The Lykov family () is a Russian family of
Old Believer
Old Believers or Old Ritualists (Russian: староверы, ''starovery'' or старообрядцы, ''staroobryadtsy'') is the common term for several religious groups, which maintain the old liturgical and ritual practices of the Russian ...
s.
The family of six spent 42 years in partial isolation from human society in an otherwise uninhabited upland of
Abakan Range
Abakan Range () is a mountain range in Southwestern Siberia, located mainly in Khakassia, Russia: It is mostly covered by taiga, up to , followed by mountainous tundra. The range also consists sparse areas of granite, gabbro, and diorite. ...
, in
Tashtypsky District of
Khakassia
Khakassia (), officially the Republic of Khakassia, is a republic of Russia located in southern Siberia. It is situated between Krasnoyarsk Krai to the north and the Altai Republic to the south.
The capital city of Khakassia is Abakan, and the ...
(southern
Siberia
Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...
). Since 1988, only one daughter,
Agafia, survives. In a 2019 interview, Agafia explained how locals were in contact with the family through the years and, in the 1950s, there was a newspaper article about their family.
Their story became well known following the 1994 publication of ''Lost in the Taiga: One Russian Family's Fifty-Year Struggle for Survival and Religious Freedom in the Siberian Wilderness'' by journalist
Vasily Peskov
Vasily Mikhailovich Peskov (; 14 March 1930 – 12 August 2013) was a Soviet and Russian writer, journalist, photographer, traveler and ecologist. He worked in the Russian tabloid newspaper ''Komsomolskaya Pravda'' since 1956. From 1975 until 19 ...
.
[ ]
History
In 1936, their religion was under threat. After Karp Lykov's brother was killed by a
Soviet
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
patrol, Karp and Akulina Lykov with their two children, Savin and Natalia, fled their hometown of
Lykovo (
Tyumen Oblast
Tyumen Oblast () is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject (an oblast) of Russia. It is located in Western Siberia, and is administratively part of the Ural Federal District. The oblast has administrative jurisdiction over two autonomous ...
) eastward. Two more children, Dmitry and Agafia, were born during the isolation. They ended up in a dwelling in the
taiga
Taiga or tayga ( ; , ), also known as boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruces, and larches. The taiga, or boreal forest, is the world's largest land biome. In North A ...
, near the
Yerinat River (
Abakan river
The Abakan (; , ''Ağban''), (from the Khakas word for "bear's blood") is a river in the Republic of Khakassia, Russia. It is a left tributary of the Yenisey. The river is used for log driving and irrigation. The city of Abakan is located at ...
basin), from any settlement. In 1978, their location was discovered by a
helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which Lift (force), lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning Helicopter rotor, rotors. This allows the helicopter to VTOL, take off and land vertically, to hover (helicopter), hover, and ...
pilot, who was flying a
geological group
In geology, a group is a lithostratigraphy, lithostratigraphic Stratigraphic unit, unit consisting of a series of related Geological formation, formations that have been classified together to form a group. Formations are the fundamental unit of ...
into the region. The
geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...
s made contact with the family, but the Lykovs decided not to leave the place.
Akulina starved to death in 1961, sacrificing herself during a period of intense food shortage so that her children might survive. Three of the children died in 1981: Savin and Natalia suffered from kidney failure, most likely a result of their harsh diet, while Dmitry died of pneumonia.
Karp died in 1988. He is survived by his daughter
Agafia Lykova
Agafia Karpovna Lykova (; born 17 April 1944) is a Russian Old Believer, part of the Lykov family, who has lived alone in the taiga for most of her life. As of 2016, she resides in the Western Sayan mountains, in the Republic of Khakassia. Lyko ...
, who has over the years accumulated a herd of goats and a flock of chickens and has built herself a decent hut. For 18 years, Agafia lived with one of the geologists, Yerofei Sedov. She has remarked to
VICE News
Vice News (stylized as VICE News) is Vice Media's alternative current affairs channel, producing daily documentary essays and video through its website and YouTube channel. It promotes itself on its coverage of "under-reported stories". Vice Ne ...
on his uselessness and how she had to supply him with water. Yerofei died on 3 May 2015. In that same year, Agafia received a helper, 53-year-old Georgy Danilov from
Orenburg
Orenburg (, ), formerly known as Chkalov (1938–1957), is the administrative center of Orenburg Oblast, Russia. It lies in Eastern Europe, along the banks of the Ural River, being approximately southeast of Moscow.
Orenburg is close to the ...
, who came to her residence answering an
open letter
An open letter is a Letter (message), letter that is intended to be read by a wide audience, or a letter intended for an individual, but that is nonetheless widely distributed intentionally.
Open letters usually take the form of a letter (mess ...
she had written requesting such. In 2016, she was airlifted out to a hospital in
Tashtagol
Tashtagol (; ) is a town in Kemerovo Oblast, Russia, located on the Kondoma River south of Kemerovo, the administrative center of the oblast.
History
It was founded in 1939 as a mining settlement and was granted town status in 1963.
Administrat ...
, Russia, from her remote location near the Russian borders
with Kazakhstan and
with Mongolia. Her condition is related to
cartilage
Cartilage is a resilient and smooth type of connective tissue. Semi-transparent and non-porous, it is usually covered by a tough and fibrous membrane called perichondrium. In tetrapods, it covers and protects the ends of long bones at the joints ...
deterioration in her lower extremities. Agafia was treated at a hospital in
Tashtagol
Tashtagol (; ) is a town in Kemerovo Oblast, Russia, located on the Kondoma River south of Kemerovo, the administrative center of the oblast.
History
It was founded in 1939 as a mining settlement and was granted town status in 1963.
Administrat ...
and has since returned to the wilderness, where she still lives as of 2021.
Family members
Parents:
* Karp Osipovich Lykov (c. 1901
– 16 February 1988; )
* Akulina Lykov (c. 1900
– 16 February 1961; Акулина Лыкова)
Children:
* Savin (c. 1927
–1981) (Савин)
* Natalia (c. 1934
–1981) (Наталия)
* Dmitriy (1940
–1981) (Дмитрий)
*
Agafia (born 1944)
(Агафья)
Media
The story of the Lykov family was told by the journalist
Vasily Peskov
Vasily Mikhailovich Peskov (; 14 March 1930 – 12 August 2013) was a Soviet and Russian writer, journalist, photographer, traveler and ecologist. He worked in the Russian tabloid newspaper ''Komsomolskaya Pravda'' since 1956. From 1975 until 19 ...
in his book ''
Lost in the Taiga: One Russian Family's Fifty-Year Struggle for Survival and Religious Freedom in the Siberian Wilderness'' (1994).
Peskov had written a series of reports on the family in the ''
Komsomolskaya Pravda
''Komsomolskaya Pravda'' (; ) is a daily Russian tabloid newspaper that was founded in 1925. Its name is in reference to the official Soviet newspaper '' Pravda'' (English: 'Truth').
History and profile
During the Soviet era, ''Komsomolskaya ...
'' newspaper in 1982. The book became a bestseller in
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
, and the film rights were acquired by director
Jean-Jacques Annaud
Jean-Jacques Annaud (; born 1 October 1943) is a French film director, screenwriter and producer. He directed ''Quest for Fire (film), Quest for Fire'' (1981), ''The Name of the Rose (film), The Name of the Rose'' (1986), ''The Bear (1988 film), ...
.
''Far Out: Agafia's Taiga Life'' is a documentary film about Agafia Lykova at the age of 70.
''Agafia'' is a documentary film about Agafia Lykova, produced by
RT (Russia Today). It chronicles the history of Old Believers in Russia, the difficulties experienced by the documentary crew in travelling to Agafia's residence, the history of the Lykov family, animosity between Agafia and Yerofei Sedov, and Agafia's life in the taiga.
During her isolation during the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, author
Elizabeth Gilbert
Elizabeth Gilbert (born July 18, 1969) is an American journalist and author. She is best known for her 2006 memoir '' Eat, Pray, Love'', which has sold over 30 million copies and has been translated into over 30 languages. The book was also mad ...
heard about the family and was inspired to write a novel, ''The Snow Forest''. However, publication of the book was put on indefinite hold following public criticism, mostly from Ukrainians, that a book about Russia would be released during the
Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...
.
References
External links
* 2 December 2019
Agafya Lykova about her life. Part 1 (with English subtitles)(YouTube),
Moscow Technological University (MIREA)
Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
.
* 23 September 2019
Agafya Lykova 2019. A story about hemp (with English subtitles)(YouTube),
Moscow Technological University (MIREA)
Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
.
* 11 April 2019
Agafia. All her life is an ascetic feat(YouTube),
Moscow Technological University (MIREA)
Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lykov, Karp
Old Believer communities in Russia
Survivalists
Old Believers
Russian hermits