Kereks (
autonym
Autonym may refer to:
* Autonym, the name used by a person to refer to themselves or their language; see Exonym and endonym
* Autonym (botany), an automatically created infrageneric or infraspecific name
See also
* Nominotypical subspecies, in zo ...
aӈӄalҕakku, ''angqalghakku'', "seaside people";
) are an ethnic group of people in
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
. In the 2021
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...
, only 23 people registered as ethnic Kereks in
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
. According to the 2010 census, there were only 4, and according to the 2002 census, there were 8 people registered as Kereks. According to the 1897 census, there were still 102 Kereks. During the twentieth century, Kereks were almost completely assimilated into the
Chukchi people
The Chukchi, or Chukchee ( ckt, Ԓыгъоравэтԓьэт, О'равэтԓьэт, ''Ḷygʺoravètḷʹèt, O'ravètḷʹèt''), are a Siberian indigenous people native to the Chukchi Peninsula, the shores of the Chukchi Sea and the Beri ...
.
Language
Their traditional language is the
Kerek language, but it is no longer spoken. Kerek descendants speak
Chukchi and
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
. The Kerek language, which belongs to the Chukchi–Kamchatka family (it is included in Paleoasiatic languages), is close to the
Koryak language
Koryak () is a Chukotko-Kamchatkan language spoken by about 1,700 people as of 2010 in the easternmost extremity of Siberia, mainly in Koryak Okrug. It is mostly spoken by Koryaks. Its close relative, the Chukchi language, is spoken by about t ...
and is often considered a dialect of the latter.
Lifestyle
Historically, the Kerek were a settled people who engaged in fishing and hunting of wild deer and mountain sheep.
Southern Kereks also practiced small-scale
reindeer herding
Reindeer herding is when reindeer are herded by people in a limited area. Currently, reindeer are the only semi-domesticated animal which naturally belongs to the North. Reindeer herding is conducted in nine countries: Norway, Finland, Sweden, Rus ...
. They also kept sled dogs and collected fur from marine mammals.
Shamanism and
animism
Animism (from Latin: ' meaning ' breath, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct spiritual essence. Potentially, animism perceives all things— animals, plants, rocks, rivers, weather syst ...
was strong among the Kerek, with the Kerek never converting to Christianity.
References
Further reading
* Leontev V.V. ''On the land of ancient Kereks''. Magadan: Magadan Book Publishing House, 1976. 260 p.
External links
The Red Book of the Peoples of the Russian Empire -- Kereks
Indigenous peoples of North Asia
Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
Indigenous small-numbered peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East
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