Peoples of the Volga region table. Peoples of the Volga region
Darius I, Darayavaush (? - 486 BC)
Biography. The son of the Persian ruler Hystaspes (Vishtaspa), belonged to the junior branch of the ruling Achaemenid dynasty. Almost nothing is known about the beginning of his life. But, without a doubt, he was an outstanding man.
It can be considered historically reliable that Darayavaush, before he entered the history of the Ancient East under the name of King Darius I, already had considerable military experience, since war at that distant time was the normal state of all states, peoples and tribes.
Having become king of Persia, Darius suppressed by force of arms major uprisings against the ruling Achaemenid dynasty in Babylonia, Persia, Media, Margiana, Elam, Egypt, Parthia, Sattagidia and rebellions of nomadic tribes in Central Asia.
Each such suppression of the anti-Persian uprising was a large military campaign, associated with the collection of a large army, the attraction of allied troops from among the nomadic tribes, first of all, the capture of rebellious cities and fortresses by assault, the collection of military booty and punishment state criminals. The Persian king had to be not only a commander, but also a skilled diplomat, since it was more profitable to get along with the local nobility than to fight.
The Persian power sought to expand its expansion primarily to rich lands that could constantly replenish the royal treasury. That is why King Darius I paid attention to the neighboring Indian states. Since there was no agreement among them, they found themselves prey to the warlike Persians.
Around 518 BC Darius conquered northwestern part India - western bank of the Indus River. Then - the northwestern part of Punjab, located east of this river. The Persian conquests in India continued until 509 BC. Darius I sent the Greek sailor and geographer Skilakos to explore the Indus River to the Arabian Sea.
After the successful Indian campaign of the Persian army, Darius I decided to subjugate the Scythians of the northern Black Sea region. However, the new campaign of 511 BC. turned out to be unsuccessful for him. On the way to distant and unknown Scythia, Persian sailors built two floating bridges - one across the Bosporus Strait, the other across the Danube. To protect the latter, Darius I had to leave a large detachment. The Persians lost the war in the endless steppe, and the Scythians retained their independence. The foreigners had to leave the Black Sea region with huge losses.
Under King Darius I, a series of Greco-Persian wars began (500-449 BC), which proceeded with varying success. (There were three in total.) The main opponents of the Persian power in these wars were Athens and some Greek city-states on the Peloponnese peninsula.
The reason for the first Greco-Persian war was 492 BC. There was an uprising of the Greek cities of Asia Minor, which were under the yoke of the satrap - the viceroy of the king of Persia. The uprising began in the city of Miletus. Then Athens sent 20 warships with troops on board to help the rebel Greeks of Asia Minor. Strong Sparta refused to help the rebels.
To cut off the connections of the rebel cities on the eastern shore of the Aegean Sea, Darius I assembled a large fleet, which defeated the Greeks in a battle near the island of Lede, not far from Miletus. The uprising of Greek cities in Asia Minor was brutally suppressed. The help of Athens was the reason for Darius I to declare war on the Hellenic world on the other side of the Aegean Sea.
Darius I made two large military campaigns against the Greek states. The first took place in 492 BC, when the king sent an army to Greece under the command of his son-in-law Mardonius. The land army marched along the southern part of Thrace, and the fleet moved along the sea coast. However, during a strong storm near Cape Athos most of the Persian fleet was lost, and their ground troops, having lost support from the sea, began to suffer heavy losses in frequent clashes with the local population. In the end, Mardonius decided to return back.
In 491 BC. Darius I sent envoys to Greece who were supposed to bring the freedom-loving Greeks to submission. A number of small Greek city-states could not resist and recognized the power of the Persians over themselves. But in Athens and Sparta royal ambassadors were killed.
In 490 BC. the second trip took place. The king sent a large army against Greece under the command of experienced commanders Datis and Artaphernes. A huge fleet delivered the Persian army to European territory. The Persians destroyed the city of Eritrea on the island of Euboea and landed near Marathon, just 28 kilometers from Athens.
It was here that the Greeks inflicted the most severe defeat on the Persians during the three Greco-Persian wars - in the famous Battle of Marathon. It happened on September 13, 490 BC. near the small Greek village of Marathon, which was destined to enter not only military history, but also in the history of the international Olympic movement.
The Greek army, commanded by the experienced commander Miltiades (one of the ten Athenian strategists), consisted of 10 thousand hoplite warriors from Athens and one thousand of their allies from Plataea (Boeotia). There were approximately the same number of poorly armed slaves. The Spartans promised to send significant military assistance, but were too late for the start of the battle.
The 60,000-strong Persian army was led by one of the best royal military leaders, Datis. After the landing of the army, the royal fleet was anchored near Marathon. Persian sailors, according to the tradition of the Ancient World, pulled small ships ashore to protect them in case of heavy seas and strong winds. The crews of many ships went ashore to take part in collecting military booty on the battlefield after the victorious end of the battle with the Greeks.
The Persians began the battle as usual - the basis of their formation was the “victorious” center, which was to split the enemy system into two parts. Miltiades was well acquainted with the military art of the Persians and took the risk of changing the formation of Greek battle formations, traditional for that time. He sought to cover the entire width of the Marathon Valley with a long phalanx of heavily armed Greek infantry. Thanks to this, it was possible to avoid encirclement, because the Persian commander had light cavalry, but Miltiades did not. The flanks of the phalanx rested on rocky hills, through which the Persian cavalry could not pass, especially under fire from Greek archers and slingers. On the flanks, abatis were made from felled trees.
Having thus lengthened the phalanx of foot soldiers, Miltiades deliberately weakened its center, while simultaneously strengthening its flanks. There stood selected detachments of Athenian foot soldiers and a small cavalry of the Greeks.
The army of the Persian king and the united army of the Athenians and Plataeans stood in battle positions against each other for three days. Miltiades did not start the battle because he was waiting for promised help from Sparta. The Persians also waited, they hoped that their clearly visible numerical superiority would intimidate the enemy.
The Persians were the first to start the battle. Their huge army, poorly maintaining formation, began to roll towards the Greek phalanx, which froze in anticipation of the enemy’s approach, blocking the width of the entire Marathon valley. The very beginning of the battle promised the royal commander a quick victory, in his opinion. The “victorious” center of the Persian army with a ramming blow threw back the center of the Greek phalanx, which, on the orders of Miltiades, launched a counterattack on the attacking enemy. Under the pressure of the human mass, it nevertheless resisted and did not break into pieces.
After this Persian attack, something happened that Datis did not expect. The wings of the Greek phalanx lengthened, and both flanks of the Greeks delivered strong blows to the attackers and drove them back. As a result, the flanks of the “victorious” center were exposed, which ended up in a semicircle and was completely defeated. Datis, no matter how hard he tried, could not restore order in his troops. And besides, he did not have a large reserve to direct it to help the royal soldiers beaten by the Greeks in the very center of the Marathon Valley.
The Persian army was seized by panic, and it rushed to the seashore, to its ships. By order of Miltiades, the Greeks, having restored the solidity of their phalanx, began to pursue the fleeing enemy.
The Persians managed to reach the nearby shore and launch the ships. They set off with all sails and oars away from the shore, fleeing from the Greek archers.
In the Battle of Marathon, the Persian army was completely defeated and lost only 6,400 people killed, not counting the prisoners and wounded, of whom there were more than one thousand on the ships of the royal fleet that left for the east. On the day of September 13, 490 BC. the Athenians lost only 192 of their soldiers.
This victory inspired other Greek city-states to resist Persian rule.
King Darius I became famous as a great statesman, politician and military reformer. Under him, the huge Persian state was divided into satrapies - administrative and tax districts. They were headed by royal governors - satraps, who at the same time were the military leaders of those military forces that were located on the territory of the satrapies. Among other things, their responsibilities included protecting state borders from banditry attacks by neighbors, primarily nomadic tribes, conducting military reconnaissance and ensuring security along the routes of communication.
The possessions of the governors became hereditary.
Under Darius I it was streamlined tax system, which significantly strengthened the economic well-being of the Persian state, and the royal treasury began to steadily replenish due to the reduction of financial abuses in the satrapies. Therefore, there were much fewer internal disturbances and rebellions against the tsarist government.
To strengthen the power of Persia, King Darius I carried out a serious military reform. The first thing to undergo reorganization was tsarist army. Its core consisted of infantry and cavalry recruited from the Persians. This was not accidental - the Persian rulers did not trust troops consisting of non-Persians, since they were prone to treason and avoided risking their lives during military campaigns and battles.
The royal troops were led by military leaders who were independent of the satraps and subordinate only to Darius I personally. This allowed him to avoid the risk of major revolts in the country, in which troops stationed in the satrapies could take part. Military leaders had the right to critical situations act independently, guided only by the interests of the Persian state. The old ones were kept in an exemplary manner trade routes and new ones were built. The king understood perfectly well that the well-being of the state, as well as the income of the treasury and the Persian nobility, the main support of the Achaemenid dynasty, largely depended on the prosperity of foreign and domestic trade and the safety of the roads of Persia for traders. Trade in Persia under Darius I also flourished because many busy trade routes from the Mediterranean to India and China passed through its territory.
A shipping canal from the Nile to Suez was restored, connecting rich Egypt with Persia. King Darius I cared about the development of the fleet and the safety of maritime trade, the well-being of coastal port cities, which brought considerable income to his treasury. According to historians of the Ancient World, the Egyptians revered the Persian ruler on a par with their legislator pharaohs. Even the inhabitants of distant Carthage recognized, albeit nominally, the power of Darius.
The minting of gold coins, which were called “dariks” after the king, significantly strengthened the financial system of the Persian state, in which gold and silver coins from neighboring countries, primarily Greek, were in circulation. The introduction of gold coins into circulation testified primarily to financial well-being Persia under King Darius I. Gold mines on its territory were a special concern of the royal administration.
Large incomes allowed the warlike king to maintain a huge mercenary army and fortresses that stood not only on the borders of Persia, but also inside it.
Darius I, according to the tradition of that time, began to prepare for his death long ago. At his command, a royal tomb, which was decorated with magnificent sculptures. It became the last refuge of the most powerful ruler of Ancient Persia. His direct heirs showed neither military leadership or diplomatic talents, nor consistency in foreign policy.
Having reached its greatest prosperity during the reign of Darius I, the Achaemenid state after his death began to steadily decline, primarily due to military defeats, and lose its possessions.
The Volga region is one of the largest geographical objects of the Russian Federation. It is located along the banks of the Volga River. The economy here is well developed. navigable river, railway lines, crossing the Volga region lengthwise and crosswise, provide local residents everything necessary for a full existence. There is access to the sea along the Volga, which also has a beneficial effect on the economic and geographical position of the region.
The Volga region is famous for its mineral reserves. Among them, the following are especially appreciated:
- oil;
- sulfur;
- salt.
In addition, there are enough raw materials for the production of high-quality building materials.
Population of the Volga region
The Volga region is a multinational region. History of formation modern population began many centuries ago. The indigenous inhabitants were originally Mari, Chuvash and Mordovians. Over time, other peoples migrated here.
Nowadays, the Volga region is the most populated and developed. The annual population growth is due to the active migration of people from other areas. Thanks to rich resources, the issue of employment is not so acute here. The bulk of the population occupies the capitals national republics and large industrial cities, where unemployment is practically eliminated.
Now the population structure of the Volga region is made up mainly of Russians and Tatars. Some of the most populated cities are Volgograd, Saratov, Samara and Kazan.
The standard of living of the population of the Volga region is low. Now the main priority task and the goal for the Volga region is to improve the living conditions of local citizens.
Industry of the Volga region
The Volga region is known to many as the center of the engineering industry. Mechanical engineering in the Volga region includes the production of a wide range of equipment and machines, for example, passenger cars, machine tools, computing instruments and devices, bearings, electrical products, motors for special equipment, etc.
An important place in this industry is given to the production of aircraft, trucks and cars, buses and trolleybuses, ships, as well as bicycles and other small vehicles.
Samara and Saratov specialize mainly in the aviation industry, which dates back to the war. Now the factories of these cities produce turbojet aircraft.
The oil industry is developing in response to the needs of the local population. Mechanical engineering and the production of equipment and parts are in great demand among residents of nearby regions.
Due to rich reserves of minerals such as oil and gas, the Volga region has several gas and oil refineries. The leading regions for oil production are the Republic of Tatarstan and Samara.
The Volga, Nizhnekamsk, Volgograd and Saratov regions stand out among others for the productive operation of their largest hydroelectric power plants.
Agriculture of the Volga region
The agro-industrial complex of the Volga region is effectively developing to this day. Favorable climatic conditions and mild fertile soil make the Volga region the main supplier of grain crops throughout almost all of Russia. Wheat, rice, millet, corn and buckwheat are grown here. In addition, vegetables and melons, such as tomatoes and watermelons, grow well on the soils of the Volga region.
The warm, humid climate is conducive to good growth rice, barley, sunflower and other moisture- and light-loving crops.
Numerous winter pastures contribute to the active development of livestock farming. Thanks to this, the Volga region supplies Russian regions not only with grain and vegetables, but also with wool, meat and milk. The most common animals on local farms are pigs and sheep. Birds are raised here mainly for their down. To further expand livestock farms, residents of rural areas of the Volga region face important tasks:
- improvement and expansion of fields for growing fodder crops necessary for raising livestock;
- enlargement and improvement of farms and paddocks;
- landscaping and moistening natural areas where animals graze.
Residents of the coastal regions of the Volga region are effectively engaged in fishing. This type of activity is especially relevant in the Astrakhan region. Here Special attention pays attention to the cleanliness of water bodies. For this purpose, all industrial enterprises, plants and factories are under careful control. New wastewater treatment plants are being built and existing ones are being improved at a rapid pace. Currently, plants and factories are being built for the processing, breeding and maintenance of fish, especially the sturgeon family.
Due to the diversity of grain crops and sunflowers, there are many oil mills in the Volga region. The largest of them are located in the Saratov and Volgograd regions.
Most of the contents of the granaries are sent for milling flour. Some of the largest and most developed flour and cereal enterprises are located in Samara, Saratov and Volgograd.
This activity brings significant profits to the entire Volga region, which makes it possible to improve the standard of living of the population from year to year.
Irina Sorokina
Presentation “Peoples of the Volga Region”
Chuvash and Mari, Buryat and Udmurt,
Russian, Tatar, Bashkir and Yakut.
Various peoples big family,
And we, friends, should be proud of this.
Our common home is called Russia,
Let everyone feel comfortable in it.
We will overcome any difficulties together
And only in unity is the strength of Russia.
Average Volga region is a special ethnographic region of Eastern Europe, located at the junction of Europe and Asia. Peoples, inhabiting Volga region, have much in common both economically and historically, as well as in origin, culture, and way of life. TO peoples of the Volga region include: Chuvash, Mordovians, Mari, Tatars, Udmurts and Bashkirs. True, the Bashkirs are included in the number peoples of the Volga region conditionally, since they actually occupy a middle position between peoples of Central Asia and the Volga region, V culturally gravitate towards both.
This presentation introduces older children preschool age culture and life peoples of the Volga region, gives an idea of national costumes and these holidays peoples.
Publications on the topic:
Dear Colleagues! I present to your attention the author's didactic manual“Peoples of Russia”, intended for senior preschool children.
Festival of the Peoples of the Volga Region Program content. 1. To consolidate the idea of people of different nationalities of the Volga region: Mordovians, Chuvash, Tatars, Russians. 2. Educate.
Festival of the Peoples of the Volga Region Scenario of the festival of peoples of the Volga region “At Grandma’s in the Village” Purpose: formation creative personality, a citizen of his country, oriented.
Lesson summary “What kind of peoples are they? Summary of joint activities to organize an exhibition on the topic: “Peoples of the Volga region” Type of integrated activity: cognitive, social.
Indigenous peoples of Sakhalin Municipal budget preschool educational institution Kindergarten“Smile” Dolinsk, Sakhalin region. SUBJECT:.
We display such models at the stand between the nature corner and the patriotic corner. They are used in educational activities to become familiar with the environment.
Peoples living in the Irkutsk region History of population formation Irkutsk region begins with the Old and New Stone Ages. The proof is archaeological finds.
GCD Virtual journey “Peoples of the Southern Urals”. Virtual trip “Peoples” Southern Urals" Tasks. Continue to develop children’s interest in the “small Motherland.” Introduce children to what...
Details Created 08/13/2013 14:02
Russians, Tatars, Chuvashs, Mordovians
Russians
Russians are the largest population group in the city of Ulyanovsk. Russians - representatives Slavic group Indo-European language family. The settlement of the Simbirsk strip from various regions did not occur simultaneously, and settlers arrived from various regions of the Russian state, mainly from the upper Volga and central regions. The earliest (in the first half of the 17th century) the extreme northwestern lands of the Simbirsk Volga region along the defensive lines were populated.
The remaining lands were developed in the second half of the 17th century and in the 18th century. “Service people” of the Moscow government, monasteries, peasants, etc. took part in the settlement.
The main occupation of the Russians of the Simbirsk Volga region was agriculture. They sown winter rye, and spring crops - oats, buckwheat, spelt, millet, barley, wheat, and peas. Industrial crops include flax and hemp. Russians have also been involved in gardening for a long time. The second branch of agriculture was animal husbandry. Peasant farms raised horses, cattle, pigs, sheep, goats, and poultry.
The new geographical environment and proximity to non-Russian peoples left their mark on the material culture of the Russians of the Simbirsk Volga region. This is how the Russians perceived the elements traditional culture local population: from the Tatars and Chuvash, the location of the stove (retreating from the back wall), cauldrons embedded in the stove, some dishes (salma, katyk and others); from the Finno-Ugric peoples - an outbuilding - a basement, some elements of clothing.
In its turn, Slavic culture had an impact on the life of the non-Russian peoples of the Simbirsk region. The Russians brought more advanced farming methods - the three-field system, more advanced agricultural tools (Russian-type plows) and devices for drying sheaves - the log barn.
By religion, Russians were Orthodox Christians. They widely celebrated ancient holidays: Christmastide, Maslenitsa, Semik-Trinity.
Folk fine arts are represented by carving, painting, embroidery, weaving, and lace weaving. Characteristic Russian visual arts- ornamentation. One of oldest species ornament - geometric. The most common motifs are rhombus, rosette, circle. These patterns have much in common with the patterns of the non-Russian peoples of the Middle Volga region. Oral folk art was varied.
The Russian women's clothing complex included a canvas shirt, also called “sleeves,” and a sundress. In poor families, everyday sundresses were sewn from painted canvas, holiday sundresses were made from Chinese fabric (thick cotton fabric of blue color). In rich families, holiday sundresses were made of silk, corduroy and velvet. Sundresses were always worn with a belt. Among the people, the belt was considered a talisman, was used in rituals, and was ritual. The belt was also used to tell fortunes about marriage. Girls who wanted to get married looked in the forest for two aspen trees that could be tied with one belt, and if they found them, they believed that their wish for marriage would come true. Over the sundress they wore a warmer - “epanechki”. They repeated the shape of a sundress, only much shorter. In the Simbirsk province there was another form of sleeveless women's clothing - a corset. It was worn over a sundress and sleeves. A corset is a vest with gathers and no sleeves. It was worn mainly in the Radishchevsky district. This type of clothing was borrowed from Ukrainians and southern Great Russians. Various kokoshniks are noted as festive women's headdresses. They were worn married women before the birth of the first child. The most common was a kokoshnik with a rounded top, shaped like a crescent. Beads, foil, glass, mother-of-pearl and freshwater pearls were used for decoration. The ornament used images of birds and plant motifs. Kokoshnik, as a rule, was passed down from mother to daughter. Glass red round beads, “amber”, and seed beads were common additions to Russian women’s costume.
Tatars
Tatars are representatives of the Turkic group of the Altai language family. IN ethnic composition Tatar population has various components: ancient Turkic (who came from the Asian steppes in the 1st millennium AD), Bulgar, Kipchak, and others Turkic-speaking tribes, as well as some Finno-Ugric and Slavic ones. In the Simbirsk Territory, local groups of Tatars are distinguished: Buinsky, Simbirsk, Karsun, Khvalynsky (Starokulatkinsky, Pavlovsky, Nikolaevsky districts) and Tatars of the Trans-Volga regions.
Until the 19th century, today's Tatars preferred to call themselves "borgarly", "kazanli" or "mosleman" (Muslims). Only in the 20th century did the word “Tatars” finally become the self-name of the people. Among the Tatars of the Middle Volga region, two main ones stand out: ethnic groups: Kazan Tatars and Mishars.
Despite dialectal and territorial differences, the Tatars are a single nation with a single literary language, a single culture– folklore, literature, music, religion, national spirit, traditions and rituals.
The traditional food of the Tatars is meat, dairy and vegetable - soups seasoned with pieces of dough (tokmach noodles, chumar), porridge, sour dough bread, flatbread - kabartma. National dishes are byalesh with various fillings, usually meat (peremyach), cut into pieces and mixed with millet, rice or potatoes; unleavened dough is widely represented in the form of bavyrsak, kosh tele, echpochmak, gubadia, katykly salma, chakchak. Dried goose (kaklagan kaz) is considered a delicacy. Dairy products – katyk, sour cream, cottage cheese. Drinks – tea, ayran (tan).
Despite the fact that the ancestors of the Kazan Tatars lived on the territory of the Simbirsk province long before the founding of Simbirsk, the assignment of local lands to the Tatars began with the settlement of the Simbirsk region by service Tatars of the Moscow state.
Tatars who profess Islam live in the city of Ulyanovsk.
The first Muslim prayer house in Simbirsk was built in 1853 at the expense of the merchant K.A. Akchurina. On Losevaya Street (now Federation Street). A decade after the fire of 1864, with funds from T.K. Akchurin a mosque was built. Muslims of the city of Ulyanovsk continue to support and develop the best traditions Islam. This is expressed and manifested in different sides life, starting from raising children, respectful attitude towards elders to holding bright national holidays. At the same time, respect for other religions and cultures remains the most important core of their worldview.
Chuvash
The Chuvash are representatives of the Turkic group of the Altai language family. The very name of the people “Chuvash” is derived from the Bulgarian tribe Suvar, Suvaz. The Chuvash ethnic group was founded by the Turkic-speaking tribes of the Bulgars and Suvaz, as well as the Finno-Ugric tribes of the Mari. The Bulgars and Suvazes, having moved after the defeat of Volga Bulgaria by the Mongol-Tatars to the right bank of the Volga, mixed with the tribes of the “mountain” Mari and formed a group of Chuvash-virials (riding), now living in the northwestern regions of Chuvashia. At the same time, the Turkic-speaking Suvaz tribes settled in the central and southern regions modern Chuvashia, formed the anatri (grassroots) group. The Anatri have retained more of the features of traditional culture and anthropological type their Turkic-speaking ancestors and cultural characteristics have significant similarities with the Tatars. In the culture of the Virials, the features of the Finno-Ugric ancestors - the "mountain" Mari - appeared.
Before joining the Russian state, the Chuvash of the Ulyanovsk Volga region were pagans. In their paganism there was a system of polytheism with the supreme god Thor. The gods were divided into good and evil. Each occupation of people was patronized by its own god. The pagan religious cult was inextricably linked with the cycle of agricultural work and the cult of ancestors.
IN XVIII-XIX centuries Most of the Chuvash were baptized. Pagan belief in pure form ceased to exist, and yet dual faith remained. They were baptized and married in church, but pagan ancient names were worn next to Christian ones.
Applied art among the Chuvash is represented by wood carving, embroidery, and weaving. Chuvash embroidery was distinguished by its variety of stitches, decorativeness, and richness of patterns.
It was also developed oral creativity. Lyrical, labor, and ritual songs were popular, and choral singing was widespread. Ancient musical instruments were the duda, bagpipes, and harp.
The Simbirsk Chuvash school, organized in 1868 by the educator, played a major role in the rise and development of culture and in the education of the Chuvash Chuvash people I.Ya.Yakovlev with the active assistance and support of I.N. Ulyanov.
In 1870, thanks to I.Ya. Yakovlev, Chuvash writing appeared on the basis of Russian graphics, textbooks for Chuvash schools began to be created, and literature appeared in the native language.
Mordva
Mordovian tribes are the autochonous (indigenous) population of the interfluve of the Oka, Sura, and Middle Volga. Mordva is divided into two main groups: Erzya, which in the past occupied the left bank of the river. Sura, and moksha, who lived in the river basin. Moksha. The Ulyanovsk region is inhabited mainly by Mordovians - Erzya.
By language group Mordovians belong to the Volga branch of the Finno-Ugric group of the Uralic language family.
The predominant type of family among the Mordovians, as well as among other peoples of the Ulyanovsk Volga region, from the second half of the 19th century century there was a small patriarchal family. But large, undivided families of 20 or more people also remained. At the head of peasant families was the father - the “bolshak”, who enjoyed unlimited powers and power.
Basics traditional occupation Mordovians - arable farming (winter rye, spelt, millet, flax, hemp). Livestock farming (large and small livestock), beekeeping, and later beekeeping played a significant role. Waste trades were developed, mainly for agricultural work.
The traditional dwelling is a two- or three-part hut with a Central Russian layout; in Moksha, sometimes with a Western version of the South Russian one.
The basis of the traditional Mordovian women's costume is a shirt made of white canvas (panar), richly decorated with embroidery, in which red, black, blue tones interspersed with yellow and green. The Erzyan women had a ritual shirt, completely covered with embroidery. It was worn by girls on their coming of age and at weddings. Open outer clothing - such as a robe made of white canvas (erzya - rutsya, moksha - myshkas, plakhon). Moksha women wore white canvas pants (ponkst) that were ankle-length. Outerwear- a type of caftan (suman), fur coat. The women's costume was complemented by many decorations made of metal, beads, coins, and shells. A specific breast decoration is a clasp that pins the panhard collar (sulgam). In Erzi it had the shape of an open oval, in Moksha it was trapezoidal. The loincloth decoration of the Erzyan pulagai women (pulai, pulaksh, pulokarks) is unique, with rich embroidery, braiding, woolen tassels, and metal plaques. It was first worn on the day of coming of age.
Women's hats are varied: magpie type, towels, bedspreads, tall, on a solid base. A common headdress for girls was a headband, embroidered or trimmed with beads and braid. Ancient shoes - bast shoes (moksha - karkht; erzya - kart) with oblique weaving. The legs were wrapped in white and black onuchas. Some elements of traditional clothing are preserved, especially in Moksha: older women sometimes wear panar, more often as ritual clothing (for a wedding, funeral, wake). Modified forms of traditional women's clothing continue to exist. Men's folk clothes, the main parts of which were a white shirt and canvas trousers, fell out of use by the 20th century.
Traditional food consisted mainly of agricultural products: sour bread (kshi); pies with various fillings, usually with porridge; pancakes made from wheat, millet, pea flour, noodles, salma (pieces of dough in the form of balls, boiled in water). Meat dishes (Moksha fried meat with onions - shchenyam, Erzya fried meat and liver with seasonings - selyanka) were mainly festive and ritual. Drinks - pure (made from honey), mash (pose), kvass.
The Mordovians had many traditional customs and rituals, which were accompanied by dishes associated with them. For christenings, millet milk porridge was cooked, which, like eggs, was considered a symbol of fertility. Each participant in the christening, having tasted it, congratulated the parents on the addition to the family and expressed the wish for the newborn to live as many years as there are grains of porridge in the pot. For the wedding, the main pie was baked - luksh from sour rye dough or wheat flour with 7-12 layers of filling.
Mordovian folk holidays timed to coincide with the agricultural calendar. The summer holiday Velozks, dedicated to the patroness of the village (Vel-ava), was solemn and crowded. Nowadays, a holiday of a remote or small village is celebrated, and in some places - a holiday of traditional Mordovian cuisine.
Mordvinian believers are Orthodox. But in spiritual culture, features of ancient paganism are also noticeable. In pre-Christian religious beliefs Mordovians attract attention a large number of female deities.
It was believed that the gods could cause a lot of troubles and troubles if they were not appeased and appeased in time, therefore, in honor of the deities, in the supposed places of their habitat, i.e. in forests, fields, rivers, in dwellings, outbuildings, prayers (ozkst), at which prayers were said (oznomat) and sacrifices were made.
Each holiday was accompanied by purposeful prayer, with the performance of one or another set of magical rituals. Prayers could be public and family, when the interests of an individual family were in mind. In some prayers only men participated, in others - only women, in others - both together. Family prayers were performed by the elders in the house, most often by the mistress of the house, and at public prayers, special old men and old women were chosen each time to perform rituals and say prayers - inyatyat and inbabat (from ine - great, great, atya - old man, baba - grandmother). When saying prayers, they turned to the east. Pre-Christian beliefs and rituals of the Mordovians were not characterized by the worship of idols.
The Supreme God in the pre-Christian beliefs of the Mordovians was called Shkai, Nishke. In connection with Christianization, this name was transferred to the Christian god. Although the Mordovians are considered the most Christianized people of the Volga region, they still retain in their beliefs some remnants of “paganism,” some of which have been syncretized with Orthodoxy.
Ritual poetry is developed in folklore: calendar and family poetry (the lamentations of the bride, “coril” and praise songs at a wedding); songs - family and everyday songs, epic (about Litov - a girl kidnapped by God, about Tyushta, a cultural hero and leader, protector of the people), historical; tales about heroes, pre-Christian deities, animals. There are lyrical lingering songs, ditties, proverbs, and sayings.
The Volga regions of Russia are inhabited not only by Russian people. In addition, several other nationalities live in the Volga region, which are considered indigenous to this area. Indeed, in ancient times, these lands were part of Polovtsian steppe, states of the Golden Horde and Volga Great Bulgaria.
In the middle Volga region they live compactly Tatars, descendants of the Tatars of the Kazan Khanate. Today they have autonomy within Russia in the form of the Autonomous Republic of Tatarstan with its center in the city of Kazan. To the south of the Tatars in the Middle Volga region there are many Chuvash and Mordvins. Another outdated name for Mordvins in Russia is Cheremis.
If we remember Vladimir Lenin, the leader of the Bolsheviks during the revolution of 1917, then there were many Chuvash in the family of his father, teacher Ilya Ulyanov. Small slanted eyes, wide cheekbones, dark hair - Ilya Ulyanov looks in the portrait like a typical Chuvash. IN Russian Empire they were called "foreigners".
Autonomous in composition Russian Federation The Republic of Mordovia does not strictly have access to the Volga, but borders on the Ulyanovsk region of the Middle Volga region. The same applies to the Autonomous Republic of Chuvashia.
Already in Samara region there is a small percentage Kazakhs among the population. But in general, this nationality is not typical for the Volga region. There are more Kazakhs in the lower Volga region, in the Saratov and Astrakhan regions. This is logical, because the culture of Kazakhs and Kalmyks is similar. And the Autonomous Republic of Kalmykia and Turkic-speaking Kazakhstan are very close here.
The Astrakhan region in general is probably the most multinational region of Russia. There is a lot here and Tatars. Therefore, Astrakhan cuisine, for example, has no equal in uniqueness. How can she settle within the framework of one thing when there are so many customs and traditions around?
The Volgograd region is a patrimony Cossacks. Cossacks are Russians according to their passport, but they are special Russians. A Cossack, when asked what nationality he is, may answer not “I’m Russian,” but “I’m a Cossack.”
This is the freedom of Russia from the time when it was all under the yoke of serfdom: and in the south of Russia, in the lower reaches of the Volga, on the Don and in the Kuban, the Cossacks lived freely, did not serve either lords or masters. Over time, of course, the tsarist power of St. Petersburg reached these regions, and the Cossacks began to be called up for tsarist service. But the proud spirit and memory of free life were preserved here.
A lot in the Volga region and Ukrainians however, they are mostly scattered across regions. They live a little more compactly in the south of the Volga region. Their culture is almost the same as the Russians, except that the dialect of Ukrainians is soft and melodious, and their figures are a little fuller: Ukrainians traditionally love to cook and eat.
The Republic of Kalmykia is located in the south of the Volga region, national autonomy Kalmyk people, a people of nomadic pastoralists, horsemen and hunters. Kalmyks have a special cuisine and traditions: meat and milk occupy a special place in it.
