Arctic - the territory of the Arctic Ocean with the margins of the continents and the seas. Most of this region is covered by glaciers. Indigenous peoples of the Arctic are already accustomed to the harsh polar conditions. In this article, we will tell you in more detail about how we developed this territory, who inhabited it and how the local population lives.
Characteristics of the territory
Before talking about which people are the indigenous people of the Arctic, you need to describe this region. Translated from Greek, "Arktika" means "bear". Most of the island is the Greenland Ice Sheet. Indigenous peoples of the Arctic have adapted to severe frosts and long winters. For example, on the Taimyr Peninsula the temperature reaches -50 degrees Celsius. Winter can last up to 9 months there. In summer, it will not be possible to bask in the sun, since the maximum temperature reaches +10 degrees. Everyone knows that it is in the Arctic that polar night and polar day exist.
The territory of the Arctic is conditionally divided into three parts:
- shrub tundra;
- typical tundra (lichen-moss);
- arctic.
The learning process
The formation of a network of organizations of the indigenous peoples of the Arctic falls on the 20th century. However, the development process began much earlier. More than 30,000 years ago, ancient people first set foot on these lands. Then thousands of heads of deer and bulls roamed the territory of the Arctic. Ancient people slowly reached the Arctic, crossing the borders of Asia, China and Mongolia.
The first signs of the life of ancient people were found in the lower reaches of the Yana River. Archaeologists suggest that the first inhabitants of the harsh land lived here about 37,000 years ago. Ancient people left rock paintings and ornaments on the surfaces of mammoth figurines and stones. They depicted hunting scenes on them.
The Arctic and Indigenous Peoples
The first inhabitants who came to this land more than 30,000 years ago have remained here. According to statistics, the indigenous inhabitants of the Arctic are representatives of 17 different peoples. These social groups differ from each other in their individual native language, traditions, attachments, cultural and sociological institutions and values. As a rule, the indigenous peoples of the Arctic are not numerous. Their numbers rarely exceed 50,000.
The list of indigenous inhabitants of the Arctic was regulated by the state, it includes:
- Veps;
- Aleuts;
- Nenets;
- kety;
- oluchi;
- Alyutorians;
- Eskimos;
- Sami;
- Oroks;
- debts;
- Enets;
- ulchi;
- Chukchi;
- Kamchadals and others
Indigenous peoples of the Arctic exist in relatively small numbers. According to the latest census, there are about 260,000 of them.
Indigenous lifestyle
Those who are the indigenous people of the Arctic usually lead a semi-nomadic lifestyle. This is considered normal for the local population. Permanent migrations from the tundra to the forest-steppe zones is a traditional way of life. For the most part, the indigenous peoples of the Arctic are involved in:
- reindeer herding;
- hunt;
- gathering;
- fishing.
This way of life endows the population of the Arctic with special ethnic characteristics. The identity of the peoples is similar to other cultures of the Far East, Siberia and the Far North. A similar way of life is found among Pomors, Yakuts, Karelians, Old Believers and Komi, since their livelihood directly depends on environmental conditions, weather, etc. According to statistics, about 1.5 million people now live in the north. A few decades ago, this figure was 10 times less. Such a change is directly related to the move to the north of the Russians, whose main goal is to earn extra money. After all, in recent years a huge number of enterprises have been opened here.extraction, processing and transportation of raw materials.
Climate change and local adaptation
Indigenous peoples of the Arctic have come a long way to adapt to the environment. It took centuries to get used to the conditions of the north. Thanks to this, local residents have a minimal impact on nature, use its resources sparingly. Only the traditional way of life helps indigenous peoples to cope with such a difficult process as adaptation. The main goal of people living in the Arctic is to maintain the level of productivity of the land and monitor biological diversity. Only thanks to their attentiveness and sensitivity to the outside world, the indigenous people were able to adapt to the harsh conditions of existence. In this they were helped by their customs, festivities and rituals, which are passed down from generation to generation.
Traditions
Any name of the indigenous people of the Arctic in itself commands respect from the rest. It was they who were able to survive in such harsh conditions and still exist. It is the traditional knowledge passed down from generation to generation that has helped to do this. These include:
- Maintaining household calendars. Fishermen and hunters determined the optimal places of extraction and terms. A regulation was drawn up for caught animals and fish. Depending on the growth in numbers, the northerners were a burden on the populations of certain animals.
- Conservation of domestic aboriginal breeds of animals.
- Protection of breeding grounds for commercial speciesanimals.
- Cleaning spawning grounds, pastures, spawning rivers and animal haulouts.
- Transferring traditional knowledge about healing and psychoenergetic methods of influencing people. The elders and shamans had this information. In addition, the indigenous people from childhood mastered the technology of hardening, practiced and trained. By the age of ten, children were able to perform multiple production processes.
How has climate change affected indigenous people in the Arctic?
It took northerners thousands of years to adapt to harsh environmental conditions. Statistical data show that local residents have experienced both warming and cooling more than once. But they were able to adapt to such vagaries of nature. Over the years, peoples have developed strategies for nature management and ways of getting used to it. These include:
- Disinterested help to those in need. Neighboring nations helped each other in difficult situations.
- Mobility. The indigenous peoples of the Arctic, if necessary, could quickly migrate to another place. This is considered the main way for local residents to adapt to the climate.
- Exploring new ways of using nature. For example, local residents of Chukotka eventually learned how to grow potatoes and breed horses.
Living in such harsh conditions is not easy. However, the northerners do an excellent job with this task. Of course, severe frosts, polar nights, precipitation often interfere with the functioning of the production complex, the work of many enterprisessuspended for this time. But it helps the region to develop and find new ways to develop the environment.
