Traditional Dolgan dwelling. The peoples of Russia are the Dolgans

Dolgans are people in Russian Federation. According to the 2002 Population Census, about seven thousand Dolgans live in Russia. Five thousand of them live in the Taimyr Autonomous Okrug, the rest of the people are dispersed across other subjects of the Federation.
The Dolgans speak their own language, Dolgan, which belongs to the group of Turkic languages ​​(some scientists classify it as a dialect of Yakut). The Dolgans call themselves “tya-kihi” or “sakha”. Currently, most Dolgans profess Orthodoxy.

The nationality was formed at the end of the 18th - first half of the 19th centuries. The ancestors of the Dolgans were the tribes of Yakuts, Evenks, Nganasans and Russians. They are often called the “northernmost Turkic-speaking people peace." The development of the nationality was largely influenced by the Cossacks, who mastered the northern borders of Russia. Thanks to the Cossacks, the Dolgans were converted to Orthodoxy, in addition, many families received Russian (or rather Cossack) surnames. You can still find people named Kudryakov, Zharkov, Chuprin and many others among the Dolgans. In the mid-twentieth century, the Dolganov writing began to take shape. It is based on the Russian alphabet. The written language was officially adopted at the end of 1970; the first Dolgan primer appeared in 1981.

Basic forms economic activity Dolganov - hunting, fishing and reindeer herding. Since ancient times, the Dolgans have been famous as excellent hunters, the main objects of hunting being deer, fur-bearing animals, and game. The traditional food of the Dolgans consists of deer meat and fish. Dolgans prefer to eat both deer meat and fish raw or frozen. Sometimes venison is dried and fish is boiled. Quite rarely, Dolgans eat poultry (domestic or wild); they also eat onions and plant roots.

The Dolgans were formed in the late 8th - early 19th centuries from several clans (Evenks, Yakuts, Russians), so their beliefs absorbed the ideas existing among these peoples.
Like many other northern peoples, the Dolgans believed that the world around them consisted of three parts: Upper, Middle and Lower. Only a shaman could move from one part of the world to another during ritual actions (kamlaniya). Dolgan shamans had the same attributes as other shamans Siberian peoples: shaman costume, tambourine and mallet.

The drum of the Dolgan shamans had an oval shape, more than 65 centimeters in longitudinal diameter. The shell was made of larch, and on the outer side of the board there were seven resonator tubercles, arranged in the same way as on the tambourines. Four iron brackets with pendants - rings - were attached to the inside of the shell. The shell was covered with wild deer skin.

In the center of the tambourine, an iron cross was attached to straps. There were tambourines with a cross included in an iron ring. Sometimes an image of a two-headed shamanic bird was attached to the upper part of the cross.

The mallet was made from larch or deer antler. One side was decorated with carvings. At the end of the handle, an image of the spirit-owner of the mallet was carved. Sometimes the beater had the shape of a two-bladed oar with an interception in the middle.

To store tambourines there were special bags made of wild deer skins. In general, deer has always been associated with a tambourine. With the help of the deer drum, the shaman could move from one part of the world to another. In addition, the tambourine also represented the universe.

The traditional costume of the Dolganov differs significantly from the costumes of other northern peoples. The Dolgans are one of the few peoples whose women's and men's clothing have fundamental differences. The traditional Dolganov costume contains elements of Even and Yakut costumes.

Men's clothing

The outerwear of the Dolgan men was made of deer skins with the fur on the outside. The floors came together and were tied together with special ties. A bib was worn under the outer clothing, covering the stomach and chest. Along the floor and in front along the waist, the clothing was decorated with a red cloth strip, sometimes embroidered with beads. Exactly the same stripes were sewn onto the back. In summer, the Dolgans wore a light black caftan with a straight slit in the front and converging hems, with a wide collar.

Women's clothing

The Dolganov women's costume is very similar to the Evenki folk costume. Outerwear was always decorated with cloth inserts, various shapes. As a rule, oval wedges made of cloth were inserted above the belt, and rectangular ones below the belt. In winter, women's clothing was made from deer skins, in summer from cloth, but of the same cut.

Hats

The headdresses of men and women are practically the same. As a rule, a bonnet was used as a headdress, which was sewn from three parts: the first part covered the back of the head and crown, and the other two were sewn on the sides and covered the ears and cheeks. Another type of hood consisted of two parts. One strip was located across the head and covered the crown and ears, and the second strip was semicircular and covered the back of the head.

Headdresses were made from cloth or rovduga. The lining was deer fur, with a lush fringe around the face and a small fringe along the lower edge of the hood. In severe frosts, the Dolgans wore hoods made from the skins of foxes, wolves, and arctic foxes.

general information

Dolgans are one of the small peoples North in the Russian Federation. Self-names - Dolgan, Tyakihi. The Dolgans got their name from one of the Evenki clans of the Dolgans, which became an ethnonym for the entire people. They speak the Dolgan dialect of the Yakut language. Some researchers consider it an independent language. Within the Dolgan language, depending on the place of residence of its speakers, there are dialectal differences. Conventionally, three groups of Dolgans are distinguished: Western, Eastern and Popigai-Anabar.

The formation of the Dolgans as an independent ethnic group occurred in relatively close historical time- in the 19th - early 20th centuries. The Evenks played a leading role in the ethnogenesis of the Dolgans. The basis of the Dolgan ethnic group was made up of four Evenki clan groups: Dolgan, Dongot, Edyan and Karanto. In addition to them, the Dolgans also included separate groups Yakuts, Enets, Nenets and Russian old-timers, known in Taimyr under the name tundra peasants.

Territory of settlement and number

The total number of Dolgans in 1989 in the USSR was 6945 people, incl. in the Russian Federation - 6584. More than 70% of all Dolgans are concentrated in the Taimyr Autonomous Okrug - 4939 people. In the Anabar region of Yakutia, as of January 1, 1999, there were 858 dolgans. It should be noted that the 1989 census noted only 408 Dolgans in Yakutia, while in the Anabar region Dolgans were not shown at all. This was not a statistical error, but reflected a certain trend in the national politics of Soviet Yakutia, when part of the Dolgans, Evenks and Evens were recorded as Yakuts. Currently, the Dolgans are concentrated in several populated areas, live together with the Nganasans, Russians, Yakuts and other peoples. The largest settlements in the Taimyr Autonomous Okrug are Khatanga (district center), Popigai, Novorybnoye, Syndasko, Novaya. In the Anabar region of Yakutia - Saskylakh (ulus center), Yuryung-Khaya and Ebelyakh.

Lifestyle and support system

Traditional occupations of the Dolgans are nomadic reindeer herding, hunting wild reindeer, fur trade and fishing. The Dolgans spend the summer with herds of reindeer in the tundra, and the winter in the forest-tundra zone. Dolgan reindeer husbandry has features characteristic of the reindeer herding of the Samoyed peoples - the Nganasans, the Nenets, from whom this branch of the economy was borrowed. But Dolgan reindeer husbandry also has Evenki features - the use of reindeer for riding and for packing, milking of females.

IN modern conditions Dolgan reindeer husbandry is developing as a branch of collective production, as well as in clan and family farms. In the Anabarsky district there are four municipal unitary enterprises, three nomadic communities and 2 peasant farms. In 1999, they had about 19 thousand deer. Up to 800 tons of reindeer meat are produced here annually. In the Khatanga region, domestic reindeer husbandry in last decades due to the large increase in the number of wild reindeer, it has decreased to a minimum. An important branch of the economy for the Dolgans is wild reindeer hunting. In Taimyr, all reindeer herding farms carry out its shooting, attracting not only local hunters, but also visiting professional hunters, as well as tribal communities (Erebil, etc.) and peasant farms. It should be noted that Taimyr has the largest herd of wild deer in Russia. In the Anabar tundra, wild deer hunting is mainly of a consumer nature. Fishing in the Khatanga and Anabar basins is also essentially consumer-based. Among the main problems in the development of the traditional Dolgan economy in modern conditions, the most acute is personnel. The lack of reindeer herders, hunters, and fishermen, according to experts, is the root cause of all the difficulties in the development of the ethno-economic complex. The solution to this problem in the Anabar region of Yakutia is associated with the creation of housing complexes in the tundra. One of these complexes has already been built. A small school, a medical center, and a trading post were opened on one of the sites, and a project for a more comfortable mobile home was developed. It is planned to open 4 similar complexes. In Taimyr they are also trying to create pilot projects for non-profit partnerships and attract new technologies in local processing of venison.

Ethno-social situation

The Dolgans are one of the most urbanized peoples in the Taimyr Autonomous Okrug. Many Dolgan families live here in the city of Dudinka, an urban-type settlement in Khatanga. The life of this part of the Dolgans is not much different from the lifestyle of the rest of the population. The ethno-social situation in rural areas is determined by problems common to the Russian North: the curtailment of unprofitable local production and associated unemployment, reduction of government allocations for the development of social infrastructure, lack of fuel, difficulties with the import of food, without which the majority of aborigines can no longer live ( confectionery products, animal oil, meat gastronomy, etc.), increased morbidity and mortality of the indigenous population, etc. The moral and psychological climate in populated areas is deteriorating everywhere: alcoholism, a decline in morals, the number of crimes, and divorces are increasing. IN last years The number of newcomers in the villages where the Dolgans live has decreased significantly. This circumstance, according to the testimony of the Dolgans themselves, led to a worsening of relations with other northern neighbors on everyday grounds. Makes itself felt and growing social differentiation among the Dolgans. Economically, there is a wealthy group of reindeer herders and wild deer hunters, whose relationships with the less fortunate residents of the villages leave much to be desired. The dissatisfaction of many Dolgans in the Taimyr Autonomous Okrug is caused by the unresolved issue of assigning hunting grounds to hunters. But with the coming to power of new young governors, former managers of the Norilsk-Nickel company, the economic and social situation is gradually changing for the better both in the region as a whole and in the villages.

Ethno-cultural situation

In the spiritual culture of the Dolgans, the features of the Evenki and Yakut cultures. In the Khatanga and Anabar districts there is a complex of cultural and educational institutions, within the framework of which it develops modern culture Dolgan In the Taimyr Autonomous Okrug, the Dolgan-Nenets vocal choreographic ensemble “Heiro” is widely known; children's folklore groups work in regional centers and large villages. District radio and television broadcast in the Dolgan language; in the Anabar region, a local television studio is working to preserve the history and culture of the Dolgans. The Saskylykh Folk Theater also operates here. For the purpose of revival national culture Traditional holidays “Bayanai” and “Reindeer Herder’s Day of the Anabar Tundra” are celebrated. High skill Dolgan masters are distinguished in the field of applied art. Carving on deer and mammoth bones, and the ornamentation of clothes and shoes with deer fur and beads are being revived. The Dolgans have formed a significant layer of national creative intelligentsia. The work of the Dolgan poetess Ogdo-Aksenova and the professional artist B. Molchanov is widely known. Dolgan scientists G. Popov and T. Eremina made a significant contribution to science.

Management and self-government bodies

The Dolgans are one of the few peoples of the North of the Russian Federation that have their own national-territorial entity - the Taimyr (Dolgano-Nenets) Autonomous Okrug, which is a subject of the Russian Federation. The structure of the district government bodies has a Department for the Affairs of Indigenous Peoples of the North, which coordinates all work among the indigenous population. It is also necessary to note the personnel policy of the new district leadership, aimed at attracting representatives of indigenous peoples to administrative positions. The Anabarsky district of Yakutia has national status (Anabarsky national Dolgan-Evenki ulus). The functions of self-government bodies among the Dolgans are currently performed by regional associations of indigenous peoples of the North. In Taimyr, the Association was created in 1996 and aims to preserve original culture indigenous peoples of Taimyr, development of traditional economic activities. In the Anabar region of Yakutia, the district branch of the Association of Small Peoples of the North of Yakutia was formed in April 1991 and unites in its ranks about 400 representatives of the Dolgans, Evenks and Evens. The Association aims to protect the rights and interests of these peoples in the territory of the region and the republic. Other public organizations in the area include the Council of Elders and the Union of Tribal Communities.

Legal documents and laws

In the Taimyr Autonomous Okrug, where the majority of Dolgans live, in recent years a number of laws have finally been adopted aimed at protecting the rights of indigenous peoples of the North. The Charter (Basic Law) of the Taimyr Autonomous Okrug also provides for additional rights for indigenous peoples, such as providing them with free medical care and medical services, the creation of territorial public self-government bodies (Community Councils, Councils of Elders, etc.), financial support through the formation of appropriate funds from district and local budgets, assistance in the development of traditional sectors of the economy, training of national personnel, etc. In Yakutia, the Dolgans are subject to general legislation on indigenous peoples of the North. In this regard there are the following laws: “About the nomadic tribal community of small peoples of the North”; "About public associations"; “On specially protected natural areas”; "ABOUT legal status indigenous peoples of the North"; “On reindeer husbandry”; “About Hunting” and a number of others.

Contemporary environmental issues

The territory of primary settlement and economic activity of the Dolgans has not yet been affected by intensive industrial construction and is safe in environmentally. The negative impact of the Norilsk industrial complex, according to the indigenous residents themselves, is almost not felt in the Khatanga and Anabar regions. The situation may, however, change due to the industrial diamond mining that began in the Anabar region in 1998 and the development of the South Tigyanskoye oil field.

Prospects for preserving the Dolgans as an ethnic group

Dolgans in all areas of their residence have opportunities for the further development of traditional sectors of the economy; they are distinguished by high level ethnic identity.

The ethnic culture of the Dolgans is mosaic. The main area of ​​settlement of the Dolgans is forest-tundra. The multicomponent composition determines the direction of the economy and the appearance of their culture. Economic complex Dolgan has a commercial orientation (hunting, reindeer herding). In addition, fishing was an economic component. There are such diverse types of Dolgan dwellings - Russian hut, Yakut booth, Tungus tent, golomo.

The vocabulary associated with clothing among the Dolgans is Yakut, but its main structural types have Tungusic and Samoyed counterparts. Women wore predominantly Yakut clothing, but unlike the Yakuts, Dolgan clothing was more decorated, which corresponds to the Dolgan tradition. A combination of different ethnic elements is presented in the folklore and traditional worldview of the Dolgans.

This state of Dolgan culture may give rise to the idea that they lack own culture. But this is precisely where the specificity of the Dolgans manifests itself, since no northern people have such a culture. IN in general terms, “the commercial production of Dolgans was a Tungus economy modernized under Russian, Yakut and Samoyed influence, adapted to the specific conditions of the forest-tundra and tundra of Taimyr.”

A significant number of records on all genres of Dolgan folklore were made by P.E. Efremov during expedition trips to Taimyr.

Dolgan art is represented by folklore, in which Yakut and Russian influence. Bylinas are performed in the form of songs close to the Yakut olonkho. Fairy tales in which merchants, peasants, and Ivan Tsarevich appear are common. Evenki borrowings are found in legends. Songs, riddles, proverbs and sayings are also composed. Among the musical instruments, there is a Yakut-type harp.

A significant number of records on all genres of Dolgan folklore were made by P.E. Efremov. This is the heroic legend “Three Girls - Sisters”, a series of fairy tales, myths and songs. Other authors have collected the following folklore tales: “Moskogdoy-Bogatyr”, “Girl-Bogatyr”, “Karakkan-toyon”, “War of Partridges and Pikes”, etc.

The complex processes of cultural formation, the natural and climatic environment and the characteristics of artistic traditions are clearly reflected in the art of the Dolgans.

National Costume

The names of Dolgan clothing are dominated by Yakut words; characteristic types of Yakut ornaments and metal decorations are widely used in its decoration.

The clothes of the Dolgans were more brightly decorated than the clothes of the northern Yakuts. Here, apparently, a long-standing Tungus tradition was manifested - embroidered clothing has long been characteristic of Western groups of Dolgans. An analysis of surviving examples of ancient embroidered Dolgan clothing shows very close parallels with Evenki clothing.

N.F. Prytkova once wrote that “among the Dolgans, like no other Siberian people, there was a complete discrepancy between men’s and women’s clothing.” This is perhaps one of the characteristic features of Dolgan clothing. Indeed, with the same material and some common features in design and style between women's and men's clothing there were certain differences. This was primarily observed in certain types of clothing, the nature of decoration and design. Vivid evidence can also be provided by the rich terminology of Dolgan clothing, in which gender and age characteristics are clearly visible. Dolgan clothing was also divided according to purpose into everyday, holiday, weekend, commercial and funeral.

Traditional Dolgan clothing is multi-component. Headdress, outerwear, shoes and various accessories form a single package. The Dolgans have both open and closed clothing.

The Dolgans have developed special culture, they not only knew how to sew beautiful clothes, but also knew the features of wearing them, they were well aware of the ways to care for them and store them.

Men's and women's outerwear Dolgan - a caftan made of cloth (sontap), embroidered with beads, similar to the Evenki one. Men's shirts, pants and women's dresses They were made from purchased fabrics and did not differ from the clothes of the Russian old-timers of central Taimyr. Shirts were decorated with narrow edges made of colored fabric and many buttons.

In winter, they wore parkas made of reindeer fur, similar to the Nganasan ones, and sokui of the Nenets type (solid fur clothing with a hood with the fur facing out). In summer they also wore sokui, but made of cloth. Fur coats made from reindeer skins lasted only 2-3 years, then the embroidered decorative trims of the clothes had to be altered to new ones. In this regard, cloth caftans were much more practical and lasted a long time.

Headdresses (bersege) are shaped hoods made of cloth, embroidered with beads (summer), or made of fox kamus (winter). Women's bonnets were the most colorful and decorative. To decorate cloth hats, mainly the two most common decoration techniques are used: bead embroidery and appliqué with colored strips of fabric and thread. Ornamental stripes, consisting of several rows of colored beads or fabric applique, are usually located along the edges and main seams of the hood. Men's hats were decorated with beaded or fabric embroidery as richly as women's, but their decoration had a slightly different character. They were mainly decorated with the front front and back parts.

The shoes were made from reindeer kamus or rovduga (similar to Evenki high boots) and decorated with beads.

Currently National clothes quite widespread; Among village residents, especially women, it is used mainly as holiday clothing.

Number of people: 6945 people. Language - Turkic group Altai family languages. Settlement - Taimyr (Dolgano-Nenets) Autonomous Okrug, Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), Krasnoyarsk Territory. In addition to the ethnonym - haka, regional self-names - dulgaan, tya kichite, tyalar - are also common. Dolgans differ in dialects: Western, Eastern and Popigai-Anabar; in 1989, over 83% of Dolgans spoke their native language. Dolgan writing based on the Russian alphabet was officially adopted in the late 1970s, the first book was published in 1973, the first Dolgan primer in 1981. The Dolgans formed as an ethnic group relatively recently, in the 17th - 19th centuries, by mixing and merging of groups of other peoples - Evenks (Tungus), Yakuts, Enets (Samoyeds) and Russians (the so-called tundra peasants), as well as the assimilation of individual elements of the culture of neighbors - Evens, Nganasans. In the 17th century Tungus clans with the name Dolgan were known in the areas of Anadyr, Gizhiga, Kamchatka, and the Okhotsk coast; birth of Ejen (Edyan) - in the river basin. Aldana, in the Ayan area on the Okhotsk coast, etc. At the end of the 17th century. in the river basin Khatanga and on the river. The first Yakut migrants appeared in Kheta, who later formed the Nizhne-Zatundrinskaya Yakut volost here. Even earlier, from the first half of the 17th century, along the river. Russian “industrial” people (engaged in fishing) settled in Pyasina, Dudyp-te, Boganida, Kheta, Khatanga, laying the foundation for the old-time Russian population, later known as tundra peasants. Evenki clans, which later became the core of the Dolgans, in the 17th - 18th centuries. contacted the Yakut migrants and, having adopted their language, migrated (moved) with them across the common territory. During the 18th century. groups of Dolgans moved to the northwest, on the river. Popigai and Khatangu, Dongot and Ejen - to the Norilsk Lakes region, Karyn-tuo - to the Boganida basin. Those remaining on the river Lene entered the local Yakut naslegs in separate clans.

In the 19th century In Taimyr, the process of mutual rapprochement of various population groups was actively taking place. The Yakut language became dominant for the Tungus clans and most of the tundra peasants. Interethnic marriages increasingly blurred the differences between them. The day before October revolution Several clans were formed, headed by clan elders: Dolgan-Yenisei (Dolgan itself), Zhigan-Tungus (Edzhen), Dolgan-Tungus (Dolgot) and Boganid-Tungus (Karyntuo). The economy and culture reflect the complex origins of the people. Its traditional activities are reindeer herding and hunting, and in some areas, fishing. The Dolgans led a nomadic lifestyle, never leaving the forest-tundra. In winter, the Norilsk and Popigai Dolgans lived separately from each other, other groups lived together, in five or six households, some settled in permanent huts. With the onset of spring, nomadic groups of several families that owned land were formed. The deer were guarded around the clock by guards from each farm. In the fall, the groups broke up, the family independently prepared arctic fox traps for winter and hunted wild deer. Reindeer husbandry combined the traditions of the Tunguska horseman and the techniques of sleigh reindeer herding, borrowed from the Samoyeds (Nenets). In summer, reindeer were used under saddle and pack, and in winter - in harness. The sleds were mostly slanted, similar to the Nenets and Nganasan, but there were also Yakut types, with low, straight-set sledges. The leading reindeer was harnessed and controlled with a rein on the right, whereas among the Nenets, Enets and Nganasans it was controlled on the left. Like the Evenks, the Dolgans milked reindeer and, like the Nenets and Nganasans, they used a herding dog. The saddles and method of riding were of the Tunguska type.

We hunted arctic foxes, geese, ducks, and partridges. According to legend, wild deer were hunted with a bow and arrows, and crossbows were placed (a large bow guarded along the animal trail). From the end XIX V. started using firearms, often with poisoned bullets. The poison was extracted from the rancid fat of wild deer. The autumn collective slaughter of deer during river crossings was of great importance (animals were slaughtered in the water with spears). In summer and autumn they were tracked with the help of a hunting dog. In the fall, during the rutting period of wild deer, they used a tamed decoy deer, which was allowed near the wild ones. In winter, they hunted deer by chasing: they harnessed four reindeer to a light sled and chased the tracked herd for hours. When sneaking up on a herd of wild animals, the hunters disguised themselves with a shield placed on runners and moved on wide Tunguska-type skis (like the Evenks). For waterfowl they set up nets, snares, traps, and for the Arctic fox - mouth traps: the animal grabbed the bait, pulled out the bait stick and dropped the oppression log on itself. Arctic fox hunting was mainly of commercial value. When fishing under ice, they used fixed nets made of thread or horsehair. The nets were tied to poles and set adrift. When fishing in forests, like seines on mountain rivers, riding deer served as draft force. Hooks for pike, grayling, and sesame were made using handicraft methods from nails. Small boats were bought from Russians and Yakuts. The traditional nomadic dwelling is a conical tent of the Tungus type (like the Evenks), covered in summer with tires made of rovduga (roughly dressed reindeer or elk suede), and in winter with reindeer skins.

In the old days, they installed golomos and booths of the Yakut type (frame dwellings made of inclined pillars, blocks, boards, covered with turf), without windows or bunks. With the arrival of the Russians, they began to live in beams (slant tents), houses on runners. The beam is a rectangular frame, covered on the outside with deer skins and on the inside with chintz. It is mounted on a large sleigh and transported by a team of five to seven reindeer. The windows are glazed, there is an iron stove, bunks, a table, and sometimes chairs.

The beam is still used today; it is convenient for migrations. Outbuildings were used to construct warehouses-platforms and barns on high pillars. Men's and women's clothing differed. Outerwear was made from purchased fabrics. Men wore shirts and pants, women wore dresses, over which they wore closed aprons and belts embroidered with beads (small glass or porcelain colored beads); there was no underwear. Men and women wore cloth caftans (sontap) in summer and winter, and arctic fox and hare fur coats in winter. Reindeer swing parkas (with a slit in the front) are similar to Even parkas, although their floors are the same. They wore parkas with bibs similar to Evenki ones. A characteristic feature of men's and women's clothing is a slightly elongated hem at the back. The hats (bergese) had the shape of a hood with a top made of cloth or fox kamus (skin from a leg), embroidered with beads and colored strips of fabric.

Winter shoes up to the knees and longer were made from reindeer kamus, embroidered with beads, and summer shoes were made from rovduga. Festive clothes and shoes were richly decorated with beads, appliqués made of colored strips of fabric, and embroidered with deer hair under the neck on rovduga, dyed red with a decoction of alder bark or ocher, and black with graphite.

In the past, embroidery with sinew threads was found on the straps and belts of reindeer harnesses. The men's craft was mammoth bone carving; it was characterized by carved cheek plates of a deer halter, inlaying knife handles with tin with the original geometric ornament. They ate mostly boiled and dried meat and fish. Stroganina was made from frozen fish. They used roots and berries for food, baked flatbreads and pancakes. Relationships among the Dolgans were kept in the male line. The terminology was Yakut. The clan organization collapsed by the 19th century, but survived collective forms hunting wild deer and birds, fishing, etc. The hunted deer and caught fish were divided among relatives and neighbors; marketable furs remained the property of the hunter. Rich owners - owners of large herds of deer - used their poor relatives as workers. In the second half of the 19th century. Among the Dolgans, intermediaries appeared to interact with the Russian and Yakut merchants, who exploited their relatives.

The Dolgans retained animistic views. They divided deities and spirits into three categories: invisible beings capable of inhabiting any object (icchi); spirits that are friendly to people (ayyy); spirits that are unfriendly to people and live in the underworld (abaasy). The shamans (oyun) had a costume and drum of the Yakut type. Like the neighboring Samoyed peoples, Dolgan shamans differed in their level of magical skill: “singers-healers” (yryakhyt), who did not have a costume with rattles and a tambourine; “a shaman turning to the spirits of the Lower World for help” (muolin oyun); “shaman with a bit” (uostugan oyun), i.e. possessing a set of ritual attributes. Like the Evenks and Yakuts, Dolgan shamans could be “small, weak” (ylgyn), “medium” (orto) and “great” (atyyr) chosen spirits. The people revered family and hunting patrons (saitans). They could be various objects (a strangely shaped stone, deer antlers, etc.), into which the shaman infused a spirit - ichchi. Along with this, there was a cult wood sculpture. The dead were buried in the ground. Eastern Dolgans made a frame over the grave, decorated it with intricate patterns, killed a deer at the grave, and left the clothes and personal belongings of the deceased right there on the ground or hung them on a tree. Western (Norilsk) - they did not make a log house, but they dumped a tree on an earthen mound.

In Dolgan folklore, original features are combined with elements of Yakut folklore olonkho (by the nature of its performance it is the embryo of folk opera), Evenki legends, Russian fairy tales, etc. The original folklore genres reflect the real nature of the North and nomadic life. The borrowed stories describe sedentary life, a different nature, social relations, not typical for the North. The following genres of folklore are distinguished: riddles, songs, fairy tales, legends, and stories. Fairy tales about animals, magic and everyday life are the most common genre these days. Legends and stories reflect ancient tribal, intertribal and intrafamily relationships. Short lyrical, love and long songs are improvised by “song people”. Riddles are widely used among children and adults. Proverbs and sayings are mainly borrowed from the Yakuts. Music in genre and stylistic terms is a variant of the culture of the northern Yakuts and has family ties with the music of the Evenks, Evens, Nganasans, Enets, Nenets and North Siberian Russian old-timers. Genres include epic, ritual, instrumental and phono-signal music, as well as songs. They are always associated with a personal singing tradition characteristic of the Tungus and Samoyed ethnic groups. Songs of appeal to boys and girls are important in the formation family and marital relations in a traditional ethnic environment. Elderly perform songs-reflections about the life they have lived, about a person, about surrounding nature. Ritual genres can be divided into tribal and shamanic. The first includes circular dance songs, the second includes the rituals of a shaman (or shaman) with chants, onomatopoeia, recitative, exclamations, playing the tambourine, and the sounds of pendant rattles.

Since the beginning of the 20th century. they play the Yakut self-sounding plucked harp - a metal plate with a tongue cut into it, to which a string is attached. The round dance of Heiro is also widespread, helping to ask the spirits for fertility, family well-being, and the reproduction of livestock. Men and women, holding hands, stand in a circle, moving first in one direction, then in the other, and chanting in time with the kicks of their feet: “Ekhor-e, ekhor-e, chakh, chech, chech, ekher-e” or “hey -nan-hachu, hai-nan-hachu.” An indispensable attribute of the dance is a pole (trochee) driven into the ground or ice in the center of the circle, which is used to drive the deer. Musical instruments reflect the peculiarities of the economic structure, ritual traditions and the specifics of artistic thinking: a botal pendant on the antlers of a deer (kaangalda); botalo (bell) on the neck of a sled reindeer to scare away the wolf (kupuleen); rattles-bells on the festive clothes of children (kobo), pendants on women and in shaman attire (uostaak kobo), in reindeer herding metal balls on deer (kaagyr kobo); bells on the baby's cradle and clothes (chuoraan); tinkling decorations-pendants on clothes (tingkines). A special place is occupied by shamanic attributes: tambourine (dingur); pendants-rattles symbolizing bones and feathers (kyyraan); a belt with three bells, which the shaman holds on to during ritual (sitim) - a ritual of communication with spirits.

The Dolgans live compactly in the villages of the Khatanga and Dudinsky districts of the Taimyr Autonomous Okrug and in the city of Dudinka. They are still engaged in reindeer herding, which is also associated with folk artistic creativity and applied arts - carving deer and mammoth bone, processing clothes and shoes with deer fur and beads, sewing national clothes, decorating household utensils for nomadic life. Teachers of the Dolgan language are trained at the Pedagogical School in Dudinka. For primary school textbooks of the native language have been published. Among the Dolgans of the Taimyr (Dolgan-Nenets) Autonomous Okrug and the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) there are famous writers, poets, journalists, professional artists, scientists and specialists in the field of linguistics, history, geography, pedagogical sciences. In the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), the national children's ensemble "Heiro" is popular. The Taimyr State Television and Radio Company produces programs in the Dolgan language, and the Taimyr newspaper publishes materials devoted to the revival of the traditional way of life, the development of the Dolgan language and culture.

Dolgans of the Anabar River.

The Anabar Dolgans are a small local sub-ethnic group, one of the indigenous peoples inhabiting the territory of the Anabar ulus of the Sakha Republic. According to the 2002 All-Russian Population Census, there were 988 Dolgans in the ulus. They speak the Dolgan dialect of the Yakut language. Traditional activities are nomadic reindeer herding, hunting and fishing. Currently, the Dolgans live compactly in villages modern type Yuryung-Khaya and Saskylakh.

Anabar land, located far beyond the Arctic Circle on the northwestern outskirts of Yakutia, part of geographical area Arctic territories, is the place of compact residence of the Dolgans, one of the indigenous peoples of the North. From time immemorial, these northern latitudes were inhabited by nomadic tribes - the distant ancestors of modern Anabarians. Here, in the harsh conditions of the Arctic tundra, in the land of polar nights and cold winds, their centuries-old history took shape and a unique culture of northern nomadic reindeer herders was formed.

The problem of origin and ethnic history Dolgans, including the Anabar ones, remain insufficiently studied to this day. Most early mention Tungus of the Dolgan family is found in the books of yasak collection of Russian Cossacks in the first half of the 17th century. Their habitat was noted on the middle reaches of the Lena River at the mouth of the Vilyui River. Later, the Dolgans gradually migrated to the northwest, to the area of ​​the Olenek, Anabar and Khatanga river basins, where they found themselves among other ethnic groups of various origins. Judging by the yasak books, by the time the Russian Cossacks arrived, the ethnic composition of the regular yasak payers here was quite diverse. The names of various tribes and clans of Tungus, Samoyed and Yakut origin are noted. Many researchers believe that the ethnic core of the Dolgan people goes back to the Tungus clan of Dulgans. This is also confirmed by the fact that modern Dolgans are divided into groups that have connections with different peoples and their territorial groups living within Krasnoyarsk Territory and Yakutia (Ilimpean Evenks, Essene and Anabar Yakuts, Russian old-timers). Thus, the Dolgans as a separate nation emerged as a result of a long process of gradual advancement of various groups of Evenks and Yakuts on the territory of Taimyr.

The ancestors of modern Anabar Dolgans originally occupied a vast territory between the basins of northern rivers flowing into the Laptev Sea. Before the modern borders between Yakutia and the Krasnoyarsk Territory were drawn up, the bulk of the local nomadic population administratively belonged to the Yenisei province. The Turukhan authorities called them “Nizhnezatundrinsky” Yakuts. As a result of the establishment in 1930 of new territorial borders of the Taimyr (Dolgano-Nenets) Autonomous Okrug and the Yakut Republic, the local indigenous population was divided into two parts. Thus, in the lower reaches of Khatanga and Anabar, two separate groups were formed, territorially cut off and belonging to different administrative entities. During Soviet times, communication between related groups was practically lost.

The origins of the ethnocultural traditions of the Dolgans go back to ancient times, to the cultures of nomadic aborigines who in the past inhabited the vast territory between the basins of the Khatanga and Anabar rivers. This ethnocultural region has long been a special contact zone of various tribes and ethnic communities - carriers of original nomadic cultures.

Dolgan culture contains whole line ethnic traits of different nature and origin. The combination of the latter creates that unique identity that distinguishes the Dolgans not only from their closest neighbors, but also from other related peoples who lead similar economic and cultural activities and are related to them by a common origin.

There is much in common between the Anabar and Khatanga Dolgans ethnically and culturally. Anabar Dolgans, like their Khatanga relatives, are excellent reindeer herders, hunters and fishermen. Anabar reindeer herders also have many characteristic features of Dolgan reindeer herding, which have ancient features of Tungusic traditions. Hunting and fishing are distinguished by the presence of both Yakut and northern elements. Shooting wild deer, arctic fox hunting, summer hunting for waterfowl, and catching partridges were typical for the forest-tundra zone. The methods and technology were quite developed, and the influence of neighboring peoples was also observed in fishing traditions.

Traditional economic activities still play a special role in the life of the Anabarians today. Nomadic reindeer herding, hunting and fishing, despite the rapid development of the mining industry here in recent decades, remain the main areas of economic activity of the indigenous population. Reindeer farms of the ulus are considered one of the best in the republic. There are many families in the ulus engaged in this type of traditional industry and leading a nomadic lifestyle. Mobile nomadic schools have been created for the children of reindeer herders.

Researchers attribute the language of the Anabar Dolgans to the northern dialects of the Sakha language, which are distinguished by the presence of significant lexical and phonetic differences. Everyday vocabulary mainly reflects the specifics of economic activity. It contains words of different origins. A special layer consists of words related to the ancient Tungus language. Lexicon also includes the words of Russian old-timers, who have become related to the local population since ancient times. Despite the modern spread of the Yakut literary language, the originality of the local dialect is preserved among the Anabar Dolgans. However, today the Dolgan language, like many northern languages, is going through difficult times; the task of its preservation and further development is quite urgent.

The culture of ancient nomadic reindeer herders is original and unique with its unique folklore and musical traditions. Traditional folklore is carefully preserved in the ulus, and modern creativity is developing. Among the elderly Dolgans, oral genres of folklore, fairy tales, legends, song tunes, and the traditions of the circular dance of Heiro are alive. Anabar Dolgans are known as skilled carvers of wood and bone, masters of embroidery with beads and colored threads. Dolgan clothing is distinguished by rich fur and leather trim and bright ornamental decor.

Since the beginning of the 1990s, as a result of ethnocultural policies aimed at supporting the indigenous peoples of the North, a lot has been done in the Anabarsky ulus to revive ethnic group Dolgan In recent years, their numbers have increased significantly, and the Dolgan section of the Republican Association of Indigenous Minorities of the North has been created. Over the years, the ulus acquired the official status of the national Dolgan-Evenki region. As representatives of the indigenous population, the Anabar Dolgans enjoy federal and republican social support.

Currently time is running active work to preserve language and culture. In Yuryung-Khainskaya high school the optional Dolgan language is taught and traditional culture, there are clubs “Lessons of the Ancestors”, handicrafts and many others.

Anatoly Savvinov, Candidate of Historical Sciences

Federal State
educational institution
higher professional education

"SIBERIAN FEDERAL UNIVERSITY"

Law Institute
Faculty of Law

ABSTRACT
"Culture of Dolgans"

Teacher N.M. Libakova

Student YuYu10-07 K.R. Kudryavtseva

Krasnoyarsk 2010

Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………………………………...3
1 Ethnogenesis………………………………………………………………………………………….…………………..4
2 Traditional activities……………………………………………………………………………………….………5
3 Traditional housing…………………………………………………………………………………….……6
4 Religious beliefs…………………………………………………………………….……..7-10
5 National costume………………………………………………………………………………………...11
6 National food…………………………………………………………………………………12
7 Family and household relations…………………………………………………………………………………13
8 Folklore and folk art…………………………………………………………………………………..14
9 Culture………………………………………………………………………………………......15
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………….16
List of sources used………………………………………………………………...17

INTRODUCTION

Many different peoples live on the territory of the Krasnoyarsk Territory: Buryats, Ukrainians, Kets, etc. But I would like to focus my attention on such a people as the Dolgans.
Dolgans (self-name: Dolgan, Tyakihi, Sakha) are the indigenous people of the north of the Krasnoyarsk Territory (5.8 thousand people). Most of them live in the eastern Khatanga region of the Taimyr (Dolgano-Nenets) Autonomous Okrug along the Kheta and Khatanga rivers. The smaller part is in the west of the district, in the Avam tundra on the Yenisei. There is a small number of Dolgans in the Anabarsky ulus of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). In total, there are 7.3 thousand Dolgans in Russia.
The Dolgan language was considered a dialect of the Yakut language. It is currently defined as independent language, close to Yakut. Belongs to the Turkic group of Altai language family. There are dialects: Western, Eastern and Popigai-Anabar. Writing is based on the Russian alphabet.
The Dolgan believers are Orthodox. Common faith was one of the factors in the consolidation of the Dolgans into a single ethnic community. There are adherents of traditional cults (shamanism, deification of the forces of nature, animism). Animism, in particular, is manifested in the worship of saitans (unusually shaped stones, trees and other objects), who were considered the patrons of hunting and fishing.

1 ETHNOGENESIS

The Dolgans are one of the “youngest” peoples of the North. As an ethnic group, it emerged in Taimyr in the 18th-19th centuries. as a result of the interaction and mixing of three ethnic components: Russian old-timers (the so-called “tundra peasants” who lived there since the 17th century), who migrated in the 18th century. from Yakutia the Tungus (Evenks and Evens) and resettled in the 19th century. from Yakutia, northern Yakut reindeer herders. The final formation of the Dolgans as an independent ethnic group occurred at the beginning of the 20th century.
The ethnonym “Dolgans” is of Evenki origin, from the name of one of the Tungus-speaking clan groups - Dolgan, Dongot.
In December 1930, the Taimyr (Dolgano-Nenets) national district was formed (three districts, the administrative center, the city of Dudinka), since 1987 - an autonomous district, since 1992 - an independent subject of the Russian Federation, since 2007 - a municipal education within the Krasnoyarsk Territory.

2 TRADITIONAL CLASSES

The traditional occupations of the Dolgans include: reindeer herding, hunting wild reindeer and fur-bearing animals, and fishing. The routes of the seasonal nomads of the Dolgan reindeer herding farms were significantly shorter than those of the Nenets, Entsy and other peoples of Taimyr. In the summer, the herds went out into the tundra to the north, and spent the winter in the south - in the forest-tundra. Reindeer husbandry of the Dolgans bears features borrowed from neighboring peoples. The sledges are of the Samoyed type, however, like the Evenks, they are mounted on the right, the leading reindeer is also harnessed on the right. Like the Evenks, the Dolgans use reindeer for packing and also for riding. They borrowed the herding dog from the Nenets and Nganasans. Currently, in most of Taimyr, reindeer husbandry has disappeared, surviving only in two or three eastern villages, and the number of domestic reindeer has decreased tenfold.
From hunting objects highest value has a wild reindeer. Collective slaughter of deer was used at seasonal river crossings. Hunting was practiced with the help of a decoy deer and a camouflage shield. Rutting hunting was common. Wide Tunguska-type skis were used to move on snow.
Among the fur-bearing animals, the Dolgans hunt arctic fox, ermine, and fox. Fishing gear: traps and homemade mouth traps. In the fall, there was a collective hunt for moulting geese using nets. Currently, the bird is hunted individually with a gun. Fishing is developed, and valuable species of fish are caught using nets. The means of transportation on water were small boats, which were purchased from the Russians and Yakuts, currently - motor boats. In the 20th century Livestock farming appeared on a limited scale.

3 TRADITIONAL HOUSING

In the villages (stanks) along the Khatanga tract, the Dolgans lived in Russian-style huts; in the tundra and forest-tundra they used portable and stationary frame buildings: a pole tent of the Evenki type, covered with rovduga in the summer and reindeer skins in the winter, golomo (a structure made of wooden blocks, covered with bark and lined turf, earth), like the Evenks, or booths (Yakut type).
The most original dwelling of the Dolgans is the balok, borrowed from the Russian old-timers of the North. It is a frame house made of slats, mounted on runners. The wooden frame was covered with chintz, and a reindeer skin cover and a canvas cover were put on top. The beam had windows, an iron stove, and bunks. Nowadays, plagues and beams have become rare, preserved by a few reindeer herders, hunters and fishermen in distant lands. The outbuildings were barns or storage sheds, which were installed on high poles.
After the massive transition to a sedentary lifestyle in the second half of the 20th century. Dolgans live in villages built up with standard houses. A peculiarity of northern villages is the absence of courtyards, fences, and vegetable gardens.

4 RELIGIOUS BELIEFS

Orthodox Dolgans. Christianization All of them were baptized, but at the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th centuries, they were defined as “three-believers” (nature cults, shamanism, Christianity). Nevertheless, it was the common faith, in this case we are talking about Christianity, that acted as one of the factors in the consolidation of the Dolgans into a single ethnic community.
The Dolgans were officially considered baptized and observed the outward side of Christianity, but they also retained traditional religious beliefs. It was a complex complex of very diverse animistic and magical ideas, superstitions, and prohibitions. The population was registered to the Yenisei parish. The two Orthodox churches that existed on the territory of Taimyr in Khatanga and Dudinka were rarely visited. Priests also rarely visited the tundra. Literate Dolgans who graduated from a missionary school in Turukhansk performed some of the functions of the clergy: baptism, wedding, funeral. Myths about the creation of the world, the origin of humanity, animals, plants, which existed among the “upper” and “lower” Dolgans, were short, condensed and contradictory stories that largely coincided with the Yakut ones. "Nevertheless older generation viewed them as events that actually once took place. Despite all the erasure and fragmentation of these myths, the ideas that permeate them appear quite clearly.” All the narrators are unanimous in their opinion that “once upon a time, in the distant past, chaos reigned in the world. The main elements - sky and water - were not separated from each other, there was no earth, but the loon dived into the water and pulled out several grains of earth in its beak. From these grains of sand she created the earth.” In one of the stories about the creation of the earth, the good spirit Aiyn-Toyon, Allaraa-Ogonyor (the lower old man), Elijah the prophet and even Jesus Christ take an active part. Basically, these options describe a dispute between Aiyn-Toyonm and Allaraa-Ogonyor about who will create the land. The lower old man refuses to do this, and Aiyn-Toyon was forced to force his older brother, evil but not very powerful, to get a handful of earth. “Myths about the creation of the earth have a pronounced dualistic character. The forces of good and good are closely interconnected in them. evil started " The universe, according to the Dolgans, consisted of three worlds: the upper-heavenly, the middle-earthly and the lower-underground. However, the population was not alien to a flat idea of ​​the Universe. In this case, the lower world was considered as a country that is located in the north. There were also ideas about some other worlds where half-humans, half-spirits live. The Dolgans did not have a clear idea of ​​the upper world. According to some reports, it was divided into 9 tiers, according to others into 12. Most Dolgans had a very vague idea of ​​the upper world. They thought it was very cold there because the shaman who went up there to get the soul of a child for a childless family returned covered in icicles. The upper world was inhabited by deities and good spirits. In the middle world live people and the spirit of the earth - Aaan doidu ichchite, the spirits who are the owners of places, some evil spirits are in the air, sending various diseases. All the animals living in the middle world were arranged in a certain order depending on their importance. The deer was highest, then the other animals. Of the birds, the first places were occupied by the eagle, hawk, swan, and owl. Man himself, or rather his genus, also belonged to a certain group of the animal world. Scientists' research proves that in the past, each clan had its own bird, which it considered the main god. So, the god of the Botul and Chardu clans was an eagle, the Maimaga clan was a swan. Women who belonged to another clan said the name of the totem bird and covered their heads with their hands if they were without a headdress when the totem bird flew over them. Harming one's bird was believed to cause illness and misfortune. The lower world was represented by the land of Allaraa - Ogonyoro. Various monsters lived here. Deities and spirits, according to the Dolgans, were divided into three categories: ichchi - incorporeal, invisible creatures that, settling in any object, make it alive; ayyy - spirits friendly to people; abaas are spirits who are friendly to people. The man was sick and dying, according to the Dolgans, because the Abaas stole his soul and took him to the underworld, and then, settling in the man, ate him. The Dolgans did not offer sacrifices or honor to these supreme deities and spirits. Only the patroness of women in labor and the spirit of fire were revered, to which the Dolgans were especially respectful. Before a hunt, a long trip, or while eating, pieces of meat, fish or fat were thrown into the fire, and they were sprinkled with blood or alcohol. They thought that the spirit of fire hears and understands human speech, so fire was never scolded. If, during a discussion of important matters relating to the life and production activities of the family, a burning log crackled, then this was perceived as the voice of fire, warning that the business begun would not be successful. In this case, a trip to fishing, hunting or migration was postponed. They were very careful about the burning coals that fell from the fire. The fire was protected from desecration in every possible way. It was strictly forbidden to pour water into it, spit, or stir the coals with a sharp iron object. If there was a fire or clothes or shoes were burned, it was considered the wrath of fire. It happened that fire could send illness or failure in business. They addressed the spirit of fire with requests and spells. They were usually pronounced by the most respected elderly person or shaman. The spirit of fire was considered a good creature, which was opposed to evil, harmful spirits, therefore, a spark was struck over a sore spot, over an abscess or tumor, hoping that, frightened by the fire, the evil spirit would leave the body. The origin of man was explained using a modified biblical legend, adapted to local conditions. Here, for example, is one of them: Aiyn-Toyon decided to create a person. First, he created two creatures covered with wool, and, without completing them sexually, he left. Aiyn-Toyon placed his creation in a barn, locked it and assigned a guard creature specially created by him for this purpose to guard it. The watchman was naked and resembled a man. In the absence of Aiyn-Toyon, an evil spirit appeared and wanted to get inside the barn, but the watchman steadfastly defended the door and did not succumb to temptations and threats. Then Allaraa-Ogognor let out the cold. The naked watchman began to freeze and hid in the barn, but even here he could not warm up. Having completely chilled, the watchman agreed to let Allaraa-Ogonyor into the barn on the condition that he would grow warm wool. Allaraa-Ogonyor gave him wool and was allowed into the barn. The hungry creatures in the barn asked him for food. He gave one creature a berry, and another half a berry. As a result, their fur fell off, and the first creature turned into a woman, and the other into a man. When Aiyn-Toyon returned, he cursed the watchman in anger and turned him into a dog. Since then, the dog is doomed to serve man, eating his scraps. The creation of the animal and plant world was depicted by the Dolgans in a very primitive way. Aiyn-Toyon created everything useful plants: birch, willow grass, medicinal herbs. Allara-Ogonyor imitated Aiyn-Toyon and created poisonous plants. The same thing happened with fish, birds, and animals. Aiyn-Toyon created all the good fish and birds used for food - whitefish, sturgeon, broad whitefish, omul, partridge, duck, goose. Lower old man - pike, taimen, small bony fish, loon. All useful animals are associated with Aiyn-Toyon, all insects are associated with Allaraa-Ogonyor, and in conclusion he wanted to create a mosquito the size of a cow. The heavenly bodies: the moon, the stars, were not associated with the creation of the earth. The stars were seen as either lakes or holes in the sky. The legend about the origin of the moon tells: Once upon a time, at a time when they lived stone people, there was no moon. One day the stone people captured an ordinary girl and made her a slave. One night she was woken up and sent to the ice hole for water. She set off with a yoke and buckets for water, crying along the way, complaining to the sky about her fate. The sky heeded the girl’s pleas and saved her from troubles, taking her to the sky and turning her into the moon, and the rocker and buckets formed spots on the moon. The existence of the world was threatened by stone people (wars), which the good spirit Aiyn-Toyon had to fight. These warriors were given birth to by the biblical character Elijah, the prophet, who appeared on earth in the form of thunder. Thunder, according to the ancestors of the Dolgans, is the embodiment of the spirit of fire. The stone people were so strong that they wanted to destroy the earth. But the good spirit, in a fierce struggle, defeated them and turned them into petrified mountains, and Elijah the prophet allowed to appear only in the form of thunder. The Dolgans also honored the Christian Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker. Apparently, the influence of the Russian Cossacks, who ruled Taimyr, had an effect, and in their huts the Dolgans saw icons of their beloved saint. They did not forget their gods, honoring the so-called saitans. Saitans could be various objects: an unusually shaped stone, an ugly god of a wild deer, any object into which the shaman had infused the ichchi spirit. The main function of saitans is to protect and patronize the home, family, and hunters. The Saitans were appeased in every possible way, carefully stored, fed, and transported with them during migrations. But in tents, beams, and on graves one could often find icons depicting the faces of saints. Dolgans also celebrated Christian holidays: Christmas, Easter, Epiphany, and newborn babies were baptized. Shamanism. The most striking form of religious beliefs of the northern peoples, in particular the Dolgans, was shamanism. This area of ​​Dolgan culture has still not been sufficiently studied, despite a number of existing publications. Meanwhile, it is not only of historical interest, but also has practical significance. After the establishment of Soviet power in Taimyr, shamanism as a belief was banned. Some studies of this phenomenon are available from ethnographers A.A. Popova, I.S. Gurvich. Although they did not formally define the term “shamanism”, based on their research it can be concluded that their essence was belief in spirits and the possibility of their subordination to shamans, the ability of the latter, during rituals, to move to the upper and lower worlds in order to fight and win evil spirits. Like many peoples, a Dolgan shaman could be a person who had shaman ancestors, since it is the ancestors who are the shaman’s main assistant in the fight against evil spirits. But this alone was not enough. A person became a shaman not at will, but at the behest of the spirits. The Dolgans believed that the shaman had special qualities. If after the death of a shaman there were no followers left in the family, then people believed that they were in danger. However, the chosen one could become a shaman only after a special initiation ceremony. Typically, the period of formation of the future shaman began at the age of 15-16 years. Both men and women could become shamans. Being the chosen one of the spirits, the future shaman began to hear and see what was inaccessible to others. He behaved very strangely: he sang loudly, he slept for days on end, he went alone into the tundra, he walked around the camp, not noticing anything. And one day the future shaman disappeared from the camp. Sometimes he was absent for six months. He returned to his native place in tatters, hungry, and thin. At this time, he was many miles away from his place, and the future shaman began to “go crazy” in childhood, around the age of 10. He became especially ill during puberty. Then the parents turned to shamans for help. Neighboring shamans gathered for a common ritual, where they decided whether a young man or girl could become a shaman. If the spirits said that this person would become a shaman, they asked the spirits of the previous shaman to help the chosen one in his formation. The chosen one then retired to the tundra, where the ritual of initiation into shamans took place. The future shaman was “cut” into pieces and given his body to eat. There was a belief: “if a future shaman eats parts of his body, then when he becomes a real shaman, he will have power over the destinies of his neighbors.” Then the spirits gave him various representatives of the reptile family to eat. If the future shaman ate this too, then he was predicted to succeed in his future activities. The Dolgans believed that the purpose of cutting the body by spirits was to count the bones. Only one who had 41 bones in his body could become a shaman. If there were fewer bones, then a person could only become a soothsayer. Dolgan shaman Afanasy Aksenov said that when he was born, his grandfather and grandmother predicted that he would be a shaman, since he fell backward and not on his stomach. Then, over the course of three days, the cawing of a raven was often heard over the camp. Those around him also considered this a prediction. “At nine years old he was going crazy. Suffered from seizures. I saw devils. It was like a dream." Shamans obeyed the main shamanic spirit. He, in their own words, raised them. “The shaman himself sees this spirit only three times in his life: the first time during his calling to shamanism, the second time in the middle of his shamanic activity and the third time before death.” Many shamans believed that after death they would be resurrected as a son. Kamlania was organized under various pretexts, but more often to heal the shaman himself and his relatives. Shamans performed rituals to help pregnant women, find out about missing things, the cause of sudden death, or asked the spirits for well-being. Kamlanie is a way of communicating with spirits. Scientists believed that during the ritual, the shaman brings himself to a state of ecstasy, while hypnotizing the audience. There were several types of ritual: The shaman gathered his spirit helpers; The soul of the shaman embarked on a journey into the world of spirits; Spirits inhabited the shaman himself; The Dolgan shaman had a special suit, a tambourine and a mallet for the ritual. The tambourine consisted of a flat leaf rim bent into a ring and covered with wild or domestic reindeer rope. A cross-shaped handle was attached to the inside of the rim, and 7, 9 or 12 protruding blocks made of wood called muos (antlers) were strengthened on the outside under the reindeer tendons. Several holes were cut in the rim - kulgaak (ears). In addition to the cross-shaped handle, which was attached with four straps, metal pendants were suspended from the inside of the rim. The mallet was usually made from birch. On the convex side it was lined with reindeer kamus; on the concave side, images were carved out on the handle. human face . Instead of eyes, two or four beads were inserted. If the mallet was carved from larch, then at least a birch sliver was necessarily tied to it. Sometimes the handle was decorated with beads. To make a tambourine, the shaman asked the spirits for instructions on what kind of wood the shell should be made of. To do this, it was necessary to find a tree with a hollow, usually it was a larch with a broken top, growing near the water, in the hollow of which, according to the Dolgans, shamanic spirits could live. The making of the tambourine took place after the initiation of the shaman. “The spirits themselves tell the shaman to make a tambourine and sew an apron.” The tambourine, according to shaman Alekseev, was not made by the shaman himself, but on his instructions by one of those around him. Yuuyen was used by the shaman either as “an instrument for summoning spirits or as a mount.” The protrusions on the rim are interpreted as horns for protection from a hostile shaman. The holes in the rim (resonators) are needed to look out for spirits. Before the ritual, the shaman “ties a handle to the rim on all four straps; after the ritual, one or two belts are untied.” If this is not done, then the ritual will continue - the spirits will not leave the tambourine. The beater was considered to be the receptacle of a helping spirit. It was through him that the shaman called the rest of the spirits. By using the mallet they found out whether the helping spirit had already appeared or not yet. They threw it up, and if it fell on the concave side, it meant that the spirits had gathered. The tambourine was kept in a special case along with the shaman's vestments, and a piece of deer fat was placed in it. Throughout his life, the shaman had the right to only three diamonds. If the rovduga on the tambourine burst, it meant some kind of misfortune for the relatives. If the tambourine was damaged for the second time, this meant the imminent death of one of the shaman’s relatives. If the tambourine broke for the third time, it was believed that the shaman would die. Strong shamans, as a rule, had three mallets for their tambourine: one made of wood, another of bone, and the third of horn. The Dolgan shaman costume is very close to the Evenki costume. Shamans ordered individual parts of it based on the inspiration of spirits. Sewing and embroidery were entrusted to women. The main part of the costume is the apron. 7-9 deer tails were sewn onto it. An image of deer antlers was sewn onto the rovduzh hat - protection from hostile shamans. To illuminate his costume, the shaman conjured helping spirits and infused them into the image on the costume: Sitting on a great tree, Looking at us, With the colorful decoration of the Great Country, the spirit, Which is our ancestor, the Terrible Hawk-bird... The day has come when the illustrious family is in mortal danger From the side of evil spirits. Spirits of the great land, Extinct generations, Do not look askance at me. The day has come when the Shaking Foundation of the Lower World is cursed. After the death of the shaman, his clothes were left near the grave, the tambourine was pierced and hung on the nearest tree.

5 NATIONAL COSTUME

Men's and women's outerwear Dolgan - a caftan made of cloth (sontap), embroidered with beads, similar to the Evenki one. Men's shirts, trousers and women's dresses were made from purchased fabrics and did not differ from the clothes of the Russian old-timers of central Taimyr. Shirts were decorated with narrow edges made of colored fabric and many buttons.
In winter, they wore parkas made of reindeer fur, similar to the Nganasan ones, and sokui of the Nenets type (solid fur clothing with a hood with the fur facing out). In summer they also wore sokui, but made of cloth. Headdresses (bersege) are kaporo-shaped, made of cloth, embroidered with beads (summer), or made of fox kamus (winter). The shoes were made from reindeer kamus or rovduga (similar to Evenki high boots) and decorated with beads.
Currently, national clothing is quite widespread; Among village residents, especially women, it is used mainly as holiday clothing.

6 NATIONAL FOOD

The basis of Dolgan food is venison, raw, boiled or frozen. Freshly caught fish is eaten raw, lightly seasoned, or frozen (stroganina), as well as boiled. Geese caught in the spring are dried for future use, or boiled. Soup is made from poultry or deer meat, seasoned with flour or cereals. Onions, roots of some plants, and berries are also eaten. Women bake Dolgan flatbreads and pancakes. Nowadays, store-bought foods have become common, but traditional dishes are still prepared regularly.

7 FAMILY AND HOUSEHOLD RELATIONS

Dolgans, as a rule, have small families, and ancestral relationships are almost forgotten. In some rituals, ethnic specificity is firmly preserved. In particular, Orthodox and national traditions were intertwined in the funeral rite. Unlike other peoples of Taimyr, the Dolgans bury their dead in the ground, but they dump a tree on the grave (in the west) or place a wooden frame (in the east), decorated with carvings. Crosses are placed on all graves, but near them they leave clothes that belonged to the deceased, sledges cut in half, and for reindeer herders they place a pole with a deer’s head.

8 FOLKLORE AND FOLK ARTS

Dolgan art is represented by folklore, in which Yakut and Russian influence can be traced. Epics are performed in the form of songs close to the Yakut olon-kho. Fairy tales in which merchants, peasants, and Ivan Tsarevich appear are common. Evenki borrowings are found in legends. Songs, riddles, proverbs and sayings are also composed. Among the musical instruments, there is a Yakut-type harp. The art of dance bears the features of Evenki influence (round dance - heiro). Various Dolgan folklore groups are famous in Taimyr: the choral “Aroduy”, the vocal and choreographic ensemble “Chokurkaan”.
Today in Dolgan villages such national holidays as Heiro, Reindeer Herder's Day, and Fisherman's Day are celebrated.
The originality of the ethnogenesis of the Dolgan people was reflected in the terminology and calculation methods. Until the beginning of the 20th century. Dolgans, depending on their origin, were called Tungus, Yakuts, and peasants. The 1926 population census identified 656 Dolgans, but in fact there were four times as many. According to the population censuses of 1939 and 1959, the Dolgans were included among the Yakuts (Sakha). However, in the 1930s. the word “Dolgansky” appeared in the name of the district, and in the 1950s. in all official documents the ethnonym “Sakha” was replaced by “Dolgan”. At present, as special studies have shown, the majority of Dolgans consider themselves a special people, separate from the Yakuts.
Of the 5.8 thousand Dolgans of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, 5.5 thousand people (95%) live in the Taimyr (Dolgano-Nenets) municipal district and 3.7 thousand people in the Khatanga district (there are eight mono-ethnic villages). In the latter region, the Dolgans make up 53% of the total population.
Men make up 45.1% of the Dolgans, city dwellers - 17.9%. Age structure similar to other northern peoples: under 16 years old - 34.9%, working age - 57.5%, older - 7.6%. Knowledge of Russian language - 95.6%, native language - 80.9%.

9 CULTURE

The Dolgan writing system was created in the late 1970s. The first book in the Dolgan language was published in 1973, the first Dolgan primer - in 1981. After which the teaching of the Dolgan language began in junior grades of secondary schools. The district newspaper "Taimyr" periodically publishes a page in the Dolgan language. The local radio in Dudinka broadcasts in the same language. Big interest in the scientific world was caused by an international conference dedicated to the 30th anniversary of Dolgan writing.
The Dolgans have developed applied arts: making jewelry from beads, decorating clothes and shoes with reindeer fur and beads.
Carving on deer and mammoth bones is common (decoration of reindeer harness plates, knife handles, etc.). Currently in Taimyr there are traveling exhibitions “Modern art of Dolgans”, “Products from mammoth ivory and fur” in the Khatanga and Dudinsky regions. A manual on making traditional Dolgan souvenirs “Ardai” was published. The works of the master of decorative and applied arts M. G. Bettu are presented at various exhibitions.
One of the founders of the development of professional art in Taimyr is Dolgan graphic artist and artist B. N. Molchanov (1938-1993). His personal exhibitions were held in Dudinka, Krasnoyarsk, Abakan, Kyzyl, Moscow, St. Petersburg. A memorial museum for B. N. Molchanov was created at the Taimyr District Center of National Cultures, and in 1995 an art album, “Star of the Arctic,” dedicated to his work, was released.
An annual prize named after B. N. Molchanov was established for the winners of the district competition of decorative and applied arts.
The poetess Ogdo Aksenova (1936-1995), the author of more than a dozen collections of poetry, is rightfully considered the founder of Dolgan literature in her native language. She was one of the co-authors of the Dolgan alphabet and various linguistic dictionaries (from school to academic). In 2002, the complete works of O. Aksenova were published. Nikolai Popov writes in Dolgan. In 1989, the first collection of his stories, “From the Caranto Family,” was published in Krasnoyarsk.
Candidates of Science G. Popov and T. Eremina made a great contribution to the study of the history of their people.
The Dolgans are represented in the Association of Indigenous Minorities of the North of Taimyr.

CONCLUSION

This state of Dolgan culture can give rise to the idea that they do not have their own culture. But this is precisely where the specificity of the Dolgans manifests itself, since no people in the north of the Krasnoyarsk Territory have such a culture. In general terms, “the commercial production of Dolgans was a Tungus economy modernized under Russian, Yakut and Samoyed influence, adapted to the specific conditions of the forest-tundra and tundra of Taimyr.”

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. http://www.krskstate.ru/society/nations/etnoatlas/0/etno_id/21

2. http://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%94%D0%BE%D0%BB%D0%B3%D0%B0%D0%BD%D1%8B

3. http://www.hrono.ru/etnosy/dolgany.html