Yaranga is the traditional dwelling of Chukchi reindeer herders (22 photos). National houses of the peoples of the North: chum, yaranga and igloo Yaranga traditional dwelling of the Chukchi and Koryaks description

The residential buildings of the peoples of Siberia were distinguished by a variety of architectural forms and structures. The peculiarities of the dwelling were determined by the huge scale of the settlement territory, the diversity of natural and climatic conditions, the geographical habitat and the difference in economic and cultural types to which the peoples of Siberia belonged.

Yaranga

The main type of dwelling of the northeastern Paleo-Asian peoples (Chukchi, Koryaks and Eskimos) was the yaranga - portable among the reindeer Koryaks and Chukchi and stationary among Asian Eskimos and coastal Chukchi. Characteristic feature The Chukchi-Eskimo yaranga, which distinguished them from the dwellings of other peoples of Siberia, was two-chambered: the presence of canopies inside. Yaranga with a canopy is an amazing invention of the Koryaks and Chukchi, who literally called their home “real home.”

The yaranga of the reindeer Koryaks and Chukchi was a winter and summer dwelling. Its basis consisted of three poles from 3.5 to 5 meters high, connected at the top with a belt. Tripods made of two poles with a crossbar were installed around them, forming the skeleton of the walls. The basis of the roof was long poles tied to the crossbars. The top of the yaranga frame was covered with tires made of reindeer skins. From the outside, the tires were pressed down with vertically placed sleds so that when strong wind they remained in place. The entrance to the yaranga was located on the northeastern or eastern - the vital, as the Chukchi and Koryaks believed, side. Inside the yaranga there was a canopy - a rectangular structure made of winter deer skins, suspended with the bottom up and the open part down. It was not only a sleeping area, but also a living space in cold weather. The temperature in the canopy, due to the heat of the human body, was high enough that even in cold weather it was possible to sleep here without clothes.

Since the beginning of the 18th century, the frame-type yaranga, borrowed from the Chukchi, has become widespread among the Asian Eskimos and coastal Chukchi - hunters of sea animals. The Eskimo yaranga differed from the reindeer herders' yaranga: it was bigger size, practically could not be understood, its walls were often covered with turf. Tires made from walrus skins were secured in strong winds with large stones suspended on ropes. Inside the dwelling there was a fur canopy made of deer skins, which served as a sleeping area and, in cold weather, a living space. It was heated and illuminated using a fat lamp - a lamp made of stone or clay with seal oil and a moss wick. Food was prepared on it. The Evens of all areas of their habitat have long had two main types of housing: the Evenki conical tent and the so-called “Even yurt”, similar to the Chukchi-Koryak yaranga. IN winter time Reindeer skins were used as tires, and rovduga or birch bark in the summer. Evens who lived on the coast Sea of ​​Okhotsk, fish skin was also used as a material for tires.

The ancient traditional dwelling of the Asian Eskimos was a half-dugout with a frame made of bones, ribs and jaws of whales.

A large patriarchal family of up to 40 people lived in such a semi-dugout. Large half-dugouts were communal houses in which several families lived; meetings and holidays were held here. A semi-dugout of the same type, but with a wooden frame, was the main dwelling of the sedentary Koryaks - inhabitants of the eastern and western coasts of Kamchatka. A feature of the Koryak half-dugout was a funnel-shaped bell made of tightly folded thin boards, which served additional protection from snow drifts at the upper entrance to the dwelling.

Chum

Among hunters and reindeer herders of the taiga (Evenks, Tofalars), tundra and forest-tundra (Nenets, Entsy, Dolgans, Nganasans), the most common dwelling was a conical tent, the frame of which consisted of inclined poles, crossing at the top and forming the shape of a cone.

Taiga peoples usually made poles for the frame at the site, and during migrations they transported only tires. In the tundra and forest-tundra, where there is little forest, reindeer herders transported their entire dwelling, along with poles (by drag in the summer, on sleds in the winter) and could put it in a new place in a few minutes. The tire material depended on the time of year and availability natural materials. The taiga peoples used birch bark and rovdug tires in the summer, and ones made from deer skins in the winter. Less wealthy families lived in bark or pole tents. In the harsh conditions of the tundra, reindeer herders used tires made of reindeer fur in the summer, but in winter they were double tires - with fur in and out.

The interior of the tent was distinguished by the simplicity and sparse decoration typical of the life of hunters and reindeer herders. A fireplace was built in the center of the dwelling. To his left was the female half, and to his right was the male half. The place of honor for male guests was behind the fireplace opposite the entrance.

From the middle of the 19th century, the Nganasans, Dolgans and Enets began to spread the so-called narten chum (balok), borrowed from Russian peasants. It was used as a winter dwelling and was a movable light frame structure placed on skids. Deer skins were used as tires, which were covered with a canvas or tarpaulin cover. Such a dwelling was transported from one camp to another by a team of 5-7 deer.

Such a home can be built anywhere.

The chum was built from six-meter poles (from 15 to 50 pieces), sewn deer skins (50-60 pieces), mats made of grass and twigs.
Nenets women installed tents. A fireplace was built in the center of the dwelling. Floor boards were laid around it. Then the two main poles were installed. The lower ends were stuck into the ground, and the upper ends were tied with a flexible loop. The remaining poles were placed in a circle.
Two horizontal poles were attached to the inner pole (simza). An iron rod with a hook for the boiler was placed on them. Then they pulled on the tires - nukes. The main element of the plague is the pole. It was processed so that it thickened from both ends to the middle. The deer hair on the tires was trimmed to prevent snow from getting into the long fur in winter.

On the outside, the chum has a conical shape. It is well adapted to the open spaces of the tundra. Snow easily rolls off the steep surface of the chum. The air in the plague is always clean and transparent. Smoke hangs only at the very hole in the upper part of the chum - makodasi.
After lighting the fireplace, the smoke fills the entire space of the chum, and after a few minutes it rises up the walls. The heat also rises. It prevents cold air from the street from entering the tent. And in the summer, mosquitoes and midges cannot fly into the tent.

The winter plague is called raw mya. This is a traditional chum;
- summer chum - tany me. It is distinguished by its covering - muiko - old winter coverings with fur inside. Previously, birch bark coverings were used for summer chum.

The Nenets tent is never locked. If there is no one in the tent, a pole is placed at the entrance.

The only furniture in the tent is a low table (about 20 cm), at which the family dine.

In the plague great importance has a hearth - a stove, which is located in the center of the tent and serves as a source of heat and is adapted for cooking.

After the chum is installed, the women make the beds inside. Deer skins are placed on top of the mats. Soft things are placed at the very base of the poles. Reindeer herders often carry feather beds, pillows and special warm sleeping bags made of sheepskin. During the day, all this is rolled up, and at night the hostess unrolls the bed.

The tent is illuminated by fat lamps. These are cups filled with deer fat. A piece of rope is placed in them. Nenets national household items include bags made of reindeer skins. They are used for storing fur clothing, pieces of fur, and skins. The front side of the bag was always richly ornamented, stitching patterns from kamus with inserts from strips of cloth. The back side had no decorations and was often made of rovduga.

In chums, bags sometimes served as pillows. Necessary accessory The everyday life of the Nenets are wooden beaters, male and female. The men's ones are used to shovel snow from the seat of the sled. They use them to dig up snow when inspecting a site. Women's beaters are used to knock snow off shoes and fur items and have a saber shape.

Wooden house

Among the fisher-hunters of the Western Siberian taiga - the Khanty and Mansi - the main type of winter dwelling was a log house with a gable roof covered with boards, birch bark or turf.

Among the Amur peoples - fishermen and hunters leading a sedentary lifestyle (Nanai, Ulchi, Orochi, Negidal, Nivkh) - quadrangular single-chamber houses with a post frame and a gable roof were used as winter homes. Two or three families usually lived in a winter house, so there were several fireplaces. Summer dwellings were varied: quadrangular bark houses with a gable roof; conical, semi-cylindrical, gable huts, covered with hay, bark, birch bark.

Yurt

The main dwelling of the pastoral peoples of Southern Siberia (Eastern Buryats, Western Tuvinians, Altaians, Khakassians) was a portable cylindrical frame-type yurt, covered with felt.

It was maximally adapted to nomadic life: it was easily disassembled and transported, and its installation took a little more than an hour. The skeleton of the yurt consisted of walls made of sliding wooden gratings and a dome formed of poles, the upper ends of which were inserted into the circle of the chimney. To cover a yurt, 8-9 felt cavities were required. Like all Mongol-speaking peoples, the dwellings of the Buryats were oriented to the south.

The internal structure of the yurt was strictly regulated. There was a hearth in the center. The place opposite the entrance was considered the most honorable and was intended for receiving guests; there was also a home altar here. The yurt was divided into male (left) and female (right) halves (if you stand facing the northern part). The men's part contained harnesses, tools, weapons, and the women's part contained utensils and food. The furniture was limited to low tables, benches, chests, a bed, and a shrine.

Among pastoralists who switched to a semi-sedentary lifestyle (Khakassians, Western Tuvans, Western Buryats), a stationary log polygonal yurt with a gable or multifaceted roof became widespread.

Balagan and urasa

The housing of the Yakuts was seasonal. Winter - "balagan" - a log yurt of a trapezoidal shape with a flat roof and an earthen floor. The walls of the booth were coated with clay, and the roof was covered with bark and covered with earth. Until the end of the 19th century, the traditional summer home of the Yakuts was urasa - a conical structure made of poles covered with birch bark. Pieces of glass or mica were inserted into birch bark window frames, and in poor families in winter - pieces of ice. The entrance to the dwelling was on the east side. Along the walls there were plank bunks - “oron”. The dwelling was divided into right (male) and left (female) halves. In the northeast corner there was a fireplace - a primitive hearth made of poles and logs coated with a thick layer of clay, diagonally - the honorary (southwest) corner.

The Yakuts always surrounded the residential and utility premises of the estate with a continuous low fence of horizontal poles. Inside the estate, carved wooden posts were placed - hitching posts, to which horses were tied.

Traditional Chukchi dwelling

The villages of the coastal Chukchi usually consisted of 2-20 yarangas, scattered at some distance from each other. The size of the village was determined by the fishing capabilities of a particular area. By the time the Russians arrived, the Chukchi lived in semi-dugouts. The round frame of the dwelling was made from the jaws and ribs of a whale. Hence its name valharan- “a house made of whale jaws” [Levin N.G., 1956: 913]. The frame was covered with turf and covered with earth on top. The dwelling had two exits: a long corridor, which was used only in winter, since in the summer it was flooded with water, and a round hole at the top, closed with a whale’s shoulder blade, which served only summer time. In the center of the dwelling there was a large grease pit that burned all day long. On all four sides of the semi-dugouts, elevations were arranged in the form of bunks, and on them, according to the number of families, canopies of the usual type were built [Golovnev A.I., 1999: 23]. The tires were deer skin and walrus skin, which were tied with leather straps wrapped around stones so that the raging winds in Chukotka would not destroy or overturn the dwelling.

The main form of settlements of reindeer herders were camps, consisting of several portable tent-type dwellings - yarang. They were located in a row stretched from east to west. The first in the row from the east was the yaranga of the head of the nomadic community.

The Chukotka yaranga was a large tent, cylindrical at the base and conical at the top (See Appendix, Fig. 4). The frame of the tent consisted of poles placed vertically in a circle, on the upper ends of which crossbars were placed horizontally, and other poles were tied to them obliquely, connecting at the top and forming a cone-shaped upper part. Three poles were placed in the center in the form of a tripod, on which the upper poles of the frame rested. The frame was covered on top with tires sewn from reindeer skins with the hair facing out, and tightened with belts. The floor was covered with skins.

Inside the yaranga, a fur canopy was tied to one of the horizontal crossbars (usually at the back wall) using additional poles. The canopy was a specific feature of the dwellings of the Chukchi, Koryaks and Asian Eskimos. It was shaped like a box turned upside down. Usually there were no more than four canopies in a yaranga. It could accommodate several people (separate married couples). They penetrated the canopy by crawling, lifting the front wall. It used to be so hot here that we sat there, stripped to the waist, and sometimes naked.

For heating and lighting the canopy, a fat pot was used - a stone, clay or wooden cup with a moss wick floating in seal oil [Levin N.G., 1956: 913]. If there was wood fuel in the cold part of the yaranga, a small fire was lit for cooking food.

In the yaranga they sat on spread skins. Low three-legged stools or tree roots were also common. For the same purpose they adapted deer horns, cut together with the parietal bone.

The Chukchi had two types of dwellings: portable and permanent. The “sedentary”, or sedentary, had winter and summer dwellings. In winter they lived in half-dugouts, the type and design of which were borrowed from the Eskimos.

The most detailed information about the structure of half-dugouts of sedentary Chukchi is reported by Merck: “The outside of the yurts are covered with turf, rounded and rise several feet above the ground level. There is a quadrangular opening on the side through which you can enter. Around the entrance there are uprights placed around the entire circumference of the dugouts, except for only a place for passage, whale jaws... up to 7 feet. On top they are covered with whale ribs, and on top of that with turf. Through the mentioned entrance you first find yourself in a corridor the length of the entire dugout, about 6 feet high, about a fathom wide or more, and slightly deeper than the floor level of the dugout.

The dugout itself is always quadrangular in shape, its width and length are 10-14 feet, and its height is 8 feet or more. Closer to the walls, the height of the room decreases due to the bending of the ceiling. The dugout was sunk 5 feet into the ground, and on top of that, an earthen wall was laid three feet high, with whale jaws on top, mounted on all sides. On the mentioned whale jaws rest four separate identical whale jaws, laid lengthwise from the entrance itself at some distance from each other and forming the ceiling of the yurt.

Whale ribs are laid across them across the entire ceiling. At a height of three feet from the floor level, one rib is attached to the four corners of the yurt, which rest on supports in the middle of their bend, and boards are laid on them along all four walls. They represent the bunks on which the Chukchi sleep and sit. The floor is also covered with boards, and under the bunks, instead of flooring, walrus skins are placed. Near the entrance there is a lattice opening in the ceiling covered with a whale liver bladder.

Near the window there is another small hole in the ceiling in the form of a vertebra pressed into the roof; it is intended to release smoke from the lamps located at the four corners of the yurt. Some of the whale ribs that form the roof are painted on the sides White color and figures are depicted on them, such as whales, canoes, and so on... The canopy is illuminated by the same window built into the ceiling near the dugout itself" (MAE Archives. Col. 3. Op. 1. P. 2. P. 15- 17).

When comparing this description with the materials archaeological excavations a striking similarity is revealed with the dugouts of the Punuk period (VII-XVII centuries AD). The material from which the dugouts were built also coincides. The modern population of Chukotka has preserved the memory that there used to be two types of half-dugouts: valkaran (“dwelling of jaws”) and klergan (“men’s dwelling”). Clergan, despite this name, was simply a winter dwelling in which several families of close relatives settled. Valkaran is also a winter home, but for one family. According to informants, orphans or strangers lived in Valkaran, whom she could settle near her big family. Summer dwellings of sedentary Chukchi in the 18th century. differed in that their inhabitants were usually members of the same family. According to K. Merk, for one winter yurt there were several summer yarangs. For example, in Uelene there were 26 summer yurts and 7 winter ones (Ethnographic materials, 1978. P. 155). Approximately this ratio of winter and summer dwellings is typical for all sedentary Chukchi settlements.

Yarangas of the coastal Chukchi appearance and the internal structure was reminiscent of the yarangas of the reindeer Chukchi2. While retaining the structural basis of the reindeer herders' yaranga, the summer home of the sedentary Chukchi also had some differences. It did not have a smoke hole. In the treeless area, the Chukchi did not even build a fireplace. Food was prepared on fat lamps or in specially constructed “kitchens” near the yaranga, where they burned the bones of sea animals and doused them with fat. During voyages, if necessary, canoes were used for shelter from bad weather for temporary housing. They were pulled ashore, turned upside down and placed under their shelter.

At the end of the 18th century. winter dugouts began to fall out of use. Later A.L. Lazarev noted: " We did not see winter yurts among the Chukchi; summer ones are quite round at the bottom, from 2 and a half to 4 fathoms in diameter, and convex at the top, which is why from a distance they look like a haystack. We were told that the Chukchi live in these yurts in winter, which we did not believe at first, but they assured us that it is not cold in them in winter"(Notes on navigation, 1950. P. 302).

In the 19th century The semi-underground dwellings of the Valkaran and Klegran finally disappear. Instead, in winter, yarangas with sleeping canopies made of deer skins are used. F.P. Wrangel, who rode on dogs from Cape Shelagskoye to Kolyuchinskaya Bay, saw only the ruins of old dugouts, but nowhere does he say that the Chukchi live in them. " Sedentary Chukchi live in small villages, he wrote. - Their huts are built on poles and whale ribs, covered with deer skins."(Wrangel, 1948. pp. 311-312).

The reindeer Chukchi lived in yarangas both in winter and summer. The only difference between them was the quality of the skins from which the tire and canopy were made. Descriptions of the dwellings of Chukchi reindeer herders of the 18th century. indicate that with the development of production and changes public relations The yaranga also underwent changes, primarily its size.

“In yarangas they unite in the summer, as well as in winter, during long stays in one place, all connected by at least distant kinship. Such yarangas accommodate several canopies made of reindeer skins and therefore have significant dimensions” (MAE Archives. Col. 3. Op. 1. P. 2. P. 5-14). Community yarangas of the reindeer Chukchi existed in some places in the first quarter of the 19th century. By the 40s and 50s of the 19th century. the individual family becomes the main economic unit of Chukotka society; Apparently, there was a complete isolation in everyday life. In this regard, collective housing has lost its significance.

In the book Z.P. Sokolova"Dwelling of the Peoples of Siberia (Typology Experience)" is given detailed description devices of the Chukotka yaranga: "(yaran.y) - a frame cylindrical-conical non-lattice dwelling. For reindeer herders it was portable, for sea hunters it was stationary. The frame of the yaranga consists of vertical poles placed in a circle. In a portable yaranga these poles stand in the form of tripods , tied with belts, in a stationary one they alternate singly or are connected in pairs by diagonal crossbars.

The upper parts of the vertical poles or tripods are connected by vertical poles forming a hoop, to which are attached poles of a conical covering, crossing the tops of each other and resting (in a stationary dwelling) on ​​a central support pole with a crossbar at the top or on three poles in the form of a tripod (three poles, connected by vertices). The poles of the conical covering are sometimes secured from the inside with a hoop and covered with inclined poles. In some yarangas, the top is slightly shifted from the center to the north... On top of the yaranga frame it is covered with tires made of deer or walrus skins, in the summer - with a tarpaulin. Outside, the yaranga is tied with belts to protect from the wind, to which stones are attached. The lower part of the frame of the stationary yaranga at the base and the entrance are covered by the Primorye Chukchi with turf or stones in the form of a low wall. The entrance hole is closed with a piece of leather or a wooden door only during snowstorms.

The interior space is divided into separate rooms for married couples or parents and children by three or four fur canopies (in the form of a rectangular box), heated by stone lamps with seal oil (zhirnik). The canopies are tied using poles to a horizontal pole at the back wall of the dwelling. They crawl into the canopy, lifting its front wall. A fire is lit in the cold front part of the yaranga (Sokolova, 1998, pp. 75, 77).

I.S. Vdovin, E.P. Batyanova
(from the book Peoples of North-East Siberia)

Dwelling of the reindeer Chukchi.

Dwelling of the reindeer Chukchi yaranga a tent, round at the base, with a height in the center from 3.5 to 4.7 m and a diameter from 5.7 to 7 8 m. The wooden frame consisted of poles resting on a tripod firmly standing on the ground from thick poles tied with a leather belt through holes into their top parts. Below, meter-long bipeds and tripods were tied to the poles and poles with straps, forming a wide circle of the base of the yaranga and supporting the transverse crossbars attached to them at their ends. A circle made of them, smaller in diameter than the base, strengthened the frame of the yaranga in its middle part.

At the top, closer to the smoke hole, there is another row of pepper bars. The wooden frame of the yaranga was covered (fur side out) with deer skins, usually sewn into 2 panels. The edges of the skins were placed one on top of the other and secured with straps sewn to them. The free ends of the belts in the lower part were tied to sledges or heavy stones, which ensured the immobility of the covering. For 2 halves of the outer covering, about 40 - 50 large deer skins were required. The yaranga was entered between the two halves of the cover, folding their edges to the sides. For winter we used new coatings, for summer - those that were used last year.

In winter, during periods of frequent migrations, the canopy was made from the thickest skins with the fur inside. The shepherds driving their flock to the new one. pasture, lived in yarangas with a light covering and a small sleeping canopy. The hearth was in the center of the yaranga, under the smoke hole. Opposite the entrance, at the back wall, a sleeping area was installed - a canopy - in the form of a parallelepiped sewn from skins.

Schoolchildren can easily answer the question “Where do the Chukchi live?” On Far East there is Chukotka or the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. But if we complicate the question a little: “Where do the Chukchi and Eskimos live?”, difficulties arise. There is no region of the same name; we need to find a more serious approach and understand the national intricacies.

Are there any differences between the Chukchi, Eskimos and Koryaks?

Of course there is. All these are different nationalities, once tribes, having common roots and inhabiting similar territories.

The regions in Russia where the Chukchi or Luoravetlans live are concentrated in the north. This is the Republic of Sakha, Koryak Autonomous Okrug and Since ancient times, their tribes have inhabited the extreme regions Eastern Siberia. At first they were nomadic, but after taming the reindeer they began to adapt a little. They speak the Chukchi language, which has several dialects. Luoravetlans or Chukchi (self-name) divided themselves into sea hunters living on the coast Arctic Ocean, and reindeer, tundra.

Some anthropologists classify the Eskimos as a Mongoloid race of Arctic origin. This nation lives in the state of Alaska (USA), in the northern regions of Canada, on the island of Greenland (Denmark) and quite a few (1,500 people) in Chukotka. In each country, Eskimos speak their own language: Greenlandic, Alaskan Inuit, and Canadian Eskimo. All of them are divided into different dialects.

Who are the Chukchi and Koryak? The Luoravetlans first pushed back the Eskimo tribes, and then separated territorially from the Koryaks. Today, the Koryaks (a common nationality with the Chukchi) constitute the indigenous population of the eponymous Autonomous Okrug Kamchatka region in Russia. In total there are about 7,000 people. The Koryak language belongs to the Chukchi-Kamchatka group. The first mentions of the Koryaks are found in documents of the 16th century. People are described, some of whom were engaged in reindeer herding, and others in marine fishing.

Appearance

Where do the Chukchi live and what do they look like? The answer to the first part of the question is formulated above. More recently, scientists have proven the genetic relationship of the Chukchi and Indians. Indeed, in their appearance much in common. The Chukchi belong to a mixed Mongoloid race. They are similar to the inhabitants of Mongolia, China, and Korea, but are somewhat different.

The eye shape of Luoravetlan men is more horizontal than slanting. The cheekbones are not as wide as those of the Yakuts, and the skin color has a bronze tint. Women of this nationality are more similar in appearance to Mongoloids: wide cheekbones, wide noses with large nostrils. Hair color for representatives of both Men cut their hair short, women braid two braids and decorate them with beads. Married women wear bangs.

Luoravetlan winter clothes are two-layer, most often sewn from fawn fur. Summer clothing consists of capes or jackets made of deer suede.

Character traits

Drawing psychological picture of this nationality, note the main feature - excessive nervous excitability. Luoravetlan are easily disturbed from a state of spiritual balance; they are very hot-tempered. Against this background, they have a tendency towards murder or suicide. For example, a relative can easily respond to the request of a seriously ill family member and kill him so that he does not suffer in agony. extremely independent, original. In any dispute or struggle they show unprecedented persistence.

At the same time, these people are very hospitable and good-natured, naive. They selflessly come to the aid of their neighbors and everyone in need. They take the concept of marital fidelity very lightly. Wives are rarely jealous of their husbands.

Living conditions

Where the Chukchi live (pictured below), there is a short polar summer, and the rest of the time is winter. To refer to the weather, residents use only two expressions: “there is weather” or “there is no weather.” This designation is an indicator of the hunt, that is, whether it will be successful or not. From time immemorial, the Chukchi have continued their fishing traditions. They love seal meat very much. A happy hunter catches three in one go, then his family with children (usually 5-6 of them) will be fed for several days.

Places for yarang families are most often chosen surrounded by hills so that there is more calmness. It is very cold inside, although the dwelling is lined length and breadth with skins. Usually there is a small fire in the middle, surrounded by round boulders. There is a hanging cauldron of food on it. The wife takes care of the housework, butchering carcasses, cooking, and salting meat. There are children near her. Together they collect plants in season. The husband is the breadwinner. This way of life has been preserved for many centuries.

Sometimes such indigenous families do not go to the villages for months. Some children don't even have a birth certificate. Parents then have to prove that this is their child.

Why is the Chukchi the hero of jokes?

There is an opinion that Russians composed humorous stories about them out of fear and respect, a sense of superiority over themselves. Since the 18th century, when Cossack troops moved across endless Siberia and met the Luoravetlan tribes, rumors began to circulate about a warlike nation that was very difficult to surpass in battle.

The Chukchi taught their sons fearlessness and dexterity from childhood, raising them in Spartan conditions. In the harsh terrain where the Chukchi live, the future hunter must be sensitive, be able to endure any discomfort, sleep standing up, and not be afraid of pain. The favorite national wrestling takes place on a spread of slippery sealskin, along the perimeter of which sharply sharpened claws protrude.

Militant reindeer herders

The Koryak population, which earlier became part of the Chukchi Russian Empire, ran away from the battlefield if it saw at least several dozen Luoravetlans. Even in other countries there were tales about militant reindeer herders who are not afraid of arrows, dodge them, catch them and launch them at the enemy with their hands. Women and children who were captured killed themselves to avoid being enslaved.

In battle, the Chukchi were merciless, accurately killing the enemy with arrows, the tips of which were smeared with poison.

The government began to warn the Cossacks not to engage in battles with the Chukchi. At the next stage, they decided to bribe, persuade, and then solder the population (more so in Soviet times). And at the end of the 18th century. A fortress was built near the Angarka River. Fairs were periodically organized near it to trade with reindeer herders in exchange. Luoravetlans were not allowed into their territory. Russian Cossacks have always been interested in where the Chukchi live and what they do.

Trade affairs

Reindeer herders paid tribute to the Russian Empire in the amount they could afford. Often she was not paid at all. With the beginning of peace negotiations and cooperation, the Russians brought syphilis to the Chukchi. They were now afraid of all representatives of the Caucasian race. For example, they did not have trade relations with the French and British simply because they were “white.”

Established with Japan neighboring country. The Chukchi live where it is impossible to extract metal ores in the depths of the earth. Therefore, they actively bought protective armor, armor, other military uniforms and equipment, and metal products from the Japanese.

The Luoravetlans exchanged furs and other extracted goods for tobacco with the Americans. The skins of blue fox, marten, and whalebone were highly valued.

Chukchi today

Most of the Luoravetlans mixed with other nationalities. There are almost no purebred Chukchi left now. The “ineradicable people,” as they are often called, assimilated. At the same time, they preserve their occupation, culture, and way of life.

Many scientists are confident that the small indigenous ethnic group is threatened not by extinction, but by the social abyss in which they find themselves. Many children cannot read and write and do not go to school. The standard of living of the Luoravetlans is far from civilization, and they do not strive for it. The Chukchi live in harsh natural conditions and they don’t like having their own rules imposed on them. But when they find frozen Russians in the snow, they bring them to the yaranga. They say that they then put the guest under the skin along with his naked wife so that she can warm him up.