Indigenous peoples of the Krasnoyarsk Territory and their traditions

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:55

Russia is an amazing country! Where else on such a vast territory is home to so many different nationalities, each of which has its own culture, traditions, religion and outlook on life? A particularly interesting demographic situation is developing in the Siberian Federal District of the Russian Federation. It is on these territories that the peoples of the Krasnoyarsk Territory live, among which there are not only Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusians, but also Chuvashs, Dolgans, Evenks and many others.

Statistics

During the Soviet era, the authorities took various actions aimed at large-scale forced resettlement and mixing of peoples. All this has led to the fact that some unique nationalities have lost their identity.

Krasnoyarsk Territory, alas, such a fate did not pass by. However, according to the population census, the most numerous peoples of the Krasnoyarsk Territory still exist to this day. The influence of the authorities, as well as government programs aimed at preserving and restoring the traditions of the local population, contribute to positive dynamics and further development of communities with a unique heritage and traditionsgenerations.

Who's there?

What peoples inhabit the Krasnoyarsk Territory? In answer to this question, the reader most likely wants to hear about the indigenous population that has lived in this territory for centuries.

The most prominent representatives are the Nganasans, Dolgans, Khanty, Enets and Evenks. There are up to a dozen different nationalities living in the North, and they are the indigenous peoples of the Krasnoyarsk Territory. Unfortunately, a lot of their traditions and cultural heritage have been forgotten. The life of small ethnic groups dissolved in the modern world, assimilated. There is nothing surprising in this, because life in the tundra is very difficult, and modern technologies make it much easier, but the advent of progress causes the replacement of an original culture that is incomparable with any other.

Mom is the head of everything

All the peoples inhabiting the Krasnoyarsk Territory are incredibly interesting, and each of them has its own characteristic traditions. Dolgans are among the most numerous. Perhaps their high numbers allowed many ancient customs to be preserved to this day. Of course, many of them are purely symbolic, but they are not forgotten and are used in families.

So, the head of the family is considered to be the oldest woman in the house, the keeper of the hearth, the nurse. The word of a woman is the law, no one has the right to disobey it. They chose the wisest representative who had seen everything in life as the head.

Indigenous peoples of the Krasnoyarsk Territory earned their livelihood by hunting, fishingfishing or gathering. The hard work that people had to do to feed themselves and their families developed the habit of sharing what they got with their relatives and neighbors. And this was the rule, not tolerating exceptions. Today you share, tomorrow someone will treat you. The only thing that always remained within the possession of one family was fur, which could be exchanged for scarce products from visiting merchants.

Worship the Universe

The peoples of the Krasnoyarsk Territory and their traditions were formed in different ways, much depended on the way of life and certain ways of life. The customs of the Khanty and Mansi are very characteristic.

Their reverent attitude to nature in our time seems outlandish and similar to worship. For example, the norm was the division of the surrounding territory into shares. Among these were areas where it was forbidden to step foot without a sacrifice.

Such actions were accompanied by a number of rituals, including offerings, prayers, sometimes it was enough to “put on shoes”. There were no traditional, familiar shoes in those days, and pieces of tree bark were attached to the feet, thus protecting not the foot from the ground, but, on the contrary, nature from human interference.

In addition, these peoples of the Krasnoyarsk Territory interpret animals and birds in their own way. The crow, which is mainly considered a harbinger of troubles and troubles, is considered here the mistress of spring. It is associated with the arrival of warmth, prosperity and fertility.

Traditionally during the arrival of the crowscelebrated the holiday. Only the female half of the village participated in it. During the celebration, the girls cooked porridge according to a special recipe. All actions were accompanied by singing songs and dancing.

There's a lot to learn

The peoples of the Krasnoyarsk Territory and their traditions are in critical condition, some of them are on the verge of extinction. There are only two hundred Enets! Evens are slightly more numerous. They treat traditions with great trepidation, which gives hope for their future.

This people is accustomed to live in peace with nature, worships and honors her. Wisdom and a responsible approach to the environment are expressed in traditions, the violation of which is fraught with troubles and grief in the family. Most often, traditional beliefs are described in a large number of prohibitions. For example, the Enets must not shout so as not to wake up harsh spirits, they must not throw stones into the water and even kill animals for fun. You need to hunt only in order to provide yourself with food.

The habits of generations also appear during celebrations associated with important events in a person's life. It can be a wedding, the birth of a baby, a funeral. So, when a marriage is concluded, the wife's dowry is taken out of the house so that no one has any doubts about her contribution to the general "budget".

Liberty or justified freedom?

The few peoples inhabiting the Krasnoyarsk Territory are special, but perhaps one of the most amazing is the Nganasane. The current free way of life for the elderly seems blasphemous, vulgar. The more unusu althe traditional view of some issues of this people.

Nganasane is very respectful of family values, after marriage, the couple is obliged to be faithful. But before marriage, many "pranks" are permissible. A girl can freely live with a guy she likes. They exchange gifts and are now considered a couple. It can go as far as marriage, to a simple separation, or it can end with an illegitimate child. This is regarded as normal, because the northern peoples have a special attitude towards children. The baby, whom the daughter gave birth to, not being married, is accepted by her parents and raised as her own.

Traditions associated with leaving the other world are very interesting. Permafrost does not allow burying the deceased in the grave. The body is hung on a tree or placed on a special platform. At the same time, the deceased "takes" with him all the acquired property, and not only for personal use, but also what he did for the children, the second half.

The role of the authorities in the life of the indigenous population

At all times, the authorities were interested in what peoples inhabit the Krasnoyarsk Territory, and this manifested itself in different ways.

If the last century has clearly shown how easy it is to destroy national identity, then in the current century they are trying, if not to increase, then to restore and preserve the lost.

In order for the small peoples of the Krasnoyarsk Territory to continue to exist and not forget their roots, since 2000 there has been state support for communities and individuals identified as representatives of a smallnationalities.

It has become profitable and popular to consider yourself and be called Dolgan, Evenk or Khant. But there is a significant drawback to this process. I really want everything that remains traditional and typical to not become only a way to earn money.