Mari signs. Mari (Mari, Cheremis) - guardians of sacred groves

The Mari emerged as an independent people from the Finno-Ugric tribes in the 10th century. Over the millennium of its existence, the Mari people have created a unique culture.

The book talks about rituals, customs, ancient beliefs, folk arts and crafts, blacksmithing, the art of songwriters, storytellers, guslars, folk music, includes texts of songs, legends, fairy tales, stories, poems and prose of the classics of the Mari people and modern writers, talks about theatrical and musical art, about outstanding representatives of the culture of the Mari people.

Included are reproductions of the most famous paintings by Mari artists of the 19th-21st centuries.

Excerpt

Introduction

Scientists attribute the Mari to the group of Finno-Ugric peoples, but this is not entirely true. According to ancient Mari legends, this people in ancient times came from Ancient Iran, the homeland of the prophet Zarathustra, and settled along the Volga, where they mixed with local Finno-Ugric tribes, but retained their originality. This version is also confirmed by philology. According to Doctor of Philology, Professor Chernykh, out of 100 Mari words, 35 are Finno-Ugric, 28 Turkic and Indo-Iranian, and the rest are of Slavic origin and other peoples. Having carefully examined the prayer texts of the ancient Mari religion, Professor Chernykh came to an amazing conclusion: the prayer words of the Mari are more than 50% of Indo-Iranian origin. It is in the prayer texts that the proto-language of the modern Mari has been preserved, not influenced by the peoples with whom they had contact in later periods.

Externally, the Mari are quite different from other Finno-Ugric peoples. As a rule, they are not very tall, with dark hair and slightly slanted eyes. Mari girls at a young age are very beautiful and they can even often be confused with Russians. However, by the age of forty, most of them become very old and either dry out or become incredibly plump.

The Mari remember themselves under the rule of the Khazars from the 2nd century. - 500 years, then under the rule of the Bulgars for 400 years, 400 years under the Horde. 450 - under Russian principalities. According to ancient predictions, the Mari cannot live under someone for more than 450–500 years. But they will not have an independent state. This cycle of 450–500 years is associated with the passage of a comet.

Before the collapse of the Bulgar Kaganate, namely at the end of the 9th century, the Mari occupied vast areas, and their number was more than a million people. These are the Rostov region, Moscow, Ivanovo, Yaroslavl, the territory of modern Kostroma, Nizhny Novgorod, modern Mari El and the Bashkir lands.

In ancient times, the Mari people were ruled by princes, whom the Mari called Oms. The prince combined the functions of both a military leader and a high priest. The Mari religion considers many of them saints. Holy in Mari - shnui. It takes 77 years for a person to be recognized as a saint. If after this period, when praying to him, healings from illnesses and other miracles occur, then the deceased is recognized as a saint.

Often such holy princes possessed various extraordinary abilities, and were in one person a righteous sage and a warrior merciless to the enemy of his people. After the Mari finally fell under the rule of other tribes, they had no princes. And the religious function is performed by the priest of their religion - karts. The Supreme Kart of all Mari is elected by the council of all Karts and his powers within the framework of his religion are approximately equal to the powers of the patriarch of Orthodox Christians.

Modern Mari live in the territories between 45° and 60° north latitude and 56° and 58° east longitude in several rather closely related groups. The autonomous Republic of Mari El, located along the middle reaches of the Volga, declared itself in its Constitution in 1991 a sovereign state within the Russian Federation. The declaration of sovereignty in the post-Soviet era means adherence to the principle of preserving the uniqueness of the national culture and language. In the Mari Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, according to the 1989 census, there were 324,349 residents of Mari nationality. In the neighboring Gorky region, 9 thousand people called themselves Mari, in the Kirov region - 50 thousand people. In addition to the listed places, a significant Mari population lives in Bashkortostan (105,768 people), Tatarstan (20 thousand people), Udmurtia (10 thousand people) and in the Sverdlovsk region (25 thousand people). In some regions of the Russian Federation, the number of scattered, sporadically living Mari reaches 100 thousand people. The Mari are divided into two large dialectal and ethnocultural groups: the mountain Mari and the meadow Mari.

History of the Mari

We are learning more and more fully and better about the vicissitudes of the formation of the Mari people based on the latest archaeological research. In the second half of the 1st millennium BC. e., and also at the beginning of the 1st millennium AD. e. Among the ethnic groups of the Gorodets and Azelin cultures, one can assume the ancestors of the Mari. The Gorodets culture was autochthonous on the right bank of the Middle Volga region, while the Azelinskaya culture was on the left bank of the Middle Volga, as well as along the course of the Vyatka. These two branches of the ethnogenesis of the Mari people clearly show the double connection of the Mari within the Finno-Ugric tribes. The Gorodets culture for the most part played a role in the formation of the Mordovian ethnic group, but its eastern parts served as the basis for the formation of the mountain Mari ethnic group. The Azelin culture can be traced back to the Ananyin archaeological culture, which was previously assigned a dominant role only in the ethnogenesis of the Finno-Permian tribes, although this issue is currently considered by some researchers differently: perhaps the proto-Ugric and ancient Mari tribes were part of the ethnic groups of new archaeological cultures - successors that arose on the site of the collapsed Ananyin culture. The Meadow Mari ethnic group can also be traced back to the traditions of the Ananyin culture.

The Eastern European forest zone has extremely scanty written information about the history of the Finno-Ugric peoples; the writing of these peoples appeared very late, with few exceptions only in the newest historical era. The first mention of the ethnonym “Cheremis” in the form “ts-r-mis” is found in a written source, which dates back to the 10th century, but dates back, in all likelihood, to a time one or two centuries later. According to this source, the Mari were tributaries of the Khazars. Then kari (in the form "cheremisam") mentions composed in. beginning of the 12th century Russian chronicle, calling the place of their settlement the land at the mouth of the Oka. Of the Finno-Ugric peoples, the Mari turned out to be most closely associated with the Turkic tribes that moved to the Volga region. These connections are still very strong. Volga Bulgars at the beginning of the 9th century. arrived from Great Bulgaria on the Black Sea coast to the confluence of the Kama and Volga, where they founded Volga Bulgaria. The ruling elite of the Volga Bulgars, taking advantage of the profits from trade, could firmly maintain their power. They traded honey, wax, and furs that came from the Finno-Ugric peoples living nearby. Relations between the Volga Bulgars and various Finno-Ugric tribes of the Middle Volga region were not overshadowed by anything. The empire of the Volga Bulgars was destroyed by Mongol-Tatar conquerors who invaded from the interior regions of Asia in 1236.

Collection of yasak. Reproduction of a painting by G.A. Medvedev

Batu Khan founded a state entity called the Golden Horde in the territories captured and subordinated to them. Its capital until the 1280s. was the city of Bulgar, the former capital of Volga Bulgaria. The Mari were in allied relations with the Golden Horde and the independent Kazan Khanate that subsequently emerged from it. This is evidenced by the fact that the Mari had a stratum that did not pay taxes, but was obliged to perform military service. This class then became one of the most combat-ready military formations among the Tatars. Also, the existence of allied relations is indicated by the use of the Tatar word “el” - “people, empire” to designate the region inhabited by the Mari. Mari still call their native land Mari El.

The annexation of the Mari region to the Russian state was greatly influenced by the contacts of some groups of the Mari population with the Slavic-Russian state formations (Kievan Rus - northeastern Russian principalities and lands - Muscovite Rus) even before the 16th century. There was a significant limiting factor that did not allow the rapid completion of what began in the 12th–13th centuries. the process of becoming part of Rus' is the close and multilateral ties of the Mari with the Turkic states that opposed Russian expansion to the east (Volga-Kama Bulgaria - Ulus Jochi - Kazan Khanate). This intermediate position, as A. Kappeler believes, led to the fact that the Mari, as well as the Mordovians and Udmurts who were in a similar situation, were drawn into neighboring state formations economically and administratively, but at the same time retained their own social elite and their pagan religion .

The inclusion of the Mari lands into Rus' from the very beginning was controversial. Already at the turn of the 11th–12th centuries, according to the Tale of Bygone Years, the Mari (“Cheremis”) were among the tributaries of the Old Russian princes. It is believed that tributary dependence is the result of military clashes, “torture.” True, there is not even indirect information about the exact date of its establishment. G.S. Lebedev, based on the matrix method, showed that in the catalog of the introductory part of “The Tale of Bygone Years” “Cheremis” and “Mordva” can be combined into one group with all, measure and Muroma according to four main parameters - genealogical, ethnic, political and moral-ethical . This gives some reason to believe that the Mari became tributaries earlier than the rest of the non-Slavic tribes listed by Nestor - “Perm, Pechera, Em” and other “pagans who give tribute to Rus'.”

There is information about the dependence of the Mari on Vladimir Monomakh. According to the “Tale of the Destruction of the Russian Land”, “the Cheremis... fought against the great Prince Volodymer.” In the Ipatiev Chronicle, in unison with the pathetic tone of the Lay, it is said that he is “especially terrible at the filthy.” According to B.A. Rybakov, the real reign, the nationalization of North-Eastern Rus' began precisely with Vladimir Monomakh.

However, the testimony of these written sources does not allow us to say that all groups of the Mari population paid tribute to the ancient Russian princes; Most likely, only the Western Mari, who lived near the mouth of the Oka, were drawn into the sphere of influence of Rus'.

The rapid pace of Russian colonization caused opposition from the local Finno-Ugric population, which found support from the Volga-Kama Bulgaria. In 1120, after a series of attacks by the Bulgars on Russian cities in the Volga-Ochye in the second half of the 11th century, a retaliatory series of campaigns began by the Vladimir-Suzdal and allied princes on lands that either belonged to the Bulgar rulers or were simply controlled by them in order to levy tribute from the local population. It is believed that the Russian-Bulgar conflict broke out primarily due to the collection of tribute.

Russian princely squads more than once attacked Mari villages along their route to the rich Bulgarian cities. It is known that in the winter of 1171/72. Boris Zhidislavich's detachment destroyed one large fortified and six small settlements just below the mouth of the Oka, and here even in the 16th century. The Mari population still lived alongside the Mordovians. Moreover, it was under this same date that the Russian fortress of Gorodets Radilov was first mentioned, which was built slightly above the mouth of the Oka on the left bank of the Volga, presumably on the land of the Mari. According to V.A. Kuchkin, Gorodets Radilov became a stronghold military point of North-Eastern Rus' in the Middle Volga and the center of Russian colonization of the local region.

The Slavic-Russians gradually either assimilated or displaced the Mari, forcing them to migrate east. This movement has been traced by archaeologists since about the 8th century. n. e.; the Mari, in turn, came into ethnic contact with the Permian-speaking population of the Volga-Vyatka interfluve (the Mari called them Odo, that is, they were Udmurts). The newcomer ethnic group prevailed in the ethnic competition. In the 9th–11th centuries. The Mari basically completed the development of the Vetluzh-Vyatka interfluve, displacing and partially assimilating the previous population. Numerous legends of the Mari and Udmurts testify that there were armed conflicts, and mutual antipathy continued to exist for quite a long time between representatives of these Finno-Ugric peoples.

As a result of the military campaign of 1218–1220, the conclusion of the Russian-Bulgar peace treaty of 1220 and the founding of Nizhny Novgorod at the mouth of the Oka in 1221 - the easternmost outpost of North-Eastern Rus' - the influence of the Volga-Kama Bulgaria in the Middle Volga region weakened. This created favorable conditions for the Vladimir-Suzdal feudal lords to conquer the Mordovians. Most likely, during the Russian-Mordovian war of 1226–1232. The “Cheremis” of the Oka-Sur interfluve were also involved.

The Russian Tsar presents gifts to the mountain Mari

The expansion of both Russian and Bulgarian feudal lords was also directed into the Unzha and Vetluga basins, which were relatively unsuitable for economic development. The Mari tribes and the eastern part of the Kostroma Meri lived here mainly, between which, as established by archaeologists and linguists, there was a lot in common, which to some extent allows us to speak about the ethnocultural community of the Vetluga Mari and the Kostroma Merya. In 1218, the Bulgars attacked Ustyug and Unzha; under 1237, another Russian city in the Volga region was mentioned for the first time - Galich Mersky. Apparently, there was a struggle here for the Sukhon-Vychegda trade and fishing route and for collecting tribute from the local population, in particular the Mari. Russian domination was established here too.

In addition to the western and northwestern periphery of the Mari lands, Russians from approximately the turn of the 12th–13th centuries. They also began to develop the northern outskirts - the upper reaches of the Vyatka, where, in addition to the Mari, the Udmurts also lived.

The development of the Mari lands was most likely carried out not only by force and military methods. There are such types of “cooperation” between Russian princes and the national nobility as “equal” matrimonial unions, company of companies, complicity, hostage-taking, bribery, and “doubling.” It is possible that a number of these methods were also used against representatives of the Mari social elite.

If in the 10th–11th centuries, as archaeologist E.P. Kazakov points out, there was “a certain commonality of Bulgar and Volga-Mari monuments,” then over the next two centuries the ethnographic appearance of the Mari population - especially in Povetluzhye - became different. The Slavic and Slavic-Merian components have significantly strengthened in it.

Facts show that the degree of inclusion of the Mari population in Russian state formations in the pre-Mongol period was quite high.

The situation changed in the 30s and 40s. XIII century as a result of the Mongol-Tatar invasion. However, this did not at all lead to the cessation of the growth of Russian influence in the Volga-Kama region. Small independent Russian state formations appeared around urban centers - princely residences, founded during the period of the existence of the united Vladimir-Suzdal Rus'. These are the Galician (appeared around 1247), Kostroma (approximately in the 50s of the 13th century) and Gorodets (between 1269 and 1282) principalities; At the same time, the influence of the Vyatka Land grew, turning into a special state entity with veche traditions. In the second half of the 14th century. The Vyatchans had already firmly established themselves in the Middle Vyatka and in the Pizhma basin, displacing the Mari and Udmurts from here.

In the 60–70s. XIV century Feudal unrest ensued in the horde, which temporarily weakened its military and political power. This was successfully used by the Russian princes, who sought to break out of dependence on the khan's administration and increase their possessions at the expense of the peripheral regions of the empire.

The most notable successes were achieved by the Nizhny Novgorod-Suzdal Principality, the successor to the Principality of Gorodetsky. The first Nizhny Novgorod prince Konstantin Vasilyevich (1341–1355) “commanded the Russian people to settle along the Oka and Volga and Kuma rivers... wherever anyone wanted,” that is, he began to sanction the colonization of the Oka-Sur interfluve. And in 1372, his son Prince Boris Konstantinovich founded the Kurmysh fortress on the left bank of the Sura, thereby establishing control over the local population - mainly Mordvins and Mari.

Soon, the possessions of the Nizhny Novgorod princes began to appear on the right bank of the Sura (in Zasurye), where the mountain Mari and Chuvash lived. By the end of the 14th century. Russian influence in the Sura basin increased so much that representatives of the local population began to warn the Russian princes about the upcoming invasions of the Golden Horde troops.

Frequent attacks by ushkuiniks played a significant role in strengthening anti-Russian sentiments among the Mari population. The most sensitive for the Mari, apparently, were the raids carried out by Russian river robbers in 1374, when they ravaged villages along the Vyatka, Kama, Volga (from the mouth of the Kama to the Sura) and Vetluga.

In 1391, as a result of Bektut’s campaign, the Vyatka Land, which was considered the refuge of the Ushkuiniki, was devastated. However, already in 1392 the Vyatchans plundered the Bulgar cities of Kazan and Zhukotin (Dzhuketau).

According to the “Vetluga Chronicler,” in 1394, “Uzbeks” appeared in the Vetluga region - nomadic warriors from the eastern half of the Jochi Ulus, who “took people for the army and took them along the Vetluga and Volga near Kazan to Tokhtamysh.” And in 1396, Tokhtamysh’s protege Keldibek was elected kuguz.

As a result of a large-scale war between Tokhtamysh and Timur Tamerlane, the Golden Horde Empire was significantly weakened, many Bulgar cities were devastated, and its surviving inhabitants began to move to the right side of the Kama and Volga - away from the dangerous steppe and forest-steppe zone; in the area of ​​Kazanka and Sviyaga, the Bulgarian population came into close contact with the Mari.

In 1399, the appanage prince Yuri Dmitrievich took the cities of Bulgar, Kazan, Kermenchuk, Zhukotin, the chronicles indicate that “no one remembers only that far away Rus' fought the Tatar land.” Apparently, at the same time the Galich prince conquered the Vetluzh region - the Vetluzh chronicler reports about this. Kuguz Keldibek admitted his dependence on the leaders of the Vyatka Land, concluding a military alliance with them. In 1415, the Vetluzhans and Vyatchans made a joint campaign against the Northern Dvina. In 1425, the Vetluga Mari became part of the many-thousand-strong militia of the Galich appanage prince, who began an open struggle for the grand-ducal throne.

In 1429, Keldibek took part in the campaign of the Bulgaro-Tatar troops led by Alibek to Galich and Kostroma. In response to this, in 1431, Vasily II took severe punitive measures against the Bulgars, who had already suffered seriously from a terrible famine and plague epidemic. In 1433 (or 1434), Vasily Kosoy, who received Galich after the death of Yuri Dmitrievich, physically eliminated the kuguz Keldibek and annexed the Vetluzh kuguzdom to his inheritance.

The Mari population also had to experience the religious and ideological expansion of the Russian Orthodox Church. The pagan Mari population, as a rule, negatively perceived attempts to Christianize them, although there were also opposite examples. In particular, the Kazhirovsky and Vetluzhsky chroniclers report that the Kuguz Kodzha-Eraltem, Kai, Bai-Boroda, their relatives and associates adopted Christianity and allowed the construction of churches on the territory they controlled.

Among the Privetluzh Mari population, a version of the Kitezh legend became widespread: supposedly the Mari, who did not want to submit to the “Russian princes and priests,” buried themselves alive right on the shore of Svetloyar, and subsequently, together with the earth that collapsed on them, slid to the bottom of a deep lake. The following record has been preserved, made in the 19th century: “Among the Svetloyarsk pilgrims you can always find two or three Mari women dressed in sharpan, without any signs of Russification.”

By the time of the emergence of the Kazan Khanate, the Mari of the following regions were involved in the sphere of influence of Russian state formations: the right bank of the Sura - a significant part of the mountain Mari (this can also include the Oka-Sura “Cheremis”), Povetluzhie - northwestern Mari, the Pizhma River basin and the Middle Vyatka - northern part of meadow mari. Less affected by Russian influence were the Kokshai Mari, the population of the Ileti River basin, the northeastern part of the modern territory of the Republic of Mari El, as well as the Lower Vyatka, that is, the main part of the meadow Mari.

The territorial expansion of the Kazan Khanate was carried out in the western and northern directions. Sura became the southwestern border with Russia; accordingly, Zasurye was completely under the control of Kazan. During 1439-1441, judging by the Vetluga chronicler, Mari and Tatar warriors destroyed all Russian settlements on the territory of the former Vetluga region, and Kazan “governors” began to rule the Vetluga Mari. Both Vyatka Land and Perm the Great soon found themselves in tributary dependence on the Kazan Khanate.

In the 50s XV century Moscow managed to subjugate the Vyatka Land and part of Povetluga; soon, in 1461–1462. Russian troops even entered into a direct armed conflict with the Kazan Khanate, during which the Mari lands on the left bank of the Volga mainly suffered.

In the winter of 1467/68. an attempt was made to eliminate or weaken Kazan's allies - the Mari. For this purpose, two trips to Cheremis were organized. The first, main group, which consisted mainly of selected troops - the “court of the great prince’s regiment” - attacked the left bank Mari. According to the chronicles, “the army of the Grand Duke came to the land of Cheremis, and did much evil to that land: they cut people off, took some into captivity, and burned others; and their horses and every animal that could not be taken with them was cut up; and what was in their bellies, he took everything.” The second group, which included soldiers recruited in the Murom and Nizhny Novgorod lands, “conquered the mountains and barats” along the Volga. However, even this did not prevent the Kazan people, including, most likely, the Mari warriors, already in the winter-summer of 1468 from destroying Kichmenga with adjacent villages (the upper reaches of the Unzha and Yug rivers), as well as the Kostroma volosts and, twice in a row, the outskirts of Murom. Parity was established in punitive actions, which most likely had little effect on the state of the armed forces of the opposing sides. The matter came down mainly to robberies, mass destruction, and the capture of civilians - Mari, Chuvash, Russians, Mordovians, etc.

In the summer of 1468, Russian troops resumed their raids on the uluses of the Kazan Khanate. And this time it was mainly the Mari population that suffered. The rook army, led by governor Ivan Run, “fought Cheremis on the Vyatka River,” plundered villages and merchant ships on the Lower Kama, then rose up to the Belaya River (“Belaya Volozhka”), where the Russians again “fought Cheremis, and killed people and horses and every kind of animal." From local residents they learned that nearby, up the Kama, a detachment of 200 Kazan warriors was moving on ships taken from the Mari. As a result of a short battle, this detachment was defeated. The Russians then followed “to Great Perm and to Ustyug” and further to Moscow. Almost at the same time, another Russian army (“outpost”), led by Prince Fyodor Khripun-Ryapolovsky, was operating on the Volga. Not far from Kazan, it “beat the Kazan Tatars, the court of the kings, many good ones.” However, even in such a critical situation for themselves, the Kazan team did not abandon active offensive actions. By introducing their troops into the territory of the Vyatka Land, they persuaded the Vyatchans to neutrality.

In the Middle Ages, there were usually no clearly defined boundaries between states. This also applies to the Kazan Khanate and neighboring countries. From the west and north, the territory of the Khanate adjoined the borders of the Russian state, from the east - the Nogai Horde, from the south - the Astrakhan Khanate and from the southwest - the Crimean Khanate. The border between the Kazan Khanate and the Russian state along the Sura River was relatively stable; further, it can be determined only conditionally according to the principle of payment of yasak by the population: from the mouth of the Sura River through the Vetluga basin to Pizhma, then from the mouth of Pizhma to the Middle Kama, including some areas of the Urals, then back to the Volga River along the left bank of the Kama, without going deep into the steppe, down the Volga approximately to the Samara Luka, and finally to the upper reaches of the same Sura River.

In addition to the Bulgaro-Tatar population (Kazan Tatars) on the territory of the Khanate, according to information from A.M. Kurbsky, there were also Mari (“Cheremis”), southern Udmurts (“Votiaks”, “Ars”), Chuvash, Mordovians (mostly Erzya), and Western Bashkirs. Mari in sources of the 15th–16th centuries. and in general in the Middle Ages they were known under the name “Cheremis”, the etymology of which has not yet been clarified. At the same time, this ethnonym in a number of cases (this is especially typical for the Kazan Chronicler) could include not only the Mari, but also the Chuvash and southern Udmurts. Therefore, it is quite difficult to determine, even in approximate outlines, the territory of settlement of the Mari during the existence of the Kazan Khanate.

A number of fairly reliable sources of the 16th century. - testimonies of S. Herberstein, spiritual letters of Ivan III and Ivan IV, the Royal Book - indicate the presence of Mari in the Oka-Sur interfluve, that is, in the region of Nizhny Novgorod, Murom, Arzamas, Kurmysh, Alatyr. This information is confirmed by folklore material, as well as toponymy of this territory. It is noteworthy that until recently among the local Mordvins, who professed a pagan religion, the personal name Cheremis was widespread.

The Unzhensko-Vetluga interfluve was also inhabited by the Mari; This is evidenced by written sources, toponymy of the region, and folklore material. There were probably also groups of Meri here. The northern border is the upper reaches of the Unzha, Vetluga, the Pizhma basin, and the Middle Vyatka. Here the Mari came into contact with the Russians, Udmurts and Karin Tatars.

The eastern limits can be limited to the lower reaches of the Vyatka, but separately - “700 versts from Kazan” - in the Urals there already existed a small ethnic group of Eastern Mari; Chroniclers recorded it in the area of ​​the mouth of the Belaya River back in the middle of the 15th century.

Apparently, the Mari, together with the Bulgaro-Tatar population, lived in the upper reaches of the Kazanka and Mesha rivers, on the Arsk side. But, most likely, they were a minority here and, moreover, most likely, they gradually became Tatarized.

Apparently, a considerable part of the Mari population occupied the territory of the northern and western parts of the present Chuvash Republic.

The disappearance of the continuous Mari population in the northern and western parts of the current territory of the Chuvash Republic can to some extent be explained by the devastating wars in the 15th–16th centuries, from which the Mountain Side suffered more than Lugovaya (in addition to the incursions of Russian troops, the right bank was also subject to numerous raids by steppe warriors) . This circumstance apparently caused an outflow of some of the mountain Mari to the Lugovaya Side.

The number of Mari by the 17th–18th centuries. ranged from 70 to 120 thousand people.

The right bank of the Volga had the highest population density, then the area east of M. Kokshaga, and the least was the area of ​​settlement of the northwestern Mari, especially the swampy Volga-Vetluzhskaya lowland and the Mari lowland (the space between the Linda and B. Kokshaga rivers).

Exclusively all lands were legally considered the property of the khan, who personified the state. Having declared himself the supreme owner, the khan demanded rent in kind and cash rent - a tax (yasak) - for the use of the land.

The Mari - nobility and ordinary community members - like other non-Tatar peoples of the Kazan Khanate, although they were included in the category of dependent population, were actually personally free people.

According to the findings of K.I. Kozlova, in the 16th century. Among the Mari, druzhina, military-democratic orders prevailed, that is, the Mari were at the stage of formation of their statehood. The emergence and development of their own state structures was hampered by dependence on the khan's administration.

The socio-political system of medieval Mari society is reflected in written sources rather poorly.

It is known that the main unit of Mari society was the family (“esh”); Most likely, “large families” were most widespread, consisting, as a rule, of 3–4 generations of close relatives in the male line. The property stratification between patriarchal families was clearly visible back in the 9th–11th centuries. Parcel labor flourished, which mainly extended to non-agricultural activities (cattle breeding, fur trading, metallurgy, blacksmithing, jewelry). There were close ties between neighboring family groups, primarily economic, but not always consanguineous. Economic ties were expressed in various kinds of mutual “help” (“vyma”), that is, mandatory related gratuitous mutual assistance. In general, the Mari in the 15th–16th centuries. experienced a unique period of proto-feudal relations, when, on the one hand, individual family property was allocated within the framework of a land-kinship union (neighborhood community), and on the other, the class structure of society did not acquire its clear outlines.

Mari patriarchal families, apparently, united into patronymic groups (Nasyl, Tukym, Urlyk; according to V.N. Petrov - Urmatians and Vurteks), and those - into larger land unions - Tishte. Their unity was based on the principle of neighborhood, on a common cult, and to a lesser extent on economic ties, and even more so on consanguinity. Tishte were, among other things, unions of mutual military assistance. Perhaps the Tishte were territorially compatible with the hundreds, uluses and fifties of the Kazan Khanate period. In any case, the tithe-hundred and ulus system of administration, imposed from outside as a result of the establishment of Mongol-Tatar domination, as is generally believed, did not conflict with the traditional territorial organization of the Mari.

Hundreds, uluses, fifties and tens were led by centurions (“shudovuy”), pentecostals (“vitlevuy”), foremen (“luvuy”). In the 15th–16th centuries, most likely, they did not have time to break with the rule of people, and, according to K.I. Kozlova, “these were either ordinary elders of land unions, or military leaders of larger associations such as tribal ones.” Perhaps the representatives of the top of the Mari nobility continued to be called, according to the ancient tradition, “kugyza”, “kuguz” (“great master”), “on” (“leader”, “prince”, “lord”). In the social life of the Mari, elders - “kuguraki” - also played a major role. For example, even Tokhtamysh’s protege Keldibek could not become a Vetluga kuguz without the consent of the local elders. The Mari elders are also mentioned as a special social group in the Kazan History.

All groups of the Mari population took an active part in military campaigns against Russian lands, which became more frequent under Girey. This is explained, on the one hand, by the dependent position of the Mari within the Khanate, on the other hand, by the peculiarities of the stage of social development (military democracy), by the interest of the Mari warriors themselves in obtaining military booty, in the desire to prevent Russian military-political expansion, and other motives. During the last period of the Russian-Kazan confrontation (1521–1552) in 1521–1522 and 1534–1544. the initiative belonged to Kazan, which, at the instigation of the Crimean-Nogai government group, sought to restore the vassal dependence of Moscow, as it was during the Golden Horde period. But already under Vasily III, in the 1520s, the task was set of the final annexation of the Khanate to Russia. However, this was achieved only with the capture of Kazan in 1552, under Ivan the Terrible. Apparently, the reasons for the annexation of the Middle Volga region and, accordingly, the Mari region to the Russian state were: 1) a new, imperial type of political consciousness of the top leadership of the Moscow state, the struggle for the “Golden Horde” inheritance and failures in the previous practice of attempts to establish and maintain a protectorate over Kazan khanate, 2) interests of state defense, 3) economic reasons (lands for the local nobility, the Volga for the Russian merchants and fishermen, new taxpayers for the Russian government and other plans for the future).

After the capture of Kazan by Ivan the Terrible, the course of events in the Middle Volga region, Moscow was faced with a powerful liberation movement, which involved both former subjects of the liquidated Khanate who managed to swear allegiance to Ivan IV, and the population of peripheral regions who did not take the oath. The Moscow government had to solve the problem of preserving what was won not according to a peaceful, but according to a bloody scenario.

The anti-Moscow armed uprisings of the peoples of the Middle Volga region after the fall of Kazan are usually called the Cheremis Wars, since the Mari (Cheremis) were most active in them. The earliest mention among the sources available in scientific circulation is an expression close to the term “Cheremis war”, found in the quitrent letter of Ivan IV to D.F. Chelishchev for rivers and lands in the Vyatka land dated April 3, 1558, where, in particular, it is indicated that the owners of the Kishkil and Shizhma rivers (near the city of Kotelnich) “in those rivers... did not catch fish and beavers for the Kazan Cheremis war and did not pay rent.”

Cheremis War 1552–1557 differs from the subsequent Cheremis wars of the second half of the 16th century, not so much because it was the first of this series of wars, but because it was in the nature of a national liberation struggle and did not have a noticeable anti-feudal orientation. Moreover, the anti-Moscow insurgent movement in the Middle Volga region in 1552–1557. is, in essence, a continuation of the Kazan War, and the main goal of its participants was the restoration of the Kazan Khanate.

Apparently, for the bulk of the left-bank Mari population, this war was not an uprising, since only representatives of the Prikazan Mari recognized their new citizenship. In fact, in 1552–1557. the majority of the Mari waged an external war against the Russian state and, together with the rest of the population of the Kazan region, defended their freedom and independence.

All waves of the resistance movement died out as a result of large-scale punitive operations by the troops of Ivan IV. In a number of episodes, the insurgency developed into a form of civil war and class struggle, but the struggle for the liberation of the homeland remained the character-forming one. The resistance movement ceased due to several factors: 1) continuous armed clashes with the tsarist troops, which brought countless casualties and destruction to the local population, 2) mass famine, a plague epidemic that came from the Volga steppes, 3) the meadow Mari lost support from their former allies - the Tatars and southern Udmurts. In May 1557, representatives of almost all groups of Meadow and Eastern Mari took an oath to the Russian Tsar. Thus the annexation of the Mari region to the Russian state was completed.

The significance of the annexation of the Mari region to the Russian state cannot be defined as clearly negative or positive. Both negative and positive consequences of the Mari’s entry into the Russian state system, closely intertwined with each other, began to manifest themselves in almost all spheres of social development (political, economic, social, cultural and others). Perhaps the main result for today is that the Mari people have survived as an ethnic group and have become an organic part of multinational Russia.

The final entry of the Mari region into Russia occurred after 1557, as a result of the suppression of the people's liberation and anti-feudal movement in the Middle Volga region and the Urals. The process of gradual entry of the Mari region into the system of Russian statehood lasted hundreds of years: during the period of the Mongol-Tatar invasion it slowed down, during the years of feudal unrest that engulfed the Golden Horde in the second half of the 14th century, it accelerated, and as a result of the emergence of the Kazan Khanate (30-40- e years of the 15th century) stopped for a long time. However, having begun even before the turn of the 11th–12th centuries, the inclusion of the Mari in the system of Russian statehood in the middle of the 16th century. has approached its final phase - direct entry into Russia.

The annexation of the Mari region to the Russian state was part of the general process of formation of the Russian multi-ethnic empire, and it was prepared, first of all, by prerequisites of a political nature. This is, firstly, a long-term confrontation between the state systems of Eastern Europe - on the one hand, Russia, on the other hand, the Turkic states (Volga-Kama Bulgaria - Golden Horde - Kazan Khanate), secondly, the struggle for the “Golden Horde inheritance” in the final stage of this confrontation, thirdly, the emergence and development of imperial consciousness in government circles of Muscovite Russia. The expansionist policy of the Russian state in the eastern direction was to some extent determined by the tasks of state defense and economic reasons (fertile lands, the Volga trade route, new taxpayers, other projects for the exploitation of local resources).

The Mari economy was adapted to natural and geographical conditions and generally met the requirements of its time. Due to the difficult political situation, it was largely militarized. True, the peculiarities of the socio-political system also played a role here. The medieval Mari, despite the noticeable local characteristics of the ethnic groups that existed at that time, generally experienced a transitional period of social development from tribal to feudal (military democracy). Relations with the central government were built primarily on a confederal basis.

Beliefs

The Mari traditional religion is based on faith in the forces of nature, which man must honor and respect. Before the spread of monotheistic teachings, the Mari revered many gods known as Yumo, while recognizing the primacy of the Supreme God (Kugu Yumo). In the 19th century, the image of the One God Tun Osh Kugu Yumo (One Bright Great God) was revived.

The Mari traditional religion contributes to strengthening the moral foundations of society, achieving interfaith and interethnic peace and harmony.

Unlike monotheistic religions created by one or another founder and his followers, the Mari traditional religion was formed on the basis of an ancient folk worldview, including religious and mythological ideas associated with man’s relationship to the surrounding nature and its elemental forces, the veneration of ancestors and patrons of agricultural activities. The formation and development of the traditional religion of the Mari was influenced by the religious views of the neighboring peoples of the Volga and Urals regions, as well as the fundamental doctrines of Islam and Orthodoxy.

Admirers of the traditional Mari religion recognize the One God Tyn Osh Kugu Yumo and his nine assistants (manifestations), read a prayer three times daily, take part in collective or family prayer once a year, and conduct family prayer with sacrifice at least seven times during their lives, They regularly hold traditional commemorations in honor of their deceased ancestors, and observe Mari holidays, customs and rituals.

Before the spread of monotheistic teachings, the Mari revered many gods known as Yumo, while recognizing the primacy of the Supreme God (Kugu Yumo). In the 19th century, the image of the One God Tun Osh Kugu Yumo (One Bright Great God) was revived. The One God (God - Universe) is considered to be the eternal, omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient, and omnirighteous God. He manifests himself in both material and spiritual guise, appearing in the form of nine deity-persons. These deities can be divided into three groups, each of which is responsible for:

Calmness, prosperity and empowerment of all living things - the god of the bright world (Tunya yumo), the life-giving god (Ilyan yumo), the deity of creative energy (Agavairem yumo);

Mercy, righteousness and harmony: the god of fate and predestination of life (Pursho yumo), the all-merciful god (Kugu Serlagysh yumo), the god of harmony and reconciliation (Mer yumo);

All-goodness, rebirth and inexhaustibility of life: the goddess of birth (Shochyn Ava), the goddess of the earth (Mlande Ava) and the goddess of abundance (Perke Ava).

The Universe, the world, the cosmos in the spiritual understanding of the Mari are presented as a continuously developing, spiritualizing and transforming system from century to century, from era to era, a system of diverse worlds, spiritual and material natural forces, natural phenomena, steadily striving towards its spiritual goal - unity with the Universal God , maintaining an inextricable physical and spiritual connection with the cosmos, the world, and nature.

Tun Osh Kugu Yumo is an endless source of being. Like the universe, the One Light Great God is constantly changing, developing, improving, involving the entire universe, the entire surrounding world, including humanity itself, in these changes. From time to time, every 22 thousand years, and sometimes earlier, by the will of God, the destruction of some part of the old and the creation of a new world occurs, accompanied by a complete renewal of life on earth.

The last creation of the world occurred 7512 years ago. After each new creation of the world, life on earth improves qualitatively, and humanity changes for the better. With the development of humanity, there is an expansion of human consciousness, the boundaries of world- and God-perception are expanded, the possibility of enriching knowledge about the universe, the world, objects and phenomena of the surrounding nature, about man and his essence, about ways to improve human life is facilitated.

All this ultimately led to the formation of a false idea among people about the omnipotence of man and his independence from God. Changing value priorities and abandoning the divinely established principles of community life required divine intervention in people's lives through suggestions, revelations, and sometimes punishments. In the interpretation of the foundations of knowledge of God and understanding of the world, holy and righteous people, prophets and God's chosen ones began to play an important role, who in the traditional beliefs of the Mari are revered as elders - ground deities. Having the opportunity to periodically communicate with God and receive His revelation, they became conductors of invaluable knowledge for human society. However, they often communicated not only the words of revelation, but also their own figurative interpretation of them. The divine information obtained in this way became the basis for the emerging ethnic (folk), state and world religions. There was also a rethinking of the image of the One God of the Universe, and the feelings of connectedness and direct dependence of people on Him were gradually smoothed out. A disrespectful, utilitarian-economic attitude towards nature or, conversely, reverent veneration of elemental forces and natural phenomena, represented in the form of independent deities and spirits, was affirmed.

Among the Mari, echoes of a dualistic worldview have been preserved, in which an important place was occupied by faith in the deities of forces and natural phenomena, in the animation and spirituality of the surrounding world and the existence in them of a rational, independent, materialized being - the owner - a double (vodyzh), soul (chon, ort) , spiritual hypostasis (shyrt). However, the Mari believed that the deities, everything around the world and man himself are part of the one God (Tun Yumo), his image.

Nature deities in popular beliefs, with rare exceptions, were not endowed with anthropomorphic features. The Mari understood the importance of man's active participation in the affairs of God, aimed at preserving and developing the surrounding nature, and constantly sought to involve the gods in the process of spiritual ennoblement and harmonization of everyday life. Some leaders of Mari traditional rituals, possessing heightened inner vision and the effort of their will, were able to receive spiritual enlightenment and restore the image of the forgotten one God Tun Yumo at the beginning of the 19th century.

One God - the Universe embraces all living things and the whole world, expresses itself in revered nature. The living nature closest to man is his image, but not God himself. A person is able to form only a general idea of ​​the Universe or its part, on the basis and with the help of faith, having cognized it in himself, experiencing a living sensation of the divine incomprehensible reality, passing through his own “I” the world of spiritual beings. However, it is impossible to fully understand Tun Osh Kugu Yumo - the absolute truth. The Mari traditional religion, like all religions, has only approximate knowledge of God. Only the wisdom of the Omniscient embraces the entire sum of truths within itself.

The Mari religion, being more ancient, turned out to be closer to God and absolute truth. There is little influence of subjective aspects in it, it has undergone less social modification. Taking into account the perseverance and patience in preserving the ancient religion transmitted by the ancestors, dedication in observing customs and rituals, Tun Osh Kugu Yumo helped the Mari preserve true religious ideas, protected them from erosion and thoughtless changes under the influence of all kinds of innovations. This allowed the Mari to maintain their unity, national identity, survive under the conditions of social and political oppression of the Khazar Khaganate, Volga Bulgaria, the Tatar-Mongol invasion, the Kazan Khanate and defend their religious cults during the years of active missionary propaganda in the 18th–19th centuries.

The Mari are distinguished not only by their divinity, but also by their kind-heartedness, responsiveness and openness, their readiness to come to the aid of each other and those in need at any time. The Mari are at the same time a freedom-loving people who love justice in everything, accustomed to living a calm, measured life, like the nature around us.

The traditional Mari religion directly influences the formation of the personality of each person. The creation of the world, as well as man, is carried out on the basis and under the influence of the spiritual principles of the One God. Man is an inextricable part of the Cosmos, grows and develops under the influence of the same cosmic laws, is endowed with the image of God, in him, as in all of Nature, the bodily and divine principles are combined, and kinship with nature is manifested.

The life of every child, long before his birth, begins in the celestial zone of the Universe. Initially, it does not have an anthropomorphic form. God sends life to earth in materialized form. Together with man, his angels-spirits - patrons - develop, represented in the image of the deity Vuyymbal yumo, the bodily soul (chon, ya?) and doubles - figurative incarnations of man ort and syrt.

All people equally possess human dignity, strength of mind and freedom, human virtue, and contain within themselves the entire qualitative completeness of the world. A person is given the opportunity to regulate his feelings, control his behavior, realize his position in the world, lead an ennobled lifestyle, actively create and create, take care of the higher parts of the Universe, protect the animal and plant world, the surrounding nature from extinction.

Being a rational part of the Cosmos, man, like the constantly improving one God, in the name of his self-preservation is forced to constantly work on self-improvement. Guided by the dictates of conscience (ar), correlating his actions and deeds with the surrounding nature, achieving the unity of his thoughts with the co-creation of material and spiritual cosmic principles, man, as a worthy owner of his land, with his tireless daily work, inexhaustible creativity, strengthens and zealously runs his farm, ennobles the world around him, thereby improving himself. This is the meaning and purpose of human life.

Fulfilling his destiny, a person reveals his spiritual essence and ascends to new levels of existence. Through self-improvement and the fulfillment of a predetermined goal, a person improves the world and achieves the inner beauty of the soul. The traditional religion of the Mari teaches that for such activities a person receives a worthy reward: he greatly facilitates his life in this world and his fate in the afterlife. For a righteous life, deities can endow a person with an additional guardian angel, that is, they can confirm the existence of a person in God, thereby ensuring the ability to contemplate and experience God, the harmony of divine energy (shulyk) and the human soul.

A person is free to choose his actions and actions. He can lead his life both in the direction of God, the harmonization of his efforts and aspirations of the soul, and in the opposite, destructive direction. A person’s choice is predetermined not only by divine or human will, but also by the intervention of the forces of evil.

The right choice in any life situation can be made only by knowing yourself, balancing your life, everyday affairs and actions with the Universe - the One God. Having such a spiritual guideline, a believer becomes a true master of his life, gains independence and spiritual freedom, calmness, confidence, insight, prudence and measured feelings, steadfastness and perseverance in achieving his goal. He is not disturbed by life's adversities, social vices, envy, selfishness, selfishness, or the desire for self-affirmation in the eyes of others. Being truly free, a person gains prosperity, peace of mind, a reasonable life, and protects himself from any encroachment by ill-wishers and evil forces. He will not be frightened by the dark tragic sides of material existence, the bonds of inhuman torment and suffering, or hidden dangers. They will not prevent him from continuing to love the world, earthly existence, rejoicing and admiring the beauty of nature and culture.

In everyday life, believers of the traditional Mari religion adhere to such principles as:

Constant self-improvement by strengthening the inextricable connection with God, his regular involvement in all the most important events in life and active participation in divine affairs;

Aiming at ennobling the surrounding world and social relations, strengthening human health through the constant search and acquisition of divine energy in the process of creative work;

Harmonization of relations in society, strengthening collectivism and cohesion, mutual support and unity in upholding religious ideals and traditions;

Unanimous support of your spiritual mentors;

The obligation to preserve and pass on to subsequent generations the best achievements: progressive ideas, exemplary products, elite varieties of grain and livestock breeds, etc.

The traditional religion of the Mari considers all manifestations of life to be the main value in this world and calls for the sake of preserving it to show mercy even towards wild animals and criminals. Kindness, good-heartedness, harmony in relationships (mutual assistance, mutual respect and support for friendly relations), respect for nature, self-sufficiency and self-restraint in the use of natural resources, the pursuit of knowledge are also considered important values ​​in the life of society and in regulating the relationship of believers with God.

In public life, the traditional Mari religion strives to maintain and improve social harmony.

The Mari traditional religion unites believers of the ancient Mari (Chimari) faith, admirers of traditional beliefs and rituals who have been baptized and attend church services (marla faith) and adherents of the “Kugu Sorta” religious sect. These ethno-confessional differences were formed under the influence and as a result of the spread of the Orthodox religion in the region. The religious sect “Kugu Sorta” took shape in the second half of the 19th century. Certain inconsistencies in beliefs and ritual practices that exist between religious groups do not play a significant impact in the daily life of the Mari. These forms of traditional Mari religion form the basis of the spiritual values ​​of the Mari people.

The religious life of adherents of the traditional Mari religion takes place within the village community, one or more village councils (lay community). All Mari can take part in all-Mari prayers with sacrifice, thereby forming a temporary religious community of the Mari people (national community).

Until the beginning of the 20th century, the Mari traditional religion acted as the only social institution for the cohesion and unity of the Mari people, strengthening their national identity, and establishing a unique national culture. At the same time, folk religion never called for artificially separating peoples, did not provoke confrontation and confrontation between them, and did not assert the exclusivity of any people.

The current generation of believers, recognizing the cult of the One God of the Universe, is convinced that this God can be worshiped by all people, representatives of any nationality. Therefore, they consider it possible to attach to their faith any person who believes in his omnipotence.

Any person, regardless of nationality and religion, is part of the Cosmos, the Universal God. In this respect, all people are equal and worthy of respect and fair treatment. The Mari have always been distinguished by religious tolerance and respect for the religious feelings of people of other faiths. They believed that the religion of every people has the right to exist and is worthy of reverence, since all religious rites are aimed at ennobling earthly life, improving its quality, expanding the capabilities of people and contributing to the introduction of divine powers and divine mercy to everyday needs.

A clear evidence of this is the lifestyle of adherents of the ethno-confessional group “Marla Vera”, who observe both traditional customs and rituals and Orthodox cults, visit temples, chapels and Mari sacred groves. They often conduct traditional prayers with sacrifices in front of an Orthodox icon specially brought for this occasion.

Admirers of the Mari traditional religion, respecting the rights and freedoms of representatives of other faiths, expect the same respectful attitude towards themselves and their religious actions. They believe that the worship of the One God - the Universe in our time is very timely and quite attractive for the modern generation of people interested in spreading the environmental movement and preserving pristine nature.

The traditional religion of the Mari, including in its worldview and practice the positive experience of centuries of history, sets as its immediate goals the establishment of truly fraternal relations in society and the education of a person of an ennobled image, protects itself with righteousness and devotion to a common cause. It will continue to defend the rights and interests of its believers, protect their honor and dignity from any encroachment on the basis of the legislation adopted in the country.

Admirers of the Mari religion consider it their civil and religious duty to comply with the legal norms and laws of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Mari El.

The traditional Mari religion sets itself the spiritual and historical tasks of uniting the efforts of believers to protect their vital interests, the nature around us, the animal and plant world, as well as achieving material wealth, everyday well-being, moral regulation and a high cultural level of relations between people.

Sacrifices

In the seething Universal cauldron of life, human life proceeds under the vigilant supervision and with the direct participation of God (Tun Osh Kugu Yumo) and his nine hypostases (manifestations), personifying his inherent intelligence, energy and material wealth. Therefore, a person should not only reverently believe in Him, but also deeply reverence, strive to receive His mercy, goodness and protection (serlagysh), thereby enriching himself and the world around him with vital energy (shulyk), material wealth (perke). A reliable means of achieving all this is the regular holding of family and public (village, lay and all-Mary) prayers (kumaltysh) in sacred groves with sacrifices to God and his deities of domestic animals and birds.

History of the Mari people from ancient times. part 2 The question of the origin of the Mari people is still controversial. For the first time, a scientifically substantiated theory of the ethnogenesis of the Mari was expressed in 1845 by the famous Finnish linguist M. Castren. He tried to identify the Mari with the chronicle measures. This point of view was supported and developed by T.S. Semenov, I.N. Smirnov, S.K. Kuznetsov, A.A. Spitsyn, D.K. Zelenin, M.N. Yantemir, F.E. Egorov and many others researchers of the 2nd half of the 19th – 1st half of the 20th century. A new hypothesis was made in 1949 by the prominent Soviet archaeologist A.P. Smirnov, who came to the conclusion about the Gorodets (close to the Mordovians) basis; other archaeologists O.N. Bader and V.F. Gening at the same time defended the thesis about Dyakovsky (close to measure) origin of the Mari. Nevertheless, archaeologists were already able to convincingly prove that the Merya and Mari, although related to each other, are not the same people. At the end of the 1950s, when the permanent Mari archaeological expedition began to operate, its leaders A.Kh. Khalikov and G.A. Arkhipov developed a theory about the mixed Gorodets-Azelinsky (Volga-Finnish-Permian) basis of the Mari people. Subsequently, G.A. Arkhipov, developing this hypothesis further, during the discovery and study of new archaeological sites, proved that the mixed basis of the Mari was dominated by the Gorodets-Dyakovo (Volga-Finnish) component and the formation of the Mari ethnos, which began in the first half of the 1st millennium AD , as a whole, ended in the 9th – 11th centuries, and even then the Mari ethnic group began to be divided into two main groups - the mountain and meadow Mari (the latter, compared to the former, were more strongly influenced by the Azelin (Perm-speaking) tribes). This theory is generally supported by the majority of archaeological scientists working on this problem. Mari archaeologist V.S. Patrushev put forward a different assumption, according to which the formation of the ethnic foundations of the Mari, as well as the Meri and Muroms, took place on the basis of the Akhmylov-type population. Linguists (I.S. Galkin, D.E. Kazantsev), who rely on language data, believe that the territory of formation of the Mari people should be sought not in the Vetluzh-Vyatka interfluve, as archaeologists believe, but to the southwest, between the Oka and Suroy. Scientist-archaeologist T.B. Nikitina, taking into account data not only from archeology, but also from linguistics, came to the conclusion that the ancestral home of the Mari is located in the Volga part of the Oka-Sura interfluve and in Povetluzhie, and the advance to the east, to Vyatka, occurred in 8 - 11 centuries, during which contact and mixing took place with the Azelin (Perm-speaking) tribes. Azelinskaya culture is an archaeological culture of the 3rd-5th centuries in the Volga-Vyatka interfluve. Classified by V.G. Gening and named after the Azelinsky burial ground near the village of Azelino, Malmyzh district, Kirov region. It was formed on the basis of the traditions of the Pyanobor culture. Habitats are represented by settlements and settlements. The entire economy is based on arable farming, animal husbandry, hunting and fishing. The Buyskoe settlement (Buisky Perevoz) hid a treasure of 200 iron hoes and spears. Most round-bottomed vessels have a pattern of notches or cord prints. Ground burial grounds, inhumation burials, oriented with their heads to the north. Women's costume: a cap or corolla with a braid and temple pendants, a necklace, hryvnias and bracelets, breast plates, an apron, a wide belt, often with an epaulette-like fastener, overlays and hanging tassels, various stripes and pendants, shoes with straps. Men's burials contain numerous weapons - spears, axes, helmets, chain mail and swords. The final process of separation of the Mari tribes was completed around the 6th-7th century AD. An ancient legend of the Mari people says that once upon a time, in ancient times, a mighty giant lived near the Volga River. His name was Onar. He was so big that he would stand on the steep Volga slope and his head would just barely reach the colored rainbow that rose above the forests. That is why in ancient legends the rainbow is called the Onar Gate. The rainbow shines with all colors, it is so red that you can’t take your eyes off it, and Onar’s clothes were even more beautiful: a white shirt was embroidered on the chest with scarlet, green and yellow silk, Onar was belted with a belt made of blue beads, and silver jewelry sparkled on his hat. Onar was a hunter, caught animals, collected honey from wild bees. In search of the beast and the sides full of fragrant honey, he went far from his home, kudo, which stood on the banks of the Volga. In one day, Onar managed to visit both the Volga and Pizhma and Nemda, which flow into the bright Viche, as the Vyatka River is called in Mari. It is for this reason, the Mari, that we call our land the land of the hero Onar. In the minds of the ancient Mari, ONARS are the first inhabitants who rose from the sea waters of the earth. ONARS are giant people of extraordinary height and strength. The forests were knee-deep. People call many hills and lakes in the Mountain Mari region the traces of an ancient giant. And again, the ancient Indian legends about the asuras involuntarily come to mind - ancient people (the first inhabitants of planet Earth) - the asuras, who were also giants - their height was 38-50 meters, later they became lower - up to 7 meters (like the Atlanteans). The ancient Russian hero Svyatogor, who is considered the progenitor of the entire ancient Russian people, was also an asur. The Mari themselves call their people the name Mari. Among scientists, the question of their origin is open. According to etymology, the Mari are a people living under the protection of the ancient goddess Mara. The influence of Mara on the beliefs of the Mari is strong. The Mari are considered the last pagan people of Europe. The Mari religion is based on faith in the forces of nature, which man must honor and respect. Mari temples - Sacred groves. There are about five hundred of them on the territory of the Mari El Republic. In the Sacred Grove, human contact with God is possible. The first written mention of the Cheremis (Mari) is found in the Gothic historian Jordan (6th century). They are also mentioned in The Tale of Bygone Years. Around this time, the first mentions of other tribes related to the ancient Mari - Meshchera, Muroma, Merya, who lived mainly to the west of the Vetluzhsky region, date back. Some historians claim that the Mari people received the name “Mari” from the name of the ancient Iranian god Mar, but I have not met such a god among the Iranians. But there are many gods with the name Mara in the Indo-European peoples. Mara is a female mythological character in the Western and Eastern Slavic traditions associated with the seasonal rites of death and resurrection of nature. Mara is a night demon, a ghost in Scandinavian and Slavic mythology. Mara in Buddhism is a demon, personified as the embodiment of artlessness, the death of spiritual life. Mara is a goddess who takes care of cows in Latvian mythology. In some cases, it coincides with the mythologized image of the Virgin Mary. As a result, I believe that the name “Mari” has its origins from the times when the Ural and Indo-European peoples lived side by side or were a single people (Hyperboreans, Boreans, Biarmians). Some researchers of the history of the Mari people believe that the Mari descended from the mixing of ancient Iranian tribes with the Chud tribes. Here the question arises: when did this happen? I spent a long time checking when the Iranians appeared on the territory of the ancient Mari, but I did not find such a fact. There was a contact of ancient Iranian tribes (Scythians, Sarmatians), but it was much further south and the contact was with the ancient Mordovian tribes, and not with the Mari. As a result, I believe that the Mari people received the name “Mari” from the most ancient times, when the Ural peoples and Indo-European peoples (including the Slavs, Balts, Iranians) lived nearby. And these are the times of the Biarmians, the Boreans, or even the Hyperborean times. So let’s continue to talk about the history of the Mari people. In the 70s of the 4th century AD, the Huns appeared in the south of Eastern Europe - a nomadic Turkic-speaking people (to be more precise, it was a union of many nomadic peoples, which included both Turkic and non-Turkic peoples). The era of the Great Migration of Peoples began. Although the alliance of Hunnic tribes advanced through the south of Eastern Europe (mainly along the steppes), this event also influenced the history of more northern peoples, including the history of the ancient Mari people. The fact is that one of the ancient Turkic peoples, the Bulgars (initially they were called Onogurs, Utigurs, Kutrigurs), was also involved in the flow of nomadic tribes. In addition to the ancient Bulgar tribes, other Turkic-speaking tribes, the Suvars, came to the territory of the steppes of the North Caucasus and the Don. From the 4th century until the emergence of a strong Khazar state in these places, many different nomadic tribes lived in the territory between the Black and Caspian Seas and in the steppes of the Don and Volga - Alans, Akatsirs (Huns), Maskuts, Barsils, Onogurs, Kutrigurs, Utigurs) . In the 2nd half of the 8th century, part of the Bulgars moved to the region of the Middle Volga region and the lower reaches of the Kama. There they created the state of Volga Bulgaria. Initially, this state was dependent on the Khazar Kaganate. The appearance of the Bulgars in the lower reaches of the Kama led to the fact that the single space occupied by the ancient Mari tribes was divided into two parts. A significant part of the Mari living in the west of Bashkiria found themselves cut off from the main territory of residence of the Mari. In addition, under pressure from the Bullgars, some of the Mari were forced to move north and displace the ancient Udmurt tribes (Votyaks), the Mari settled between the Vyatka and Vetluga rivers. For information, I inform readers that in those days the modern Vyatka land had a different name - “Votskaya Zemlya” (land of the Votyaks). In 863, part of the Suvars who lived within the Northern Caucasus and the Don, under the influence of Arab invasions, moved up the Volga to the Middle Volga region, where they became part of the Volga Bulgaria in the 10th century and built the city of Suvar. According to a number of Bashkir historians, in Volga Bulgaria the Suvars were the numerically predominant ethnic group. It is believed that the modern Chuvash are the direct descendants of the Suvars. In the 960s, Volga Bulgaria became an independent state (since the Khazar Khaganate was destroyed by the Kyiv prince Svyatoslav). The question of the origin of the ethnonyms “Mari” and “Cheremis” also remains complex and unclear. The meaning of the word “Mari”, the self-name of the Mari people, is derived by many linguists from the Indo-European term “mar”, “mer” in various sound variations (translated as “man”, “husband”). The word “Cheremis” (as the Russians called the Mari, and in a slightly different, but phonetically similar vowel, many other peoples) has a large number of different interpretations. 960s - the first written mention of this ethnonym (in the original “ts-r-mis”) is found in a letter from the Khazar Kagan Joseph to the dignitary of the Cordoba Caliph Hasdai ibn Shaprut. D.E. Kazantsev, following the 19th century historian G.I. Peretyatkovich, came to the conclusion that the name “Cheremis” was given to the Mari by the Mordovian tribes, and in translation this word means “a person living on the sunny side, in the east.” According to I.G. Ivanov, “Cheremis” is “a person from the Chera or Chora tribe,” in other words, the name of one of the Mari tribes. Neighboring peoples subsequently extended this name to the entire Mari people. The version of the Mari local historians of the 1920s and early 1930s, F.E. Egorov and M.N. Yantemir, is widely popular, who suggested that this ethnonym goes back to the Turkic term “warlike person.” F.I. Gordeev, as well as I.S. Galkin, who supported his version, defend the hypothesis about the origin of the word “Cheremis” from the ethnonym “Sarmatian” through the mediation of Turkic languages. A number of other versions were also expressed. The problem of the etymology of the word “Cheremis” is further complicated by the fact that in the Middle Ages (up to the 17th and 18th centuries) this was the name in a number of cases not only for the Mari, but also for their neighbors – the Chuvash and Udmurts. For example, the authors of the textbook “History of the Mari People” about archaeological finds related to Iranian-speaking tribes write that sacrificial fire pits with a large content of bones of domestic animals were discovered in Volga settlements. Rituals associated with the worship of fire and the sacrifice of animals to the gods subsequently became an integral part of the pagan cult of the Mari and other Finno-Ugric people. The worship of the sun was also reflected in applied art: solar (solar) signs in the form of a circle and a cross took a prominent place in the ornaments of the Finno-Ugric peoples. In general, all ancient peoples had solar gods and worshiped the Sun as the source of life on Earth. Let me remind you once again that the suras (ancient gods from the Sun) were the divine teachers of the first people - the asuras. The end of the first millennium BC for the Mari Volga region is characterized by the beginning of the use of iron, mainly from local raw materials - swamp ore. This material was used not only for the manufacture of tools that facilitated the clearing of forests for land plots, cultivation of arable land, etc., but also for the manufacture of more advanced weapons. Wars began to occur more and more often. Among the archaeological monuments of that time, the most characteristic are fortified settlements, protected from the enemy by ramparts and ditches. The hunting way of life is associated with a widespread cult of animals (elk, bear) and waterfowl. A.G. Ivanov and K.N. Sanukov talk about the resettlement of the ancient Mari. The ancient foundation of the Mari people, which had formed by the beginning of the first millennium, was subject to new influences, mixtures, and movements. But the continuity of the main features of material and spiritual culture was preserved and consolidated, as evidenced, for example, by archaeological finds: temple rings, elements of breast decorations, etc., as well as some features of the funeral rite. Ancient ethno-forming processes took place in conditions of expanding ties and interaction with related and unrelated tribes. The real names of these tribes remained unknown. Archaeologists gave them conventional names in accordance with the name of the settlement near which their monument was first excavated and studied. With regard to the social development of tribes, this was the time of the beginning of the collapse of the primitive communal system and the formation of a period of military democracy. The “Great Migration of Peoples” at the beginning of the first millennium also affected the tribes living on the border of the forest zone and forest-steppe. The tribes of the Gorodets culture (ancient Mordovian tribes), under the pressure of the steppe inhabitants, moved north along the Sura and Oka to the Volga, and reached the left bank, in Povetluzhie, and from there to Bolshaya Kokshaga. At the same time from Vyatka, the Azelinians also penetrated into the area of ​​the Bolshaya and Malaya Kokshaga rivers. As a result of their contact and long-term contacts, with the participation of more ancient local populations, great changes occurred in their original cultures. Archaeologists believe that as a result of the “mutual assimilation” of the Gorodets and Azelin tribes in the second half of the 1st millennium, the ancient Mari tribes were formed. This process is evidenced by such archaeological monuments as the Younger Akhmylovsky burial ground on the left bank of the Volga opposite Kozmodemyansk, the Shor-Unzhinsky burial ground in the Morkinsky district, the Kubashevsky settlement in the south of the Kirov region and others containing materials from the Gorodets and Azelinsky cultures. By the way, the formation of the ancient Mari on the basis of two archaeological cultures predetermined the initial differences between the mountain and meadow Mari (the former had a predominance of features of the Gorodets culture, and the latter - the Azelinskaya). The region of formation and initial habitat of the ancient Mari tribes in the west and southwest extended far beyond the borders of the modern Republic of Mari El. These tribes occupied not only the entire Povetluga region and the central regions of the Vetluga-Vyatka interfluve, but also the lands west of Vetluga, bordering the Meryan tribes in the area of ​​the Unzha River; on both banks of the Volga, their habitat area extended from the mouth of the Kazanka to the mouth of the Oka. In the south, the ancient Mari occupied not only the lands of the modern Gornomari region, but also northern Chuvashia. In the north, the border of their settlement passed somewhere in the area of ​​​​the city of Kotelnich. In the east, the Mari occupied the territory of western Bashkiria. At the turn of the 1st and 2nd millennia, when the ancient Mari people were basically already established, close relationships with related Finno-Ugric tribes (except for their closest neighbors - the Mordvins and Udmurts) actually ceased and quite close contacts were established with the early Turks (Suvars and Bulgars) who invaded the Volga. . Already from that time (mid-1st millennium), the Mari language began to experience a strong Turkic influence. The ancient Mari, already having their own specific characteristics and maintaining a certain similarity with the related Finno-Ugric people, began to experience serious Turkic influence. On the southern outskirts of the Mari territory, the population both assimilated with the Bulgars and was partially forced out to the north. It should be noted that some researchers in China, Mongolia and Europe, when covering the history of Attila’s Empire, include the Finnish-speaking tribes of the Middle Volga region in the empire. In my opinion this statement was extremely erroneous. . The decomposition of the clan system among the Mari occurred at the end of the 1st millennium, clan principalities arose, which were ruled by elected elders, and later the Mari began to have princes, who were called Oms. Using their position, they eventually began to seize power over the tribes, enriching themselves at their expense and raiding their neighbors. However, this could not lead to the formation of its own early feudal state. Already at the stage of completion of their ethnogenesis, the Mari found themselves the object of expansion from the Turkic East (the Volga-Kama state of Bulgaria) and the Slavic state (Kievan Rus). From the south, the Mari were attacked by the Volga Bulgars, then by the Golden Horde and the Kazan Khanate. Russian colonization came from the north and west. Around the 11th century, the Vetlya-Shangonsky kuguzstvo (Mari Vetluzhsky principality) was formed. To protect its borders from Russian advances from the Galich principality, the Shanza fortress was built; this fortress later became the center of the Vetluga principality. The Shanza fortress (now the village of Staro-Shangskoye in the Sharya region) was placed by the Mari on the border of their lands as a guard post (eyes) that monitored the advance of the Russians. The place was convenient for defense, since it has natural fortress “walls” on three sides: the Vetluga River with a high bank and deep ravines with steep slopes. The word “shanza” comes from the Mari shentse (shenze) and means eye. The borders of North-Eastern Rus' came close to the territory of settlement of the Mari in the 11th century. The colonization of the Mari lands that began was both peaceful and violent. Along the right bank of the Volga, the Mari lived as far as Nizhny Novgorod. To the west of Sura, the Mari settlements of Somovskoe I and II and toponymy are known. There is Lake Cheremisskoe, two villages of Cheremiski and many villages with Mari names - Monari, Abaturovo, Kemary, Makatelem, Ilevo, Kubaevo, etc. The Mari, pressed by the Mordvins, retreated to the north and east beyond Sura. The Mari tribal elite turned out to be split, some of its representatives were guided by the Russian principalities, the other part actively supported the Bulgars (and later the Tatars). In such conditions there could be no question of creating a national feudal state. The first mention of the Mari in Russian written sources dates back to the beginning of the 12th century. and is found in the “Tale of Bygone Years” by the monk Nestor. The chronicler, listing the Finno-Ugric peoples neighboring the Slavs who pay tribute to Rus', also mentions the Cheremis: “On Beleozero there is all gray, and on Lake Rostov there is merya, and on Lake Kleshchina there is merya. And along the Otse Retsa, where it flows into the Volga, the Muroma have their language, and the Cheremisi have their language, and the Mordovians have their language. This is only the Slovenian language in Rus'; glades, derevlyans, nougorodtsy, polotsk, dregovichi, north, buzhans, zane sadosha along the Bug, and then the Velynians. And these are other languages ​​that give tribute to Rus': Chud, Merya, Vse, Muroma, Cheremis, Mordovians, Perm, Pechera, Yam, Lithuania, Zimigola, Kors, Noroma, Lib: these are their own language, from the tribe of Afetov, etc. live in midnight countries...” At the beginning of the 12th century, the Shanga prince Kai, fearing Russian squads, turned Shanga into a fortified city, and built for himself a new city, Khlynov Vetluga. At this time, the Galician prince Konstantin Yaroslavich (brother of Alexander Nevsky) tried by force of arms to force the Vetluga Cheremis to submit to Galich and pay tribute with “Zakamsky silver”. But the Cheremis defended their independence. In the 12th – 16th centuries, the Mari were more clearly divided into local ethnographic groups than now. There were differences in material and spiritual culture, language, and economy. They were determined by the characteristics of the settlement territory and the influence of various ethnic components that took part in the formation of certain groups of the Mari people. Some differences between ethnographic groups can be traced archaeologically. Studies of the structure of the Mari language also confirm the existence of tribal associations of the Mari with independent and rather different dialects. The mountain Mari lived along the right bank of the Volga. Meadow Mari settled east of the Malaya Kokshaga River. In relation to Kazan, they were also called “lower” and “near” Cheremis. To the west of Malaya Kokshaga lived the Vetluga and Kokshai Mari, also referred to by scientists as the northwestern ones. This was already noted by contemporaries. The Kazan chronicler, having reported about the “meadow cheremis,” continues: “... in that country of Lugovoy there are Koksha and Vetluga cheremis.” Cheremis and the scribal book on Kazan 1565–1568 are divided into Kokshai and Meadow ones. The Mari who lived in the Urals and Kama region are known as Eastern or Bashkir. In the 16th century, another group of Mari was formed, which, by the will of fate, ended up far to the west (in Ukraine), called the Chemeris. Mari society was divided into clans that made up tribes. One of the Mari legends indicates the existence of more than 200 clans and 16 tribes. Power in the tribe belonged to the council of elders, which usually met once or twice a year. Issues about holidays, the order of public prayers, economic matters, issues of war and peace were resolved there. It is known from folklore that once every 10 years a council of all Mari tribes met to resolve issues affecting common interests. At this council, the redistribution of hunting, fishing, and hunting lands took place. The Mari professed a pagan religion; their gods were the spiritual forces of nature. Some of the Mari who lived close to Kazan, especially the clan elite, converted to Islam in the 16th century under the influence of neighboring Tatars, and subsequently became Tatars. Orthodoxy spread among the Mari living in the west. The significant place in the economic activities of the Mari in forestry, beekeeping, fishing and hunting is explained by the fact that they lived in a truly fertile forest region. Boundless dense mixed virgin forests occupied the entire Meadow Side in a continuous massif, merging with the taiga in the north. When describing the Mari region, contemporaries often used expressions such as “forest supports”, “wilds”, “forest deserts”, etc. In the Mari forests there was a great variety of game - bears, moose, deer, wolves, foxes, lynxes, ermines, sables, squirrels, martens, beavers, hares, a large number of various birds, the rivers were full of fish. Hunting among the Mari was commercial, focused on the extraction of furs for sale. An examination of bones from Mari archaeological sites shows that about 50% of them belong to fur-bearing animal species, mainly beaver, marten and sable. The Mari also established handicraft production. They knew blacksmithing and jewelry, woodworking, leather tanning, and pottery. Mari women wove linen and woolen clothing. The Mari lived in log houses, in small villages consisting of several houses - ilems and settlements - ruems. Settlements were located along the banks of reservoirs. There were also “forts” and “fortresses” fortified with ditches, ramparts and palisades, in which the Mari took refuge in case of military danger. Some of these forts were administrative and tribal centers. The Mari had a family nobility, referred to in Russian sources as tens, pentecostals, centurions and hundred princes. The ten-hundred form of government developed as a result of the organizational measures of the Golden Horde for administrative, fiscal and military purposes. This form of government generally corresponded to the tribal organization already existing among the Mari and was therefore accepted by them. The Mari themselves called their leaders shÿdyvuy, puddle, luzhavuy, luvuy and kuguoza (kugyza), which meant “great master, elder.” Mari could act as a mercenary army in the internecine feuds of the Russian princes, or carry out predatory raids on Russian lands alone or in alliance with the Bulgars or Tatars. Often the Bulgar and Kazan rulers hired mercenary warriors from among the Mari, and these warriors were famous for their ability to fight well. All territories in the north of Rus' were at first subordinate to the “lord of Veliky Novgorod”. His sons, the dashing Ushkuiniki, knew the waterway that connected the Volga with the north, through Vetluga, Vokhma, through a small portage between the Northern Dvina and the Volga, through the Yug River and the Northern Dvina. But the advance of the Russians to the northeast constantly accelerated every year, and by 1150 the Russians completely subordinated them to their power and included in their state the Murom tribes and a significant part of the Merya tribes (in the western part of the Kostroma region). The Russians had already penetrated to the banks of the Unzha, but they were not in the valley of the Upper Vetluga (in the Vetluga region). The northern Mari, the Cheremis, still lived there. But from the north, Novgorodians gradually penetrated into this territory, and Suzdal and Nizhny Novgorod residents penetrated into the territory of the south of Vetluga. At the end of the 12th century, Mari armed detachments took part in the internecine wars of the Kostroma and Galician princes, helping one of the warring princes. But it didn't last long.

Mari people: who are we?

Did you know that in the XII-XV centuries, for three hundred (!) years, in the territory of the present Nizhny Novgorod region, in the area between the Pizhma and Vetluga rivers, there existed the Vetluga Mari principality. One of his princes, Kai Khlynovsky, had written peace treaties with Alexander Nevsky and the Khan of the Golden Horde! And in the fourteenth century, “kuguza” (prince) Osh Pandash united the Mari tribes, attracted the Tatars to his side and, during the nineteen-year war, defeated the squad of the Galich prince Andrei Fedorovich. In 1372, the Vetluga Mari principality became independent.

The center of the principality was located in the still existing village of Romachi, Tonshaevsky district, and in the Sacred Grove of the village, according to historical evidence, Osh Pandash was buried in 1385.

In 1468, the Vetluga Mari principality ceased to exist and became part of Russia.

The Mari are the oldest inhabitants of the area between the Vyatka and Vetluga rivers. This is confirmed by archaeological excavations of ancient Mari burial grounds. Khlynovsky on the river. Vyatka, dating back to the 8th - 12th centuries, Yumsky on the river. Yuma, a tributary of Pizhma (9th - 10th centuries), Kocherginsky on the river. Urzhumka, a tributary of the Vyatka (9th - 12th centuries), Cheremissky cemetery on the river. Ludyanka, a tributary of the Vetluga (VIII - X centuries), Veselovsky, Tonshaevsky and other burial grounds (Berezin, pp. 21-27, 36-37).

The decomposition of the clan system among the Mari occurred at the end of the 1st millennium; clan principalities arose, ruled by elected elders. Using their position, they eventually began to seize power over the tribes, enriching themselves at their expense and raiding their neighbors.

However, this could not lead to the formation of its own early feudal state. Already at the stage of completion of their ethnogenesis, the Mari found themselves the object of expansion from the Turkic East and the Slavic state. From the south, the Mari were attacked by the Volga Bulgars, then by the Golden Horde and the Kazan Khanate. Russian colonization came from the north and west.

The Mari tribal elite turned out to be split, some of its representatives were guided by the Russian principalities, the other part actively supported the Tatars. In such conditions there could be no question of creating a national feudal state.

At the end of the 12th – beginning of the 13th centuries, the only Mari region over which the power of the Russian principalities and Bulgars was fairly conditional was the area between the Vyatka and Vetluga rivers in their middle reaches. The natural conditions of the forest zone did not make it possible to clearly tie the northern borders of Volga Bulgaria, and then the Golden Horde, to the area, so the Mari living in this area formed a kind of “autonomy”. Since the collection of tribute (yasak), both for the Slavic principalities and the eastern conquerors, was carried out by the local increasingly feudalizing tribal elite (Sanukov, p. 23)

Mari could act as a mercenary army in the internecine feuds of the Russian princes, or carry out predatory raids on Russian lands alone or in alliance with the Bulgars or Tatars.

In Galich manuscripts, the Cheremis war near Galich was first mentioned in 1170, where the Cheremis of Vetluga and Vyatka appeared as a hired army for a war between quarreling brothers. Both this year and the next year, 1171, the Cheremis were defeated and driven away from Galich Mersky (Dementyev, 1894, p. 24).

In 1174, the Mari population itself was attacked.
The “Vetluga Chronicler” narrates: “Novgorod freemen conquered their city of Koksharov on the Vyatka River from the Cheremis and called it Kotelnich, and the Cheremis left on their side to Yuma and Vetluga.” Since that time, Shanga (the Shangskoe settlement in the upper reaches of the Vetluga) has become stronger among the Cheremis. When in 1181 the Novgorodians conquered Cheremis on Yuma, many residents found it better to live on Vetluga - on Yakshan and Shanga.

After displacing the Mari from the river. Yuma, some of them went down to their relatives on the river. Tansy. Throughout the river basin. Tansy has been inhabited by Mari tribes since ancient times. According to numerous archaeological and folklore data: the political, trade, military and cultural centers of the Mari were located on the territory of modern Tonshaevsky, Yaransky, Urzhumsky and Sovetsky districts of the Nizhny Novgorod and Kirov regions (Aktsorin, pp. 16-17,40).

The time of foundation of Shanza (Shanga) on Vetluga is unknown. But there is no doubt that its foundation is connected with the advance of the Slavic population into areas inhabited by the Mari. The word "shanza" comes from the Mari shentse (shenze) and means eye. By the way, the word shentse (eyes) is used only by the Tonshaev Mari of the Nizhny Novgorod region (Dementyev, 1894 p. 25).

Shanga was placed by the Mari on the border of their lands as a guard post (eyes) that watched the advance of the Russians. Only a fairly large military-administrative center (principality), which united significant Mari tribes, could set up such a guard fortress.

The territory of the modern Tonshaevsky district was part of this principality; it is no coincidence that in the 17th-18th centuries the Mari Armachinsky volost with its center in the village of Romachi was located here. And the Mari who lived here owned at that time “since ancient times” lands on the banks of the Vetluga in the area of ​​the Shangsky settlement. And the legends about the Vetluga principality are known mainly among the Tonshaev Mari (Dementyev, 1892, p. 5,14).

Beginning in 1185, the Galich and Vladimir-Suzdal princes unsuccessfully tried to recapture Shanga from the Mari principality. Moreover, in 1190 the Mari were placed on the river. Vetluga is another “city of Khlynov”, headed by Prince Kai. Only by 1229 did the Russian princes manage to force Kai to make peace with them and pay tribute. A year later, Kai refused the tribute (Dementyev, 1894, p. 26).

By the 40s of the 13th century, the Vetluga Mari principality was significantly strengthened. In 1240, the Yuma prince Koja Eraltem built the city of Yakshan on Vetluga. Koca converts to Christianity and builds churches, freely allowing Russian and Tatar settlements on the Mari lands.

In 1245, upon the complaint of the Galich prince Konstantin Yaroslavich the Udal (brother of Alexander Nevsky), the (Tatar) khan ordered the right bank of the Vetluga River to the Galich prince, the left bank to the Cheremis. The complaint of Konstantin Udaly was obviously caused by the incessant raids of the Vetluga Mari.

In 1246, Russian settlements in Povetluzhye were suddenly attacked and ravaged by the Mongol-Tatars. Some of the residents were killed or captured, the rest fled into the forests. Including the Galicians who settled on the banks of the Vetluga after the Tatar attack in 1237. The "Manuscript Life of St. Barnabas of Vetluzh" speaks about the scale of the devastation. “In the same summer... desolate from the captivity of that filthy Batu... along the bank of the river called Vetluga... And where there was a dwelling for people, forests grew everywhere, great forests, and the Vetluga desert was named” (Kherson, p. 9 ). The Russian population, hiding from Tatar raids and civil strife, settled in the Mari principality: in Shanga and Yakshan.

In 1247, Grand Duke Alexander Nevsky made peace with the Mari and ordered trade and exchange of goods in Shanga. The Tatar Khan and the Russian princes recognized the Mari principality and were forced to reckon with it.

In 1277, the Galich prince David Konstantinovich continued to engage in trade affairs with the Mari. However, already in 1280, David’s brother, Vasily Konstantinovich, began an attack on the Mari principality. In one of the battles, the Mari prince Kiy Khlynovsky was killed, and the principality was forced to pay tribute to Galich. The new prince of the Mari, remaining a tributary of the Galich princes, restored the cities of Shangu and Yakshan, re-fortified Busaksy and Yur (Bulaksy - the village of Odoevskoye, Sharya region, Yur - a settlement on the Yuryevka river near the city of Vetluga).

In the first half of the 14th century, the Russian princes and the Mari did not conduct active hostilities; they attracted the Mari nobility to their side, actively promoted the spread of Christianity among the Mari, and encouraged Russian settlers to move to the Mari lands.

In 1345, the Galich prince Andrei Semenovich (son of Simeon the Proud) married the daughter of the Mari prince Nikita Ivanovich Bayboroda (Mari name Osh Pandash). Osh Pandash converted to Orthodoxy, and the daughter he gave in marriage to Andrei was christened by Mary. At the wedding in Galich was the second wife of Simeon the Proud, Eupraxia, who, according to legend, was damaged by the Mari sorcerer out of envy. Which, however, cost the Mari without any consequences (Dementyev, 1894, pp. 31-32).

Armament and warfare of the Mari/Cheremis

Noble Mari warrior of the mid-11th century.

The chain mail, helmet, sword, spear tip, whip head, sword scabbard tip, were reconstructed based on materials from the excavations of the Sarsky settlement.

The mark on the sword reads +LVNVECIT+ i.e. “Lun made” and is currently the only one of its kind.

The lanceolate spear tip, which stands out for its size (the first tip on the left), belongs to type I according to the Kirpichnikov classification and is, apparently, of Scandinavian origin.

The figure depicts warriors occupying a low position in the social structure of Mari society in the second half of the 11th century. Their weapon set consists of hunting weapons and axes. In the foreground is an archer armed with a bow, arrows, a knife and an axe. There is currently no data on the design features of the Mari bows themselves. The reconstruction shows a simple bow and arrow with a characteristic lance-shaped tip. Cases for storing bows and quivers were apparently made of organic materials (in this case, leather and birch bark, respectively); nothing is known about their shape either.

In the background, a warrior is depicted armed with a massive promotional (it is very difficult to distinguish between a battle and a commercial ax) ax and several throwing spears with double-pronged socketed and lanceolate tips.

In general, the Mari warriors were armed quite typically for their time. Most of them, apparently, wielded bows, axes, spears, and swords, and fought on foot, without using dense formations. Representatives of the tribal elite could afford expensive defensive (chain mail and helmets) and offensive bladed weapons (swords, skramasaks).

The poor state of preservation of the fragment of chain mail found at the Sarsky settlement does not allow us to judge with confidence the method of weaving and the cut of this protective element of the weapon as a whole. One can only assume that they were typical for their time. Judging by the discovery of a piece of chain mail, the Cheremis tribal elite could have used plate armor that was easier to manufacture and cheaper than chain mail. No armored plates were found at the Sarskoe settlement, but they are present among the weapons items originating from Sarskoe-2. This suggests that the Mari warriors, in any case, were familiar with this type of armor design. It also seems extremely likely that the Mari weapons complex will contain the so-called. “soft armor”, made of organic materials (leather, felt, fabric), tightly stuffed with wool or horsehair and quilted. For obvious reasons, it is impossible to confirm the existence of this type of armor with archaeological data. Nothing definite can be said about their cut and appearance. Because of this, such armor was not reproduced in reconstructions.

No traces of the Mari using shields were found. However, the shields themselves are a very rare archaeological find, and written and pictorial sources about the measure are extremely scarce and uninformative. In any case, the existence of shields in the Mari weapons complex of the 9th – 12th centuries. perhaps, because both the Slavs and Scandinavians, undoubtedly in contact with the measures, widely used round-shaped shields, which were widespread at that time throughout Europe, which is confirmed by both written and archaeological sources. Findings of parts of horse and rider equipment - stirrups, buckles, belt distributor, whip tip, in the virtual complete absence of weapons specially adapted for cavalry combat (pikes, sabers, flails), allow us to conclude that the Mari did not have cavalry as a special type of troops . One can, with a very great deal of caution, assume the presence of small cavalry detachments consisting of tribal nobility.

Reminds me of the situation with the mounted warriors of the Ob Ugrians.

The bulk of the Cheremis troops, especially in the event of major military conflicts, consisted of militia. There was no standing army; every free man could own a weapon and, if necessary, became a warrior. This suggests the widespread use by the Mari of commercial weapons (bows, spears with double-pronged tips) and working axes in military conflicts. Most likely, only representatives of the social elite of society had the funds to purchase specialized “combat” weapons. One can assume the existence of contingents of vigilantes - professional warriors for whom war was the main occupation.

As for the mobilization capabilities of the chronicle, they were quite significant for their time.

In general, the military potential of Cheremis can be assessed as high. The structure of its armed organization and the range of weapons changed over time, enriched with elements borrowed from neighboring ethnic groups, but maintaining some originality. These circumstances, along with a fairly high population density for its time and good economic potential, allowed the Vetluga Mari principality to take a noticeable part in the events of early Russian history.

Mari noble warrior. Illustrations-reconstructions by I. Dzys from the book “Kievan Rus” (Rosman publishing house).

The legends of the Vetluga borderland have their own twist. They usually involve a girl. She can take revenge on the robbers (be they Tatars or Russians), drown them in the river, for example, at the cost of her own life. She may be the robber’s girlfriend, but out of jealousy she also drowns him (and drowns herself). Or maybe she herself could be a robber or a warrior.

Nikolai Fomin depicted the Cheremis warrior like this:

Very close and, in my opinion, very veristic. Can be used to create a “male version” of the Mari-Cheremis warrior. By the way, Fomin, apparently, did not dare to reconstruct the shield.

National costume of the Mari:

Ovda-witch among the Mari

Mari names:

Male names

Abdai, Abla, Abukai, Abulek, Agey, Agish, Adai, Adenai, Adibek, Adim, Aim, Ait, Aygelde, Ayguza, Aiduvan, Aydush, Aivak, Aimak, Aymet, Ayplat, Aytukay, Azamat, Azmat, Azygey, Azyamberdey, Akaz, Akanay, Akipai, Akmazik, Akmanay, Akoza, Akpay, Akpars, Akpas, Akpatyr, Aksai, Aksar, Aksaran, Akson, Aktai, Aktan, Aktanay, Akterek, Aktubay, Aktugan, Aktygan, Aktygash, Alatay, Albacha, Alek, Almaday, Alkay, Almakay, Alman, Almantay, Alpay, Altybay, Altym, Altysh, Alshik, Alym, Amash, Anay, Angish, Andugan, Ansai, Anykay, Apai, Apakay, Apisar, Appak, Aptriy, Aptysh, Arazgelde, Ardash, Asai, Asamuk, Askar, Aslan, Asmay, Atavay, Atachik, Aturay, Atyuy, Ashkelde, Ashtyvay

Bikey, Bakey, Bakmat, Berdey

Vakiy, Valitpay, Varash, Vachiy, Vegeney, Vetkan, Voloy, Vurspatyr

Eksei, Elgoza, Elos, Emesh, Epish, Yesieniei

Zainikai, Zengul, Zilkai

Ibat, Ibray, Ivuk, Idulbay, Izambay, Izvay, Izerge, Izikay, Izimar, Izyrgen, Ikaka, Ilanday, Ilbaktai, Ilikpay, Ilmamat, Ilsek, Imai, Imakay, Imanay, Indybay, Ipay, Ipon, Irkebay, Isan, Ismeney, Istak, Itver, Iti, Itykay, Ishim, Ishkelde, Ishko, Ishmet, Ishterek

Yolgyza, Yorai, Yormoshkan, Yorok, Yylanda, Yynash

Kavik, Kavirlya, Kaganay, Kazaklar, Kazmir, Kazulai, Kakaley, Kaluy, Kamai, Kambar, Kanai, Kany, Kanykiy, Karantai, Karachey, Karman, Kachak, Kebey, Kebyash, Keldush, Keltey, Kelmekey, Kendugan, Kenchyvay, Kenzhivay, Kerey, Kechim, Kilimbay, Kildugan, Kildyash, Kimai, Kinash, Kindu, Kirysh, Kispelat, Kobey, Kovyazh, Kogoy, Kozhdemyr, Kozher, Kozash, Kokor, Kokur, Koksha, Kokshavuy, Konakpai, Kopon, Kori, Kubakay, Kugerge, Kugubay, Kulmet, Kulbat, Kulshet, Kumanay, Kumunzay, Kuri, Kurmanay, Kutarka, Kylak

Lagat, Laksyn, Lapkai, Leventey, Lekai, Lotay,

Magaza, Madiy, Maksak, Mamatai, Mamich, Mamuk, Mamulay, Mamut, Manekay, Mardan, Marzhan, Marshan, Masai, Mekesh, Memey, Michu, Moise, Mukanay, Mulikpay, Mustai

Ovdek, Ovrom, Odygan, Ozambay, Ozati, Okash, Oldygan, Onar, Onto, Onchep, Orai, Orlay, Ormik, Orsay, Orchama, Opkyn, Oskay, Oslam, Oshay, Oshkelde, Oshpay, Orozoy, Ortomo

Paybakhta, Payberde, Paygash, Paygish, Paygul, Paygus, Paygyt, Payder, Paydush, Paymas, Paymet, Paymurza, Paymyr, Paysar, Pakai, Pakei, Pakiy, Pakit, Paktek, Pakshay, Paldai, Pangelde, Parastai, Pasyvy, Patai, Paty, Patyk, Patyrash, Pashatley, Pashbek, Pashkan, Pegash, Pegeney, Pekey, Pekesh, Pekoza, Pekpatyr, Pekpulat, Pektan, Pektash, Pektek, Pektubay, Pektygan, Pekshik, Petigan, Pekmet, Pibakay, Pibulat, Pidalay, Pogolti, Pozanay, Pokay, Poltysh, Pombey, Understand, Por, Porandai, Porzay, Posak, Posibey, Pulat, Pyrgynde

Rotkay, Ryazhan

Sabati, Savay, Savak, Savat, Savy, Savli, Saget, Sain, Saypyten, Saituk, Sakay, Salday, Saldugan, Saldyk, Salmanday, Salmiyan, Samay, Samukay, Samut, Sanin, Sanuk, Sapay, Sapan, Sapar, Saran, Sarapay, Sarbos, Sarvay, Sarday, Sarkandai, Sarman, Sarmanay, Sarmat, Saslyk, Satay, Satkay, S?p?, Sese, Semekey, Semendey, Setyak, Sibay, Sidulai (Sidelay), Sidush, Sidybay, Sipatyr, Sotnay, Suangul, Subai, Sultan, Surmanay, Surtan

Tavgal, Tayvylat, Taygelde, Tayyr, Talmek, Tamas, Tanay, Tanakay, Tanagay, Tanatar, Tantush, Tarai, Temai, Temyash, Tenbay, Tenikey, Tepay, Terey, Terke, Tyatyuy, Tilmemek, Tilyak, Tinbay, Tobulat, Togildey, Todanay, Toy, Toybay, Toybakhta, Toyblat, Toyvator, Toygelde, Toyguza, Toydak, Toydemar, Toyderek, Toydybek, Toykey, Toymet, Tokay, Tokash, Tokey, Tokmai, Tokmak, Tokmash, Tokmurza, Tokpay, Tokpulat, Toksubay, Toktay, Toktamysh, Toktanay, Toktar, Toktaush, Tokshey, Toldugak, Tolmet, Tolubay, Tolubey, Topkay, Topoy, Torash, Torut, Tosai, Tosak, Totz, Topay, Tugay, Tulat, Tunay, Tunbay, Turnaran, Totokay, Temer, Tyulebay, Tyuley, Tyushkay, Tyabyanak, Tyabikey, Tyabley, Tyuman, Tyush

Uksai, Ulem, Ultecha, Ur, Urazai, Ursa, Uchay

Tsapai, Tsatak, Tsorabatyr, Tsorakai, Tsotnay, Tsörysh, Tsyndush

Chavay, Chalay, Chapey, Chekeney, Chemekey, Chepish, Chetnay, Chimay, Chicher, Chopan, Chopi, Chopoy, Chorak, Chorash, Chotkar, Chuzhgan, Chuzay, Chumbylat (Chumblat), Chÿchkay

Shabai, Shabdar, Shaberde, Shadai, Shaimardan, Shamat, Shamray, Shamykai, Shantsora, Shiik, Shikvava, Shimay, Shipai, Shogen, Strek, Shumat, Shuet, Shyen

Ebat, Evay, Evrash, Eishemer, Ekay, Eksesan, Elbakhta, Eldush, Elikpay, Elmurza, Elnet, Elpay, Eman, Emanay, Emash, Emek, Emeldush, Emen (Emyan), Emyatay, Enay, Ensay, Epay, Epanay, Erakay , Erdu, Ermek, Ermyza, Erpatyr, Esek, Esik, Eskey, Esmek, Esmeter, Esu, Esyan, Etvay, Etyuk, Echan, Eshay, Eshe, Eshken, Eshmanay, Eshmek, Eshmyay, Eshpay (Ishpay), Eshplat, Eshpoldo, Eshpulat, Eshtanay, Eshterek

Yuadar, Yuanay (Yuvanay), Yuvan, Yuvash, Yuzay, Yuzykay, Yukez, Yukey, Yukser, Yumakay, Yushkelde, Yushtanay

Yaberde, Yagelde, Yagodar, Yadyk, Yazhay, Yaik, Yakay, Yakiy, Yakman, Yakterge, Yakut, Yakush, Yakshik, Yalkay (Yalky), Yalpay, Yaltay, Yamay, Yamak, Yamakay, Yamalii, Yamanay, Yamatay, Yambay, Yambaktyn , Yambarsha, Yamberde, Yamblat, Yambos, Yamet, Yammurza, Yamshan, Yamyk, Yamysh, Yanadar, Yanai, Yanak, Yanaktai, Yanash, Yanbadysh, Yanbasar, Yangai, Yangan (Yanygan), Yangelde, Yangerche, Yangidey, Yangoza, Yanguvat, Yangul, Yangush, Yangys, Yandak, Yanderek, Yandugan, Yanduk, Yandush (Yandysh), Yandula, Yandygan, Yandylet, Yandysh, Yaniy, Yanikei, Yansai, Yantemir (Yandemir), Yantecha, Yantsit, Yantsora, Yanchur (Yanchura), Yanygit , Yanyk, Yanykay (Yanyky), Yapay, Yapar, Yapush, Yaraltem, Yaran, Yarandai, Yarmiy, Yastap, Yatman, Yaush, Yachok, Yashay, Yashkelde, Yashkot, Yashmak, Yashmurza, Yashpay, Yashpadar, Yashpatyr, Yashtugan

Female names

Aivika, Aikawi, Akpika, Aktalche, Alipa, Amina, Anay, Arnyaviy, Arnyasha, Asavi, Asildik, Astan, Atybylka, Achiy

Baytabichka

Yoktalce

Kazipa, Kaina, Kanipa, Kelgaska, Kechavi, Kigeneshka, Kinai, Kinichka, Kistelet, Xilbika

Mayra, Makeva, Malika, Marzi (Myarzi), Marziva

Naltichka, Nachi

Ovdachi, Ovoy, Ovop, Ovchi, Okalche, Okachi, Oksina, Okutiy, Onasi, Orina, Ochiy

Paizuka, Payram, Pampalche, Payalche, Penalche, Pialche, Pidelet

Sagida, Sayviy, Sailan, Sakeva, Salika, Salima, Samiga, Sandyr, Saskaviy, Saskay, Saskanai, Sebichka, Soto, Sylvika

Ulina, Unavi, Usti

Changa, Chatuk, Chachi, Chilbichka, Chinbeika, Chinchi, Chichavi

Shaivi, Shaldybeyka

Evika, Ekevi, Elika, Erviy, Ervika, Erica

Yukchi, Yulaviy

Yalche, Yambi, Yanipa

Occupations of the population: settled agricultural and livestock farming, developed crafts, metalworking in combination with ancient traditional occupations: gathering, hunting, fishing, beekeeping.
Note: the lands are very good and fertile.

Resources: fish, honey, wax.

Line of troops:

1. A detachment of the prince’s bodyguards - mounted, heavily armed fighters with swords, in chain mail and plate armor, with spears, swords and shields. The helmets are pointed, with plumes. The number of the detachment is small.
Onyizha is a prince.
Kugyza - leader, elder.

2. The warriors - as in the color illustration - in chain mail, hemispherical helmets, with swords and shields.
Patyr, odyr - warrior, hero.

3. Lightly armed warriors with darts and axes (without shields) in quilts. No helmets in hats.
Marie - husbands.

4. Archers with good strong bows and sharp arrows. No helmets. in quilted sleeveless vests.
Yumo - onion.

5. A special seasonal unit is the Cheremis skier. The Mari had - Russian chronicles note them repeatedly.
kuas - ski, skis - pal kuas

The symbol of the Mari is the white elk - a symbol of nobility and strength. He points to the presence of rich forests and meadows around the city where these animals live.

Basic colors of the Mari: Osh Mari - White Mari. This is how the Mari called themselves, glorifying the whiteness of traditional clothing and the purity of their thoughts. The reason for this was, first of all, their usual outfits, the custom that had developed over the years to wear all white. In winter and summer they wore a white caftan, under the caftan - a white canvas shirt, and on their heads - a hat made of white felt. And only the dark red patterns embroidered on the shirt and along the hem of the caftan brought variety and a noticeable feature to the white color of the entire robe.

That’s why they should be made mostly of white clothes. There were a lot of red-haired people.

More ornaments and embroidery:

And, perhaps, that's all. The faction is ready.

Here’s more about the Mari, by the way, it touches on the mystical aspect of traditions, it might come in handy.

Scientists attribute the Mari to the group of Finno-Ugric peoples, but this is not entirely true. According to ancient Mari legends, this people in ancient times came from Ancient Iran, the homeland of the prophet Zarathustra, and settled along the Volga, where they mixed with local Finno-Ugric tribes, but retained their originality. This version is also confirmed by philology. According to Doctor of Philology, Professor Chernykh, out of 100 Mari words, 35 are Finno-Ugric, 28 Turkic and Indo-Iranian, and the rest are of Slavic origin and other peoples. Having carefully examined the prayer texts of the ancient Mari religion, Professor Chernykh came to an amazing conclusion: the prayer words of the Mari are more than 50% of Indo-Iranian origin. It is in the prayer texts that the proto-language of the modern Mari has been preserved, unaffected by the influence of the peoples with whom they had contact in later periods.

Externally, the Mari are quite different from other Finno-Ugric peoples. As a rule, they are not very tall, with dark hair and slightly slanted eyes. Mari girls are very beautiful at a young age, but by the age of forty, most of them grow very old and either dry out or become incredibly plump.

The Mari remember themselves under the rule of the Khazars from the 2nd century. - 500 years, then under the rule of the Bulgars 400, 400 under the Horde. 450 – under Russian principalities. According to ancient predictions, the Mari cannot live under someone for more than 450-500 years. But they will not have an independent state. This cycle of 450-500 years is associated with the passage of a comet.

Before the collapse of the Bulgar Kaganate, namely at the end of the 9th century, the Mari occupied vast areas, and their number was more than a million people. These are the Rostov region, Moscow, Ivanovo, Yaroslavl, the territory of modern Kostroma, Nizhny Novgorod, modern Mari El and the Bashkir lands.

In ancient times, the Mari people were ruled by princes, whom the Mari called Oms. The prince combined the functions of both a military leader and a high priest. The Mari religion considers many of them saints. Holy in Mari - shnui. It takes 77 years for a person to be recognized as a saint. If, after this period, when praying to him, healings from illnesses and other miracles occur, then the deceased is recognized as a saint.

Often such holy princes possessed various extraordinary abilities, and were in one person a righteous sage and a warrior merciless to the enemy of his people. After the Mari finally fell under the rule of other tribes, they had no princes. And the religious function is performed by the priest of their religion - karts. The Supreme Kart of all Mari is elected by the council of all Karts and his powers within the framework of his religion are approximately equal to the powers of the patriarch of Orthodox Christians.

In ancient times, the Mari truly believed in many gods, each of which reflected some element or force. However, during the unification of the Mari tribes, like the Slavs, the Mari experienced an urgent political and religious need for religious reformation.

But the Mari did not follow the path of Vladimir Krasno Solnyshko and did not accept Christianity, but changed their own religion. The reformer was the Mari prince Kurkugza, whom the Mari now reverence as a saint. Kurkugza studied other religions: Christianity, Islam, Buddhism. Traders from other principalities and tribes helped him study other religions. The prince also studied the shamanism of the northern peoples. Having learned in detail about all religions, he reformed the old Mari religion and introduced the cult of veneration of the Supreme God - Osh Tun Kugu Yumo, the Lord of the Universe.

This is the hypostasis of the great one God, responsible for the power and control of all other hypostases (incarnations) of the one God. Under him, the primacy of the hypostases of the one God was determined. The main ones were Anavarem Yumo, Ilyan Yumo, Pirshe Yumo. The prince did not forget his kinship and roots with the Mera people, with whom the Mari lived in harmony and had common linguistic and religious roots. Hence the deity Mer Yumo.

Ser Lagash is an analogue of the Christian Savior, but inhuman. This is also one of the hypostases of the Almighty, which arose under the influence of Christianity. Shochyn Ava became an analogue of the Christian Mother of God. Mlande Ava is a hypostasis of the one God, responsible for fertility. Perke Ava is a hypostasis of the one God, responsible for economy and abundance. Tynya Yuma is a heavenly dome that consists of nine Kawa Yuma (heavens). Keche Ava (sun), Shidr Ava (stars), Tylyze Ava (moon) is the upper tier. The lower tier is Mardezh Ava (wind), Pyl Ava (clouds), Vit Ava (water), Kyudricha Yuma (thunder), Volgenche Yuma (lightning). If the deity ends in Yumo, it is Oza (master, ruler). And if it ends in Ava, then strength.

Thank you if you read to the end...

The Mari emerged as an independent people from the Finno-Ugric tribes in the 10th century. Over the millennium of its existence, the Mari people have created a unique culture.

The book talks about rituals, customs, ancient beliefs, folk arts and crafts, blacksmithing, the art of songwriters, storytellers, guslars, folk music, includes texts of songs, legends, fairy tales, stories, poems and prose of the classics of the Mari people and modern writers, talks about theatrical and musical art, about outstanding representatives of the culture of the Mari people.

Included are reproductions of the most famous paintings by Mari artists of the 19th-21st centuries.

Excerpt

Introduction

Scientists attribute the Mari to the group of Finno-Ugric peoples, but this is not entirely true. According to ancient Mari legends, this people in ancient times came from Ancient Iran, the homeland of the prophet Zarathustra, and settled along the Volga, where they mixed with local Finno-Ugric tribes, but retained their originality. This version is also confirmed by philology. According to Doctor of Philology, Professor Chernykh, out of 100 Mari words, 35 are Finno-Ugric, 28 Turkic and Indo-Iranian, and the rest are of Slavic origin and other peoples. Having carefully examined the prayer texts of the ancient Mari religion, Professor Chernykh came to an amazing conclusion: the prayer words of the Mari are more than 50% of Indo-Iranian origin. It is in the prayer texts that the proto-language of the modern Mari has been preserved, not influenced by the peoples with whom they had contact in later periods.

Externally, the Mari are quite different from other Finno-Ugric peoples. As a rule, they are not very tall, with dark hair and slightly slanted eyes. Mari girls at a young age are very beautiful and they can even often be confused with Russians. However, by the age of forty, most of them become very old and either dry out or become incredibly plump.

The Mari remember themselves under the rule of the Khazars from the 2nd century. - 500 years, then under the rule of the Bulgars for 400 years, 400 years under the Horde. 450 - under Russian principalities. According to ancient predictions, the Mari cannot live under someone for more than 450–500 years. But they will not have an independent state. This cycle of 450–500 years is associated with the passage of a comet.

Before the collapse of the Bulgar Kaganate, namely at the end of the 9th century, the Mari occupied vast areas, and their number was more than a million people. These are the Rostov region, Moscow, Ivanovo, Yaroslavl, the territory of modern Kostroma, Nizhny Novgorod, modern Mari El and the Bashkir lands.

In ancient times, the Mari people were ruled by princes, whom the Mari called Oms. The prince combined the functions of both a military leader and a high priest. The Mari religion considers many of them saints. Holy in Mari - shnui. It takes 77 years for a person to be recognized as a saint. If after this period, when praying to him, healings from illnesses and other miracles occur, then the deceased is recognized as a saint.

Often such holy princes possessed various extraordinary abilities, and were in one person a righteous sage and a warrior merciless to the enemy of his people. After the Mari finally fell under the rule of other tribes, they had no princes. And the religious function is performed by the priest of their religion - karts. The Supreme Kart of all Mari is elected by the council of all Karts and his powers within the framework of his religion are approximately equal to the powers of the patriarch of Orthodox Christians.

Modern Mari live in the territories between 45° and 60° north latitude and 56° and 58° east longitude in several rather closely related groups. The autonomous Republic of Mari El, located along the middle reaches of the Volga, declared itself in its Constitution in 1991 a sovereign state within the Russian Federation. The declaration of sovereignty in the post-Soviet era means adherence to the principle of preserving the uniqueness of the national culture and language. In the Mari Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, according to the 1989 census, there were 324,349 residents of Mari nationality. In the neighboring Gorky region, 9 thousand people called themselves Mari, in the Kirov region - 50 thousand people. In addition to the listed places, a significant Mari population lives in Bashkortostan (105,768 people), Tatarstan (20 thousand people), Udmurtia (10 thousand people) and in the Sverdlovsk region (25 thousand people). In some regions of the Russian Federation, the number of scattered, sporadically living Mari reaches 100 thousand people. The Mari are divided into two large dialectal and ethnocultural groups: the mountain Mari and the meadow Mari.

History of the Mari

We are learning more and more fully and better about the vicissitudes of the formation of the Mari people based on the latest archaeological research. In the second half of the 1st millennium BC. e., and also at the beginning of the 1st millennium AD. e. Among the ethnic groups of the Gorodets and Azelin cultures, one can assume the ancestors of the Mari. The Gorodets culture was autochthonous on the right bank of the Middle Volga region, while the Azelinskaya culture was on the left bank of the Middle Volga, as well as along the course of the Vyatka. These two branches of the ethnogenesis of the Mari people clearly show the double connection of the Mari within the Finno-Ugric tribes. The Gorodets culture for the most part played a role in the formation of the Mordovian ethnic group, but its eastern parts served as the basis for the formation of the mountain Mari ethnic group. The Azelin culture can be traced back to the Ananyin archaeological culture, which was previously assigned a dominant role only in the ethnogenesis of the Finno-Permian tribes, although this issue is currently considered by some researchers differently: perhaps the proto-Ugric and ancient Mari tribes were part of the ethnic groups of new archaeological cultures - successors that arose on the site of the collapsed Ananyin culture. The Meadow Mari ethnic group can also be traced back to the traditions of the Ananyin culture.

The Eastern European forest zone has extremely scanty written information about the history of the Finno-Ugric peoples; the writing of these peoples appeared very late, with few exceptions only in the newest historical era. The first mention of the ethnonym “Cheremis” in the form “ts-r-mis” is found in a written source, which dates back to the 10th century, but dates back, in all likelihood, to a time one or two centuries later. According to this source, the Mari were tributaries of the Khazars. Then kari (in the form "cheremisam") mentions composed in. beginning of the 12th century Russian chronicle, calling the place of their settlement the land at the mouth of the Oka. Of the Finno-Ugric peoples, the Mari turned out to be most closely associated with the Turkic tribes that moved to the Volga region. These connections are still very strong. Volga Bulgars at the beginning of the 9th century. arrived from Great Bulgaria on the Black Sea coast to the confluence of the Kama and Volga, where they founded Volga Bulgaria. The ruling elite of the Volga Bulgars, taking advantage of the profits from trade, could firmly maintain their power. They traded honey, wax, and furs that came from the Finno-Ugric peoples living nearby. Relations between the Volga Bulgars and various Finno-Ugric tribes of the Middle Volga region were not overshadowed by anything. The empire of the Volga Bulgars was destroyed by Mongol-Tatar conquerors who invaded from the interior regions of Asia in 1236.

Collection of yasak. Reproduction of a painting by G.A. Medvedev

Batu Khan founded a state entity called the Golden Horde in the territories captured and subordinated to them. Its capital until the 1280s. was the city of Bulgar, the former capital of Volga Bulgaria. The Mari were in allied relations with the Golden Horde and the independent Kazan Khanate that subsequently emerged from it. This is evidenced by the fact that the Mari had a stratum that did not pay taxes, but was obliged to perform military service. This class then became one of the most combat-ready military formations among the Tatars. Also, the existence of allied relations is indicated by the use of the Tatar word “el” - “people, empire” to designate the region inhabited by the Mari. Mari still call their native land Mari El.

The annexation of the Mari region to the Russian state was greatly influenced by the contacts of some groups of the Mari population with the Slavic-Russian state formations (Kievan Rus - northeastern Russian principalities and lands - Muscovite Rus) even before the 16th century. There was a significant limiting factor that did not allow the rapid completion of what began in the 12th–13th centuries. the process of becoming part of Rus' is the close and multilateral ties of the Mari with the Turkic states that opposed Russian expansion to the east (Volga-Kama Bulgaria - Ulus Jochi - Kazan Khanate). This intermediate position, as A. Kappeler believes, led to the fact that the Mari, as well as the Mordovians and Udmurts who were in a similar situation, were drawn into neighboring state formations economically and administratively, but at the same time retained their own social elite and their pagan religion .

The inclusion of the Mari lands into Rus' from the very beginning was controversial. Already at the turn of the 11th–12th centuries, according to the Tale of Bygone Years, the Mari (“Cheremis”) were among the tributaries of the Old Russian princes. It is believed that tributary dependence is the result of military clashes, “torture.” True, there is not even indirect information about the exact date of its establishment. G.S. Lebedev, based on the matrix method, showed that in the catalog of the introductory part of “The Tale of Bygone Years” “Cheremis” and “Mordva” can be combined into one group with all, measure and Muroma according to four main parameters - genealogical, ethnic, political and moral-ethical . This gives some reason to believe that the Mari became tributaries earlier than the rest of the non-Slavic tribes listed by Nestor - “Perm, Pechera, Em” and other “pagans who give tribute to Rus'.”

There is information about the dependence of the Mari on Vladimir Monomakh. According to the “Tale of the Destruction of the Russian Land”, “the Cheremis... fought against the great Prince Volodymer.” In the Ipatiev Chronicle, in unison with the pathetic tone of the Lay, it is said that he is “especially terrible at the filthy.” According to B.A. Rybakov, the real reign, the nationalization of North-Eastern Rus' began precisely with Vladimir Monomakh.

However, the testimony of these written sources does not allow us to say that all groups of the Mari population paid tribute to the ancient Russian princes; Most likely, only the Western Mari, who lived near the mouth of the Oka, were drawn into the sphere of influence of Rus'.

The rapid pace of Russian colonization caused opposition from the local Finno-Ugric population, which found support from the Volga-Kama Bulgaria. In 1120, after a series of attacks by the Bulgars on Russian cities in the Volga-Ochye in the second half of the 11th century, a retaliatory series of campaigns began by the Vladimir-Suzdal and allied princes on lands that either belonged to the Bulgar rulers or were simply controlled by them in order to levy tribute from the local population. It is believed that the Russian-Bulgar conflict broke out primarily due to the collection of tribute.

Russian princely squads more than once attacked Mari villages along their route to the rich Bulgarian cities. It is known that in the winter of 1171/72. Boris Zhidislavich's detachment destroyed one large fortified and six small settlements just below the mouth of the Oka, and here even in the 16th century. The Mari population still lived alongside the Mordovians. Moreover, it was under this same date that the Russian fortress of Gorodets Radilov was first mentioned, which was built slightly above the mouth of the Oka on the left bank of the Volga, presumably on the land of the Mari. According to V.A. Kuchkin, Gorodets Radilov became a stronghold military point of North-Eastern Rus' in the Middle Volga and the center of Russian colonization of the local region.

The Slavic-Russians gradually either assimilated or displaced the Mari, forcing them to migrate east. This movement has been traced by archaeologists since about the 8th century. n. e.; the Mari, in turn, came into ethnic contact with the Permian-speaking population of the Volga-Vyatka interfluve (the Mari called them Odo, that is, they were Udmurts). The newcomer ethnic group prevailed in the ethnic competition. In the 9th–11th centuries. The Mari basically completed the development of the Vetluzh-Vyatka interfluve, displacing and partially assimilating the previous population. Numerous legends of the Mari and Udmurts testify that there were armed conflicts, and mutual antipathy continued to exist for quite a long time between representatives of these Finno-Ugric peoples.

As a result of the military campaign of 1218–1220, the conclusion of the Russian-Bulgar peace treaty of 1220 and the founding of Nizhny Novgorod at the mouth of the Oka in 1221 - the easternmost outpost of North-Eastern Rus' - the influence of the Volga-Kama Bulgaria in the Middle Volga region weakened. This created favorable conditions for the Vladimir-Suzdal feudal lords to conquer the Mordovians. Most likely, during the Russian-Mordovian war of 1226–1232. The “Cheremis” of the Oka-Sur interfluve were also involved.

The Russian Tsar presents gifts to the mountain Mari

The expansion of both Russian and Bulgarian feudal lords was also directed into the Unzha and Vetluga basins, which were relatively unsuitable for economic development. The Mari tribes and the eastern part of the Kostroma Meri lived here mainly, between which, as established by archaeologists and linguists, there was a lot in common, which to some extent allows us to speak about the ethnocultural community of the Vetluga Mari and the Kostroma Merya. In 1218, the Bulgars attacked Ustyug and Unzha; under 1237, another Russian city in the Volga region was mentioned for the first time - Galich Mersky. Apparently, there was a struggle here for the Sukhon-Vychegda trade and fishing route and for collecting tribute from the local population, in particular the Mari. Russian domination was established here too.

In addition to the western and northwestern periphery of the Mari lands, Russians from approximately the turn of the 12th–13th centuries. They also began to develop the northern outskirts - the upper reaches of the Vyatka, where, in addition to the Mari, the Udmurts also lived.

The development of the Mari lands was most likely carried out not only by force and military methods. There are such types of “cooperation” between Russian princes and the national nobility as “equal” matrimonial unions, company of companies, complicity, hostage-taking, bribery, and “doubling.” It is possible that a number of these methods were also used against representatives of the Mari social elite.

If in the 10th–11th centuries, as archaeologist E.P. Kazakov points out, there was “a certain commonality of Bulgar and Volga-Mari monuments,” then over the next two centuries the ethnographic appearance of the Mari population - especially in Povetluzhye - became different. The Slavic and Slavic-Merian components have significantly strengthened in it.

Facts show that the degree of inclusion of the Mari population in Russian state formations in the pre-Mongol period was quite high.

The situation changed in the 30s and 40s. XIII century as a result of the Mongol-Tatar invasion. However, this did not at all lead to the cessation of the growth of Russian influence in the Volga-Kama region. Small independent Russian state formations appeared around urban centers - princely residences, founded during the period of the existence of the united Vladimir-Suzdal Rus'. These are the Galician (appeared around 1247), Kostroma (approximately in the 50s of the 13th century) and Gorodets (between 1269 and 1282) principalities; At the same time, the influence of the Vyatka Land grew, turning into a special state entity with veche traditions. In the second half of the 14th century. The Vyatchans had already firmly established themselves in the Middle Vyatka and in the Pizhma basin, displacing the Mari and Udmurts from here.

In the 60–70s. XIV century Feudal unrest ensued in the horde, which temporarily weakened its military and political power. This was successfully used by the Russian princes, who sought to break out of dependence on the khan's administration and increase their possessions at the expense of the peripheral regions of the empire.

The most notable successes were achieved by the Nizhny Novgorod-Suzdal Principality, the successor to the Principality of Gorodetsky. The first Nizhny Novgorod prince Konstantin Vasilyevich (1341–1355) “commanded the Russian people to settle along the Oka and Volga and Kuma rivers... wherever anyone wanted,” that is, he began to sanction the colonization of the Oka-Sur interfluve. And in 1372, his son Prince Boris Konstantinovich founded the Kurmysh fortress on the left bank of the Sura, thereby establishing control over the local population - mainly Mordvins and Mari.

Soon, the possessions of the Nizhny Novgorod princes began to appear on the right bank of the Sura (in Zasurye), where the mountain Mari and Chuvash lived. By the end of the 14th century. Russian influence in the Sura basin increased so much that representatives of the local population began to warn the Russian princes about the upcoming invasions of the Golden Horde troops.

Frequent attacks by ushkuiniks played a significant role in strengthening anti-Russian sentiments among the Mari population. The most sensitive for the Mari, apparently, were the raids carried out by Russian river robbers in 1374, when they ravaged villages along the Vyatka, Kama, Volga (from the mouth of the Kama to the Sura) and Vetluga.

In 1391, as a result of Bektut’s campaign, the Vyatka Land, which was considered the refuge of the Ushkuiniki, was devastated. However, already in 1392 the Vyatchans plundered the Bulgar cities of Kazan and Zhukotin (Dzhuketau).

According to the “Vetluga Chronicler,” in 1394, “Uzbeks” appeared in the Vetluga region - nomadic warriors from the eastern half of the Jochi Ulus, who “took people for the army and took them along the Vetluga and Volga near Kazan to Tokhtamysh.” And in 1396, Tokhtamysh’s protege Keldibek was elected kuguz.

As a result of a large-scale war between Tokhtamysh and Timur Tamerlane, the Golden Horde Empire was significantly weakened, many Bulgar cities were devastated, and its surviving inhabitants began to move to the right side of the Kama and Volga - away from the dangerous steppe and forest-steppe zone; in the area of ​​Kazanka and Sviyaga, the Bulgarian population came into close contact with the Mari.

In 1399, the appanage prince Yuri Dmitrievich took the cities of Bulgar, Kazan, Kermenchuk, Zhukotin, the chronicles indicate that “no one remembers only that far away Rus' fought the Tatar land.” Apparently, at the same time the Galich prince conquered the Vetluzh region - the Vetluzh chronicler reports about this. Kuguz Keldibek admitted his dependence on the leaders of the Vyatka Land, concluding a military alliance with them. In 1415, the Vetluzhans and Vyatchans made a joint campaign against the Northern Dvina. In 1425, the Vetluga Mari became part of the many-thousand-strong militia of the Galich appanage prince, who began an open struggle for the grand-ducal throne.

In 1429, Keldibek took part in the campaign of the Bulgaro-Tatar troops led by Alibek to Galich and Kostroma. In response to this, in 1431, Vasily II took severe punitive measures against the Bulgars, who had already suffered seriously from a terrible famine and plague epidemic. In 1433 (or 1434), Vasily Kosoy, who received Galich after the death of Yuri Dmitrievich, physically eliminated the kuguz Keldibek and annexed the Vetluzh kuguzdom to his inheritance.

The Mari population also had to experience the religious and ideological expansion of the Russian Orthodox Church. The pagan Mari population, as a rule, negatively perceived attempts to Christianize them, although there were also opposite examples. In particular, the Kazhirovsky and Vetluzhsky chroniclers report that the Kuguz Kodzha-Eraltem, Kai, Bai-Boroda, their relatives and associates adopted Christianity and allowed the construction of churches on the territory they controlled.

Among the Privetluzh Mari population, a version of the Kitezh legend became widespread: supposedly the Mari, who did not want to submit to the “Russian princes and priests,” buried themselves alive right on the shore of Svetloyar, and subsequently, together with the earth that collapsed on them, slid to the bottom of a deep lake. The following record has been preserved, made in the 19th century: “Among the Svetloyarsk pilgrims you can always find two or three Mari women dressed in sharpan, without any signs of Russification.”

By the time of the emergence of the Kazan Khanate, the Mari of the following regions were involved in the sphere of influence of Russian state formations: the right bank of the Sura - a significant part of the mountain Mari (this can also include the Oka-Sura “Cheremis”), Povetluzhie - northwestern Mari, the Pizhma River basin and the Middle Vyatka - northern part of meadow mari. Less affected by Russian influence were the Kokshai Mari, the population of the Ileti River basin, the northeastern part of the modern territory of the Republic of Mari El, as well as the Lower Vyatka, that is, the main part of the meadow Mari.

The territorial expansion of the Kazan Khanate was carried out in the western and northern directions. Sura became the southwestern border with Russia; accordingly, Zasurye was completely under the control of Kazan. During 1439-1441, judging by the Vetluga chronicler, Mari and Tatar warriors destroyed all Russian settlements on the territory of the former Vetluga region, and Kazan “governors” began to rule the Vetluga Mari. Both Vyatka Land and Perm the Great soon found themselves in tributary dependence on the Kazan Khanate.

In the 50s XV century Moscow managed to subjugate the Vyatka Land and part of Povetluga; soon, in 1461–1462. Russian troops even entered into a direct armed conflict with the Kazan Khanate, during which the Mari lands on the left bank of the Volga mainly suffered.

In the winter of 1467/68. an attempt was made to eliminate or weaken Kazan's allies - the Mari. For this purpose, two trips to Cheremis were organized. The first, main group, which consisted mainly of selected troops - the “court of the great prince’s regiment” - attacked the left bank Mari. According to the chronicles, “the army of the Grand Duke came to the land of Cheremis, and did much evil to that land: they cut people off, took some into captivity, and burned others; and their horses and every animal that could not be taken with them was cut up; and what was in their bellies, he took everything.” The second group, which included soldiers recruited in the Murom and Nizhny Novgorod lands, “conquered the mountains and barats” along the Volga. However, even this did not prevent the Kazan people, including, most likely, the Mari warriors, already in the winter-summer of 1468 from destroying Kichmenga with adjacent villages (the upper reaches of the Unzha and Yug rivers), as well as the Kostroma volosts and, twice in a row, the outskirts of Murom. Parity was established in punitive actions, which most likely had little effect on the state of the armed forces of the opposing sides. The matter came down mainly to robberies, mass destruction, and the capture of civilians - Mari, Chuvash, Russians, Mordovians, etc.

In the summer of 1468, Russian troops resumed their raids on the uluses of the Kazan Khanate. And this time it was mainly the Mari population that suffered. The rook army, led by governor Ivan Run, “fought Cheremis on the Vyatka River,” plundered villages and merchant ships on the Lower Kama, then rose up to the Belaya River (“Belaya Volozhka”), where the Russians again “fought Cheremis, and killed people and horses and every kind of animal." From local residents they learned that nearby, up the Kama, a detachment of 200 Kazan warriors was moving on ships taken from the Mari. As a result of a short battle, this detachment was defeated. The Russians then followed “to Great Perm and to Ustyug” and further to Moscow. Almost at the same time, another Russian army (“outpost”), led by Prince Fyodor Khripun-Ryapolovsky, was operating on the Volga. Not far from Kazan, it “beat the Kazan Tatars, the court of the kings, many good ones.” However, even in such a critical situation for themselves, the Kazan team did not abandon active offensive actions. By introducing their troops into the territory of the Vyatka Land, they persuaded the Vyatchans to neutrality.

In the Middle Ages, there were usually no clearly defined boundaries between states. This also applies to the Kazan Khanate and neighboring countries. From the west and north, the territory of the Khanate adjoined the borders of the Russian state, from the east - the Nogai Horde, from the south - the Astrakhan Khanate and from the southwest - the Crimean Khanate. The border between the Kazan Khanate and the Russian state along the Sura River was relatively stable; further, it can be determined only conditionally according to the principle of payment of yasak by the population: from the mouth of the Sura River through the Vetluga basin to Pizhma, then from the mouth of Pizhma to the Middle Kama, including some areas of the Urals, then back to the Volga River along the left bank of the Kama, without going deep into the steppe, down the Volga approximately to the Samara Luka, and finally to the upper reaches of the same Sura River.

In addition to the Bulgaro-Tatar population (Kazan Tatars) on the territory of the Khanate, according to information from A.M. Kurbsky, there were also Mari (“Cheremis”), southern Udmurts (“Votiaks”, “Ars”), Chuvash, Mordovians (mostly Erzya), and Western Bashkirs. Mari in sources of the 15th–16th centuries. and in general in the Middle Ages they were known under the name “Cheremis”, the etymology of which has not yet been clarified. At the same time, this ethnonym in a number of cases (this is especially typical for the Kazan Chronicler) could include not only the Mari, but also the Chuvash and southern Udmurts. Therefore, it is quite difficult to determine, even in approximate outlines, the territory of settlement of the Mari during the existence of the Kazan Khanate.

A number of fairly reliable sources of the 16th century. - testimonies of S. Herberstein, spiritual letters of Ivan III and Ivan IV, the Royal Book - indicate the presence of Mari in the Oka-Sur interfluve, that is, in the region of Nizhny Novgorod, Murom, Arzamas, Kurmysh, Alatyr. This information is confirmed by folklore material, as well as toponymy of this territory. It is noteworthy that until recently among the local Mordvins, who professed a pagan religion, the personal name Cheremis was widespread.

The Unzhensko-Vetluga interfluve was also inhabited by the Mari; This is evidenced by written sources, toponymy of the region, and folklore material. There were probably also groups of Meri here. The northern border is the upper reaches of the Unzha, Vetluga, the Pizhma basin, and the Middle Vyatka. Here the Mari came into contact with the Russians, Udmurts and Karin Tatars.

The eastern limits can be limited to the lower reaches of the Vyatka, but separately - “700 versts from Kazan” - in the Urals there already existed a small ethnic group of Eastern Mari; Chroniclers recorded it in the area of ​​the mouth of the Belaya River back in the middle of the 15th century.

Apparently, the Mari, together with the Bulgaro-Tatar population, lived in the upper reaches of the Kazanka and Mesha rivers, on the Arsk side. But, most likely, they were a minority here and, moreover, most likely, they gradually became Tatarized.

Apparently, a considerable part of the Mari population occupied the territory of the northern and western parts of the present Chuvash Republic.

The disappearance of the continuous Mari population in the northern and western parts of the current territory of the Chuvash Republic can to some extent be explained by the devastating wars in the 15th–16th centuries, from which the Mountain Side suffered more than Lugovaya (in addition to the incursions of Russian troops, the right bank was also subject to numerous raids by steppe warriors) . This circumstance apparently caused an outflow of some of the mountain Mari to the Lugovaya Side.

The number of Mari by the 17th–18th centuries. ranged from 70 to 120 thousand people.

The right bank of the Volga had the highest population density, then the area east of M. Kokshaga, and the least was the area of ​​settlement of the northwestern Mari, especially the swampy Volga-Vetluzhskaya lowland and the Mari lowland (the space between the Linda and B. Kokshaga rivers).

Exclusively all lands were legally considered the property of the khan, who personified the state. Having declared himself the supreme owner, the khan demanded rent in kind and cash rent - a tax (yasak) - for the use of the land.

The Mari - nobility and ordinary community members - like other non-Tatar peoples of the Kazan Khanate, although they were included in the category of dependent population, were actually personally free people.

According to the findings of K.I. Kozlova, in the 16th century. Among the Mari, druzhina, military-democratic orders prevailed, that is, the Mari were at the stage of formation of their statehood. The emergence and development of their own state structures was hampered by dependence on the khan's administration.

The socio-political system of medieval Mari society is reflected in written sources rather poorly.

It is known that the main unit of Mari society was the family (“esh”); Most likely, “large families” were most widespread, consisting, as a rule, of 3–4 generations of close relatives in the male line. The property stratification between patriarchal families was clearly visible back in the 9th–11th centuries. Parcel labor flourished, which mainly extended to non-agricultural activities (cattle breeding, fur trading, metallurgy, blacksmithing, jewelry). There were close ties between neighboring family groups, primarily economic, but not always consanguineous. Economic ties were expressed in various kinds of mutual “help” (“vyma”), that is, mandatory related gratuitous mutual assistance. In general, the Mari in the 15th–16th centuries. experienced a unique period of proto-feudal relations, when, on the one hand, individual family property was allocated within the framework of a land-kinship union (neighborhood community), and on the other, the class structure of society did not acquire its clear outlines.

Mari patriarchal families, apparently, united into patronymic groups (Nasyl, Tukym, Urlyk; according to V.N. Petrov - Urmatians and Vurteks), and those - into larger land unions - Tishte. Their unity was based on the principle of neighborhood, on a common cult, and to a lesser extent on economic ties, and even more so on consanguinity. Tishte were, among other things, unions of mutual military assistance. Perhaps the Tishte were territorially compatible with the hundreds, uluses and fifties of the Kazan Khanate period. In any case, the tithe-hundred and ulus system of administration, imposed from outside as a result of the establishment of Mongol-Tatar domination, as is generally believed, did not conflict with the traditional territorial organization of the Mari.

Hundreds, uluses, fifties and tens were led by centurions (“shudovuy”), pentecostals (“vitlevuy”), foremen (“luvuy”). In the 15th–16th centuries, most likely, they did not have time to break with the rule of people, and, according to K.I. Kozlova, “these were either ordinary elders of land unions, or military leaders of larger associations such as tribal ones.” Perhaps the representatives of the top of the Mari nobility continued to be called, according to the ancient tradition, “kugyza”, “kuguz” (“great master”), “on” (“leader”, “prince”, “lord”). In the social life of the Mari, elders - “kuguraki” - also played a major role. For example, even Tokhtamysh’s protege Keldibek could not become a Vetluga kuguz without the consent of the local elders. The Mari elders are also mentioned as a special social group in the Kazan History.

All groups of the Mari population took an active part in military campaigns against Russian lands, which became more frequent under Girey. This is explained, on the one hand, by the dependent position of the Mari within the Khanate, on the other hand, by the peculiarities of the stage of social development (military democracy), by the interest of the Mari warriors themselves in obtaining military booty, in the desire to prevent Russian military-political expansion, and other motives. During the last period of the Russian-Kazan confrontation (1521–1552) in 1521–1522 and 1534–1544. the initiative belonged to Kazan, which, at the instigation of the Crimean-Nogai government group, sought to restore the vassal dependence of Moscow, as it was during the Golden Horde period. But already under Vasily III, in the 1520s, the task was set of the final annexation of the Khanate to Russia. However, this was achieved only with the capture of Kazan in 1552, under Ivan the Terrible. Apparently, the reasons for the annexation of the Middle Volga region and, accordingly, the Mari region to the Russian state were: 1) a new, imperial type of political consciousness of the top leadership of the Moscow state, the struggle for the “Golden Horde” inheritance and failures in the previous practice of attempts to establish and maintain a protectorate over Kazan khanate, 2) interests of state defense, 3) economic reasons (lands for the local nobility, the Volga for the Russian merchants and fishermen, new taxpayers for the Russian government and other plans for the future).

After the capture of Kazan by Ivan the Terrible, the course of events in the Middle Volga region, Moscow was faced with a powerful liberation movement, which involved both former subjects of the liquidated Khanate who managed to swear allegiance to Ivan IV, and the population of peripheral regions who did not take the oath. The Moscow government had to solve the problem of preserving what was won not according to a peaceful, but according to a bloody scenario.

The anti-Moscow armed uprisings of the peoples of the Middle Volga region after the fall of Kazan are usually called the Cheremis Wars, since the Mari (Cheremis) were most active in them. The earliest mention among the sources available in scientific circulation is an expression close to the term “Cheremis war”, found in the quitrent letter of Ivan IV to D.F. Chelishchev for rivers and lands in the Vyatka land dated April 3, 1558, where, in particular, it is indicated that the owners of the Kishkil and Shizhma rivers (near the city of Kotelnich) “in those rivers... did not catch fish and beavers for the Kazan Cheremis war and did not pay rent.”

Cheremis War 1552–1557 differs from the subsequent Cheremis wars of the second half of the 16th century, not so much because it was the first of this series of wars, but because it was in the nature of a national liberation struggle and did not have a noticeable anti-feudal orientation. Moreover, the anti-Moscow insurgent movement in the Middle Volga region in 1552–1557. is, in essence, a continuation of the Kazan War, and the main goal of its participants was the restoration of the Kazan Khanate.

Apparently, for the bulk of the left-bank Mari population, this war was not an uprising, since only representatives of the Prikazan Mari recognized their new citizenship. In fact, in 1552–1557. the majority of the Mari waged an external war against the Russian state and, together with the rest of the population of the Kazan region, defended their freedom and independence.

All waves of the resistance movement died out as a result of large-scale punitive operations by the troops of Ivan IV. In a number of episodes, the insurgency developed into a form of civil war and class struggle, but the struggle for the liberation of the homeland remained the character-forming one. The resistance movement ceased due to several factors: 1) continuous armed clashes with the tsarist troops, which brought countless casualties and destruction to the local population, 2) mass famine, a plague epidemic that came from the Volga steppes, 3) the meadow Mari lost support from their former allies - the Tatars and southern Udmurts. In May 1557, representatives of almost all groups of Meadow and Eastern Mari took an oath to the Russian Tsar. Thus the annexation of the Mari region to the Russian state was completed.

The significance of the annexation of the Mari region to the Russian state cannot be defined as clearly negative or positive. Both negative and positive consequences of the Mari’s entry into the Russian state system, closely intertwined with each other, began to manifest themselves in almost all spheres of social development (political, economic, social, cultural and others). Perhaps the main result for today is that the Mari people have survived as an ethnic group and have become an organic part of multinational Russia.

The final entry of the Mari region into Russia occurred after 1557, as a result of the suppression of the people's liberation and anti-feudal movement in the Middle Volga region and the Urals. The process of gradual entry of the Mari region into the system of Russian statehood lasted hundreds of years: during the period of the Mongol-Tatar invasion it slowed down, during the years of feudal unrest that engulfed the Golden Horde in the second half of the 14th century, it accelerated, and as a result of the emergence of the Kazan Khanate (30-40- e years of the 15th century) stopped for a long time. However, having begun even before the turn of the 11th–12th centuries, the inclusion of the Mari in the system of Russian statehood in the middle of the 16th century. has approached its final phase - direct entry into Russia.

The annexation of the Mari region to the Russian state was part of the general process of formation of the Russian multi-ethnic empire, and it was prepared, first of all, by prerequisites of a political nature. This is, firstly, a long-term confrontation between the state systems of Eastern Europe - on the one hand, Russia, on the other hand, the Turkic states (Volga-Kama Bulgaria - Golden Horde - Kazan Khanate), secondly, the struggle for the “Golden Horde inheritance” in the final stage of this confrontation, thirdly, the emergence and development of imperial consciousness in government circles of Muscovite Russia. The expansionist policy of the Russian state in the eastern direction was to some extent determined by the tasks of state defense and economic reasons (fertile lands, the Volga trade route, new taxpayers, other projects for the exploitation of local resources).

The Mari economy was adapted to natural and geographical conditions and generally met the requirements of its time. Due to the difficult political situation, it was largely militarized. True, the peculiarities of the socio-political system also played a role here. The medieval Mari, despite the noticeable local characteristics of the ethnic groups that existed at that time, generally experienced a transitional period of social development from tribal to feudal (military democracy). Relations with the central government were built primarily on a confederal basis.

Beliefs

The Mari traditional religion is based on faith in the forces of nature, which man must honor and respect. Before the spread of monotheistic teachings, the Mari revered many gods known as Yumo, while recognizing the primacy of the Supreme God (Kugu Yumo). In the 19th century, the image of the One God Tun Osh Kugu Yumo (One Bright Great God) was revived.

The Mari traditional religion contributes to strengthening the moral foundations of society, achieving interfaith and interethnic peace and harmony.

Unlike monotheistic religions created by one or another founder and his followers, the Mari traditional religion was formed on the basis of an ancient folk worldview, including religious and mythological ideas associated with man’s relationship to the surrounding nature and its elemental forces, the veneration of ancestors and patrons of agricultural activities. The formation and development of the traditional religion of the Mari was influenced by the religious views of the neighboring peoples of the Volga and Urals regions, as well as the fundamental doctrines of Islam and Orthodoxy.

Admirers of the traditional Mari religion recognize the One God Tyn Osh Kugu Yumo and his nine assistants (manifestations), read a prayer three times daily, take part in collective or family prayer once a year, and conduct family prayer with sacrifice at least seven times during their lives, They regularly hold traditional commemorations in honor of their deceased ancestors, and observe Mari holidays, customs and rituals.

Before the spread of monotheistic teachings, the Mari revered many gods known as Yumo, while recognizing the primacy of the Supreme God (Kugu Yumo). In the 19th century, the image of the One God Tun Osh Kugu Yumo (One Bright Great God) was revived. The One God (God - Universe) is considered to be the eternal, omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient, and omnirighteous God. He manifests himself in both material and spiritual guise, appearing in the form of nine deity-persons. These deities can be divided into three groups, each of which is responsible for:

Calmness, prosperity and empowerment of all living things - the god of the bright world (Tunya yumo), the life-giving god (Ilyan yumo), the deity of creative energy (Agavairem yumo);

Mercy, righteousness and harmony: the god of fate and predestination of life (Pursho yumo), the all-merciful god (Kugu Serlagysh yumo), the god of harmony and reconciliation (Mer yumo);

All-goodness, rebirth and inexhaustibility of life: the goddess of birth (Shochyn Ava), the goddess of the earth (Mlande Ava) and the goddess of abundance (Perke Ava).

The Universe, the world, the cosmos in the spiritual understanding of the Mari are presented as a continuously developing, spiritualizing and transforming system from century to century, from era to era, a system of diverse worlds, spiritual and material natural forces, natural phenomena, steadily striving towards its spiritual goal - unity with the Universal God , maintaining an inextricable physical and spiritual connection with the cosmos, the world, and nature.

Tun Osh Kugu Yumo is an endless source of being. Like the universe, the One Light Great God is constantly changing, developing, improving, involving the entire universe, the entire surrounding world, including humanity itself, in these changes. From time to time, every 22 thousand years, and sometimes earlier, by the will of God, the destruction of some part of the old and the creation of a new world occurs, accompanied by a complete renewal of life on earth.

The last creation of the world occurred 7512 years ago. After each new creation of the world, life on earth improves qualitatively, and humanity changes for the better. With the development of humanity, there is an expansion of human consciousness, the boundaries of world- and God-perception are expanded, the possibility of enriching knowledge about the universe, the world, objects and phenomena of the surrounding nature, about man and his essence, about ways to improve human life is facilitated.

All this ultimately led to the formation of a false idea among people about the omnipotence of man and his independence from God. Changing value priorities and abandoning the divinely established principles of community life required divine intervention in people's lives through suggestions, revelations, and sometimes punishments. In the interpretation of the foundations of knowledge of God and understanding of the world, holy and righteous people, prophets and God's chosen ones began to play an important role, who in the traditional beliefs of the Mari are revered as elders - ground deities. Having the opportunity to periodically communicate with God and receive His revelation, they became conductors of invaluable knowledge for human society. However, they often communicated not only the words of revelation, but also their own figurative interpretation of them. The divine information obtained in this way became the basis for the emerging ethnic (folk), state and world religions. There was also a rethinking of the image of the One God of the Universe, and the feelings of connectedness and direct dependence of people on Him were gradually smoothed out. A disrespectful, utilitarian-economic attitude towards nature or, conversely, reverent veneration of elemental forces and natural phenomena, represented in the form of independent deities and spirits, was affirmed.

Among the Mari, echoes of a dualistic worldview have been preserved, in which an important place was occupied by faith in the deities of forces and natural phenomena, in the animation and spirituality of the surrounding world and the existence in them of a rational, independent, materialized being - the owner - a double (vodyzh), soul (chon, ort) , spiritual hypostasis (shyrt). However, the Mari believed that the deities, everything around the world and man himself are part of the one God (Tun Yumo), his image.

Nature deities in popular beliefs, with rare exceptions, were not endowed with anthropomorphic features. The Mari understood the importance of man's active participation in the affairs of God, aimed at preserving and developing the surrounding nature, and constantly sought to involve the gods in the process of spiritual ennoblement and harmonization of everyday life. Some leaders of Mari traditional rituals, possessing heightened inner vision and the effort of their will, were able to receive spiritual enlightenment and restore the image of the forgotten one God Tun Yumo at the beginning of the 19th century.

One God - the Universe embraces all living things and the whole world, expresses itself in revered nature. The living nature closest to man is his image, but not God himself. A person is able to form only a general idea of ​​the Universe or its part, on the basis and with the help of faith, having cognized it in himself, experiencing a living sensation of the divine incomprehensible reality, passing through his own “I” the world of spiritual beings. However, it is impossible to fully understand Tun Osh Kugu Yumo - the absolute truth. The Mari traditional religion, like all religions, has only approximate knowledge of God. Only the wisdom of the Omniscient embraces the entire sum of truths within itself.

The Mari religion, being more ancient, turned out to be closer to God and absolute truth. There is little influence of subjective aspects in it, it has undergone less social modification. Taking into account the perseverance and patience in preserving the ancient religion transmitted by the ancestors, dedication in observing customs and rituals, Tun Osh Kugu Yumo helped the Mari preserve true religious ideas, protected them from erosion and thoughtless changes under the influence of all kinds of innovations. This allowed the Mari to maintain their unity, national identity, survive under the conditions of social and political oppression of the Khazar Khaganate, Volga Bulgaria, the Tatar-Mongol invasion, the Kazan Khanate and defend their religious cults during the years of active missionary propaganda in the 18th–19th centuries.

The Mari are distinguished not only by their divinity, but also by their kind-heartedness, responsiveness and openness, their readiness to come to the aid of each other and those in need at any time. The Mari are at the same time a freedom-loving people who love justice in everything, accustomed to living a calm, measured life, like the nature around us.

The traditional Mari religion directly influences the formation of the personality of each person. The creation of the world, as well as man, is carried out on the basis and under the influence of the spiritual principles of the One God. Man is an inextricable part of the Cosmos, grows and develops under the influence of the same cosmic laws, is endowed with the image of God, in him, as in all of Nature, the bodily and divine principles are combined, and kinship with nature is manifested.

The life of every child, long before his birth, begins in the celestial zone of the Universe. Initially, it does not have an anthropomorphic form. God sends life to earth in materialized form. Together with man, his angels-spirits - patrons - develop, represented in the image of the deity Vuyymbal yumo, the bodily soul (chon, ya?) and doubles - figurative incarnations of man ort and syrt.

All people equally possess human dignity, strength of mind and freedom, human virtue, and contain within themselves the entire qualitative completeness of the world. A person is given the opportunity to regulate his feelings, control his behavior, realize his position in the world, lead an ennobled lifestyle, actively create and create, take care of the higher parts of the Universe, protect the animal and plant world, the surrounding nature from extinction.

Being a rational part of the Cosmos, man, like the constantly improving one God, in the name of his self-preservation is forced to constantly work on self-improvement. Guided by the dictates of conscience (ar), correlating his actions and deeds with the surrounding nature, achieving the unity of his thoughts with the co-creation of material and spiritual cosmic principles, man, as a worthy owner of his land, with his tireless daily work, inexhaustible creativity, strengthens and zealously runs his farm, ennobles the world around him, thereby improving himself. This is the meaning and purpose of human life.

Fulfilling his destiny, a person reveals his spiritual essence and ascends to new levels of existence. Through self-improvement and the fulfillment of a predetermined goal, a person improves the world and achieves the inner beauty of the soul. The traditional religion of the Mari teaches that for such activities a person receives a worthy reward: he greatly facilitates his life in this world and his fate in the afterlife. For a righteous life, deities can endow a person with an additional guardian angel, that is, they can confirm the existence of a person in God, thereby ensuring the ability to contemplate and experience God, the harmony of divine energy (shulyk) and the human soul.

A person is free to choose his actions and actions. He can lead his life both in the direction of God, the harmonization of his efforts and aspirations of the soul, and in the opposite, destructive direction. A person’s choice is predetermined not only by divine or human will, but also by the intervention of the forces of evil.

The right choice in any life situation can be made only by knowing yourself, balancing your life, everyday affairs and actions with the Universe - the One God. Having such a spiritual guideline, a believer becomes a true master of his life, gains independence and spiritual freedom, calmness, confidence, insight, prudence and measured feelings, steadfastness and perseverance in achieving his goal. He is not disturbed by life's adversities, social vices, envy, selfishness, selfishness, or the desire for self-affirmation in the eyes of others. Being truly free, a person gains prosperity, peace of mind, a reasonable life, and protects himself from any encroachment by ill-wishers and evil forces. He will not be frightened by the dark tragic sides of material existence, the bonds of inhuman torment and suffering, or hidden dangers. They will not prevent him from continuing to love the world, earthly existence, rejoicing and admiring the beauty of nature and culture.

In everyday life, believers of the traditional Mari religion adhere to such principles as:

Constant self-improvement by strengthening the inextricable connection with God, his regular involvement in all the most important events in life and active participation in divine affairs;

Aiming at ennobling the surrounding world and social relations, strengthening human health through the constant search and acquisition of divine energy in the process of creative work;

Harmonization of relations in society, strengthening collectivism and cohesion, mutual support and unity in upholding religious ideals and traditions;

Unanimous support of your spiritual mentors;

The obligation to preserve and pass on to subsequent generations the best achievements: progressive ideas, exemplary products, elite varieties of grain and livestock breeds, etc.

The traditional religion of the Mari considers all manifestations of life to be the main value in this world and calls for the sake of preserving it to show mercy even towards wild animals and criminals. Kindness, good-heartedness, harmony in relationships (mutual assistance, mutual respect and support for friendly relations), respect for nature, self-sufficiency and self-restraint in the use of natural resources, the pursuit of knowledge are also considered important values ​​in the life of society and in regulating the relationship of believers with God.

In public life, the traditional Mari religion strives to maintain and improve social harmony.

The Mari traditional religion unites believers of the ancient Mari (Chimari) faith, admirers of traditional beliefs and rituals who have been baptized and attend church services (marla faith) and adherents of the “Kugu Sorta” religious sect. These ethno-confessional differences were formed under the influence and as a result of the spread of the Orthodox religion in the region. The religious sect “Kugu Sorta” took shape in the second half of the 19th century. Certain inconsistencies in beliefs and ritual practices that exist between religious groups do not play a significant impact in the daily life of the Mari. These forms of traditional Mari religion form the basis of the spiritual values ​​of the Mari people.

The religious life of adherents of the traditional Mari religion takes place within the village community, one or more village councils (lay community). All Mari can take part in all-Mari prayers with sacrifice, thereby forming a temporary religious community of the Mari people (national community).

Until the beginning of the 20th century, the Mari traditional religion acted as the only social institution for the cohesion and unity of the Mari people, strengthening their national identity, and establishing a unique national culture. At the same time, folk religion never called for artificially separating peoples, did not provoke confrontation and confrontation between them, and did not assert the exclusivity of any people.

The current generation of believers, recognizing the cult of the One God of the Universe, is convinced that this God can be worshiped by all people, representatives of any nationality. Therefore, they consider it possible to attach to their faith any person who believes in his omnipotence.

Any person, regardless of nationality and religion, is part of the Cosmos, the Universal God. In this respect, all people are equal and worthy of respect and fair treatment. The Mari have always been distinguished by religious tolerance and respect for the religious feelings of people of other faiths. They believed that the religion of every people has the right to exist and is worthy of reverence, since all religious rites are aimed at ennobling earthly life, improving its quality, expanding the capabilities of people and contributing to the introduction of divine powers and divine mercy to everyday needs.

A clear evidence of this is the lifestyle of adherents of the ethno-confessional group “Marla Vera”, who observe both traditional customs and rituals and Orthodox cults, visit temples, chapels and Mari sacred groves. They often conduct traditional prayers with sacrifices in front of an Orthodox icon specially brought for this occasion.

Admirers of the Mari traditional religion, respecting the rights and freedoms of representatives of other faiths, expect the same respectful attitude towards themselves and their religious actions. They believe that the worship of the One God - the Universe in our time is very timely and quite attractive for the modern generation of people interested in spreading the environmental movement and preserving pristine nature.

The traditional religion of the Mari, including in its worldview and practice the positive experience of centuries of history, sets as its immediate goals the establishment of truly fraternal relations in society and the education of a person of an ennobled image, protects itself with righteousness and devotion to a common cause. It will continue to defend the rights and interests of its believers, protect their honor and dignity from any encroachment on the basis of the legislation adopted in the country.

Admirers of the Mari religion consider it their civil and religious duty to comply with the legal norms and laws of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Mari El.

The traditional Mari religion sets itself the spiritual and historical tasks of uniting the efforts of believers to protect their vital interests, the nature around us, the animal and plant world, as well as achieving material wealth, everyday well-being, moral regulation and a high cultural level of relations between people.

Sacrifices

In the seething Universal cauldron of life, human life proceeds under the vigilant supervision and with the direct participation of God (Tun Osh Kugu Yumo) and his nine hypostases (manifestations), personifying his inherent intelligence, energy and material wealth. Therefore, a person should not only reverently believe in Him, but also deeply reverence, strive to receive His mercy, goodness and protection (serlagysh), thereby enriching himself and the world around him with vital energy (shulyk), material wealth (perke). A reliable means of achieving all this is the regular holding of family and public (village, lay and all-Mary) prayers (kumaltysh) in sacred groves with sacrifices to God and his deities of domestic animals and birds.

Posted Thu, 20/02/2014 - 07:53 by Cap

Mari (Mar. Mari, Mary, Mare, Mӓrӹ; formerly: Russian Cheremisy, Turkic Chirmysh, Tatar: Marilar) - Finno-Ugric people in Russia, mainly in the Mari El Republic. It is home to about half of all Mari, numbering 604 thousand people (2002). The remaining Mari are scattered across many regions and republics of the Volga region and the Urals.
The main territory of residence is between the Volga and Vetluga rivers.
There are three groups of Mari: mountainous (they live on the right and partially left banks of the Volga in the west of Mari El and in neighboring regions), meadow (they make up the majority of the Mari people, occupy the Volga-Vyatka interfluve), eastern (they formed from settlers from the meadow side of the Volga to Bashkiria and the Urals ) - the last two groups, due to historical and linguistic proximity, are combined into a generalized meadow-eastern Mari. They speak Mari (Meadow-Eastern Mari) and Mountain Mari languages ​​of the Finno-Ugric group of the Uralic family. They profess Orthodoxy. The Mari traditional religion, which is a combination of paganism and monotheism, has also long been widespread.

Mari hut, kudo, Mari's home

Ethnogenesis
In the Early Iron Age, the Ananyin archaeological culture (8th-3rd centuries BC) developed in the Volga-Kama region, the bearers of which were the distant ancestors of the Komi-Zyryans, Komi-Permyaks, Udmurts and Mari. The beginning of the formation of these peoples dates back to the first half of the 1st millennium.
The area of ​​formation of the Mari tribes is the right bank of the Volga between the mouths of the Sura and Tsivil and the opposite left bank along with the lower Povetluga region. The basis of the Mari were the descendants of the Ananyians, who experienced the ethnic and cultural influence of the Late Gorodets tribes (ancestors of the Mordovians).
From this area, the Mari settled eastward all the way to the river. Vyatka and in the south to the river. Kazankas.

______________________MARI HOLIDAY SHORYKYOL

Ancient Mari culture (Meadow Mar. Akret Mari cultures) is an archaeological culture of the 6th-11th centuries, marking the early periods of the formation and ethnogenesis of the Mari ethnos.
Formed in the middle of the VI-VII centuries. based on the Finnish-speaking West Volga population living between the mouths of the Oka and Vetluga rivers. The main monuments of this time (Younger Akhmylovsky, Bezvodninsky burial grounds, Chorotovo, Bogorodskoye, Odoevskoye, Somovsky I, II, Vasilsurskoye II, Kubashevskoye and other settlements) are located in the Nizhny Novgorod-Mari Volga region, Lower and Middle Povetluzhie, and the basins of the Bolshaya and Malaya Kokshaga rivers. In the 8th-11th centuries, judging by the burial grounds (Dubovsky, Veselovsky, Kocherginsky, Cheremissky cemetery, Nizhnyaya Strelka, Yumsky, Lopyalsky), fortified settlements (Vasilsurskoye V, Izhevskoye, Emanaevskoye, etc.), settlements (Galankina Gora, etc.) , the ancient Mari tribes occupied the Middle Volga region between the mouths of the Sura and Kazanka rivers, the Lower and Middle Povetluga region, and the right bank of the Middle Vyatka.
During this period, the final formation of a single culture and the beginning of the consolidation of the Mari people took place. The culture is characterized by a unique funeral rite, combining the deposition of a corpse and the burning of a corpse on the side, sacrificial complexes in the form of sets of jewelry placed in birch bark boxes or wrapped in clothes.
Typically there is an abundance of weapons (iron swords, axes, spearheads, darts, arrows). There are tools of labor and everyday life (iron celt axes, knives, chairs, clay flat-bottomed unornamented pot-shaped and jar-shaped vessels, spindle whorls, dolls, copper and iron kettles).
Characterized by a rich set of jewelry (various hryvnias, brooches, plaques, bracelets, temple rings, earrings, ridge pendants, “noisy” pendants, trepezoidal pendants, “mustached” rings, stacked belts, head chains, etc.).

map of the settlement of the Mari and Finno-Ugric tribes

Story
The ancestors of modern Mari interacted with the Goths between the 5th and 8th centuries, and later with the Khazars and Volga Bulgaria. Between the 13th and 15th centuries, the Mari were part of the Golden Horde and the Kazan Khanate. During the hostilities between the Moscow state and the Kazan Khanate, the Mari fought both on the side of the Russians and on the side of the Kazan people. After the conquest of the Kazan Khanate in 1552, the Mari lands that had previously depended on it became part of the Russian state. On October 4, 1920, the Mari Autonomous Okrug was proclaimed within the RSFSR, and on December 5, 1936, the Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic.
Joining the Moscow state was extremely bloody. Three uprisings are known - the so-called Cheremis Wars of 1552-1557, 1571-1574 and 1581-1585.
The Second Cheremis War was of a national liberation and anti-feudal nature. The Mari managed to raise neighboring peoples, and even neighboring states. All the peoples of the Volga and Urals regions took part in the war, and there were raids from the Crimean and Siberian Khanates, the Nogai Horde and even Turkey. The Second Cheremis War began immediately after the campaign of the Crimean Khan Davlet-Girey, which ended with the capture and burning of Moscow.

Sernur folklore Mari group

The Malmyzh principality is the largest and most famous Mari proto-feudal formation.
Its history dates back to the founders, the Mari princes Altybai, Ursa and Yamshan (1st half-middle of the 14th century), who colonized these places after arriving from Middle Vyatka. The heyday of the principality was during the reign of Prince Boltush (1st quarter of the 16th century). In cooperation with the neighboring principalities of Kityaka and Porek, it offered the greatest resistance to Russian troops during the Cheremis Wars.
After the fall of Malmyzh, its inhabitants, under the leadership of Prince Toktaush, Boltush’s brother, descended down the Vyatka and founded new settlements Mari-Malmyzh and Usa (Usola)-Malmyzhka. Descendants of Toktaush still live there. The principality broke up into several independent minor fiefs, including Burtek.
In its heyday, it included Pizhmari, Ardayal, Adorim, Postnikov, Burtek (Mari-Malmyzh), Russian and Mari Babino, Satnur, Chetai, Shishiner, Yangulovo, Salauev, Baltasy, Arbor and Siziner. By the 1540s, the areas of Baltasy, Yangulovo, Arbor and Siziner were captured by the Tatars.

The Izhmarinsky principality (Pizhansky principality; meadow mar. Izh Mari kugyzhanysh, Pyzhanyu kugyzhanysh) is one of the largest Mari proto-feudal formations.
Formed by the Northwestern Mari on the Udmurt lands conquered as a result of the Mari-Udmurt wars in the 13th century. The original center was the Izhevsk settlement, when the borders reached the Pizhma River in the north. In the XIV-XV centuries, the Mari were pushed out of the north by Russian colonialists. With the fall of the geopolitical counterweight to the influence of Russia, the Khanate of Kazan and the advent of the Russian administration, the principality ceased to exist. The northern part became part of the Izhmarinskaya volost of the Yaransky district, the southern part - as the Izhmarinskaya volost of the Alat road of the Kazan district. Part of the Mari population in the current Pizhansky district still exists to the west of Pizhanka, grouping around the national center of the village of Mari-Oshaevo. Among the local population, rich folklore from the period of the existence of the principality has been recorded - in particular, about local princes and the hero Shaev.
It included lands in the basins of the Izh, Pizhanka and Shuda rivers, with an area of ​​about 1 thousand km². The capital is Pizhanka (known in Russian written sources only from the moment the church was built, in 1693).

Mari (Mari people)

Ethnic groups
Mountain Mari (Mountain Mari language)
Forest Mari
Meadow-Eastern Mari (Meadow-Eastern Mari (Mari) language)
Meadow Mari
Eastern Mari
Pribel Mari
Ural Mari
Kungur, or Sylven, Mari
Upper Ufa, or Krasnoufimsky, Mari
Northwestern Mari
Kostroma Mari

Mountain Mari, Kuryk Mari

Mountain Mari language is the language of the mountain Mari, a literary language based on the mountain dialect of the Mari language. The number of speakers is 36,822 (2002 census). Distributed in the Gornomariysky, Yurinsky and Kilemarsky districts of Mari El, as well as in the Voskresensky district of the Nizhny Novgorod and Yaransky districts of the Kirov regions. Occupies the western regions of distribution of the Mari languages.
The Mountain Mari language, along with the Meadow-Eastern Mari and Russian languages, is one of the official languages ​​of the Republic of Mari El.
The newspapers “Zhero” and “Yomdoli!” are published in the Mountain Mari language, the literary magazine “U Sem” is broadcast, and the Mountain Mari radio broadcasts.

Sergei Chavain, founder of Mari literature

Meadow-Eastern Mari is a generalized name for the ethnic group of Mari, which includes the historically established ethnic groups of Meadow and Eastern Mari, who speak a single Meadow-Eastern Mari language with their own regional characteristics, in contrast to the Mountain Mari, who speak their own Mountain Mari language.
Meadow-Eastern Mari make up the majority of the Mari people. The number is, according to some estimates, about 580 thousand people out of more than 700 thousand Mari.
According to the All-Russian Population Census of 2002, a total of 56,119 people (including 52,696 in Mari El) out of 604,298 Mari (or 9% of them) in Russia identified themselves as Meadow-Eastern Mari, of whom as “Meadow Mari” (Olyk Mari) - 52,410 people, as the “Meadow-Eastern Mari” proper - 3,333 people, as the “Eastern Mari” (Eastern (Ural) Mari) - 255 people, which speaks in general about the established tradition (commitment) to call themselves under the single name of the people - “Mari”.

Eastern (Ural) Mari

Kungur, or Sylven, Mari (Mar. Köҥgyr Mari, Suliy Mari) are an ethnographic group of Mari in the southeastern part of the Perm region of Russia. The Kungur Mari are part of the Ural Mari, who in turn are part of the Eastern Mari. The group received its name from the former Kungur district of the Perm province, which until the 1780s included the territory where the Mari had settled since the 16th century. In 1678-1679 In the Kungur district there were already 100 Mari yurts with a male population of 311 people. In the 16th-17th centuries, Mari settlements appeared along the Sylva and Iren rivers. Some of the Mari were then assimilated by the more numerous Russians and Tatars (for example, the village of Oshmarina of the Nasadsky village council of the Kungur region, former Mari villages along the upper reaches of the Ireni, etc.). The Kungur Mari took part in the formation of the Tatars of the Suksun, Kishert and Kungur regions of the region.

Funeral ritual among the Mari people __________________

Mari (Mari people)
Northwestern Mari- an ethnographic group of Mari who traditionally live in the southern regions of the Kirov region, in the northeastern regions of Nizhny Novgorod: Tonshaevsky, Tonkinsky, Shakhunsky, Voskresensky and Sharangsky. The overwhelming majority underwent strong Russification and Christianization. At the same time, near the village of Bolshaya Yuronga in the Voskresensky district, the village of Bolshie Ashkaty in Tonshaevsky and some other Mari villages, Mari sacred groves have been preserved.

at the grave of the Mari hero Akpatyr

The Northwestern Mari are presumably a group of Mari, whom the Russians called Merya from the local self-name Märӹ, in contrast to the self-name of the meadow Mari - Mari, who appeared in the chronicles as Cheremis - from the Turkic chirmesh.
The northwestern dialect of the Mari language differs significantly from the meadow dialect, which is why literature in the Mari language published in Yoshkar-Ola is poorly understood by the northwestern Mari.
In the village of Sharanga, Nizhny Novgorod region, there is a center of Mari culture. In addition, in the regional museums of the northern regions of the Nizhny Novgorod region, tools and household items of the northwestern Mari are widely represented.

in the sacred Mari grove

Settlement
The bulk of the Mari live in the Republic of Mari El (324.4 thousand people). A significant part lives in the Mari territories of the Kirov and Nizhny Novgorod regions. The largest Mari diaspora is in the Republic of Bashkortostan (105 thousand people). Also, the Mari live compactly in Tatarstan (19.5 thousand people), Udmurtia (9.5 thousand people), Sverdlovsk (28 thousand people) and Perm (5.4 thousand people) regions, Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug, Chelyabinsk and Tomsk regions. They also live in Kazakhstan (4 thousand, 2009 and 12 thousand, 1989), in Ukraine (4 thousand, 2001 and 7 thousand, 1989), in Uzbekistan (3 thousand, 1989 G.).

Mari (Mari people)

Kirov region
2002: number of shares (in the region)
Kilmezsky 2 thousand 8%
Kiknursky 4 thousand 20%
Lebyazhsky 1.5 thousand 9%
Malmyzhsky 5 thousand 24%
Pizhansky 4.5 thousand 23%
Sanchursky 1.8 thousand 10%
Tuzhinsky 1.4 thousand 9%
Urzhumsky 7.5 thousand 26%
Number (Kirov region): 2002 - 38,390, 2010 - 29,598.

Anthropological type
The Mari belong to the Sub-Ural anthropological type, which differs from the classical variants of the Ural race in a noticeably larger proportion of the Mongoloid component.

Marie hunting at the end of the 19th century

Festive performance among the Mari people______

Language
The Mari languages ​​belong to the Finno-Volga group of the Finno-Ugric branch of the Uralic languages.
In Russia, according to the 2002 All-Russian Population Census, 487,855 people speak Mari languages, including Mari (meadow-eastern Mari) - 451,033 people (92.5%) and Mountain Mari - 36,822 people (7.5%). Among the 604,298 Mari in Russia, 464,341 people (76.8%) speak Mari languages, 587,452 people (97.2%) speak Russian, that is, Mari-Russian bilingualism is widespread. Among the 312,195 Mari in Mari El, 262,976 people (84.2%) speak Mari languages, including Mari (meadow-eastern Mari) - 245,151 people (93.2%) and Mountain Mari - 17,825 people (6 ,8 %); Russians - 302,719 people (97.0%, 2002).

Mari funeral rite

The Mari language (or Meadow-Eastern Mari) is one of the Finno-Ugric languages. Distributed among the Mari, mainly in the Republic of Mari El and Bashkortostan. The old name is “Cheremis language”.
Belongs to the Finno-Perm group of these languages ​​(along with the Baltic-Finnish, Sami, Mordovian, Udmurt and Komi languages). In addition to Mari El, it is also distributed in the Vyatka River basin and further east, to the Urals. In the Mari (meadow-eastern Mari) language, several dialects and dialects are distinguished: meadow, widespread exclusively on the meadow shore (near Yoshkar-Ola); as well as those adjacent to the so-called meadow. eastern (Ural) dialects (in Bashkortostan, Sverdlovsk region, Udmurtia, etc.); The northwestern dialect of the Meadow Mari language is spoken in Nizhny Novgorod and some areas of the Kirov and Kostroma regions. The Mountain Mari language stands out separately, widespread mainly on the mountainous right bank of the Volga (near Kozmodemyansk) and partly on its meadow left bank - in the west of Mari El.
The Meadow-Eastern Mari language, along with the Mountain Mari and Russian languages, is one of the official languages ​​of the Republic of Mari El.

Traditional Mari clothing

The main clothing of the Mari was a tunic-shaped shirt (tuvir), trousers (yolash), as well as a caftan (shovyr), all clothes were girded with a waist towel (solyk), and sometimes with a belt (ÿshto).
Men could wear a felt hat with a brim, a cap and a mosquito net. Shoes were leather boots, and later felt boots and bast shoes (borrowed from Russian costume). To work in swampy areas, wooden platforms (ketyrma) were attached to shoes.
Women had common waist pendants - decorations made of beads, cowrie shells, coins, clasps, etc. There were also three types of women's headdresses: a cone-shaped cap with an occipital blade; soroka (borrowed from the Russians), sharpan - a head towel with a headband. Similar to the Mordovian and Udmurt headdress is the shurka.

Public works among the Mari people__________

Mari prayer, Surem holiday

Religion
In addition to Orthodoxy, the Mari have their own pagan traditional religion, which retains a certain role in spiritual culture today. The Mari's commitment to their traditional faith is of keen interest to journalists from Europe and Russia. The Mari are even called “the last pagans of Europe.”
In the 19th century, paganism among the Mari was persecuted. For example, in 1830, on the instructions of the Minister of Internal Affairs, who received an appeal from the Holy Synod, the place of prayer - Chumbylat Kuryk - was blown up, however, interestingly, the destruction of the Chumbylat stone did not have the desired effect on morals, because the Cheremis worshiped not the stone, but the inhabitant here to the deity.

Mari (Mari people)
Mari traditional religion (Mar. Chimarii yula, Mari (marla) faith, Mariy yula, Marla kumaltysh, Oshmariy-Chimariy and other local and historical variants of names) is the folk religion of the Mari, based on Mari mythology, modified under the influence of monotheism. According to some researchers, in recent times, with the exception of rural areas, it has a neo-pagan character. Since the beginning of the 2000s, there has been organizational formation and registration as several local and uniting regional centralized religious organizations of the Republic of Mari El. For the first time, a single confessional name, Mari Traditional Religion (Mar. Mari Yumiyula) was officially established.

Holiday among the Mari people _________________

The Mari religion is based on faith in the forces of nature, which man must honor and respect. Before the spread of monotheistic teachings, the Mari revered many gods known as Yumo, while recognizing the primacy of the Supreme God (Kugu-Yumo). In the 19th century, pagan beliefs, under the influence of the monotheistic views of their neighbors, changed and the image of the One God Tÿҥ Osh Poro Kugu Yumo (One Bright Good Great God) was created.
Followers of the Mari traditional religion carry out religious rituals, mass prayers, and conduct charitable, cultural and educational events. They teach and educate the younger generation, publish and distribute religious literature. Currently, four district religious organizations are registered.
Prayer meetings and mass prayers are held according to the traditional calendar, always taking into account the positions of the moon and sun. Public prayers usually take place in sacred groves (kusoto). The prayer is led by onaeҥ, kart (kart kugyz).
G. Yakovlev points out that the meadow Mari have 140 gods, and the mountain Mari have about 70. However, some of these gods probably arose due to incorrect translation.
The main god is Kugu-Yumo - the Supreme God who lives in the sky, heads all the heavenly and lower gods. According to legend, the wind is his breath, the rainbow is his bow. Also mentioned is Kugurak - “elder” - sometimes also revered as the supreme god:

Mari archer on the hunt - late 19th century

Other gods and spirits among the Mari include:
Purysho is the god of fate, the spellcaster and creator of the future fate of all people.
Azyren - (mar. “death”) - according to legend, appeared in the form of a strong man who approached the dying man with the words: “Your time has come!” There are many legends and tales of how people tried to outwit him.
Shudyr-Shamych Yumo - god of the stars
Tunya Yumo - god of the universe
Tul he Kugu Yumo - the god of fire (perhaps just an attribute of Kugu-Yumo), also Surt Kugu Yumo - the "god" of the hearth, Saksa Kugu Yumo - the "god" of fertility, Tutyra Kugu Yumo - the "god" of fog and others - rather In all, these are simply attributes of the supreme god.
Tylmache - speaker and lackey of the divine will
Tylze-Yumo - god of the moon
Uzhara-Yumo - god of the dawn
In modern times, prayers are made to the gods:
Poro Osh Kugu Yumo is the supreme, most important god.
Shochinava is the goddess of birth.
Tuniambal sergalysh.

Many researchers consider Keremetya to be the antipode of Kugo-Yumo. It should be noted that the places for sacrifices at Kugo-Yumo and Keremet are separate. Places of worship of deities are called Yumo-oto (“god’s island” or “divine grove”):
Mer-oto is a public place of worship where the whole community prays
Tukym-oto - family and ancestral place of worship

The nature of prayer also differs into:
random prayers (for example, for rain)
community - major holidays (Semyk, Agavayrem, Surem, etc.)
private (family) - wedding, birth of children, funeral, etc.

Settlements and dwellings of the Mari people

The Mari have long developed a riverine-ravine type of settlement. Their ancient habitats were located along the banks of large rivers - the Volga, Vetluga, Sura, Vyatka and their tributaries. Early settlements, according to archaeological data, existed in the form of fortified settlements (karman, or) and unfortified settlements (ilem, surt), connected by family ties. The settlements were small, which is typical for the forest belt. Until the middle of the 19th century. The layout of Mari settlements was dominated by cumulus, disorderly forms, inheriting early forms of settlement by family-patronymic groups. The transition from cumulus forms to an ordinary street layout of streets occurred gradually in the middle - second half of the 19th century.
The interior of the house was simple but functional; there were wide benches along the side walls from the red corner and the table. On the walls there were shelves for dishes and utensils, crossbars for clothes, and there were several chairs in the house. The living space was conventionally divided into the female half, where the stove was located, and the male half - from the front door to the red corner. Gradually, the interior changed - the number of rooms increased, furniture began to appear in the form of beds, cupboards, mirrors, clocks, stools, chairs, and framed photographs.

folklore Mari wedding in Sernur

Mari economy
Already by the end of the 1st - beginning of the 2nd millennium AD. was complex in nature, but the main thing was agriculture. In the IX-XI centuries. The Mari switched to arable farming. The steam three-field with manured fallows became established among the Mari peasants in the 18th century. Along with the three-field farming system until the end of the 19th century. slash-and-burn and fallow cultivation were maintained. The Mari cultivated grains (oats, buckwheat, barley, wheat, spelt, millet), legumes (peas, vetch), and industrial crops (hemp, flax). Sometimes in the fields, in addition to the vegetable gardens on the estate, they planted potatoes and grew hops. Vegetable gardening and horticulture were of a consumer nature. The traditional set of garden crops included: onions, cabbage, carrots, cucumbers, pumpkins, turnips, radishes, rutabaga, and beets. Potatoes began to be cultivated in the first half of the 19th century. Tomatoes began to be grown in Soviet times.
Gardening has become widespread since the mid-19th century. on the right bank of the Volga among the mountain Mari, where there were favorable climatic conditions. Gardening was of commercial value to them.

Folk calendar Mari holidays

The original basis of the holiday calendar was the labor practice of people, primarily agricultural, therefore the calendar ritual of the Mari was of an agricultural nature. Calendar holidays were closely related to the cyclical nature of nature and the corresponding stages of agricultural work.
Christianity had a significant impact on the calendar holidays of the Mari. With the introduction of the church calendar, folk holidays were closer in timing to Orthodox holidays: Shorykyol (New Year, Christmastide) - for Christmas, Kugeche (Great Day) - for Easter, Sÿrem (feast of the summer sacrifice) - for Peter's Day, Uginda (new bread) - for Elijah’s day, etc. Despite this, ancient traditions were not forgotten, they coexisted with Christian ones, preserving their original meaning and structure. The dates of arrival of individual holidays continued to be calculated in the old way, using the lunisolar calendar.

Names
From time immemorial, the Mari had national names. When interacting with the Tatars, Turkic-Arabic names penetrated the Mari, and with the adoption of Christianity - Christian ones. Currently, Christian names are being used more, and a return to national (Mari) names is also gaining popularity. Examples of names: Akchas, Altynbikya, Aivet, Aymurza, Bikbai, Emysh, Izikai, Kumchas, Kysylvika, Mengylvika, Malika, Nastalche, Payralche, Shymavika.

Mari holiday Semyk

Wedding traditions
One of the main attributes of a wedding is the wedding whip “Sÿan lupsh”, a talisman that protects the “road” of life along which the newlyweds will have to walk together.

Mari people of Bashkortostan
Bashkortostan is the second region of Russia after Mari El in terms of the number of Mari residents. There are 105,829 Mari living on the territory of Bashkortostan (2002), a third of the Mari of Bashkortostan live in cities.
The resettlement of the Mari to the Urals took place in the 15th-19th centuries and was caused by their forced Christianization in the Middle Volga. The Mari of Bashkortostan for the most part retained traditional pagan beliefs.
Education in the Mari language is available in national schools, secondary specialized and higher educational institutions in Birsk and Blagoveshchensk. The Mari public association “Mari Ushem” operates in Ufa.

Famous Mari
Abukaev-Emgak, Vyacheslav Aleksandrovich - journalist, playwright
Bykov, Vyacheslav Arkadyevich - hockey player, coach of the Russian national hockey team
Vasikova, Lidia Petrovna - the first Mari woman professor, Doctor of Philology
Vasiliev, Valerian Mikhailovich - linguist, ethnographer, folklorist, writer
Kim Vasin - writer
Grigoriev, Alexander Vladimirovich - artist
Efimov, Izmail Varsonofevich - artist, king of arms
Efremov, Tikhon Efremovich - educator
Efrush, Georgy Zakharovich - writer
Zotin, Vladislav Maksimovich - 1st President of Mari El
Ivanov, Mikhail Maksimovich - poet
Ignatiev, Nikon Vasilievich - writer
Iskandarov, Alexey Iskandarovitch - composer, choirmaster
Kazakov, Miklai - poet
Kislitsyn, Vyacheslav Alexandrovich - 2nd President of Mari El
Columbus, Valentin Khristoforovich - poet
Konakov, Alexander Fedorovich - playwright
Kirla, Yivan - poet, film actor, film Start to Life

Lekain, Nikandr Sergeevich - writer
Luppov, Anatoly Borisovich - composer
Makarova, Nina Vladimirovna - Soviet composer
Mikay, Mikhail Stepanovich - poet and fabulist
Molotov, Ivan N. - composer
Mosolov, Vasily Petrovich - agronomist, academician
Mukhin, Nikolai Semenovich - poet, translator
Sergei Nikolaevich Nikolaev - playwright
Olyk Ipay - poet
Orai, Dmitry Fedorovich - writer
Palantay, Ivan Stepanovich - composer, folklorist, teacher
Prokhorov, Zinon Filippovich - guard lieutenant, Hero of the Soviet Union.
Pet Pershut - poet
Regezh-Gorokhov, Vasily Mikhailovich - writer, translator, People's Artist of the MASSR, Honored Artist of the RSFSR
Savi, Vladimir Alekseevich - writer
Sapaev, Erik Nikitich - composer
Smirnov, Ivan Nikolaevich (historian) - historian, ethnographer
Taktarov, Oleg Nikolaevich - actor, athlete
Toidemar, Pavel S. - musician
Tynysh, Osyp - playwright
Shabdar, Osyp - writer
Shadt, Bulat - poet, prose writer, playwright
Shketan, Yakov Pavlovich - writer
Chavain, Sergei Grigorievich - poet and playwright
Cheremisinova, Anastasia Sergeevna - poetess
Chetkarev, Ksenophon Arkhipovich - ethnographer, folklorist, writer, organizer of science
Eleksein, Yakov Alekseevich - prose writer
Elmar, Vasily Sergeevich - poet
Eshkinin, Andrey Karpovich - writer
Eshpai, Andrey Andreevich - film director, screenwriter, producer
Eshpai, Andrey Yakovlevich - Soviet composer
Eshpai, Yakov Andreevich - ethnographer and composer
Yuzykain, Alexander Mikhailovich - writer
Yuksern, Vasily Stepanovich - writer
Yalkain, Yanysh Yalkaevich - writer, critic, ethnographer
Yamberdov, Ivan Mikhailovich - artist

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Source of information and photos:
Team Nomads.
Peoples of Russia: pictorial album, St. Petersburg, printing house of the Public Benefit Partnership, December 3, 1877, art. 161
MariUver - Independent portal about the Mari, Mari El in four languages: Mari, Russian, Estonian and English
Dictionary of Mari mythology.
Mari // Peoples of Russia. Ch. ed. V. A. Tishkov M.: BRE 1994 p.230
The Last Pagans of Europe
S.K. Kuznetsov. A trip to the ancient Cheremis shrine, known since the time of Olearius. Ethnographic review. 1905, No. 1, p. 129—157
Wikipedia website.
http://aboutmari.com/
http://www.mariuver.info/
http://www.finnougoria.ru/

• 49259 views