The Yukaghirs, or Yukagirs ( (), ), are a
Siberian
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 si ...
ethnic group
An ethnicity or ethnic group is a group of people with shared attributes, which they collectively believe to have, and long-term endogamy. Ethnicities share attributes like language, culture, common sets of ancestry, traditions, society, re ...
in the
Russian Far East
The Russian Far East ( rus, Дальний Восток России, p=ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ) is a region in North Asia. It is the easternmost part of Russia and the Asia, Asian continent, and is coextensive with the Far Easte ...
, living in the
basin of the
Kolyma River
The Kolyma (, ; ) is a river in northeastern Siberia, whose basin covers parts of the Sakha Republic, Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, and Magadan Oblast of Russia.
The Kolyma is frozen to depths of several metres for about 250 days each year, b ...
.
Geographic distribution
The Tundra Yukaghirs live in the Lower Kolyma region in the
Sakha Republic
Sakha, officially the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), is a republics of Russia, republic of Russia, and the largest federal subject of Russia by area. It is located in the Russian Far East, along the Arctic Ocean, with a population of one million ...
; the Taiga Yukaghirs in the Upper Kolyma region in the Sakha Republic and in
Srednekansky District of
Magadan Oblast
Magadan Oblast is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject (an oblast) of Russia. It is geographically located in the Russian Far East, Far East region of the country, and is administratively part of the Far Eastern Federal District. Magadan ...
. By the time of Russian
colonization
475px, Map of the year each country achieved List of sovereign states by date of formation, independence.
Colonization (British English: colonisation) is a process of establishing occupation of or control over foreign territories or peoples f ...
in the 17th century, the Yukaghir tribal groups occupied territories from the
Lena River
The Lena is a river in the Russian Far East and is the easternmost river of the three great rivers of Siberia which flow into the Arctic Ocean, the others being Ob (river), Ob and Yenisey. The Lena River is long and has a capacious drainage basi ...
to the mouth of the
Anadyr River. The number of the Yukaghirs decreased between the 17th and 19th centuries due to
epidemics
An epidemic (from Ancient Greek, Greek ἐπί ''epi'' "upon or above" and δῆμος ''demos'' "people") is the rapid spread of disease to a large number of Host (biology), hosts in a given population within a short period of time. For example ...
, internecine wars and
Tsarist colonial policy which may have included genocide against the sedentary hunter-fisher Anaouls. Some of the Yukaghirs have assimilated with the
Yakuts
The Yakuts or Sakha (, ; , ) are a Turkic ethnic group native to North Siberia, primarily the Republic of Sakha in the Russian Federation. They also inhabit some districts of the Krasnoyarsk Krai. They speak Yakut, which belongs to the Si ...
,
Evens
The Evens /əˈvɛn/ ( Even: эвэн; pl. эвэсэл, ''evesel'' in Even and эвены, ''eveny'' in Russian; formerly called ''Lamuts'') are a people in Siberia and the Russian Far East. They live in regions of the Magadan Oblast and ...
, and
Russians
Russians ( ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Eastern Europe. Their mother tongue is Russian language, Russian, the most spoken Slavic languages, Slavic language. The majority of Russians adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church ...
.
Currently, Yukaghirs live in the
Sakha Republic
Sakha, officially the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), is a republics of Russia, republic of Russia, and the largest federal subject of Russia by area. It is located in the Russian Far East, along the Arctic Ocean, with a population of one million ...
and the
Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
Chukotka ( ; ), officially the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, is the easternmost federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia. It is an Autonomous okrugs of Russia, autonomous okrug situated in the Russian Far East, and shares a border wi ...
of the Russian Federation. According to the 2002 Census, their total number was 1,509 people, up from 1,112 recorded in the
1989 Census.
According to the latest 2001 all Ukrainian census, 12 Yukaghirs are living in
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
. Only 2 of them indicated
Yukaghir as their native language. For the remaining others (6) it is
Russian and for 1 it is some other tongue.
Yukaghirs (including
Chuvans
Chuvans () are one of the forty or so "Indigenous small-numbered peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East" recognized by the Russian government. Most Chuvans today live within Chukotka Autonomous Okrug in the far northeast of Russia. Bas ...
) by selected settlements:
Genetics
Genetically, Yukaghirs exhibit roughly equal frequencies of the
Y-DNA haplogroups
N1c,
Q1, and
C2 (formerly C3).
According to another study, out of 11 Yukaghir males 3 turned out to belong to the Y-haplogroup N1c (different subclade from the one found in Yakuts), another 4 - to the Y-haplogroup C2 (former C3; for the most part, the same subclade that's also found in
Koryaks
Koryaks () are an Indigenous people#North Asia, Indigenous people of the Russian Far East who live immediately north of the Kamchatka Peninsula in Kamchatka Krai and inhabit the coastlands of the Bering Sea. The cultural borders of the Koryaks i ...
), one more - to the Y-
haplogroup O, and the rest 3 exhibit apparent Russian genetic influence (two individuals belonging to the Y-
haplogroup R1a, and one more - to the Y-
haplogroup I2a). The study also found no similarities between Yukaghirs and
Chukchis in regards to
mitochondrial DNA
Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA and mDNA) is the DNA located in the mitochondrion, mitochondria organelles in a eukaryotic cell that converts chemical energy from food into adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial DNA is a small portion of the D ...
.
Subethnic groups

Modern Yukaghirs are thought to be descendants of the late Neolithic
Ymyyakhtakh culture.
The 13 tribes that once constituted the Yukaghir group are:
Vadul-
Alais,
Odul,
Chuvan,
Anaoul,
Lavren,
Olyuben,
Omok,
Penjin,
Khodynts,
Khoromoy,
Shoromboy,
Yandin, and Yandyr.
The surviving three tribes are the Odul of Nelemnoe, the Vadul of
Andryushkino and the Chuvan of the Anadyr river area. Of the extinct groups, the most important were the Khodynts, the Anaoul (both of the Anadyr River area), and the Omok (north of the Chuvan). Sometimes the Chuvan are considered a separate people. The Chuvantsy language has been extinct since the early 20th century. In 2002, 1,087 identified themselves as Chuvan compared to more than 1,300 in 1989. The Vadul are mainly involved in reindeer herding while the Odul (Kogime) are mostly hunter-gatherers. The Vadul are also known as Tundra Yukaghir. The Odul are also known as Taiga Yukaghir or Kolyma Yukaghir. The Vadul and Odul languages are as different as
German is from
Dutch. Both are nearing extinction, and Odul is in a much weaker state compared to Vadul. In the 1989 census, more than 700 of the Yukaghirs identified as Vadul while fewer than 400 were Odul.
The Yukaghir are one of the oldest peoples in North-Eastern Asia. Originally they lived over a huge territory from Lake Baikal to the Arctic Ocean. By the time of the first encounter with Russians, Yukaghir were divided into twelve tribes with around 9,000 people. The Yukagir ethnonym is ''Odul'' or ''Vadul'', which means “mighty”.
Tribal divisions among the Yukaghir are fading now, although in every census from 1926, significant number of tribesmen identified themselves with tribal divisions like Anaoul, Odul and Vadul rather than describing themselves as Yukaghir. The Soviet government actively discouraged this tendency and now only the most elderly identify this way. In the 2002 census, out of the 1,509 Yukaghirs, 51 identified themselves as Omok, 40 as Alais, 21 as Odul, 17 as Vadul, 6 as Khangait and 4 as Detkil.
Clan system
The head of every clan was an elder called a ''Ligey Shomorokh''. His was the final word in all aspects of life. Hunting leaders were ''Khangitche'', and war leaders were ''Tonbaia Shomorokh'' ("the mighty man"). Women and teenagers had equal voices with men. The internal life of the community was under the control of the older women. Their decisions in those matters were indisputable.
In the beginning of every summer all clans gathered for the ''Sakhadzibe'' festival, where mutual Yukaghir questions were discussed.
In the Yakut-Sakha Republic there are three nomadic extended family communities. These are Tchaila in
Nizhnekolymsky District, Teki Odulok in
Verkhnekolymsky District and Ianugail in
Ust-Yansky District. The head of Ianugail is I. I. Tomsky. The community's main activities are deer hunting and fishing. Tchaila is the biggest of the three. Its head is S. I. Kurilov. They have 4000 domesticated reindeer, 200 horses, and 20 cows. The community also hunts deer and polar foxes. There is also a shop where traditional skin and fur garments are made. The head of Teki Odulok is N. I. Shalugin. Their base is the village of Nelemnoe. This community is in the most difficult situation. Due to the “creative interpretation” of various Perestroika and privatization laws by the local and district administration and so-called businessmen, the community has lost all their reindeer, cows and even part of its land. All they have left are about 50 horses. They have no money for supplies for hunting and fishing. 80% of all adult population is ''de facto'' unemployed.
The highest forum for Yukagir is the all-people gathering ''Suktuul''.
Culture

The main traditional activity is nomadic and semi-nomadic hunting of deer, moose, wild sheep, and sable, as well as fishing. Reindeer are bred mostly for transportation.
Horse
The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 mi ...
s are known among the Yukaghir as "domestic reindeer of
Yakuts
The Yakuts or Sakha (, ; , ) are a Turkic ethnic group native to North Siberia, primarily the Republic of Sakha in the Russian Federation. They also inhabit some districts of the Krasnoyarsk Krai. They speak Yakut, which belongs to the Si ...
" (''Yoqod ile'' in
Tundra Yukaghir or ''Yaqad āçə'' in
Kolyma Yukaghir). A Yukaghir house is called a ''chum''.
The decline of traditional economic activities, the unfavorable environmental situation of the Yukaghir's traditional lands and waters, and the absence of local and federal laws and executive mechanisms protecting indigenous peoples in Russia, have not aided the welfare and continuation of traditional Yukaghir communities. The average life span for men is 45 years, and 54 years for women. Child mortality is the highest in the Yakut-Sakha Republic. In addition, one expedition made to the Yukaghir found that most had no knowledge of traditional Yukaghir culture.
Language
The
Yukaghir languages are a small language family of two closely related languages, Tundra Yukaghir and Kolyma Yukaghir, although there used to be more. They are unclassified languages: their origin and relation to other languages are unknown; some scholars consider them distantly related to the
Uralic languages
The Uralic languages ( ), sometimes called the Uralian languages ( ), are spoken predominantly in Europe and North Asia. The Uralic languages with the most native speakers are Hungarian, Finnish, and Estonian. Other languages with speakers ab ...
,
but this classification is not accepted by the majority of specialists in Uralic linguistics. The languages are regarded as moribund, since less than 370 people can speak either Yukaghir language. Most Yukaghirs today speak
Yakut and
Russian.
Religion
Alongside Russian Orthodox beliefs, Yukaghirs practice
shamanism
Shamanism is a spiritual practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with the spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritual energies into ...
. The dominant cults are ancestral spirits, the spirits of Fire,
Sun (Pugu), Hunting, Earth, and Water, which can act as protectors or as enemies of people. The most important is the cult of ''Pugu'', the Sun, who is the highest judge in all disputes. The spirits of the dead go to a place called ''Aibidzi''. Every clan had a shaman called an ''alma''. After death every ''alma'' was treated as a deity, and the body of the dead ''alma'' was dismembered and kept by the clan as relics. The Yukaghir still continue traditions stemming from their origins as nomadic reindeer-hunters: they practice dog sacrifice and have an epic poem based around crows. The animal cult was especially strong in the elk cult. There was a number of rituals and taboos connected with elk and deer hunting.
Inside the New Russia (1994): Yukagirs
/ref>
See also
* Paleosiberian languages
*Uralic–Yukaghir languages
Uralic–Yukaghir, also known as Uralo-Yukaghir, is a somewhat controversial proposed language family composed of Uralic and Yukaghir.
Uralic is a large and diverse family of languages spoken in northern and eastern Europe and northwestern Sib ...
* Yukaghir birch-bark carvings
References
Notes
* Also free online available audio materials (tales, songs).
*
*
Footnotes
External links
Yukaghir portal
in Arctic Megapedia
Irina Kurilova's channel
(mostly Yukaghir-related videos, sometimes featuring other indigenous peoples of Yakutia)
Modern culture:
Irina Duskulova - "Chakhadan" (live, w/ English subtitles)
Irina Duskulova - "Ulegen Nume" (music video)
Irina Duskulova - "Shakhadjibe" (music video, 2023)
Concert @ 5th Yukaghir congress
(20 March 2016)
Yukaghir folk singer Ragtyna Tymkal
* '' Den Pobedy'
in Yukaghir by Anastasia Kurilova
* ''Ave Maria
The Hail Mary or Ave Maria (from its first words in Latin), also known as the Angelic or Angelical Salutation, is a traditional Catholic prayer addressing Mary, mother of Jesus, Mary, the mother of Jesus. The prayer is based on two biblical pa ...
'
in Yukaghir by Yakut singer Saina
{{Authority control
Ethnic groups in Russia
Ethnic groups in Siberia
Indigenous peoples of Siberia
Indigenous small-numbered peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East
Hunter-gatherers of Asia
Modern nomads
Nomadic groups in Eurasia
People from Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
People from Magadan Oblast
People from the Sakha Republic