of the Ob and its tributaries, the upper reaches of the Yenisei, the Altai were inhabited by numerous and greatly differing in economic structure Turkic tribes - the ancestors of modern Shors, Altaians, Khakass: Tomsk, Chulym and "Kuznetsk" Tatars (about 5-6 thousand people), Teleuts ( white Kalmyks) (about 7-8 thousand people), Yenisei Kirghiz with their subordinate tribes (8-9 thousand people). The main occupation of most of these peoples was nomadic cattle breeding. In some places of this vast territory, hoe farming and hunting were developed. The "Kuznetsk" Tatars had developed blacksmithing.
The Sayan Highlands were occupied by the Samoyed and Turkic tribes of Mators, Karagas, Kamasin, Kachin, Kaysot, and others, with a total number of about 2 thousand people. They were engaged in cattle breeding, breeding horses, hunting, they knew the skills of agriculture.
To the south of the habitats of the Mansi, Selkups and Kets, Turkic-speaking ethno-territorial groups were widespread - the ethnic predecessors of the Siberian Tatars: the Baraba, Terenin, Irtysh, Tobol, Ishim and Tyumen Tatars. By the middle of the XVI century. a significant part of the Turks of Western Siberia (from Tura in the west to Baraba in the east) was under the rule of the Siberian Khanate. The main occupation of the Siberian Tatars was hunting, fishing, cattle breeding was developed in the Baraba steppe. Before the arrival of the Russians, the Tatars were already engaged in agriculture. There was a home production of leather, felt, edged weapons, fur dressing. Tatars acted as intermediaries in transit trade between Moscow and Central Asia.
To the west and east of Baikal there were Mongolian-speaking Buryats (about 25 thousand people), known in Russian sources under the name of “brothers” or “brotherly people”. The basis of their economy was nomadic cattle breeding. Farming and gathering were ancillary occupations. Enough high development received ironworking.
A significant territory from the Yenisei to the Sea of Okhotsk, from the northern tundra to the Amur region was inhabited by the Tungus tribes of the Evenks and Evens (about 30 thousand people). They were divided into "deer" (bred deer), which were the majority, and "foot". The "foot" Evenks and Evens were sedentary fishermen and hunted sea animals on the coast of the Sea of Okhotsk. One of the main occupations of both groups was hunting. The main game animals were moose, wild deer, and bears. Domestic deer were used by the Evenks as pack and riding animals.
The territory of the Amur region and Primorye was inhabited by peoples who spoke the Tungus-Manchurian languages - the ancestors of modern Nanai, Ulchi, Udege. The Paleo-Asiatic group of peoples inhabiting this territory also included small groups of Nivkhs (Gilyaks), who lived in the neighborhood of the Tungus-Manchurian peoples of the Amur region. They were also the main inhabitants of Sakhalin. The Nivkhs were the only people of the Amur region who widely used sled dogs in their economic activities.
The middle course of the river. Lena, Upper Yana, Olenyok, Aldan, Amga, Indigirka and Kolyma were occupied by Yakuts (about 38 thousand people). It was the most numerous people among the Turks of Siberia. They raised cattle and horses. Animal and bird hunting and fishing were considered auxiliary trades. Home production of metal was widely developed: copper, iron, silver. They made weapons in large numbers, skillfully dressed leather, wove belts, carved wooden household items and utensils.
The northern part of Eastern Siberia was inhabited by the Yukaghir tribes (about 5 thousand people). The boundaries of their lands stretched from the tundra of Chukotka in the east to the lower reaches of the Lena and Olenek in the west. The north-east of Siberia was inhabited by peoples belonging to the Paleo-Asiatic linguistic family: the Chukchi, Koryaks, Itelmens. The Chukchi occupied a significant part of the continental Chukotka. Their number was approximately 2.5 thousand people. The southern neighbors of the Chukchi were the Koryaks (9-10 thousand people), very close in language and culture to the Chukchi. They occupied the entire northwestern part of the Okhotsk coast and the part of Kamchatka adjacent to the mainland. The Chukchi and Koryaks were divided, like the Tungus, into "deer" and "foot".
Eskimos (about 4 thousand people) were settled throughout the coastal strip of the Chukotka Peninsula. The main population of Kamchatka in the XVII century. were Itelmens (12 thousand people). A few Ainu tribes lived in the south of the peninsula. The Ainu were also settled on the islands of the Kuril chain and in the southern tip of Sakhalin.
The economic occupations of these peoples were hunting for sea animals, reindeer herding, fishing and gathering. Before the arrival of the Russians, the peoples of northeastern Siberia and Kamchatka were still at a fairly low stage of socio-economic development. Stone and bone tools and weapons were widely used in everyday life.
An important place in the life of almost all Siberian peoples before the arrival of the Russians was occupied by hunting and fishing. A special role was assigned to the extraction of furs, which was the main subject of trade exchange with neighbors and was used as the main payment of tribute - yasak.
Most of the Siberian peoples in the XVII century. Russians were caught at various stages of patriarchal-tribal relations. The most backward forms of social organization were noted among the tribes of northeastern Siberia (Yukaghirs, Chukchis, Koryaks, Itelmens, and Eskimos). In the field of social relations, some of them showed features of domestic slavery, the dominant position of women, etc.
The most developed socio-economically were the Buryats and Yakuts, who at the turn of the XVI-XVII centuries. patriarchal-feudal relations developed. The only people who had their own statehood at the time of the arrival of the Russians were the Tatars, united under the rule of the Siberian khans. Siberian Khanate by the middle of the 16th century. covered an area stretching from the Tura basin in the west to Baraba in the east. However, this public education was not monolithic, torn apart by internecine clashes of various dynastic groups. Incorporation in the 17th century Siberia in the Russian state has fundamentally changed the natural course of the historical process in the region and the fate of the indigenous peoples of Siberia. Start of deformation traditional culture was associated with the arrival in the region of the population with a producing type of economy, which assumed a different type of human relationship to nature, to cultural values and traditions.
Religiously, the peoples of Siberia belonged to different belief systems. The most common form of beliefs was shamanism, based on animism - the spiritualization of the forces and phenomena of nature. hallmark Shamanism is the belief that certain people - shamans - have the ability to enter into direct communication with spirits - patrons and helpers of the shaman in the fight against diseases.
Since the 17th century Orthodox Christianity spread widely in Siberia, Buddhism penetrated in the form of Lamaism. Even earlier, Islam penetrated among the Siberian Tatars. Among the peoples of Siberia, shamanism acquired complicated forms under the influence of Christianity and Buddhism (Tuvans, Buryats). In the XX century. this whole system of beliefs coexisted with an atheistic (materialistic) worldview, which was the official state ideology. Currently, a number of Siberian peoples are experiencing a revival of shamanism.
Khanty and Mansi: Number of 30 thousand people. They speak the languages of the Finno-Ugric group of the Ural family (Khanty, Mansi). Traditional occupations: hunting, fishing, for some peoples - agriculture and cattle breeding. Breed horses, cows, sheep, poultry. Recently, animal husbandry, animal husbandry, and vegetable growing have begun to develop. They moved on skis, sleds in dog and reindeer teams, in some areas - on sledges. The settlements were permanent (winter) and seasonal (spring, summer, autumn).
Traditional dwellings in winter: rectangular log houses, often with an earthen roof, in summer - conical birch bark tents or quadrangular frame buildings made of poles covered with birch bark, for reindeer breeders - tents covered with reindeer skins. The dwelling was heated and lit by an open hearth made of poles smeared with clay. Traditional women's clothing: a dress, a swinging robe and a double reindeer coat, a scarf on the head; men's clothing: shirt, pants, blind clothes with a hood made of cloth. Reindeer herders have clothes made of reindeer skins, shoes are fur, suede or leather. Khanty and Mansi wear a large number of jewelry (rings, beaded necklaces, etc.)
Traditional food - fish and meat in dried, dried, fried, frozen form, berries, bread, from drinks - tea. The traditional village was inhabited by several large or small, mostly related families. Marriage is patrilocal with elements of matrilocality matrilocality. In the XIX - early XX centuries. a territorial community is formed. Believers are Orthodox, but traditional beliefs and cults are also preserved, based on ideas related to totemism, animism, shamanism, the cult of ancestors, etc. The tattoo was known.
Nenets: Number 35 thousand people. They speak the Nenets language of the Ural family, which is divided into 2 dialects: tundra and forest, Russian is also common. Traditional occupations: hunting for fur-bearing animals, wild deer, upland and waterfowl, fishing, domestic reindeer breeding. Most of the Nenets led a nomadic lifestyle. The traditional dwelling is a collapsible pole tent covered with reindeer skins in winter and birch bark in summer. Outerwear and shoes were made from reindeer skins. They traveled on light wooden sleds. Food - deer meat, fish. The main social unit of the Nenets at the end of the 19th century was a patrilineal clan, 2 exogamous phratries also remained. Religious views were dominated by belief in spirits - the masters of heaven, earth, fire, rivers, natural phenomena; among a part of the Nenets, Orthodoxy became widespread.
Buryats: Total number 520 thousand people. They speak the Buryat language of the Mongolian group of the Altai family. Russian and Mongolian languages are also widespread. Beliefs: Shamanism, Buddhism, Christianity. The predominant branch of the traditional economy of the Buryats was cattle breeding. Later, more and more began to engage in arable farming. In Transbaikalia - a typical Mongolian nomadic economy. bred cattle, horses, sheep, goats and camels. Hunting and fishing were of secondary importance. There was a seal fishery. Of the crafts, blacksmithing, processing of leather and skins, dressing of felt, making harness, clothes and shoes, joinery and carpentry were developed.
The Buryats were engaged in iron smelting, mica and salt mining. Clothing: fur coats and hats, cloth robes, high fur boots, women's top sleeveless jackets, etc. Clothes, especially women's clothes, were decorated with multi-colored materials, silver and gold. The jewelry set included various kinds of earrings, bracelets, rings, corals and coins, chains and pendants. For men, silver belts, knives, pipes served as decorations. Food: meat and dairy products. The Buryats widely ate berries, plants and roots, and prepared them for the winter. In places of development of arable farming, bread and flour products, potatoes and garden crops came into use. Dwelling: wooden yurts. Social organization: tribal relations were preserved. Exogamy and dowry played an important role in the family and marriage system.
The Samoyed tribes are considered to be the first indigenous inhabitants of Siberia. They inhabited the northern part. Their main occupation is reindeer herding and fishing. To the south lived the Mansi tribes, who lived by hunting. Their main trade was the extraction of furs, with which they paid for their future wives and bought goods necessary for life.
The upper reaches of the Ob were inhabited by Turkic tribes. Their main occupation was nomadic cattle breeding and blacksmithing. To the west of Lake Baikal lived the Buryats, who became famous for their ironworking craft. The largest territory from the Yenisei to the Sea of \u200b\u200bOkhotsk was inhabited by Tungus tribes. Among them were many hunters, fishermen, reindeer herders, some were engaged in crafts.
Along the coast of the Chukchi Sea, the Eskimos (about 4 thousand people) settled down. Compared to other peoples of that time, the Eskimos had the slowest social development. The tool was made of stone or wood. The main economic activities include gathering and hunting.
The main way of survival of the first settlers of the Siberian region was hunting, reindeer herding and fur extraction, which was the currency of that time.
By the end of the 17th century, the most developed peoples of Siberia were the Buryats and Yakuts. The Tatars were the only people who, before the arrival of the Russians, managed to organize state power.
The largest peoples before Russian colonization include the following peoples: Itelmens (indigenous inhabitants of Kamchatka), Yukaghirs (inhabited the main territory of the tundra), Nivkhs (inhabitants of Sakhalin), Tuvans (the indigenous population of the Republic of Tuva), Siberian Tatars (located on the territory of Southern Siberia from Ural to the Yenisei) and the Selkups (inhabitants of Western Siberia).
Peoples of Siberia and the Far East.
More than 20 peoples live in Siberia. Since their main occupation is taiga and tundra hunting, marine hunting and reindeer herding, they are usually called the small fishing peoples of the North and Siberia. One of the largest peoples are the Yakuts (382 thousand). Many peoples of Siberia have historical names. For example, in Russian sources, Khanty and Mansi were called Yugra, and Nenets were called Samoyeds. And the Russians called the inhabitants of the eastern coast of the Yenisei Evenki Tungus. For the majority of the inhabitants of Siberia, the traditional type of dwelling is a portable tent. The life of hunters is also characterized by a winter coat-parka made of deer fur. From the first half of the 17th century. Russians, having passed the taiga camps of the Tungus, in the middle reaches of the river. Lena met with the Yakuts (self-name "Sakha").
These are the northernmost breeders in the world. The Yakuts assimilated some other peoples of the North, in particular, the Dolgans living in the north-west of Yakutia on the border with Taimyr. Their language is Yakut. The Dolgans are reindeer herders and also fishermen. In the north-east of Yakutia live Yukaghirs (basin of the Kolyma River), which number about 1100 people. This is the oldest people of Siberia. The Yukaghir language is Paleo-Asiatic and does not belong to any of the language families. Linguists find some connection with the languages of the Uralic family. The main occupation is hiking. The peoples of Kamchatka and Chukotka are also not numerous: Chukchi (about 15 thousand), Koryaks (about 9 thousand), Itelmens (2.4 thousand), Chuvans (1.4 thousand), Eskimos and Aleuts (1.7 and 0 .6 thousand respectively) Their traditional occupation is tundra large-herd reindeer breeding, as well as sea fishing.
Also interesting for ethnography are the small peoples of the Far East, living in the basin of the Amur and its tributaries, in the Ussuri taiga. These are: Nivkhs (4.7 thousand), Nanais (12 thousand), Ulchi (3.2 thousand), Orochi (900 people), Udege (2 thousand), Oroks (200 people), Negidals (600 people). The languages of these peoples, except for the Nivkh, belong to the Tungus-Manchurian group of the Altai language family. The most ancient and special language is Nivkh, one of the Paleo-Asiatic languages. In everyday life, in addition to hunting in the taiga, these peoples were engaged in fishing, collecting wild plants and sea hunting. Hiking in summer, skiing in winter. Quite large peoples live in the south of Siberia: Altaians (69 thousand), Khakasses (78 thousand), Tuvans (206 thousand), Buryats (417 thousand), etc. All of them speak the languages of the Altai language family. The main activity is domestic reindeer breeding.
Indigenous peoples of Siberia in the modern world.
According to the Constitution of the Russian Federation, every people of Russia received the right to national self-determination and identification. Since the collapse of the USSR, Russia has officially become multinational state and the preservation of the culture of small and disappearing peoples has become one of the state priorities. The Siberian indigenous peoples were also not ignored here: some of them received the right to self-government in autonomous regions, while others formed their own republics as part of the new Russia. Very small and disappearing nationalities enjoy the full support of the state, and the efforts of many people are aimed at preserving their culture and traditions.
Within the framework of this review, we will give a brief description of each Siberian people, the number of which is more than or close to 7 thousand people. Smaller peoples are difficult to characterize, so we will limit ourselves to their name and number. So, let's begin.
Yakuts- the most numerous of the Siberian peoples. According to the latest data, the number of Yakuts is 478,100 people. In modern Russia, the Yakuts are one of the few nationalities that have their own republic, and its area is comparable to the area of the average European state. The Republic of Yakutia (Sakha) is territorially located in the Far Eastern Federal District, but the ethnic group "Yakuts" has always been considered an indigenous Siberian people. The Yakuts have an interesting culture and traditions. This is one of the few peoples of Siberia that has its own epic.
Buryats- this is another Siberian people with its own republic. The capital of Buryatia is the city of Ulan-Ude, located to the east of Lake Baikal. The number of Buryats is 461,389 people. In Siberia, Buryat cuisine is widely known, rightfully considered one of the best among ethnic ones. The history of this people, its legends and traditions is quite interesting. By the way, the Republic of Buryatia is one of the main centers of Buddhism in Russia.
Tuvans. According to the latest census, 263,934 identified themselves as representatives of the Tuvan people. The Tyva Republic is one of the four ethnic republics of the Siberian Federal District. Its capital is the city of Kyzyl with a population of 110 thousand people. The total population of the republic is approaching 300 thousand. Buddhism also flourishes here, and the traditions of the Tuvans also speak of shamanism.
Khakasses- one of the indigenous peoples of Siberia, numbering 72,959 people. Today they have their own republic as part of the Siberian Federal District and with the capital in the city of Abakan. This ancient people has long lived on the lands to the west of the Great Lake (Baikal). It has never been numerous, which did not prevent it from carrying its identity, culture and traditions through the centuries.
Altaians. Their place of residence is quite compact - this is the Altai mountain system. Today Altaians live in two constituent entities of the Russian Federation - the Republic of Altai and the Altai Territory. The number of the ethnos "Altaians" is about 71 thousand people, which allows us to talk about them as a fairly large people. Religion - Shamanism and Buddhism. The Altaians have their own epic and a pronounced national identity, which does not allow them to be confused with other Siberian peoples. This mountain people has a long history and interesting legends.
Nenets- one of the small Siberian peoples living compactly in the area of the Kola Peninsula. Its number of 44,640 people makes it possible to attribute it to small nations, whose traditions and culture are protected by the state. The Nenets are nomadic reindeer herders. They belong to the so-called Samoyedic folk group. Over the years of the 20th century, the number of Nenets has approximately doubled, which indicates the effectiveness of state policy in the field of preserving the small peoples of the North. The Nenets have their own language and oral epic.
Evenki- the people predominantly living on the territory of the Republic of Sakha. The number of this people in Russia is 38,396 people, some of whom live in areas adjacent to Yakutia. It is worth saying that this is about half of the total ethnic group - about the same number of Evenks live in China and Mongolia. The Evenks are the people of the Manchu group, who do not have their own language and epic. Tungus is considered the native language of the Evenks. Evenks are born hunters and trackers.
Khanty- the indigenous people of Siberia, belonging to the Ugric group. Most of the Khanty live in the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug, which is part of the Ural Federal District of Russia. The total number of Khanty is 30,943 people. On the territory of the Siberian Federal District about 35% of the Khanty live, and their lion's share falls on the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug. The traditional occupations of the Khanty are fishing, hunting and reindeer herding. The religion of their ancestors is shamanism, but recently more and more Khanty consider themselves Orthodox Christians.
Evens- a people related to the Evenks. According to one version, they represent an Evenk group, which was cut off from the main halo of residence by the Yakuts moving south. For a long time away from the main ethnic group, the Evens made a separate people. Today their number is 21,830 people. The language is Tungus. Places of residence - Kamchatka, Magadan region, Republic of Sakha.
Chukchi- a nomadic Siberian people who are mainly engaged in reindeer herding and live on the territory of the Chukchi Peninsula. Their number is about 16 thousand people. The Chukchi belong to the Mongoloid race and, according to many anthropologists, are the indigenous aborigines of the Far North. The main religion is animism. Indigenous crafts are hunting and reindeer herding.
Shors- Turkic-speaking people living in the southeastern part of Western Siberia, mainly in the south of the Kemerovo region (in Tashtagol, Novokuznetsk, Mezhdurechensk, Myskovsky, Osinnikovsky and other areas). Their number is about 13 thousand people. The main religion is shamanism. The Shor epic is of scientific interest primarily for its originality and antiquity. The history of the people dates back to the VI century. Today, the traditions of the Shors have been preserved only in Sheregesh, as most of The ethnic group moved to the cities and largely assimilated.
Mansi. This people has been known to Russians since the foundation of Siberia. Even Ivan the Terrible sent an army against the Mansi, which suggests that they were quite numerous and strong. The self-name of this people is the Voguls. They have their own language, a fairly developed epic. Today, their place of residence is the territory of the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug. According to the latest census, 12,269 people identified themselves as belonging to the Mansi ethnic group.
Nanais- a small people living along the banks of the Amur River in the Far East of Russia. Relating to the Baikal ethnotype, the Nanais are rightfully considered one of the most ancient indigenous peoples of Siberia and the Far East. To date, the number of Nanais in Russia is 12,160 people. The Nanais have their own language, rooted in Tungus. Writing exists only among the Russian Nanais and is based on the Cyrillic alphabet.
Koryaks- the indigenous people of the Kamchatka Territory. There are coastal and tundra Koryaks. The Koryaks are mainly reindeer herders and fishermen. The religion of this ethnic group is shamanism. Number - 8 743 people.
Dolgans- nationality living in the Dolgan-Nenets municipal district Krasnoyarsk Territory. Number - 7 885 people.
Siberian Tatars- perhaps the most famous, but today a few Siberian people. According to the latest population census, 6,779 people identified themselves as Siberian Tatars. However, scientists say that in fact their number is much larger - according to some estimates, up to 100,000 people.
soyots- the indigenous people of Siberia, which is a descendant of the Sayan Samoyeds. Compactly lives on the territory of modern Buryatia. The number of Soyots is 5,579 people.
Nivkhs- the indigenous people of Sakhalin Island. Now they also live on the continental part at the mouth of the Amur River. In 2010, the number of Nivkhs is 5,162 people.
Selkups live in the northern parts of the Tyumen, Tomsk regions and in the territory of the Krasnoyarsk Territory. The number of this ethnic group is about 4 thousand people.
Itelmens- This is another indigenous people of the Kamchatka Peninsula. Today, almost all representatives of the ethnic group live in the west of Kamchatka and in the Magadan Region. The number of Itelmens is 3,180 people.
Teleuts- Turkic-speaking small Siberian people living in the south Kemerovo Region. The ethnos is very closely connected with the Altaians. Its number is approaching 2 and a half thousand.
Among other small peoples of Siberia, such ethnic groups as the Kets, Chuvans, Nganasans, Tofalgars, Orochs, Negidals, Aleuts, Chulyms, Oroks, Tazy, "Enets", "Alyutors" and "Kereks". It is worth saying that the number of each of them is less than 1 thousand people, so their culture and traditions have practically not been preserved.
Sustainable economic and cultural types of the indigenous peoples of Siberia:
1. Foot hunters and fishermen of the taiga zone;
2. Wild deer hunters in the Subarctic;
3. Sedentary fishermen in the lower reaches of large rivers (Ob, Amur, and also in Kamchatka);
4. Taiga hunters-reindeer breeders of Eastern Siberia;
5. Reindeer herders of the tundra from the Northern Urals to Chukotka;
6. Hunters for sea animals on the Pacific coast and islands;
7. Cattle breeders and farmers of Southern and Western Siberia, Baikal region, etc.
Historical and ethnographic areas:
1. West Siberian (with the southern, approximately to the latitude of Tobolsk and the mouth of the Chulym on the Upper Ob, and the northern, taiga and subarctic regions);
2. Altai-Sayan (mountain-taiga and forest-steppe mixed zone);
3. East Siberian (with internal differentiation of commercial and agricultural types of tundra, taiga and forest-steppe);
4. Amur (or Amur-Sakhalin);
5. Northeastern (Chukotka-Kamchatka).