Chapter:
Siberian cuisine, Siberian traditions
18th page

The minds of Russians will grow in Siberia.
The fertile lands and pure ecology of Siberia are optimal for special settlements, hard labor and camps, which in every possible way contribute to the enlightenment and strengthening of Russian minds.

In the conditions of monotony, orderliness of peasant life and remoteness from the central regions, a wedding (and similar events) turned into a bright theatrical performance, a dramatized ritual crowning the most important choice in the lives of young people.

The ritual of the Russian wedding, born in ancient times, was brought to Siberia, but while maintaining the main plot and structural components, it underwent certain changes.

Young people in Siberia, freer in spirit and morals, had the opportunity to freely choose a life partner. The most important condition for creating a family was economic feasibility. Researchers noted that, according to documents from the 18th - early 19th centuries, brides were often older than grooms: the family tried to “get” a worker into the house, first of all.

In the Yenisei province, the custom of formal bride abduction was widespread in a number of places. M. F. Krivoshapkin, describing this custom, notes that, having agreed by consent, the groom “kidnapped” the bride. At the same time, the bride’s mother asked: “How can you look people in the eyes? I'm giving my daughter away to someone else's house. Give it with your own hands, or what? Is her life worse with us? After the “kidnapping,” however, the bride returned (the ritual was observed), and then the matchmaking ritual began.

The matchmaker, on behalf of the groom, went to match the bride. On the first step of the porch she said: “As my foot stands firmly and firmly, so will my word stand firmly and firmly. So that what I think comes true.” We stood on the step with only our right foot. The matchmaker could also make a match.

Having gone into the hut, the matchmaker sat down under the mother, on a bench. “If you don’t sit under a mother, there will be no connection in the new family,” they said in Siberia. Matitsa knits the house, and the bench must be longitudinal, and not transverse to the mat, otherwise life will go sideways!

The matchmaker first started a conversation “about nothing,” and then said: “I came to you not to feast, not to eat, but with a good deed, with matchmaking!

You have a bride, and I have a groom. Let’s start establishing a relationship!” The father sent the mother outside the fence to the bride's house - it was a girl's business. The bride in Siberia was free to choose and could refuse. In this case, the father said: “She’s young, she wants to be among the girls, to work for her father and mother, to accumulate intelligence.” Or he could say: “Wait until the end (i.e. in a year).” If they agreed, the bride's scarf was given to the matchmaker. All the “negotiations” were conducted by the bride’s father.

Then a special day of shaking hands was appointed. On this day, the father, mother of the groom and the matchmaker went to the bride’s house to “make sure” that the bride was exactly what their son needed, and sealed the important event with a handshake. This was an ancient custom of the people “together” a serious matter.

The fathers shook hands. “God bless you, in good time.” We prayed. The father blessed the bride. Then they drank a glass of “traveling”, and the bride and her friends spent the night “sobbing and lamenting” - they sang songs “with reproaches and tears” for “being given to someone else’s house.”

At the viewing, a day later, the bride and groom met “for the first time.” Relatives and godparents were here, inviting: “We ask you to talk.” There is wine and delicacies on the table. “Here, look at our groom, and show us your bride,” said the godmother. The bride and groom stood on the same floor, arm in arm, the groom was closer to the images, and the bride was closer to the door, then the betrothal took place with a kiss, and the rings were exchanged.

The ritual with the scarf was important, when the bride, groom, and their fathers took hold of the four corners of the scarf, and then the bride and groom intertwined the corners and kissed. After this, everyone sat down at the tables; treats and delicacies were passed around to everyone - in return the guests put money. The groom gave a gift to the bride on a plate, which she accepted with a kiss.

The bride saw off the groom on the porch of the house. Everyone was leaving. The young people stayed with the bride, then the groom returned alone, and the fun began: songs, games, treats. The songs this time were sung more cheerfully. They include reconciliation with a new life, a description of the future life of the bride in the groom's house, etc. The fun continues until late.

The next stage was the party, or “bachelorette party.” On this day, the bride and her friends went to the bathhouse, and they unbraided her hair. The tears began again. In the bathhouse, the bride was covered with a scarf, then dressed up and taken into the house.

A dressed-up groom arrived with a whole retinue of friends on a decorated carriage. He is triumphant! One of the bride’s relatives, “zvatai,” invites everyone into the house. The matchmaker enters, then the groom, then everyone else. After the invitation, they sit down at the tables: they sing songs until late, treat themselves, communicate, talk about the wedding...

After the handshake and before the wedding, wedding officials were appointed. The ritual assumed the following: for the bride and groom, a blessed father and mother (godparents), on the bride’s side - two matchmakers, one bed-maid (most often she was a midwife), one seller of the braid, one “zaobnik” (a boy with an “image” icon) ) and two boyars. On the groom's side - one thousand, one groomsman (an expert in all rituals, wedding manager), one girlfriend, two matchmakers, four boyars.

The wedding ritual ends with the wedding day. The action continues on this day from sunrise until “after midnight”. The groom's groomsman is all dressed up: he has a festive embroidered towel over his shoulder, an elegant belt with handkerchiefs hanging on it, and a whip in his hands. He visits his bride early in the morning. "How did you sleep? How is your health?" - copes on behalf of the groom.

On his second visit, the groom brings gifts from the groom, “Our prince ordered me to give them,” he says. They usually gave: colored scarves, a sable fur coat, a wedding outfit, a stand mirror, etc. “Should I invite the prince to the red porch?” - asking a friend and the conversation was about further actions that day.

The bride's younger brother brings a dowry: a feather bed, pillows, a blanket, a canopy, various sewn and woven items in a chest. He travels with an icon and a candle. With him on the sleigh sits a “dowry”, a bed midwife. She goes to prepare the wedding bed in the basement or other place. Treats and mutual gifts of handkerchiefs follow.

And in the bride's house there is festive excitement. The bride is being prepared for the wedding; she gets dressed in front of the mirror, sobbing, and “says goodbye” to her friends. Then everyone sits down at the table. Next to the bride is her younger brother, a braid seller. The groom has already been notified that the bride's house is ready.

Having passed through all the streets of the village, the wedding train-procession arrives at the bride’s house. There are traditional exclamations: “Is this the right house”, “Open the gates!” But this is only for payment: you need to pay “golden hryvnia” for the key to the gate. They enter the yard. Here the matchmakers exchange beer and then the ritual of entering “into the house, into the chambers” follows.

The bride’s younger brother needs to “put a gold hryvnia on a tray, and buy the bride’s braid back for the Russian.” He hits the whip - “Not enough!”, demands more money. Finally, the “kosnik” is satisfied with the amount received. The matchmaker lightly undoes the bride's braid.

Everyone sits down at the table together. There are all kinds of food on it. The bride and groom do not have the right to drink at the wedding: they sip the wine lightly. Three courses follow. A goose is placed in front of the bride's parents, which according to the ritual they must eat together. The goose symbolized the moral purity and purity of the bride.

There is mutual giving of gifts with jokes and toasts to the newlyweds. Finally they are getting ready to go to church. The bride's parents bless the newlyweds. Three deep bows follow. Everyone sits down in the sleigh. Ahead of the train, a boy - a “character” - holds the Blessed Image in his hands.

The friend holds his hand and with a “sentence” circles the train three times, and the procession sets off towards the temple. Fun, songs, jokes! According to tradition, everyone’s heads are not covered with hats. Horses and sleigh arches are decorated with ribbons, bells, and shufflers. Guns are being fired all around. People they meet congratulate the newlyweds.

In the church, “the sacrament of illuminating a marriage and prayer for her well-being,” according to the Orthodox rite, was supplemented by a purely Siberian custom when a scarf was spread on the floor of the church and the newlyweds stood on it, the groom with his right foot, and the bride with her left. At the same time, it was considered a happy belief that if a bride squeezes a crust of bread in her left hand during the wedding, it means that life will pass in contentment.

Next, the wedding moves to the groom's house. They drive up to the house, and the friend loudly announces: “Our newlywed prince has arrived, with the young princess and the whole regiment, by honest train to the wide courtyard. He ordered it to be announced that he stood at the golden crown and received the Law of God on his head! Please greet me with joy!”

They greet you with bread and salt, pray, and sit down at the table. The wedding feast begins. The first glass of wine is poured to the groom, who passes it to his father. “Well, son, on your legal marriage,” the father congratulates. For the bride and groom, one plate is placed for two. The guests eat, drink, the newlyweds are congratulated, treats and the best dishes are continuously served.

Showing off your culinary skills was considered a matter of honor. After the third course, the young people were taken out from the table. This was followed by the ritual of braiding. The bride was covered with a scarf, and the matchmakers of the bride and groom, unraveling the girl’s braid with songs, braided it into two, laid them on her head in a new form, then put a kokoshnik or povoinichek on her head. All the guests present picked up the song about the braid. Full glasses were poured for the parents, and they once again congratulated the “children on their legal marriage” and blessed them for the “basement.”

The midwife-bed ceremonially opened the room, the first to enter was the “zazabnik” with an icon, followed by the matchmakers and the young ones. The young people were left behind - the friend was the last to leave, taking away the candles. And in the room the “feast on the mountain” continued with jokes, jokes, songs...

In the morning, the entire train from yesterday, all the guests, were going to the young husband’s house. The young people were sent to the bathhouse, then they were dressed, and then there was a presentation to their parents. The bride showed her sewing to her husband's parents, and the mother-in-law meticulously assessed the craftsmanship. Then the young people went to the house of their father-in-law and mother-in-law and invited them to a feast.

By lunchtime, all the guests were finally gathered. Everyone took their places. Her and his parents, godparents, and relatives sat in a place of honor, and the young woman catered to them, looked after them, set and served the tables, and tried to show what a nimble housewife she was. Often there were comic “tests” of the groom’s skill, for example: carving a wedge on a stone or placing an ax on an ax handle.

The feast continued until night and often - it lasted more than one day. It continued without any special ritual. But the groomsmen and friends of the newlyweds made impromptu additions, pranks, jokes: it was not for nothing that the wedding was considered a whole performance. Have fun, people!

Weddings often overlapped one another, took turns, and the entire village spent almost a significant part of the winter time, resting from the labors of the righteous, and became a participant in the wedding ceremony, a vibrant amateur folk event.

According to descriptions, in Siberia it was customary to accompany the birth of a baby with certain rituals. When a newborn was washed, silver money was placed in the water, which the midwife then took for herself.

In contrast to “Russian” customs (“to protect the child from harm”), all relatives, parents, and close friends were notified of the birth: they came and came to visit the parent, and each presented the newborn with silver money, which was placed under the pillow of the mother of the child or newborn .

If health permitted, the parent was certainly taken to the bathhouse every other day. Siberians used to say: “Banka is a second mother.” After the bath, they drank a brew of berries, weak beer with raisins, prunes, and ginger. The mother was fed whole millet porridge with raisins.

Ethnographers noted that in Siberia, infants were rarely fed with mother's milk for a long time; more often, after 3-4 months they began to be fed with cow's milk. Milk was given to the baby by pouring it into a bottle. The baby grew up, rocking in a cradle - a “wobbly” woven from pine shingles on a bird cherry handle.

The shaky thing was suspended on a leather strap from a flexible “ochep” - a birch pole threaded through the ceiling ring. The shaky top was covered with a special cape - a “tent”. She was that “small world” from which the baby stepped into life...

An ancient pagan ritual was performed on the ninth birthday of a child throughout Russia. In Siberia it was like this: they brought a mug of clean water into which silver money was first placed overnight. The mother poured water onto the grandmother-midwife’s hands three times, and she poured water back onto her. Then the midwife was given 15-20 rubles. money, several pounds of good butter and a pound of tea, and several yards of linen or linen.

This ritual was supposed to symbolize the transfer of responsibility for the future life of the baby from the midwife to the mother. At the same time, water performed a cleansing function and symbolized the intermediate stage of the baby’s arrival into this world.

The great sacrament of baptism was for Russian people the most important condition for communion with God, with the Kingdom of God.

“Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. ...you must be born again.”

According to Christian tradition, at baptism the child was named after a saint, who became his heavenly intercessor and patron. The baptism of a child was carried out according to the faith of the successors, who became the spiritual parents of the baptized person.

Relatives, close friends of the family, and always the “sworn parents” (godfather and godfather), and the midwife gathered for the christening. The table was always covered with a white tablecloth, and bread and salt were placed on it. A fur coat was laid on the bench under the icons, fur side up, and the baby was laid down. Then the midwife took it and handed it over to the godfather, then everyone went to the church to perform the baptismal ceremony.

At the end of the generally accepted Orthodox rite of baptism in Russia, the fur coat ritual was repeated. The godmother took the child from the fur coat and handed it to his own mother with the words: “The name is (name). Happy Angel Day to you (name), with new happiness. God grant you good health for many years to come, and you and your son (daughter) with joy now.” After the general prayer, the parents invited them to “treat themselves.” Everyone congratulates each other: the father on the “heir”, the godfather on the “godson”, the uncle on the “nephew”, the parents on the son, the grandmother on the grandson.

For “christenings” they prepared porridge from “Sarochinsky” millet, cooked in milk, and on fasting days in water. Sugar was sprinkled on top of the porridge. Everyone who gathered for the christening was served wine, and then porridge. That’s why there was a saying in Siberia: “I ate porridge at his christening.”

For the midwife, who was considered a particularly honored guest, some silver money was placed on the porridge. Kuma and godfather were given towels and linen. If the child was the first in the family (“first-born”), then often, making fun of the baby’s father, they tried to slip him a spoonful of porridge with salt and pepper. At the same time, they said that the father should share the mother’s suffering.

It also happened that my grandmother deliberately doused her apron with wine; I believe that my grandson will start walking faster.

A person’s life journey ends with death... Siberians treated it with respect, wisdom and calm. To die with dignity in old age meant the same thing as to live one’s life “in the honor” of society.

The greatest blessing was to die without suffering yourself and without causing trouble and suffering to your family and friends. Usually, when entering old age, people prepared in advance the material for the coffin domina; it was considered quite natural if the peasant himself, lovingly and carefully, made his domina. And then it stood on the barn or under the roof of a barn “on demand” for many years.

As elsewhere in Rus', a deceased person with a “sinful body” was washed and dressed in clean, preferably new, clothes. Washing the deceased was considered a cleansing rite. Under no circumstances should relatives perform ablution. In Siberia, it was customary for “mortal” items to be made only from canvas and not to be purchased.

The house with the deceased was placed in the upper room, in the front corner, on a bench or table, decorated with linen, muslin or carpet. The deceased had to lie with his head towards the “goddess”. The floor was covered with spruce or, more often, fir “legs” - twigs. Children, grandchildren, and relatives of the deceased certainly sat near the body. The ritual of washing, farewell, was accompanied by lamentations, lamentations, sobs, crying, and sentences. If there were girls in the family of the deceased, they let their hair down over their shoulders and tied a black scarf around their heads.

In the traditional funeral rites of old Siberia, ancient tales occupied an important place. A sad lamentation song served as a means of psychological release in terrible grief.

Since ancient times, the long, long lamentations of inconsolable widows and mothers of relatives have evolved into farewell chants: sorrowful, solemn and stern, touching the soul. A cry once heard is remembered for a lifetime...

Mother's cry for her dead daughter:

Oh, you are my daughter!
Oh, yes you are my dear!
Where are you my beauty?
Where did you go little bird?
Why are you offended at me?
Why are you angry?
Oh, why did you leave me,
I'm a sad orphan.
Who will I go to now?
Who will I tell my sadness to?
Oh, yes, you are my daughter...

From crying for her dead husband:

To whom have you left us, our clear falcon?
You fly away from us to a distant place, you don’t know anything,
Don’t you feel how bitterly we are dying here in tears!
You won’t come back to us to the bitter sorrows, you won’t look again
for our miserable life.
You won’t come to feasts and chats anymore,
you won’t look anymore at your fields, at your spikelets, at your
for cattle for orphans,
You won’t go into your warm hut anymore...
You chose a cold nest for yourself...
...We are about to have invited guests,
guests are invited, it is not for joy that they will gather to us,
but for tears, and for lamentations, all our relatives, all our acquaintances...

(Lamentations recorded by M.V. Krasnozhenova at the beginning of the twentieth century.)

In the Yenisei province there were a number of generally accepted ritual actions at funerals. Many old women bequeathed to be buried in their wedding dresses. The deceased’s shoes were called “kalishki” or “bosoviki” and were made from 2-3 layers of thick white canvas. The deceased was buried wearing a belt.

A small piece of white cloth was attached to the outer corner of the house of the deceased immediately after death so that “the soul could fly to the house in 40 days and wipe away its tears.” Under no circumstances should the deceased's nails or hair be cut. After the funeral, the clothes of the deceased were distributed to friends and relatives. New dresses were also bought and given as gifts for commemoration.

Everyone, acquaintances and strangers, visited the deceased; even distant relatives always came from the surrounding villages. Everyone expressed feelings of compassion, condolences to loved ones, and observed traditional decency. Contemporaries noted that in Siberia many strangers, strangers come to say goodbye, they come to “see how he is dressed, what kind of brocade he is covered with, whether his relatives are crying.”

Anyone entering the house was given a glass of vodka or a glass of tea. For the entire three days while the deceased lay at home, the gates were always left open. Several people served the visitors, helped them undress, served tea from morning to evening, heated the samovar, and one of them gave alms to the beggars.

In Siberia, it was customary to place an icon not on the chest of the deceased, but in the head. The deceased was covered with linen or brocade. A cup of water must be placed on a table or shelf at the head of the room. “So that the soul can wash itself,” said knowledgeable people. The candle was placed in a vessel with grain. Tow and broom leaves were placed in the coffin.

The deceased was buried on the third day. “Knittings” from the hands and feet of the deceased were placed in the coffin on the left side. The coffin was carried out of the house in the hands, and the person especially honored was carried in the hands to the “graves”. After removing the body, they immediately turned the bench over, and in the front corner, where the deceased lay, they placed a stone - “serovik”, they believed - “there will be no more deceased in this house in the near future.” The stone lay there for 6 weeks. Immediately after the body was removed, the floors in the house were washed, and the gates of the house were immediately closed.

The procession to the “graves” was built in a certain way: a man with an icon walked in front, followed by a priest, then they carried a lid covered with a carpet, then a coffin lined with velvet or satin (red fabric). If condition permitted, the coffin was covered with brocade. It should be noted that in European Russia, unlike Siberia, the coffin was usually not lined with fabric.

The deceased was buried in the church and then carried to the cemetery. The coffin was lowered into the grave on a canvas, which was then shared by the visiting beggar. According to an ancient semi-pagan rite in Siberia, the priest-father was the first to throw a handful of earth onto the lid of the coffin, then everyone who came to the cemetery threw three handfuls: “The Kingdom of Heaven; rest in peace". According to custom, a canvas towel was tied to the cross.

At the end of the burial ceremony, they served a memorial service, distributed alms to the poor, presented everyone with handkerchiefs or towels and returned home.

Siberians considered it the greatest “sin” to speak “badly” about the deceased.

The commemoration began with kutya or honey. Then food was served “in abundance.” There were many different dishes, but pancakes were a must. If the deceased was buried on a “fast day,” then cold fish, fish jelly, stew, yarn cakes, porridge and various jelly were served.

On the “fast days” they served cold meat, meat jelly, fish jelly, a variety of porridges and jelly, and milk. The wake was always accompanied by a variety of porridges served. Before each change of dishes, they prayed to God and wished the deceased “the Kingdom of God.” Serving jelly, often with cream, meant the end of a “hot lunch”

Ethnographers note that nowhere else in Russia did there exist a ritual of visiting a cemetery on the second day. On the second day, Siberians always went to the “graves,” and only close relatives. “Nothing, the most amazing thing, will keep them from going to the grave: not pouring rain, not a blizzard, not severe frost.” This ritual continues to this day...

According to the Orthodox rite, persons who deliberately took their own lives, or suicides, were deprived of a church funeral service and even burial in a common cemetery. This was considered the greatest sin. These included the dead participants in the “robbery” - criminals.

Those who attended the “hot lunch” bowed to the deceased 1-2 times a day for six weeks. In the homes of many wealthy peasants, all visiting beggars were fed for 40 days after the funeral of a loved one.

On the 9th day, only close relatives commemorated the deceased, and on the 40th day a “dinner party” was held. In many villages on the Angara, it was customary to commemorate on the 6th, 9th, 20th, and 40th days. Everywhere in Siberia they commemorated him on his name day and on the anniversary of his death. For a year, close relatives wore mourning.

On the anniversary of the death, traditional changes of dishes were also served: cold fish, fish jelly, wheat kutya, bird cherry kutya, fish pie, pancakes, pryazhenka, jelly. All ritual porridges, both on funeral days and on other occasions, were prepared from whole, unground grains.

The week following Easter week was one of the most important in the ritual cycle for the Siberian old-timers. On Tuesday of St. Thomas' week we celebrated Parents' Day. The Siberians called him “Ikhna parent Paska.”

On the eve of “parents' Easter” everyone had to wash themselves in the bathhouse, despite the fact that it was Monday. In the evening, after all family members had washed, a certain set of linen, things, and soap were brought to the bathhouse for their deceased ancestors. They set up the gang, poured water in, laid out things on the benches and left, leaving the door slightly open. No one alive had the right to go there after that; it was considered the greatest sin. And so that the souls of their ancestors could wash themselves in their baths, the cemetery gates were opened on Monday evening (on other days they remained closed).

On Parents' Day we got up before dawn. Relatives went to the church with kutya, where a memorial service was served and the dead were remembered, others stayed at home and prepared a hearty dinner.

After the church service, the Siberians visited the “graves”. Dressed in fine clothes, all the inhabitants of the village came together, commemorated the dead with kutia, eggs, pancakes, and snacks. “On this day, at the graves, old-timers “share Christ” with their parents: they put out a kutya, painted eggs, they commemorate with wine, then they invite their loved ones, neighbors, and fellow villagers to commemorate.

Many people take a samovar to graves. Many bring wine”: they drink it themselves and treat their “parents”, pouring wine from a glass onto the grave. They sit sedately, remember and leave,” he wrote about this ritual at the end of the 19th century. ethnographer V.S. Arefiev.

Upon returning from the cemetery, the peasants set tables at home, set out abundant dishes, poured wine into several glasses and covered them with pieces of bread. Then the window was opened, a towel was hung through the window sill onto the street - a “path” for the souls of deceased ancestors.

All relatives and invitees left the room and went out into the front hut or into the courtyard, after praying and bowing in the front corner in front of the icon. Old-timers believed that the souls of deceased ancestors feasted at this time and communicated at the laid table. It was believed that richly laid tables brought them joy and showed the degree of respect and veneration of their ancestors by the living

After some time had passed, everyone returned to the tables and began the funeral dinner with prayer.

Not only on “Parents' Easter,” but also every day, the old-timer turned to his ancestors for advice, mentally talked with them about matters and problems; in the minds of the ancestors remained part of this world.

Also see section:

Bogatyrsky feast
RUSSIAN KITCHEN
Traditional Russian dishes
Many of these dishes will become a true decoration of any festive banquet table.
Advice for kitchen guys (i.e. chefs)

Our ancestors did not eat soon,
It didn't take long to move around
Ladles, silver bowls
With boiling beer and wine.
They poured joy into my heart,
Foam hissed around the edges,
It is important that the teacups wore them
And they bowed low to the guests.
A.S. Pushkin

FROM THE HISTORY. Once upon a time, Russians ate leisurely, with breaks, for lunch:
- first roast(modern second),
- then ear(various liquid dishes, soups),
- and finally snacks(sweet desserts).
From the point of view of modern dietetics, this order of meals is optimal, with breaks between them of 10-15 minutes.
A leisurely meal with breaks between courses is shown those who want to lose weight .
At the turn of the 17th-18th centuries, nobles who came to Russia introduced the customs of European cuisine, and the order of dishes served for lunch changed to modern ones.
From the beginning of the 18th century, the Russian monarchy required more and more intense service from its subjects, and therefore it became inappropriate for service people and serf slaves to “corrode” for a long time at the table. The pace of the meal became continuous, without the previously traditional breaks between courses.

COLD DISHES AND SNACKS

EAR. SOUPS

MARRIAGE CUSTOMS KALYM - price for a bride, one of the types of compensation for a wife. Among the forest Yukaghirs and the Chukchi and other peoples of the extreme Northeast, initially there were no-kalom marriages. The size of the dowry and the procedure for its payment were determined during negotiations during matchmaking. Most often, bride price was paid in the form of deer, copper or iron cauldrons, fabrics, and animal skins. With the development of commodity-money relations, part of the dowry could be paid in money. The size of the bride price depended on the property status of the families of the bride and groom.

MARRIAGE CUSTOMS Levirate is a marriage custom according to which a widow was obliged or had the right to marry the brother of her deceased husband. It was common among most peoples of the North. The right to the wife of the deceased older brother belonged to the younger brother, and not vice versa. Sororate is a marriage custom according to which a widower is obliged to marry the younger sister or niece of his deceased wife.

HOUSINGS The dwellings of peoples are classified based on different criteria: according to the materials of manufacture - wooden (from logs, boards, hewn posts, poles, chopped blocks, branches), bark (birch bark and from the bark of other trees - spruce, fir, larch), felt, from bones of sea animals, earthen, adobe, with wicker walls, and also covered with deer skins; in relation to the ground level - above-ground, underground (semi-dugouts and dugouts) and piles; according to the layout - quadrangular, round and polygonal; in shape - conical, gable, single-pitched, spherical, hemispherical, pyramidal and truncated pyramidal; by design - frame (made of vertical or inclined pillars, covered with skins, bark, felt).

CULT OF FIRE Fire, the main family shrine, was widely used in family rituals. They tried to constantly maintain the home. During migrations, the Evenks transported him in a bowler hat. The rules for handling fire were passed down from generation to generation. The fire of the hearth was protected from desecration, it was forbidden to throw garbage or pine cones into it (“so as not to cover my grandmother’s eyes with tar” - Evenks), to touch the fire with anything sharp, or to pour water into it. The veneration of fire also extended to objects that had long-term contact with it.

FOLK SIGNS OF THE EVENS v You cannot walk on fire. v 2. The fire of the fire cannot be stabbed or cut with sharp objects. If you do not observe and contradict these signs, then the fire will lose the power of its spirit. v 3. You cannot throw away your old clothes and things and leave them on the ground, but you must destroy things by burning them. If you do not follow these rules, then a person will always hear the crying of his things and clothes. v 4. If you take eggs from partridges, geese and ducks from a nest, be sure to leave two or three eggs in the nest. v 5. The remains of the spoils cannot be scattered in the place where you walk and live. v 6. In the family you should not swear and argue often, because the fire of your hearth may be offended and you will be unhappy.

CLOTHING The clothing of the peoples of the North is adapted to local climatic conditions and lifestyle. For its manufacture, local materials were used: skins of deer, seals, wild animals, dogs, birds (loons, swans, ducks), fish skins, and among the Yakuts also skins of cows and horses. Rovduga, a suede made from deer or elk skins, was widely used. They insulated their clothes with the fur of squirrels, foxes, arctic foxes, hares, lynxes, the Yakuts used beavers, and the Shors used sheep fur. The skins of domestic and wild reindeer, hunted in the taiga and tundra, played an extremely important role. In winter they wore double-layer or single-layer clothing made from deer skins, less often dog skins, in the summer they wore worn-out winter fur coats, parkas, malitsas, as well as clothes made from rovduga and fabrics.

ITELMENS Modern science considers the Itelmens to be very ancient inhabitants of Kamchatka, without answering exactly the question of when and where they came from. Since it is known that the Koryaks and Chukchi came here around 1200-1300, apparently fleeing from Genghis Khan, we can assume that the Itelmens appeared here earlier. Analyzing everyday life, the researcher finds analogies with the ancient Chinese. The final conclusion: the Itelmens once lived “outside China, in the steppes of Mongolia, below the Amur.” This is indicated by numerous similarities in the language of the Mongols and Itelmen, as well as physiological similarities. Most likely, the Itelmens once lived in the South Ural steppes, and were a Turkic tribe, perhaps with Mongoloid features, like today's Kalmyks, heavily Iranianized (under Scythian influence). It was the ancestors of the Itelmen who were the pygmies that Greek mythology speaks of. Hence the elements of Greek mythology among the Itelmens, hence several ancient coins found in Kamchatka.

YAKUTS For the first time, Russian industrialists entered Yakutia in the 20s of the 17th century. Following them, service people came here and began to explain to the local population, which caused resistance from the local nobility, who did not want to lose the right to exclusive exploitation of their relatives. In 1632, Beketov placed on the river. Lena prison In 1643, it was moved to a new location 70 versts from the old one and was named Yakutsk. But gradually the fight with the Russians stopped, because the Yakuts were convinced of the benefits of peaceful ties with the Russian population. By the middle of the 17th century, the entry of Yakutsk into the Russian state was basically completed.

BURYATS According to anthropological characteristics, the Buryats belong to the Central Asian type of the Mongoloid race. The ancient religion of the Buryats is shamanism. In the 17th century The Buryats comprised several tribal groups, the largest of which were the Bulagats, Ekhirits, Khorins and Khongodors. The rapprochement of the Buryat tribes with each other was historically due to the proximity of their culture and dialects, as well as the unification of the tribes after their entry into Russia. This process ended at the end of the 17th and 18th centuries. The basis of the Buryat economy was cattle breeding, semi-nomadic among the western tribes and nomadic among the eastern tribes; Hunting and fishing played some role in the economy.

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The Russian nation, the largest in Russia, was the unifying force of the unique Eurasian community of peoples. The Russian population of Siberia today is undoubtedly perceived and regarded as a completely special ethnocultural community. Living together with other Siberian ethnic groups led to fairly lively interethnic relationships and mutual influences, and long-term isolation from Russian cultural centers contributed to the preservation of relict elements of traditional culture.

The settlement of Siberia dates back to the 17th century, when service people, foot and horse Cossacks, and peasants arrived here. The old-time Russian population urgently settled and took root in Siberia, which is reflected in the ethnic self-awareness of Siberians: they do not remember their Russian roots (“grandfathers and great-grandfathers originally lived in Siberia”), but consider themselves Russian. Naturally, ethnic processes continued, as a result of which various ethnographic groups of old-timers Siberians were formed and further developed. After the abolition of serfdom and, especially, after the Stolypin reforms, a stream of Russians poured into Siberia, who occupied the chronologically upper level of “rootedness” layer. Their older descendants today make up the second or third generation born in Siberian lands. But, considering themselves Siberians, they remember well that their parents were “Vyatka”, “Kursk”, “Tambov”. Many older people, especially in rural areas, say that the Vyatkas have always been considered skillful and resourceful (“the Vyatkas are grippy guys”), the vociferous Kursks were called “Kursk nightingales”, they said about the clean chaldons “chaldons - scraped porches”... These names are not only accurate, but also ethnographic.

The collection offered to the reader examines the influence of the ideological values ​​of Russian ethnic consciousness on the perception of other ethnic cultures in the era of feudalism and in later times. Much attention is paid to the analysis of specific phenomena of spiritual and material culture of the 17th - early 20th centuries. - calendar and labor customs, rituals, folklore, traditional buildings. The ethnographic specificity of Siberian culture is shown using the example of not only the rural, but also the urban population. For the first time, a significant portion of new, previously unpublished field and archival materials are being introduced into scientific circulation. All data provided is provided with an indication of ethnocultural and regional affiliation, which will allow them to be used in the preparation of generalizing works. How far the authors succeeded in solving the problems they set is for the readers to judge.

Ate. Erokhin

Influence of worldview values

Russian ethnic consciousness on character

perceptions of foreign cultures

Western Siberia:XVII- sir.XIXcenturies

Problems of interethnic interactions attract the attention of many researchers due to the enormous role they played in the history of Siberia. The result of these processes depended on how representatives of the contacting ethnic groups perceived each other. However, it is precisely this aspect of the problem of contacts that until recently did not attract close interest 1 . The current unstable situation forces us to conduct a thorough analysis of the influence of the nature of national psychology on the everyday life of those societies within which representatives of different ethnic cultures closely coexist 2 .

This article examines the image of neighbors - representatives of ethnic groups living in Western Siberia before the appearance of the Russians, in the perception of Russian people. This issue should be approached from the position of ethnic psychology, which asserts that ordinary consciousness, when perceiving foreign cultures, evaluates their properties through the prism of its own ideas about what is “good” or “bad,” “right” or “wrong.” Naturally, in this case, the properties of one’s own culture are taken as a positive standard 3 . Thus, this article is an attempt to answer the question: what properties of Russian ethnic consciousness determined the nature of Russian people’s perception of certain properties of the cultures of the indigenous peoples of Western Siberia?

Another question immediately and inevitably arises: what is the meaning of the concept of “national consciousness”? Without having the opportunity to delve into the essence of a complex problem, we will agree to understand the content of this concept as the ideological core of ideas, acquired in the process of socialization by all members of an ethnic group 4, about what is correct, true, as well as the readiness to act in a certain way in accordance with these ideas 6. The elements (“norms of behavior,” “knowledge,” “concepts”) underlying the ideological core can be defined as the values ​​of ethnic consciousness, which are peculiar clots of collective experience.

Each ethnic system has a unique experience and an original hierarchy of values, which arise both depending on a specific landscape with which a unique ethno-ecological integrity is established 6 and depending on certain historical conditions within which the ethnos develops 7 . All this brings us to the need to analyze national perception from the position of taking into account the historical experience of cultural and economic activity and the ideological values ​​of interacting ethnic cultures.

Before the arrival of the Russians, Western Siberia was inhabited by representatives of the Uralic and Altai language families. The Ural family of peoples was represented by the Samoyed group (Nenets, Enets, Nganasans, Selkups) and the Ugric group (Khanty and Mansi). The Altai family was represented by a Turkic group (Altaians, Shors, Siberian Tatars). By the time the Russians appeared, most of the indigenous peoples of Western Siberia were at the stage of decomposition of the primitive patriarchal society and the formation of feudal relations 8. Progress in social relations among the South Siberian Turks was more significant than among the Ob Ugrians. This difference is apparently explained by the fact that the economy of the Turks was largely of a producing nature, while in the economy of the Ob Ugrians there were elements of an appropriating economy to a greater extent.

The economic activities of the indigenous peoples of Siberia generally did not lead to the transformation of the natural landscape into an anthropogenic one. The Ob Ugrians entered the biocenoses as the upper, final link, adapting to the natural balance, and were interested in its preservation 10. The pastoral activity of the Altai nomads led to a transformation of the landscape, insignificant in quantitative terms and significantly different from the impact on the nature of agricultural peoples 11 . Their type of farming also depended on preserving the environment.

The basis of the ideological core of the indigenous peoples of Siberia was the recognition of their “youngerness” in relation to the surrounding natural world 12 . According to their ideas, all beings of the natural sphere acted in relation to them in

as older relatives 13. This kinship meant that man did not separate himself from nature (just as a clan did not separate itself from the territory it occupied) 14. In this regard, it is noteworthy that when performing a cult they turned to lower deities, the deities of the area, much more often than to the supreme gods 18.

This proves that in the minds of the natives of Siberia, the well-being of the clan was determined by the favor of natural objects, which were personified in the image of the spirit masters of the area. Each Siberian people had a system of their own religious ideas, which were based on similar views (the exception was the Siberian Tatars, who followed the Islamic tradition). In scientific literature, the spiritual tradition of these peoples is usually called shamanistic.

The Russian ethnos was formed in the process of movement, spread and agricultural transformation of the natural landscape. In the tribal associations of the Slavs, according to V.V. Sedov, there were migrations and assimilation of other ethnic groups (Iranian, Finno-Ugric, South Baltic) 16. This is how most ethnic groups arise. However, upon completion of the process of formation of the Old Russian and then Russian ethnic community, the movement and inclusion of foreign ethnic elements into the cultural orbit did not stop, but, on the contrary, turned into an important feature of the ethnic history of Russians 17. As they advanced along the East European Plain, the Russians “flowed around” the ethnic territories of other peoples 18 .

The “spreading” of Russians across territories was possible due to the presence of a large number of reserve lands. The latter circumstance opened up for Russian people “the possibility of moving towards extensiveness” 19, characteristic of the Russian agricultural economy 20.

The settlement of free lands by Russians even on the territory of European Russia had the character of natural settlement. Russian people, predominantly farmers, were looking for fresh, untouched lands. The spaces that the settlers developed turned into agricultural areas 21. Conquest and government colonization, as a rule, went behind natural settlement 22.

The development of Siberia was a continuation of this process, in which not only representatives of the Russian ethnic group were involved, but also Ukrainians and Belarusians. Therefore, in this case, we will conditionally call Russian all representatives of the East Slavic ethnic community who migrated to Siberia from beyond the Urals during the initial period of settlement.

Among the early sources that allow us to judge the Russian perception of the indigenous peoples of Siberia, the most interesting are the Siberian chronicles of the first half of the 17th century. (Pogodinsky chronicler, Description of Siberia, Chronological story). Other archival documents - tribute, "copy" books - are less accessible to historians and ethnographers. The chronicles are interesting for us from the position that the information underlying their creation is of Siberian origin, because borrowed from the stories of the Cossacks - participants in Ermak’s campaigns. Let us note, however, that ethnographic information was not important for the creators of the chronicles. The authors gave the greatest attention to issues of faith or “law.” This is not surprising for people of an era when religion permeated all spheres of worldview. This is how the spiritual views of another people are assessed through the prism of their own religion: “Vogulichs worship soulless idols” 23 , “Bakhmetyev keeps the Tatar law” 24 , “Ostyaks and Samoyeds” “have no law” 26 , “Kalmyk tribes” “live according to false commandments” 28. In general, the author of the Chronological story “On the Victory of the Besermensky King Kuchum” sums up: “although people have a human appearance, they are similar to wild animals in their disposition and way of life, because they do not have a “appropriate” creed 27. In relation to such people, one can be morally justified conquest. Regarding this, the chronicles say: “God sent to atone for the sin of idolatry” 28, “God deigned to entrust the Siberian kingdom to Christians” 29.

At the same time, religious fanaticism was alien to Russian people. During the conquests, the Cossacks made no attempts to Christianize the region. Moreover, when bringing yet another territory into submission to the king, they forced people to swear an oath not on a cross, but on a saber 30 .

National fanaticism was alien to the Russian people: not one of the Siberian peoples who resisted was destroyed. Having exterminated that generation of nobility that opposed the conquest, the tsarist government retained for the descendants of the hanged princes their position in the uluses and did not touch the clan organization 31 .

In the early stages of settlement, marriages of Russian settlers with local women took place. Their children joined the Russian population. In places remote from large centers, where Russian families did not gain numerical dominance, marriages with local women continued at a later time 32.

The conditions in which the settlers found themselves required a special mental and physical make-up (long cold winter, early freezing of rivers and late release of ice, unusual composition of food). At the initial stages of settlement, a strict selection took place, as a result of which a special historical and cultural community emerged within the Russian ethnic group 33. In the scientific literature it is called old-timers and is known for its special type of management, different from European Russia.

The old-timer culture had a unique experience of communicating with the cultures of the indigenous peoples of Siberia, because for a long time she coexisted with them on the same territory. Information about the nature of perception by Russian Siberians of representatives of the indigenous cultures of Siberia is provided by the source of the late 18th century (1783) ""Description of the life and practices of various kinds of yasak infidels living in the Turukhansk and Berezovsky districts." This is the earliest description of the Khanty, Nenets and Yakuts of Turukhansk region. The document is a response to a questionnaire sent to all "districts" of the Tobolsk governorship by the Empress's Cabinet regarding the collection of information regarding the yasaks of Siberia. The answers were given by representatives of the lower echelon of the tsarist administration. This is what the source says: "these people are hospitable and affectionate," " they willingly accept Russians,” “they don’t do any harm,” “they are truthful,” “their appearance is human, they are just any bitch,” animals, not only hunted, but also “thrown out by the sea, rotten, they indiscriminately eat and eat raw” 34 The Russians were perplexed by the fact that local hunters were famous as excellent shooters, and at the same time they themselves often ate stale food. Amazement arose: how with such abundance (the rivers are rich in fish, the forests are rich in precious fur-bearing animals and birds, the abundance of food makes it possible to breed livestock) local residents have not learned to use it 36 ​​?

This was due to a whole range of reasons. It was natural due to the difference in worldviews that developed under the influence of cultural and economic experience, as well as due to the difference in stage of development.

The appearance of Russians in Siberia is the result of the extensive nature of their economy, for which the most favorable conditions existed here 36. Ethnic history and economic practice have equally confirmed that the essence of the ethnic uniqueness of the Russian attitude to the land lies in cultural and economic expansion associated with migrations. A manifestation of this originality in the worldview was the stereotype of a transformer, a master in relation to nature, to the earth, which was approved in religion: “And God said: Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth" 37. The Bible gave the peoples of the Christian tradition the idea of ​​man - “the king of nature, the crown of creation”: “be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it, and have dominion” 38 .

The transformative capabilities of Russians in Siberia were enhanced due to the fact that the settlers represented a layer of the most enterprising people. They brought with them new, even for Russia, capitalist relations, which received impetus for implementation in Siberia.

The experience of the economic activity of the Russian peasant within the framework of the reproduction of Russian ethnic culture proved that only transformative work guarantees the well-being of both one person and the entire team. And in the conditions of the formation of capitalist relations, the connection between labor and the possibility of enrichment is self-evident for the Russian person. Wealth created by transformative labor is one of the most important attributes of social prestige for the Russian peasant.

In the cultures of the indigenous peoples of Siberia, the value of transformative labor was not as great as in Russian culture. The guarantee of the success of economic activity, and therefore the well-being of the tribal collective, was the preservation of the existing conditions of the natural environment. The prestige of wealth (due to existing social relations) did not have the same significance in the eyes of the carriers of the cultures of the indigenous peoples of Siberia as it did for the Russian people. For them, it lies not only and not so much in wealth, but in other values: luck in the trade, the favor of ancestors, the owners of the area, on whom the prosperity of the clan depended, 39 in military valor, in the large number of offspring. Only in combination with these advantages, perhaps personal qualities, did wealth make a person respected in society 40 .

The significance of wealth in the hierarchy of values ​​of the Russian consciousness and the consciousness of the natives of Siberia was different. This can be illustrated by the following example: for a Russian person, it is self-evident that the fur trade can bring profit and contribute to enrichment. Why don't local residents take advantage of this opportunity? Instead, they cannot even pay their tribute payments on time.

The reason for this lay, in the opinion of the Russian people, in the natural laziness and inactivity of the natives of Siberia 41 .

Of course, one must be aware that the proposed scheme, like any scheme in general, is conditional and limited; in addition to the complex of ideological values ​​and the difference in stage-by-stage development, the nature of perception in the process of contacts was significantly influenced by the class affiliation of the Russian person. For example, a missionary, an official of the tsarist administration and a peasant treated representatives of the ethnic cultures of Siberia differently: for the missionary they are pagans who need to be converted to the true faith; for an official - foreigners, payers of yasak to the state treasury; for the peasant - neighbors, relations with whom depended on the success of joint economic activity (for example, joint participation in fishing or on the degree of benefit in the process of trade exchange).

It should also be noted that Russian ethnic consciousness differentiatedly assessed the properties of the indigenous cultures of Siberia. The attitude of Russian people towards the indigenous peoples of Siberia was not the same in each specific case. In the perception of Russians, one ethnic group was different from another. The difference was due to the nature of the historical relationship of the Russian population with each group of the aboriginal population. So, for example, the attitude towards the Turks of Altai was more cautious than towards other peoples of Siberia, due to the fact that until the 18th century. There was an unstable situation in this region: periods of peaceful, good-neighborly contacts were alternated with breaks and military clashes 42 .

The closest and most neighborly contacts developed between Russians and Siberian Tatars, who were highly valued for their hard work. Under the influence of the Russians, the Tatar population began to engage in agriculture according to the Russian model, 43 although agriculture was known to them before the arrival of the Russians, and switched to a sedentary lifestyle with livestock kept in stalls 44. The Tatars have retained their ethnic specificity, because in spiritual culture they were adherents of the Muslim tradition. The Koran, like the Bible, gives a worldview for the transformation of the surrounding nature. The Koran says that God blessed the human race by making the earth "a carpet and the sky a building" 46 . The closeness of worldviews is apparently also explained by stage proximity. Before the advent of the Russians, the Tatars had their own statehood and developed feudal relations. The Tatar population quickly became involved in the capitalist relations that the Russians brought. For them, as well as for the Russians, wealth was one of the most important attributes of prestige. All these bringing together moments facilitated mutual understanding in Russian-Tatar contacts.

In general, the Russians were friendly towards the natives of Siberia. Cooperation was carried out both at the group and individual levels 46. The most fruitful interaction existed in the field of economic relations: this included trade, and joint ownership or rental of means of production, tools, and land from each other 47 . The Russians passed on farming skills to the natives of Siberia, and they, in turn, shared their experience in fishing activities. Russians, especially in remote areas, borrowed elements of national clothing and methods of preparing traditional cuisine 48 .

Mutual borrowings largely affected material culture. If we talk about the spiritual tradition, here the exchange was carried out mainly at the level of pagan ideas and images, which were actualized among the Russian population due to the weakening of church control 49 .

Russians respected some of the customs of the indigenous peoples of Siberia, such as mutual aid and collective care for the sick and poor. “In the Berezovsky district, unbaptized Ostyaks and self-eating idolaters are virtuous and provide for those who have fallen into poverty” 60. Similar traditions existed within the Russian clan collective (community). Respect for parents and veneration of ancestors in the cultures of the indigenous peoples of Western Siberia were noted in the consciousness of the Russian people. As for any traditional culture, for Russian folk culture the authority of elders and the intrinsic value of the past were the foundations of existence.

However, in general, the Russian consciousness assessed the natives of Siberia as “wild” people 51. This was manifested, in the opinion of the Russian people, in the unusual manner of dressing, in the way of life (“they don’t have decent housekeeping and cleanliness in the houses”) 52, in the custom of eating raw food 63, in the ease of divorce and the possibility of having several wives in some aboriginal cultures of Western Siberia 54. All this, in the perception of the Russians, looked at least “frivolous” 65. It can be said that the religious ideas of the local population were assessed as “frivolous”, because they did not contain, in the opinion of the Russian people, the concept of “man’s duty before the Creator” 56.

The attitude of the Russian population towards representatives of the indigenous peoples of Siberia can be described as lenient. Those manifestations of culture that the Russians found unusual, they explained (and not without reason) by the harsh conditions of the surrounding nature, which left an imprint of “savagery” on the way of life of their neighbors 67 .

This nature of perception is explained by the fact that the Russian consciousness, through the prism of the transformative properties of its own culture, assessed its neighbors, the transformative properties of whose cultures, in comparison with the Russian one, were relatively low. The cultures of the peoples of Western Siberia, following the shamanistic tradition, were focused on maintaining the existing balance with nature. This multidirectionality allows us to draw a conclusion about the extrovertive nature of Russian culture and the introvertive nature of the cultures of the indigenous peoples of Siberia. The value orientations of Russian culture and the cultures of the aborigines of Western Siberia were reflected in worldviews sanctioned by religion. The Bible endowed the Russians (like the Koran - the Tatars) with the stereotype of the Master in relation to surrounding natural objects. For the natives of Siberia, following the shamanistic tradition, the surrounding nature is a valuable thing in itself: its Masters are not people, but the spirits of the area, which is confirmed in mythology 68 . Cultural diversity was complicated by the difference in stage development, which further enhanced the transformative capabilities of Russian culture in Siberia, in comparison with aboriginal cultures.

Notes

1. We have seen increased interest in recent years: Drobizheva L.M. On the study of socio-psychological aspects of national relations (some questions of methodology) // SE - 1974. - N 4; Chesnov Ya.V. Ethnic image // Ethno-sign functions of culture. - M., 1991; Kurilov V.N., Lyutsidarskaya A.A. On the question of the historical psychology of interethnic contacts in Siberia in the 17th century. // Ethnic cultures of Siberia. Problems of evolution and contacts. - Novosibirsk, 1986; Lyutsidarskaya A.A. Russian old-timers of Siberia: historical and ethnographic essays of the 17th - early 18th centuries. - Novosibirsk, 1992.

2. Interethnic relations and national politics in the USSR // All-Union. scientific conf. "National and socio-cultural processes in the USSR": Abstract. report - Omsk, 1990.

3. Bromley Yu.V. Essays on the theory of ethnicity. - M., 1983. - P. 182 -183; Kon I.S. National character - myth or reality? // Foreign literature. -1968. - N 9. - P. 218; Porshnev B.F. Social psychology and history. - M., 196(8. - P. 81 - 82.

4. Ivanov V.V. The role of semiotics in the cybernetic study of man and the collective // ​​Logical structure of scientific knowledge. - M., 1965.

5. Bromley Yu.V. Decree. op. - P. 170 -171.

6. Gumilev L.N., Ivanov K.P., Chistobaev A.I. Theory of ethnogenesis and geography of population // Ecology, population - resettlement: theory and politics. - M., 1989. - P. 4.

7. Con I.S. Decree. op. - pp. 218 - 219.

8. Boyarshinova Z.Ya. Population of the West Siberian Plain before the beginning of Russian colonization. - Tomsk, 1960. - P. 37 - 59,113.

9. Cheboksarov N.N., Cheboksarova I.A. Peoples. Races. Cultures. - M., 1985.-S. 191.

10. Gumilev L.N. Ethnogenesis and biosphere of the Earth. - L., 1989. - P. 192.

11. Ibid.

12. Traditional worldview of the Turks of Southern Siberia. Sign and ritual. - Novosibirsk, 1990. - P. 187.

13. Ibid. - P. 50.

14. Ibid. - P. 18.

15. Gemuev I.N., Sagalaev A.M. Mansi sanctuaries as a phenomenon of cultural tradition // Ethnic cultures of Siberia. Problems of evolution and contacts... - P. 132.

16. Sedov V.V. Origin and early history of the Slavs. - M., 1979. -S. 142.

17. Ethnography Eastern Slavs. - M., 1987. - P. 44.

18. Ibid. - P. 57.

19. Berdyaev N.A. The fate of Russia. - M., 1990. - P. 59 - 65.

20. Savitsky P.N. Steppe and Settlement // Russia between Europe and Asia: the Eurasian temptation. - M., 1993. - P. 126 -127.

21. Ibid.-S. 126.

22. Pypin A.N. Russia and Europe // Metamorphoses of Europe. - M., 1993. -S. 120-121.

23. Pogodinsky chronicler // Siberian Chronicles. - Novosibirsk, 1991.

24. Rumyantsevsky chronicler // Siberian Chronicles. - Novosibirsk, 1991.

25. Rumyantsevsky chronicler... - P. 11.

26. Chronographic story // Siberian Chronicles. - Novosibirsk, 1991.-S. 51.

27. Chronographic story... - P. 44 - 45.

28. Pogodinsky chronicler... - P. 69.

29. Chronographic story... - P. 43.

30. Skrynnikov R.G. Siberian expedition of Ermak. - Novosibirsk, 1982. - P. 245.

31. Bakhrushin S.V. Historical destinies of Yakutia // Scientific works. - M.,

1955.-T. 3.-Ch. 2.-S. 37. 32. Russians old-timers of Siberia. Historical and anthropological essay. - M., 1973. - P. 123.

33. Ibid. - P. 165 -166.

34. Andreev A.I. Descriptions of the life and exercises of various kinds of tribute-paying non-believers living in the Turu-Khan and Berezovsky districts // SE. - 1947. - N1. - P. 100.

35. Butsinsky P.N. Baptism of Ostyaks and Voguls under Peter the Great. -Kharkov, 1893. - P. 12.

36. Ethnography Russian peasantry in Siberia XVII - mid. XIX century - M "1981.-P. 203.

37. Bible. Book One of Moses, Genesis. - Ch. 1. - Verse 26.

38. Ibid. - Verse 28.

39. Gemuev I.N., Sagalaev A.M. Decree. op. - P. 130 -131.

40. Traditional worldview of the Turks of Southern Siberia: Man. Society. - Novosibirsk, 1989. - P. 207 - 208.

41. Butsinsky P.N. Decree. op. - P. 12.

42. Umansky A.P. Teleuts and Russians in the 17th - 18th centuries. - Novosibirsk 1980. - S. 24 - 31.

43. Satlykova R.K. Cultural and everyday interactions of the population of the Middle Ob region // Ethnocultural processes in Western Siberia - Tomsk 1982. - P. 169.

44. Emelyanov N.F. Tatars of the Tomsk Territory in the feudal era // Ethnocultural history of the population of Western Siberia. - Tomsk, 1978. - P. 80.

45. Koran. Sura 2. - Verse 20.

46. ​​Lyutsidarskaya A.A. Russian old-timers of Siberia... - P. 61.

47. Ibid. - P. 53 - 84.

48. See collections: Social life and culture of the Russian population of Siberia. - Novosibirsk, 1983; Cultural and everyday life processes among the Russians of Siberia in the 18th - early 19th centuries. - Novosibirsk, 1985; Ornament peoples of Western Siberia. - Tomsk, 1992; Populated points of Siberia: experience of historical development (XVII - early XX centuries). - Novosibirsk 1992.

49. Sagalaev A.M. On the patterns of perception of world religions by the Turks of Sayan-Altai // Genesis and evolution of ethnic cultures of Siberia. - Novosibirsk, 1986. - P. 167 -168.

50. Description Tobolsk governorship. - Novosibirsk, 1982. - From 30

51. Ibid. - P. 33.

52. Ibid. - P. 33.

53. Andreev A.I. Decree. op. - P. 93.

54. Ibid. - P. 97.

55. Description Tobolsk governorship... - P. 29,160, 206.

56. Ibid. - P. 168.

57. Andreev A.I. Decree. op. - P. 94.

58. Traditional worldview of the Turks of Southern Siberia: Space and time. Real world. - Novosibirsk, 1988. - P. 41, 86 - 98.

In modern conditions, traditional folk culture is disappearing. This fact has led to increased interest in its study. In recent decades, creative and scientific unions have been created that study various aspects of people's life. Folklore ensembles and folk choirs reproduce stage versions of rituals, songs, dances and other types of folk art. Replenishment with new information about rites, rituals, songs, dances will significantly enrich knowledge about Russian folk culture. Ritual traditions in folk culture constitute the most important layer of spiritual culture. This is the relevance of studying the ritual traditions of the Russian population.

In my research I will try to learn about the original calendar holidays and family rituals of the Russian population, the features of their implementation, origin and existence. There are few publications about the ritual traditions of the Siberian people, but I would like to learn about them first-hand, because soon this will be impossible, because there are very few people left who could talk about them.

Purpose of the work: to study the peculiarities of the emergence and formation of variants of the local ritual tradition of the Russian population of Siberia at the end of the 19th - 20th centuries. To achieve this goal, it is necessary to solve the following tasks:

Study the history of the emergence of Russian villages;

Identify ethnic and ethnographic groups and trace ethnic processes that contributed to the formation of Russian ritual traditions; reconstruct ceremonies, rituals, customs, calendar holidays at the end of the 19th - 20th centuries;

Reconstruct the stages and rituals of maternity-baptismal, wedding and funeral-memorial rites that existed among old-timers and settlers at the end of the 19th - 20th centuries; identify the features of the fusion (transformation, integration) of different ethnographic cultures in local variants of the ritual tradition; identify the features of the local song tradition.

Object of study. - Russian old-timers and new settlers of the late XIX - XX centuries, and their established ritual traditions.

The subject of the study is calendar holidays, family rituals, customs, and rituals that have developed over three centuries on the basis of various historical processes. The chronological framework is provided and determined by sources (field materials, archival data, statistical reports, articles) that characterize this time period - the end of the 19th - 20th centuries. By the end of the 19th century. The process of formation of the Russian population in Siberia is being completed. The Russian population consists of old-timers and new settlers. The settlers founded many new villages and towns. The process of forming a local ritual tradition began. The process of destruction of folk traditions occurs in the 20th century in connection with social and historical changes associated with collectivization. The active destruction of traditional foundations is taking place due to the consolidation of villages in the 60-70s of the 20th century and the destruction of small villages. Territorial framework.

Let us consider the historiography of Russian ritual traditions. Let us highlight pre-revolutionary studies of recordings by folklorists and modern studies.

Ritual in traditional culture is a form of symbolic action. It involves the attitude of a group of people towards sacred objects, which are expressed through gestures, movements, etc. It serves to consolidate tradition and reproduce archaic cult structures.

A custom is a form of behavior associated with the practical activities of a person, or an established rule of behavior in a given ethnic community.

At the stage of collecting material, we widely used methods developed by field ethnography, folklore, ethnomusicology, and took notes based on questionnaires and conversations with informants.

Calendar and ritual traditions of Russian Siberians.

In the traditional culture of any people, scientists distinguish two groups of phenomena. Material culture is presented in a material, objective form - these are tools, settlements, homes, clothing and jewelry, food, household utensils. You can get an idea about it from museum collections of things, preserved buildings, drawings and photographs - Spiritual culture is folk knowledge, religion, folk art and ideas about the world developed by the ethnic group; the attitude of people to nature and to each other arising from these ideas. Spiritual culture is manifested most fully in oral and written statements, in everyday and festive behavior. We found this out by looking at the records and descriptions compiled by ethnographers, folklorists and travelers in the second half of the last - the beginning of this century. It was at this time that the most descriptions of the culture of the Siberians were made, and they were more detailed than the sources of the previous time. But the spiritual culture of the people is very stable; it changes slowly. Therefore, later descriptions paint a picture similar to that observed during the 18th - 19th centuries. For a long time, the lives of fathers and grandfathers, their morals and customs were perceived by peasants as an indisputable role model. The folk calendar by which they lived played a major role in the everyday life of Siberians; I would like to dwell on it in more detail.

Siberian folk calendar.

The folk calendar refers to the ideas about time accepted in traditional society, the methods of calculating and organizing it. The Russian folk calendar - the month calendar - originated in ancient times among pagan farmers, then was subordinated to the Christian chronology, and in the 18th - 19th centuries. absorbed some elements from the official state calendar.

In such a unique region as Siberia, the folk calendar had its own characteristics and determined stable forms of people’s behavior associated with different moments in time. Calendar customs and rituals of Russian Siberians were studied in the 19th century. teacher F.K. Zobnin, official P.A. Gorodtsov, agronomist N.L. Skalozubov (all three in the Tobolsk province), as well as a native of the Irkutsk province G.S. Vinogradov, who later became a famous ethnographer in his homeland.

But the most detailed and in-depth study was left by Aleksey Alekseevich Makarenko (i860 - 1942). As an exiled populist, Makarenko lived for 13 years among the peasants of the Yenisei province, where he conducted daily observations, and then, having already become a researcher, came to Siberia again and again to replenish and clarify the collected materials. Makarenko’s book “The Siberian Folk Calendar” was published in 1913 and received three high scientific awards.

The folk calendar had an agricultural basis. The whole year for the peasants was divided into periods of performing certain agricultural work; the beginning and end of the work were timed not to months or dates (the peasants had a vague idea about them), but to the milestones of the church calendar - the calendar. In Orthodox calendars, every day of the year is marked by a church holiday, the memory of some event or saint. Saints were constantly used in the parish church (during services); they were also available in the homes of literate villagers. It was convenient to use church dates as a kind of “knots for memory.”

When should the first sowing of spring grains begin? On the day of remembrance of the prophet Jeremiah (in Russian Eremey). This day, May 14, in the Siberian calendar is called “Eremey - the harnesser”. A. A. Makarenko says: “On the arable land, the sower will first harness the horse to the harrow, place the horse “harrow driver” (the boy who will control the horses) on the “front line”, put “seme” in the basket hanging on his shoulder strap and, Before throwing the first handful into the “arable soil”, be sure to pray “to the eastern side.” This day was accompanied by a ceremonial family dinner and tea drinking, and joint prayer.

When can you plow the garden and start transplanting cucumber seedlings into the beds? On the day of the holy martyr Isidore (Sidora-Borage - May 27). By what date must all field work be completed? For the Feast of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary (October 14). At this time, settlements were made with shepherds and with hired workers in villages and gold mines. For hunters, Pokrov is its own milestone: the bear hunt stops (he has gone to his den), it’s time to go hunting for squirrel and sable. Girls of marriageable age are waiting for matchmakers: “Father Pokrov, cover the ground with snow.” Even in our time, people try to adhere to these traditions, but, of course, many points are lost.

The folk calendar contains many days with symbolic names and meanings. Aksinya - half-winter day - the day when winter turns to warmth, which is important to know when consuming feed for livestock. Yegor spring - the time to hire shepherds, release livestock into the field, begin navigation, predict the herb harvest. Ilyin's day is the best time for finishing haymaking, in some places - the beginning of sowing winter rye; you can try the first cucumbers from the garden, etc.

In the same way, in the consciousness and behavior of the peasants, non-productive activities, essentially all local events, are tied to time. A. A. Makarenko identified groups of days associated with traditional medicine and veterinary medicine, with fortune telling and dressing up, with special women's concerns, with brewing homemade beer, with religious processions and others. As many as 32 days are “youth days”. Young people told fortunes on Epiphany and Semik, on the days of Saints Agrafena, Andrew, Vasily and Philip. They gathered for parties - with handicrafts or “toys” - on the New Year, on Holy and Passion Evenings, on the Day of the Virgin Mary, the Presentation, the Exaltation, the Dormition, the Intercession, the Middle Savior, on the day of memory of Innocent of Irkutsk, etc.

The folk calendar contains a huge number of signs, proverbs, and local oral traditions dedicated to calendar events and dates. Here are just a small part of the spring signs recorded in Eastern Siberia: “If the water in the well comes early (before Yegoryev’s day, May 6) - summer will be good,” “Egory with water - Mikola (St. Nicholas Day, May 22) with grass ", "If on Evdokia (March 14) a chicken drinks water, it means a warm spring." However, understanding the deceptiveness of the Siberian weather, they skeptically remarked about Evdokia’s day: “Dunka, Dunka, look at Alyoshka, what will it give (Alekseev’s day, March 30).”

The folk calendar was oral. Another feature of it is that when the peasants named a date, they did not always mean a certain day. If an event was said to have occurred “on St. Michael's Day,” this meant that it took place some time before and after November 8th. These words can be interpreted to mean that the incident happened during the transition period between autumn and winter, when rivers froze, peasants slaughtered livestock for meat, etc.

Community and family holidays.

Together with all Russian people, Siberian peasants honored church holidays. According to the degree of solemnity and types of worship, Orthodox holidays are divided into great and small. Great holidays are associated with the glorification of Jesus

Christ and his mother the Virgin Mary, his predecessor on Earth

John the Baptist, disciples Peter and Paul. One of the days is dedicated to the veneration of the Trinity of the three hypostases of God. Divine services dedicated to great holidays are held with special solemnity.

Easter was considered “a holiday of holidays, a triumph of celebrations” - the time of commemoration of the “miraculous resurrection” of Jesus Christ. Christian Easter, which lasted a week, retained the pagan signs of a multi-day spring festival of worship of the spirits of vegetation. On Christ's Day - the first day of Easter week - during the morning church service, the peasants gave the priest colored chicken eggs - an ancient symbol of rebirth. They exchanged them with each other.

Great church holidays, along with weekly Sundays and state secular holidays (New Year, memorable dates of the reigning family), were non-working days in Russia. The Church prescribed on holidays to “leave your worldly affairs and serve only God.” For this purpose, Orthodox Christians were obliged to come to church for public prayer, teaching the faith and good deeds, and upon leaving the church to engage in home prayer, caring for the sick, and consoling the mourning. The peasants agreed that holidays should be non-working, but they did not spend them as piously as required, and often indulged in various amusements.

The category of small holidays includes days of glorification of Christian saints. However, Siberians revered some saints on a par with God; their days of remembrance were also considered “big”, “terrible” holidays, when “to repent of sin”; This is Ilyin's day, St. Nicholas's day, Michael's day. Most church minor holidays in the popular calendar were considered either “semi-holidays” or working days. Semi-holidays were called such days, part of which was spent in hard work, and the other in rest or “light” work. Other days were celebrated only by professional groups - fishermen, shepherds.

The scale of celebration differed between national and local holidays. Local - temple, patronal, convention holidays - these are days of veneration of those holy events of biblical history, in honor of which the local church was once illuminated. On patronal days (holidays lasted up to a week), many guests from other places came to the corresponding village - relatives, in-laws, acquaintances. It was a good reason for meetings and communication. Young people had a great opportunity to look for a bride or groom.

On holidays, groups of guests went from house to house and enjoyed a great meal. “The whole world” also drank beer, prepared the day before from flour collected little by little from all the families living in the village. A variety of entertainment was held on the streets - outdoor games, races, wrestling matches. The opening of a fair in the village could be timed to coincide with such days. All this would be good, but the event that served as the reason for the celebration was often forgotten. Siberian priests complained that the festivities at local holidays (and at others too) sometimes took on obscene forms, accompanied by quarrels and fights between drunken villagers.

Among the holidays and rituals, a wedding stands out with its beauty, complexity of composition and significance for the destinies of the family.

The Russian wedding ceremony developed as a multi-day, extensive dramatic event with many participants and rituals. It included enormous creative wealth - songs, laments, sentences, sayings, charms, games and dances, organized in several cycles. Nowadays, scientists have published a series of books that provide a detailed description of the elements of a Russian Siberian wedding and contain the texts of wedding songs. But in every corner of Siberia, different groups of the population had their own weddings. Among the poor, for example, the following custom spread: the bride’s “runaway” to the groom from her parents’ house took place almost in earnest, and the wedding feast was then reduced to a minimum.

Christenings also belong to the group of family holidays. The child was baptized in church a few days after birth. In large parishes it happened - and after weeks, months, they usually named the baby after the saint whose day of veneration fell in the near future. Siberians had favorite names, for example - Innocent. This name in Russia was considered “Siberian”. Sometimes the peasants asked the priest to give the baby the name of one of their relatives, most often a grandfather or grandmother: “The family name will be preserved, and the child will live a long time.” People then celebrated the day of remembrance of the patron saint throughout their lives. This was called “celebrating a name day,” and few people remembered their birthday.

After the church baptismal ceremony, it was time for the family feast. Just like at a wedding, guests were invited to the parents' house. The honorary characters at the christening were the godparents and the midwife - an elderly woman who delivered the child during childbirth. The midwife served her treat (grandmother's porridge) to the guests, and they were rewarded with silver coins. A little silver was supposed to be placed under the mother’s pillow - “for the teeth” of the newborn.

Community and family holidays brightened life and promoted mutual understanding and mutual assistance among people. A. A. Makarenko calculated that in the annual calendar of the old-timer peasants of the Yenisei province at the turn of the 19th - 20th centuries. there were 86 “the most typical, permanent, common holidays.” In fact, taking into account local holidays, semi-holidays, wedding parties, matchmaking and other things, there were much more non-working days - up to the third calendar year.

It would seem like too much, when to work? However, this is one of the features of the Russian peasant calendar - it does not have a uniform alternation of working time and rest. During the busy season of field work, Siberians “worked” both on Sundays and on major holidays. To avoid God's wrath, they resorted to a trick. It was believed that you cannot work for yourself, but you can if you are invited to “help” or get hired: the sin will fall on the head of the household where you work. Each working day in the summer lasted 16–18 hours. “There is a reason to “break the lower back”, the body and soul demand a holiday rest and the desire to “take a walk” appears,” A. A. Makarenko noted sympathetically.

". Once on Epiphany evening,” these were the words that began the gatherings on Christmas Eve, January 18, in the premises of the Krasnoyarsk secondary school.

The old hut was run by Tatyana Mozzherina, who played the role of grandmother, and Dasha Dyakova, who played the role of granddaughter. Dasha put up a mirror, lit a candle and began saying: “Betrothed, dressed up, come to me dressed up.”

After the fortune-telling, the mummers dropped in: a kikimora (Vika Poznanskaya), a snowman (Vika Ovezova). They sang carols, danced, asked riddles, and played candy wrappers with the audience. Everyone was interested and having fun.

Then the mummers, grandmother and granddaughter invited all the guests to the table, drank tea with sweets, delicious pies, and gingerbread. We wished everyone good health and happiness in the new year (see Appendix 1 and Appendix 2)

Scientists call the entire folk culture of a traditional society, but more often the elements of its spiritual culture, folklore, from the English words folk (people) and lore (knowledge, spiritual possibilities). There is also a narrower meaning of the word folklore in science - folk artistic creativity or even just oral poetic creativity, folk poetry. In any case, folklore reflects the way of thoughts and ideas, feelings and hopes of an ethnic group, especially its peasant part, and has knowledge of the “voice of the people.”

Studying the culture of the Siberian population, some scientists of the 19th century. (A.P. Shchapov, S.V. Maksimov and others) argued that Russian settlers “did not bring the lamp of art to Siberia, that the Siberians are “songless” and this is a consequence of their weak spirituality. They, they say, are too busy fighting for their material well-being; they are negatively affected by the separation from “indigenous” Russia and the influence of Asian peoples. Other, no less authoritative scientists (S. I. Gulyaev, A. A. Makarenko, V. S. Arefiev), on the contrary, wrote about the poetic talent of Siberians, about Siberia as a region where cultural values, often already lost elsewhere, are carefully preserved side of the Urals.

Probably, here, as in many other issues of social and cultural life, it is impossible to give unambiguous characteristics and assessments. Siberia is large and diverse, and Siberian folk culture is so diverse that it is difficult to fit it into one scheme. Folklore researcher M. N. Melnikov, thinking about how to characterize the “chaotic mosaic” of Siberian folklore, identified 15 types of settlements of the Eastern Slavs in Siberia and the Far East. They differed in the 18th - 19th centuries. on the basis of the unity of folklore traditions. The folklore of the serving Cossacks, Old Believer hermitages (secluded settlements), suburban areas, old-timers and settlers representing different peoples and localities of European Russia is unique. The all-Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian basis of the folk culture of the Siberians was replenished and modified under the influence of local conditions. Let's look at an artistic example:

This story (a fragment is presented here) was recorded and then prepared for publication by folklorist A. A. Misyurev. The narrator is E. P. Nikolaeva, a resident of the village of Vengerovo, Novosibirsk region. Her narrative is a striking phenomenon of folklore, as evidenced by the following features: undoubted artistic merit, aesthetic value; oral character; inclusion in the fabric of everyday life: the story was probably heard more than once in family conversations, while working together; variability: in another time and to another person the same thing would have been told differently; intended for different purposes. Such stories brightened up leisure time, allowed people to get to know each other better and get closer in spirit, consolidated a general assessment of various life phenomena, were used for pedagogical purposes, etc.

One feature of the text in this case does not seem to be characteristic of folklore: the story has a specific author. Folklore is usually considered a product of the collective creativity of the people. However, in its origin, much of the folklore wealth is the fruit of individual creativity, partly even the result of processing works of professional culture. Thus, the Siberians had extremely popular songs, complex with verses by famous poets. The collective creativity of the people consisted in the processing of cultural heritage, its inclusion in their lives and in the world of their ideas.

There are other interesting features in E.P. Nikolaeva’s narrative. Being an integral work, it at the same time contains the tunes and words of folk songs - independent phenomena of folklore. The story reflects the peculiarities of the language of the area where the recording was made. The words srodnaya (cousin), ryam (swamp forest), zaplot (fence) are Northern Russian or Siberian. It was the Siberians who pronounced well instead of yes, aches and recognised, instead of breaks or recognizes. What is important for a historian is that such a story, like all folklore works, is an irreplaceable source of knowledge about the culture and life of Siberians, the peculiarities of their psychology in the “old” time. In this case, it does not matter much that we are analyzing a folklore work of a later time (1940s). it, firstly, reflects the situation at the end of the 19th – beginning of the 20th centuries. , secondly, it was built according to all the centuries-old laws of traditional folk art.

Ethnographers and folklorists identify and study several sections of folk poetry of Russian Siberians: folklore (fairy tales and non-fairy tale prose - stories, legends, mythological stories, etc.); song and poetic folklore; poetry of dramatic performances; folklore of direct communication situations (proverbs, riddles, rumors, fair cries, jokes). Poetry permeated and organized around itself all aspects of the life of peasants - economic activity, knowledge of the environment and the establishment of mutual understanding.

Let us give examples of the existence of folklore in connection with the upbringing and education of children. Here, oral folk art played three interrelated roles. Firstly, folklore determined the goals and program, and consolidated the methods of pedagogical efforts of the family and society. This was sometimes done directly, in the form of proverbs and instructions: “Teach the child while he is lying across the bench, but once he lies down, you certainly won’t teach him,” “Father and mother love the child, but do not show (do not demonstrate love, do not indulge the children’s weaknesses)"; more often - in an allegorical form, when certain qualities and actions of people were evaluated in legends, fairy tales, and jokes.

Secondly, folklore was an effective means of upbringing and education. Mother's lullabies, nurseries, nursery rhymes, and father's jokes were specially created by the people for this purpose. Riddles develop associative thinking well, tongue twisters correct speech defects. Thirdly, folklore was an important subject of inheritance, part of that age-old wisdom, which was precisely passed on to the new generation during education and upbringing. Having heard many times in childhood, a person remembered and tried to fulfill these parental skills for the rest of his life: “Without work, there is no salvation (the soul will not find eternal life)”, “If you walk a lot in your youth, you will die of hunger in old age”, “Seek goodness not in village, but in yourself.”

3. Formation of family and everyday traditions in Siberia

3-1 General characteristics of the family and everyday traditions of the people of Siberia

In the conditions of Siberia, the family played an important role in choosing the optimal ways to maintain and preserve both work and family traditions, and in monitoring their preservation and observance. In Siberian villages, the mechanism of formation, preservation and transmission of work and family traditions, determined by social and living conditions, was widespread. Representatives of the older generation passed on traditions and experience of working and spiritual life, the origins of which came from the centuries-old life of Russian peasants. According to researchers of Siberian ethnography and folklore, the goal of preserving such traditions is to identify those who have most successfully mastered folk wisdom, teach certain work techniques, and preserve family and everyday traditions.

In particular, the most prominent folklorist V.I. Chicherov noted: “Meanwhile, agricultural and family rituals and customs were far from uniform. Some of them are truly inextricably linked with religion, with beliefs, and were performed with deep conviction in the magical power of spoken words and performed actions. Others did not have a religious orientation, were not associated with the magic of words and actions, and, therefore, were part of the everyday way of life and only indirectly reflected folk beliefs: attaching such rituals to the days of religious holidays, as a rule, did not make their essence religious.” Consequently, V.I. Chicherov believes that the source of family and everyday traditions was the labor and social activities of the peasant. The truth of this statement is clearly demonstrated by the combination of collective work and festive fun that is characteristic of Siberia. The most typical examples in this regard are such types of collective work as “help”, “cabbages”, “tangles”.

As an analysis of literary sources shows, collective work is of the same type in its purpose and nature; they differ only in type of activity. So, “help” is the joint work of people who were invited by the owner to complete some economic stage, for example, harvesting, haymaking, harvesting vegetables, building a house, preparing wool or linen yarn, etc. According to S.I. Gulyaev, “ "help" is any work done not for hire, but by acquaintances invited by the owner for only one treat: in the evening - dinner and wine, and in conclusion - dancing.

An organic combination of festive fun with the collective performance of a certain type of work activity was present in some traditions associated with autumn and winter types of work. These are, first of all, “cabbages”, when young people gathered in one house to help the housewife prepare sauerkraut for the winter. This custom is widespread in Siberia. “Cooking cabbage as the final field and garden work,” writes N. Kostrov, “is associated with pleasure among young people: rural parties, called evenings in Siberia, village balls, begin with cabbages. "

This type of pomochi was developed in those places of Siberia where they were engaged in cattle breeding. What’s interesting from the point of view of S.I. Gulyaev is that women and girls were invited to work at the “super competitions,” but men could also be present. In the fall, when the raw materials for yarn were ready - wool, flax or hemp, the housewife sent it with someone in small portions to women and girls she knew. Usually, marriages were started by women whose families did not have enough female hands for yarn. Between the dispatch of raw materials and the appointment of the day of the order, the period required for preparing yarn and thread passed. The hostess notified about the appointment of the “super-superior” the day before or in the morning; in the evening, all the “super-suppliers” in their best outfits appeared with ready-made yarn and threads, and a treat was arranged with singing and dancing.

It should be noted that collective agricultural work occupied a significant place in the mechanism of formation, transmission and preservation of labor traditions. In the course of these works, not only family and everyday traditions were consolidated and passed on, but also the song, dance, and music that accompanied them.

This feature of the everyday life of a Siberian person is very important in the work of a choreographer on a choreographic work that has a folklore basis.

A study of literary sources and an analysis of field observations allow us to assert: “help”, “cabbages”, “super-tangles” among Siberians were accompanied by dances and games. However, in publications on this issue there is no complete information about what kind of dances were performed and what kind of round dances were held. The answers to these very important questions for a choreographer are provided by the results of field research in the Kemerovo region and Krasnoyarsk region. Thus, it was found that after collective work, during festive treats, “evening” game and circular round dances, re-dances, and dances with a small number of performers were performed.

Consequently, an important feature of Siberian collective works (“supryadok”, “pomoche”, “kapustok”) was the organic inclusion of dances, songs, and music in their composition. And only after the end of the harvest, the evenings acquired the character of genuine celebrations, representing one of the favorite forms of family leisure.

In Siberia, collective work was carried out until the beginning of this century, and only in connection with changes in the economic life of Siberian peasants did the nature of entertainment after such agricultural work change.

Thus, the formation of family and everyday traditions in Siberia, their consolidation and transmission in new conditions were based on traditions brought by settlers from European Russia, where they were already firmly rooted by the time they moved to Siberia. These traditions were perceived by the peasant settlers as an indispensable part of their daily life and organically entered into home rituals and other areas of people’s spiritual life. The expediency of each type of tradition, worked out over centuries, was determined by the needs of work, leisure, and family relationships in relation to new social, geographical and climatic conditions.

3. 2 Wedding ceremony

Convincing evidence of the strength and significance of the formation, preservation and consolidation of family and everyday traditions, the structure of their implementation is another family ritual - a wedding as the most complex, meaningful and sustainable of all family and everyday holidays.

The literature on folk weddings is vast and varied. Based on the analysis of literary sources, researchers reveal the individual components of the traditional Siberian wedding ceremony and consider the connection between the Siberian wedding and the all-Russian one. Separate studies are devoted to specific issues related to the role of the main characters of a Siberian wedding in the ritual, descriptions of small local wedding signs and customs. And in some works, the wedding ceremony is considered from the perspective of artistic and expressive means, that is, wedding poetry.

The materials at our disposal show that the Russian Siberian wedding ceremony consisted of the following main sections: matchmaking, or hand-holding; bachelorette party and evening; bath; braiding; wedding train, redemption of braids; departure to the crown; party at the groom's house.

As elsewhere, in Siberia young people met and got to know each other at parties. Young people, getting ready for a party, dressed up. The costume of unmarried youth had specific differences. So, girls walked with their heads uncovered, and if they wore a scarf, they tied it differently than women: the scarf was folded from corner to corner, and then rolled up with a ribbon, the top of the head was left open.

Parents strictly controlled the behavior of young people, especially girls. Young people never went to each other’s houses and were not left alone before matchmaking. In especially strict Kerzhak families, girls were not allowed out even for the evening.

Usually weddings were played in the winter, in meat-eater. They got married early - from 17 to 19 years old. The wedding ceremony began with the arrival of the matchmakers. For matchmaking, they chose light days of the week - Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, avoiding fast days - Monday, Wednesday and Friday. 5_6 people - the groom's parents, matchmaker or other relatives came in the evening. Usually the time the matchmakers set out on the route they were traveling on was kept secret. In order to be unnoticed, they drove out “through the backyards” (the backyard and vegetable gardens) and did not drive straight, but took detours. Matchmakers were rarely asked where they were going, and they would not answer. The matchmakers dressed up in festive clothes and decorated the horses with good harness. The matchmaker, having arrived at the bride's house, jumped off the cart and ran to the hut so that the bride's parents would just as quickly bow to her matchmaking. Sometimes the matchmakers directly spoke about the purpose of their coming: “We didn’t come to trample the floor, (not to scratch our tongues), we came to do business - to look for a bride,” “We didn’t come to visit, but to raise a feast.” But more often the matchmakers used allegorical formulas like: “You have a product - we have a merchant”, “you have a chicken - we have a rooster, is it possible to drive them into one barn”, etc., the bride’s parents asked the matchmakers to sit down, thanked them for the honor : “God will save you that they didn’t throw us out of the people,” and they treated them to tea or wine. The matchmakers praised the groom and tried to find out more about the bride. If the groom was not known, then the matchmakers were asked to come again to ask about him. It was considered indecent to give away your daughter right away - (“they grew up for more than one day to give it away at once”, “to get married is not to put on a bast shoe”, “to give a daughter in marriage is not to bake a cake”). If the bride’s parents did not want to give their daughter to the proposed groom, then, trying not to offend the matchmakers, they made excuses by the bride’s youth or lack of funds for the wedding, or simply lack of time. After the bride’s consent was received, the matchmakers were invited to the matitsa and sat down on a bench at the table. There was a treat, a feast, an agreement about the dowry, about the dates of the wedding day. After this, in the evening the bride gathered her close friends, drank tea, rode the groom's horses, and then got ready for the bride's party.

Such evenings were no different from winter (Yuletide) ones, during which evening songs were sung, accompanied by games and dances. Let us give an ethnographic description of a wedding party, which incorporated the most typical effective features of a Siberian wedding. This description is given on the basis of a study of literary sources and field research conducted by us.

During the performance of this song, three couples walked in a circle. At the end of the song, as was customary in all evening songs, the couples in the circle kissed, and the rest of the party participants cheerfully said: “There is a sparrow on the fence, don’t be shy about kissing” or “Hurray, cheers, kiss three times.”

After that they sang other moving songs: “I walked along the bank” and others.

An accordion player always came to the evening, songs were replaced by dances. They danced “Podgornaya”, “Serbianochka”, polka, “Chizha”, and then again began to sing game songs, the bride and groom chanted:

I'm rocking, rocking, I'm rocking, rocking

Gold ring, gold ring.

The song played out like this: the groom took the bride by the hand, walked her in a circle, placed her near the mother and kissed her.

The evening ended with the “common” song “It’s enough, it’s enough for you guys”:

It's enough, it's enough for you guys,

It's someone else's beer to drink.

Isn't it time for you? , guys,

Start your own?

Then, before leaving for home, they played a game of “neighborhood”: girls and boys sat in pairs, but not by choice, but who would have to play with whom. Then the presenter, who was called the foreman, approached each couple with a belt and asked the guy: “Do you want any girl?” (in the sense of whether you like it). If the guy answered: “Yes,” the girl stayed with him; if “No,” the foreman took the girl by the hand and led her away, and brought another in her place. This was done until all the girls and boys were divided into pairs of choice. The bride and groom did not play this game. At this point the party ended, and the young people went home.

The next stage of the wedding was the bachelorette party. As a rule, a bachelorette party consisted of a whole complex of ritual actions: making beauty (will), unbraiding a braid, washing in a bathhouse, saying goodbye to beauty and handing it over to friends, the groom or other persons, and treating the ritual participants to the groom. Beauty (will) was a symbol of the girl; it connected her with her former life. Usually beauty was expressed in some kind of objective symbol. It could be a tow, a tree (Christmas tree, pine, birch, etc.), a braided ribbon, a wreath, a scarf, a headband, etc. The bride passed on the beauty to her best friend or younger sister. As a rule, parting with beauty was accompanied by unbraiding or symbolic cutting of the braid and ransoming it by the groom. The braid was unraveled either the day before or on the morning of the wedding day. This was performed by one of the bride's relatives. All actions were accompanied by the lamentations of the bride. The culmination of the ceremony was the weaving of a ribbon, which the bride gave to her friends. From that moment on, the bride walked with her hair down. Also, unbraiding the braid was combined with the bride’s ritual bath. Usually the bath was prepared by the bride's friends or relatives. Before going to the bathhouse, the bride asked her parents for blessings, after which her friends led her to the bathhouse with lamentations. The bride was washed with soap and steamed with a broom sent by the groom. Some scholars saw in the bathing ritual a symbolic loss of chastity by the bride.

The complex of ritual actions of the bachelorette party also included “selling the braid.” Most often, the bride's braid was sold by her brother or, if he was not there, by a boy - one of the relatives. The buyers were representatives of the groom's party. The trade was symbolic. It started with huge sums and ended in pennies. During this ceremony, the groom presented gifts to the bride's friends.

In the pre-wedding period, special ritual bread was baked almost everywhere - loaf, chelpan, bannik, kurnik, fish pie. In a Russian wedding, bread represented life, prosperity, prosperity, and a happy lot. The preparation of wedding bread and its distribution occupied an important place in the wedding ceremony.

The second part of the wedding ceremony began after the wedding of the newlyweds in the church and ended with a party in the groom’s house. The newlyweds were greeted by the father and mother of the groom, who blessed them with an icon and bread and salt. Then everyone sat down at the table, and the girls sang the majestic song “Silk Thread.” The first table in the newlyweds' house was usually called the wedding table. The young people, although they sat behind him, did not eat anything. In honor of the newlyweds, they said congratulations, wishes for goodness and happiness, and greatness did not cease. Soon they were taken to another room (to a closet, a bathhouse, or to neighbors) and fed dinner. In a new guise, the young people returned to the residents. By this time, the second table, called the mountain table, was set. Relatives of the newlywed came to this table. They were solemnly greeted at the porch, serving each a glass of vodka. At the mountain table, the young woman gave gifts to her husband's relatives, bowed to them, hugged them and kissed them. Then she had to call her father-in-law father, and mother-in-law mother. At the end of the table, the newlyweds came out and fell at the feet of their parents so that they would bless them into the marriage bed. It was arranged in some unheated room: in a cage, in a barn or stable, in a bathhouse, in a separate hut, etc. The wedding bed was styled with special care. The newlyweds were usually accompanied by a friend and a matchmaker. The farewell was accompanied by music and noise; probably, this design had the meaning of a talisman. After an hour or two, and in some places even the whole night, they came to wake up or wake up the young people. Those who entered checked the bed and led the newlyweds to the hut, where the feast continued. It was customary to show off the bride's shirt. If the young woman turned out to be uncorrupted, she and her relatives were given great honor, but if not, then they were subjected to all kinds of reproach. If the outcome was favorable, the feast took on a stormy character, everyone made noise and shouted, expressing their joy. If the young woman was “spoiled,” her parents and godparents were served beer or wine in a glass with holes, a collar was put on them, etc.

The feast of the second day was called differently: cheese table, bowing or kissing. Relatives from both sides gathered for it. The most common ritual of the second or third day of a wedding was the newlywed's first visit to a spring or well, during which the bride usually threw money, a ring, a piece of bread cut from the wedding loaf, or a belt into the water.

They tried to diversify the ongoing wedding festivities with all kinds of games and fun.

One of the important and fairly common rituals of the final stage of a wedding was the son-in-law visiting the mother-in-law. Its most common name is bread. The young mother-in-law treated him to pancakes and scrambled eggs. Typically, wedding celebrations lasted three days; for rich peasants it lasted longer.

The wedding was ending, but the fate of the young people still remained under the close attention of village society. For a year, the newlyweds seemed to be in full view of everyone. They went to visit, visited relatives, and established family ties. The young could also participate in round dances, gatherings and various games produced in the village. This happened before the baby was born.

After children appeared in the family, the young people stopped going to gatherings with young people and “entered” the circle of married people.

We collected material using the method of structural (thematic) interviews. At the same time, the survey involved not only people of the older generation, who most fully possess information about the traditional wedding ceremony (the so-called key informants), but also representatives of younger age groups, whose answers interested us from the point of view of transformation processes in the field of ritual. Such sources made it possible to reconstruct the structure of the wedding ceremony that existed at the end of the 19th - first third of the 20th centuries.

Using field materials, I reconstructed the general model and identified the main stages in the development of the wedding rituals of Russian Siberians, highlighting the traditional layer in wedding rituals that existed at the end of the 19th - first quarter of the 20th centuries. The chapter consistently examined the forms of marriage, pre-wedding ritual ceremonies (matchmaking or hand-holding; bachelorette party and evening party; bathhouse; unbraiding; wedding train, redemption of the braid; departure to the crown), the wedding itself (including festivities in the groom’s house), post-wedding rituals. In general, we found out that, in the first quarter of the 20th century. , traditional wedding rituals have changed slightly. The traditional structure of the wedding, as well as a significant array of rituals and customs included in the wedding complex, which are elements of religious and magical ideas, have been preserved. Most of the ritual actions were performed “in the old fashioned way,” however, the internal semantic content of many of them had already been lost.

It became clear that the modern Russian wedding is characterized by the simplification of all its constituent cycles, the rejection of a number of survival customs and rituals, the spread of standardized ritual forms known to many modern peoples,

Rituals and customs associated with the birth of children. First year of life.

The needs of normal reproduction among all peoples required an attentive and careful attitude towards the birth, preservation and education of a new generation. If the physiological processes associated with childbirth are the same for humans, then the centuries-old practice of obstetrics, caring for the woman in labor and the child, including both rational and religious-magical acts, have ethnic (and often socio-ethnic) specificity, due to both objective the need for adaptation and survival in a certain environment, and the religious views of a given society.

A valuable addition to the available materials are the memoirs of elderly village residents, recorded in the 70s - 90s of the 20th century. Most of them grew up in large families that mostly maintained a traditional family life. Their stories contain not only impressions of childhood and the experience of their own motherhood, but also episodes from the lives of previous generations heard from mothers and grandmothers. Thus, a huge amount of material was accumulated and comprehended, which made it possible to form an idea of ​​the culture of motherhood and childhood characteristic of the Russian people and to draw a number of conclusions regarding the content and genesis of its constituent elements. 1. It is quite obvious that many elements arose in ancient times, perhaps even before the introduction of Christianity in Rus', and were influenced to varying degrees by the new religion. 2. A number of ritual actions and corresponding ideas arose on the basis of a strengthened Christian worldview, but were non-canonical in nature, being the fruit of the people's religious imagination. 3- The performance of canonical Christian rites and the observance by the laity of religious instructions regarding their behavior in religious-ceremonial and religious-everyday life over the ten centuries of the existence of Christianity have acquired ethnic and religious specificity.

Infertility was accepted by people of that time as a misfortune for the family and a shame for the woman. The religious thinking of the Middle Ages saw the cause of all human troubles in God's punishment and, accordingly, saw the possibility of getting rid of them in gaining God's mercy. Therefore, to achieve “childbirth,” women, first of all, resorted to the means recommended by the church. According to historical legends, Grand Duke Vasily III, Tsar Ivan the Terrible and his eldest son Ivan were conceived and, moreover, gained viability through the prayers and votive prayers of their parents, with whom the entire Orthodox people prayed for the birth of heirs.

With a fairly equal attitude and love for children in Russian families, the birth of boys was still more expected. Among the peasants, this was caused primarily by economic reasons, and well-born parents wanted to have sons - heirs of the family. In addition, the girl had to prepare a dowry, and after getting married, she was separated from her parents, and they did not have to expect help from her in her old age. That’s why people used to say: “a boy is born for help, a girl is born for fun,” “you’ll make a home with your son, you’ll live off the rest with your daughter,” “raising a daughter, what to pour into a leaky barrel.” The preference for boys is also reflected in the fact that basically all superstitious means of influencing the gender of an unborn child are focused on the birth of sons. Many trusted in God's mercy and only prayed for the birth of a son or daughter, and it was recommended to pray to certain saints: for the birth of boys - St. John the Warrior, they asked St. for the birth of girls. Mary of Egypt.

The pregnancy period changed little in the life of a village woman. However, knowing about the possible consequences of hard work for the normal course of pregnancy and a woman’s health, they tried to transfer her to easier work. Particular attention was paid to the first-time mother. A mother-in-law who forced her young pregnant daughter-in-law to do hard work could be publicly condemned by her fellow villagers.

A woman’s behavior during pregnancy was also regulated by the superstitious belief that certain of her actions could in one way or another affect the health and character of the conceived child. Prenatal prohibitions and recommendations for pregnant women are based mainly on the magic of similarity. It was impossible to sit on a stone - the birth would be difficult, to step through a rope - the child would get tangled in the umbilical cord, to step through a rocker - the child would be hunchbacked, to push cats and dogs - the newborn would have “canine old age”, bristles on the skin, etc. it was not she had to kiss the deceased, saying goodbye to him, and even accompany the coffin to the cemetery. If this could not be avoided, she should have taken protective measures - put bread under her arm, unbuttoned the collar of her shirt, and thus avoid a difficult birth.

Even for multiparous village women, childbirth was dangerous and one had to prepare for it in a certain way. The physiological, i.e. material nature of childbirth was obvious to the villagers. However, the birth of a person, in their opinion, also had mystical content. According to believers, a person’s entire life is a constant struggle between “pure” and “demonic” forces for his soul, beginning with his first breath on Earth and even in the womb. The very moment of birth seemed especially dangerous, since in addition to the angel present at the birth and helping the mother and child, at the same time “an evil spirit is trying” and a difficult birth is often explained by “the pranks of Satan.” Therefore, in order to ensure the normal course of childbirth and preserve the life of both oneself and the child, it was necessary to resort to various means of Christian protection.

In the last stages of pregnancy, preferably just before childbirth, women considered it necessary to repent and take communion. First of all, this excluded the terrible danger of dying suddenly without accepting these sacraments. Not a single woman in labor considered herself insured against such a death. In addition, one of the possible reasons for protracted labor was considered to be violation by the woman, and sometimes by her husband, of the norms of religious and moral life. Communion cleansed the woman, “removing” involuntary sins. And, finally, it had a beneficial psychological effect, giving much-needed confidence in the help of the saints during labor pains. Religious repentance was supplemented by asking forgiveness from all household members and even neighbors - “for everything I offended and was rude to,” to which everyone answered, “God will forgive and we will go there too.” Someone’s ill will or irritation could lead to complications at this dangerous moment: it was believed that “a woman in labor suffers if there is an evil person in the hut.”

The onset of labor was carefully hidden. They were afraid not only of the intentional evil eye or damage. Many believed that even casual knowledge of what was happening complicates the course of labor. They said this: “As much as a person knows about childbirth, so much will be the effort.” The knowledge of young girls and old maids about them had a particularly unfavorable effect on the course of childbirth.

Childbirth more often took place outside the living quarters - in a barn, in a barn, or according to the most common tradition in the village - in a bathhouse. This was especially strictly observed among the Old Believers. In the XVI-XVII centuries. even Russian queens, like peasant women of the 19th century. , before giving birth, she retired to the soap bar.

The midwife was the only assistant during childbirth in the village house. One of the main tasks of a midwife is to protect mother and child from evil spirits. To do this, they widely used Christian paraphernalia of a protective nature - incense, holy water. The midwife began her care for the woman in labor by lighting a lamp and candles in front of the icons. This was considered so obligatory that if the baby became sick in the future, it was suspected that “he was probably born without fire.” And, of course, they lit a specially saved wedding candle, which, according to legend, not only helped alleviate suffering, but, “depending on the degree of faith in its healing power,” saved a woman with difficulty giving birth from death. Following this, the midwife began to pray: “Lord, forgive one sinful soul and another sinless soul. Release, Lord, her soul to repentance, and the baby to the cross.” Both the husband and all the household members prayed at the same time; in difficult cases, the husband walked around the house with the icon.

According to the most common Russian tradition, the midwife lived or stayed most of the time with the woman in labor for three days. Her main responsibility at that time was bathing the mother and child, as well as ensuring that no one spoiled them. In addition, if necessary, she also provided practical assistance: she could sweep the floors, milk the cow, prepare dinner, which allowed the woman in labor to rest after childbirth.

The presence of a midwife in the house of a woman in labor required, according to the peasantry, obligatory subsequent purification. For most of the Russian settlement, this purification was achieved through the ritual of “washing hands,” which, according to the most widespread tradition, took place on the third day after childbirth. The essence of the ritual is this: the mother and grandmother poured water, to which various objects with a certain meaning were often added, three times onto each other’s hands and mutually asked for forgiveness. The performance of this rite gave partial cleansing to the woman in labor and allowed the midwife to go and deliver the next child. Many religious peasants believed that this custom had existed since Gospel times: the Mother of God herself also “washed her hands” with grandmother Solomonida.

Baby-babying can be considered a professional craft. For her work, the midwife received a remuneration, the obligatory nature of which was guaranteed by the ethical standards of the village. Typically, women became midwives voluntarily, most often with the intention of earning a little money. But in the future, regardless of the amount of payment offered, or personal relationships, she could not refuse to help the woman in labor. According to the most widespread Russian tradition, the midwife’s remuneration consisted of an individual remuneration received from the woman in labor (it usually included items symbolizing cleansing - soap, a towel, as well as bread, and from the second half of the 19th century - a small amount of money), and a collective remuneration. collected at christenings.

The first concern of the midwife at birth is to determine whether everything is in order with the newborn and, if possible, try to correct the deficiencies. To do this, she straightened his arms and legs, lightly squeezed his head so that it became rounder; if she didn’t like the shape of the newborn’s nose, she squeezed it with her fingers, etc. Based on the time of birth and the special signs of the newborn, their future was predicted. It was believed that if a baby was born “squeezed exactly in the dough”, or had a hole in the head, it would not last long. The same fate awaited the baby born with his face to the ground. The hair on the head promised modesty of character. It was believed that someone born in bad weather would be stern and gloomy, someone born in May would be unhappy, and someone who screamed immediately after giving birth would be angry. A good housewife and worker will be made from a newborn who, when born, “immediately looks.” In this case, the boy will grow up to be “smart.”

Like many nations, Russian families, expecting misfortune, sought to deceive the evil fate that weighed on the family. To do this, for example, they gave birth in someone else's house, or knocked out a door frame in a hut, the woman gave birth in the entryway, then the grandmother brought the baby into the hut, standing with her back to the door, and the person receiving him also stood. To strengthen his health, a weak baby was handed to a beggar through the window, who carried him to the gate of the house. The baby’s mother came there with alms and placed it on the baby’s chest. Then she took the child, and the beggar took alms, saying: “God grant the holy child (name) good health.”

Partial cleansing of the woman in labor, which removed some everyday prohibitions, resulted in the baptism of the newborn. Certain rites of this ritual complex symbolized the entry of a newborn into the world of living people, introduction to the world of human culture and society.

The child was baptized, “gifts” were placed in the font - incense, a cross, money. Friends, neighbors, and relatives of the child’s parents became godparents. Godparents could not be husband and wife. They were obliged to give gifts to the newborn - a shirt, a belt, a cross, i.e. objects, the presence of which indicated that he belonged to the human world. During baptism they used to tell fortunes - they dipped a tuft of a newborn's hair, rolled in wax, into the water. If the wax and hair sank, it was believed that the newborn would soon die.

Christenings ended with a meal, the main dish of which was porridge; often the ceremony itself was called “porridge.”

When the child turned one year old, “tonsures” were arranged, during which he was seated on objects associated with male or female activities (a boy on a knife or an ax, a girl on a comb or spindle) and his hair was cut for the first time.

After performing this sacrament, as well as the ritual of “washing one’s hands” (usually both occurred during the first week), the woman in labor could begin ordinary household and field work, and participate in family meals. She was considered completely cleansed only after accepting prayer in church on the 40th day. The isolation of the woman in labor among the priestless Old Believers was stricter. She spent eight days in the bathhouse. Upon returning home, she was given, if possible, a separate room. The elderly people living in the house avoided contact with her; even fellow villagers usually did not enter the house where the birth took place for 40 days.

All actions to care for a newborn were dictated both by practical knowledge of what was needed for his health and normal growth, and by similar considerations of a religious nature. Moreover, the latter played an important role. After all, it was common for a believer to associate the cause of all, even the most natural and logical events (not to mention random ones) with the direct or at least indirect intervention of external forces: “God punished”, “God saved” - the usual conclusions in assessing what is happening. And, of course, this conviction was especially clearly reflected in the attitude of adults towards a child who still had no opportunity to protect himself. The high child mortality rate from disease and injury was a constant reminder of the fragility and fragility of children's lives. Meanwhile, one’s own care and attention turned out to be insufficient to preserve the life and health of the child, especially since the peasant family did not always have the opportunity to look after the children. That is why they relied on the help of the protective means recommended by the church.

To prevent all misfortunes, they used “holy” water (Epiphany water, specially blessed, dripped from pebbles brought from Jerusalem, taken from holy springs), incense, communion; adults baptized children, especially at night, and gradually taught them to be baptized themselves.

The entire first year of a baby’s life occupied a special place in the series of childhood years. The baby’s very existence seemed too unstable; in addition, in the opinion of those around him, at this initial stage of his life the foundations of his health and well-being were laid. The behavior of adults was largely subject to numerous prohibitions and recommendations, united by the general principle of “do no harm.” Ignoring them could not only cause immediate harm, but also disrupt the normal development of the child in the future. You can indicate the most common customs: do not bring the baby to the mirror - he will not speak for a long time (options - he will be myopic, he will be scared, he will be askew); do not rock an empty cradle - the baby will have a headache; do not look at the sleeping person - the child will become sleepy, etc. Many recommendations for the care and treatment of children continue to this day.

The newborn's first bath took place on the day of birth; sometimes a newly born baby was only washed and then given a “white” bath. Objects were often added to the water, which were attributed magical properties, primarily cleansing and strengthening. Some of them were used during the first bath. For example, the custom of throwing coins (“according to the parents’ condition”), most often silver, into the water can be considered widespread. The parents threw the coins, and the midwife, who washed the baby, took them for herself “for her troubles.” Silver was supposed to ensure cleanliness of the skin and at the same time contribute to the future prosperity of the newborn. Other items, such as string and salt, were added to bathing water for medicinal purposes over a period of time.

The time of first placement in the cradle depended largely on the living conditions of the family, the number of children, and the calmness of the baby; In addition, many families did not consider it possible to place the child in the cradle before performing the sacrament of baptism on him. The first laying down was also accompanied by ritual actions, on which the health and tranquility of the newborn depended. In accordance with local tradition, wood was chosen for the cradle.

In the cradle, the baby had to exist separately from the mother, and therefore it was necessary to especially carefully protect it from damage and, especially, substitution by “evil spirits.” The cradle and everything that was supposed to be placed in it, including the child, was sprinkled with holy water, a cross was cut out or smeared with resin at the head of the cradle, fumigated with incense, placed inside or hung on a thread. When laying them down they said, for example, the following words: “Lord, bless! May God grant the holy hour. Lord, send your guardian angel to save Nicholas from the evil spirit and lull him into a peaceful sleep.” If the baby was not yet baptized, then a cross was hung on the cradle, which was then put on him during baptism. But caring parents did not limit themselves to using Christian paraphernalia. To protect against evil spirits, piercing objects, such as scissors, were placed in the hole, and for peace and sound sleep - a flax brush, pork cartilage - a snout, and sleep-grass in the head.

Immediately at birth, the child received a pacifier - chewed black bread (less often white, bagels), wrapped in a cloth. This juice not only served as nutrition for the newborn, but, according to popular belief, cured hernia. For “strength and health,” salt was added to the bread pacifier.

Among the ritual actions performed on infants, it is necessary to highlight the ritual of the first girding. Although it was not found everywhere, it was widely enough to be considered as a special subject of the Russian ritual tradition. This ritual consisted in the fact that the godmother (occasionally - the midwife) brought the godson (goddaughter) a belt, and sometimes other items of clothing - a cap, a shirt, as well as gifts, and with the wish to “grow quickly” and to be healthy, she belted him, which was usually followed by a small treat. The ritual and temporary allocation of the first girdling is apparently connected with the special function of magical protection that, in the opinion of the Russian people, this obligatory element of the folk costume possessed. It can be assumed that in this way the folk custom preserved, although in a modified form, the church rite of putting a belt (as well as a cross) on a baptized baby. This element of the rite of the sacrament of baptism in the 19th century. had already gone out of practice in the Orthodox Church and was preserved only in the baptismal rite of the Old Believers.

Currently, rituals and customs associated with the birth of children have changed greatly: women preparing to become mothers are in special maternity hospitals, where specialized doctors take care of them. The only custom that has survived to this day is the baptism of a child in the church. In the last decade, the rite of baptism of a child has become “fashionable”.

Funeral rituals

These rituals occupy a special place in the rituals of the family cycle. Compared to other rituals, they are more conservative, since they reflect slowly changing ideas about death and the relationship between the living and the dead. In addition, compliance with established ritual actions has long been considered important for the fate of the soul in the afterlife, and therefore was the moral obligation of relatives towards the deceased. The fulfillment of this duty was controlled by public opinion, as well as the belief that the soul of the deceased could punish relatives if something was done wrong. As these ideas weakened, the ritual continued to be supported by ethical standards. Burial and commemoration were viewed as a special event, when it was inappropriate to show excessive frugality and neglect customs, even those that might seem unnecessary and meaningless. Proper execution of funeral and memorial rituals was a sign of respect for the person who had passed away.

Funeral rites of Russians of the 19th - early 20th centuries. , as we know it from research literature, archival descriptions and field materials, evolved over a long period. It is based on the Christian (Orthodox) funeral ritual, which has adopted and absorbed numerous rituals and beliefs preserved from pre-Christian traditions.

The pagan funeral rite of Ancient Rus', supplanted by Orthodoxy, is known only in the most general terms. As archaeological data show, the Slavs knew the burning of corpses, built mounds and pillars (apparently a structure in the form of a small house on pillars), in which vessels with bones collected in the cemetery were placed. The deceased was taken to the funeral pyre or to the grave in a boat or sleigh; with the dead they put his things in the grave. The burial was accompanied by a funeral “feast” and ritual games and competitions - a funeral feast. Back at the beginning of the 12th century. The Vyatichi preserved the kurgan burial rite.

With the establishment of Christianity, a new funeral and memorial rite, prescribed by the church, came into life. Christian rituals categorically rejected the burning of the dead. The burial should have been in the ground, placing the body of the deceased “with his head to the west.” But at the same time, many pre-Christian customs continued to be observed. The combination of Christian and pagan traditions was facilitated by common religious ideas - belief in the afterlife, in the continuing life of the soul and in the need to care for the souls of deceased relatives.

Differences in funeral rituals were observed in different social groups (peasantry, merchants, nobility), but they, at least in the 19th century. were not of a fundamental nature. It is important to emphasize that ritualism lived its most intense life and in its fullest forms in the peasant environment. The funeral and memorial ritual became different, and in some cases significantly different, when Russians abandoned Orthodoxy.

Funeral and memorial ritual towards the end of the 19th century. has undergone noticeable changes (mainly due to the oblivion or reinterpretation of a number of pre-Christian traditions). In addition, the chronological milestone in the description allows us, within a clearly defined period, to present, using specific examples, the changes that ultimately led to the formation of forms of ritual that are characteristic of modern times.

The structure of the funeral and memorial ritual is simple and consists of several sequential ritual complexes, namely: l) actions associated with the near-death state of a person and at the moment of death, with dressing the deceased and placing him in a coffin; 2) removal from home, funeral service in church, burial; h) wakes, which after the 40th day turned into memorial rites associated with calendar rituals.

Elderly people prepared for death in advance. Women sewed their own death clothes; in some areas it was customary to make coffins or stock up on boards for the coffin long before death. But for a deeply religious person, the main thing was to prepare oneself for this last step in life spiritually, that is, to have time to do the necessary things to save the soul. Giving alms and making contributions to churches and monasteries were considered godly deeds. It was also considered a pious act to forgive debts. They were very afraid of sudden death (“overnight”); The daily prayer included the words “Lord forbid that every person should die without repentance.” To die at home, among loved ones, in full memory, according to the Russians, was “heavenly grace.” The whole family gathered around the dying man, they brought him images (icons), and he blessed each one especially. If the patient felt very bad, then a priest was invited for confession; stories about his sins, the dying person received forgiveness from him in the name of Jesus Christ.

After confession, the dying person said goodbye to his family and relatives and gave instructions. It was very important for relatives and others to receive forgiveness from the dying person for the grievances that may have once been caused to him. Fulfilling the orders of the dying person was considered obligatory: “It is impossible to anger the deceased, it will bring misfortune to those remaining on earth.”

If a person died quickly and painlessly, they believed that his soul would go to heaven, and if before his death he suffered heavily and for a long time, it means that his sins were so great that he could not escape hell. Relatives, seeing how the dying man was suffering, tried to help the soul leave the body. To do this, they opened the door, window, chimney, broke the ridge on the roof, and lifted the top part of the roof of the house. They placed a cup of water everywhere so that the soul could be washed when it flew away. The dying person was supposed to be laid on the floor, covered with straw. Dying on a stove was considered a great sin.

When death occurred, relatives began to lament loudly. It was assumed that the deceased sees and hears everything. In the texts of lamentations, in addition to compassionate and kind words about the deceased, words could also be heard about the mourner’s own fate. Thus, in her lamentations, a widow-daughter-in-law could tell how badly her husband’s relatives treated her; a daughter left without a mother could complain about her evil stepmother. Lamentations were performed throughout the entire funeral rite, as well as on memorial days, including godins and parental Saturdays.

With the onset of death, everything was aimed at preparing the deceased for the funeral. These actions were largely of a religious and magical nature. First of all, the deceased had to be washed. For a long time, as was customary, men were washed by old men, women by old women, but by the middle of the 19th century. Washing was mainly done only by women. In every village there were old women who washed the dead, receiving something from the deceased’s clothing - a sundress, a shirt or a scarf. Poor people often did the washing. Often the washers were midwives. Washing the deceased was considered a godly deed: “If you wash three dead people, all sins will be forgiven; if you wash forty dead people, you yourself will become sinless.” According to custom, the woman, having washed and dressed the deceased, had to wash herself and change clothes. During the washing, close relatives of the deceased were often present and wailed loudly. One woman washed, and two helped her. They tried to wash the body quickly. At the same time, prayers were read. The deceased was placed on the floor, having previously laid straw (or some kind of fabric) under it. Wash with warm water and soap. They combed their hair with a comb or a sliver from the coffin. All objects used in washing were destroyed: the straw was burned or lowered into the water, or thrown into a ditch; the comb was thrown away or placed with the deceased in the coffin, the water pot was broken and thrown away at the first intersection. Soap was either placed in the coffin, or used later only for magical healing purposes, water was poured into places where people usually did not go, or on a fire in which straw was burned.

Based on available materials from the 19th - 20th centuries. There were the following types of clothes in which people were buried: l) Wedding clothes. Many people, especially women, kept the clothes (often just a shirt) in which they were married throughout their lives. There was a widespread belief that the wedding attire (branchno) should be protected, because it should be worn in the coffin. There was also a saying: “What you get married in is what you die in.” 2) Festive clothes, i.e. those that were worn on holidays during life. h) Casual clothing that a person died in or wore before his death. 4) Clothing specially prepared for the funeral.

It was a well-known custom to prepare clothes for a funeral. The “mortal bundle” or “mortal clothing” was stored in advance. The clothes prepared for burial differed in the method of sewing, cut, material, and color. The dead were dressed differently from the living. The shirt worn “to death” was not fastened with buttons or cufflinks, but was tied with braid or harsh threads. When sewing funeral clothing, no knots were made on the threads. The thread was supposed to be led from itself; the needle was held with the left hand, and the fabric was not cut with scissors, but torn.

After washing and “dressing” the deceased, they placed him on a bench in the front corner, lit a lamp in front of the icons and began to pray. In general, from the moment of death until the funeral (they were buried, as a rule, on the third day), prayers were read over the deceased by specially invited readers. They were given tea and treated to dinner; There was honey on the table, sometimes diluted with water. Someone always sat next to the deceased; he was not left alone, “for fear that the demon would fly in and spoil the deceased.” They believed that the deceased heard everything that was happening around. So, the next day after death, the housewife baked a rye flatbread, took it to the deceased with laments: “Sudarik father (if the head of the family has died) let me give you a flatbread for breakfast, you didn’t have dinner with me yesterday, and you didn’t have breakfast today.” In some places, on the second day after death, a cup of water and a pancake or a piece of bread was placed on the shrine. This piece of bread was served to the poor every other day, and the water was poured out the window. This went on for forty days. While the deceased lay at home, prayers were read at night.

When death occurred, all relatives and fellow villagers were immediately notified. Hearing that someone had died, everyone, strangers and relatives, hurried to the house where the deceased lay, and everyone carried something, most often candles. During the entire time that the deceased lay under the icons, relatives, including those from other villages, as well as fellow villagers, came to him to say goodbye. The poor and rootless were buried and commemorated at the expense of the entire society.

Thus, the death of a fellow villager became an event in the life of the entire village and affected not only those closest to them, but also everyone around them. Relatives were not left alone with their grief.

The coffin usually began to be made on the day of death, usually by strangers. In the 19th century Among the peasants, coffins were not upholstered or painted. Some of the small shavings from the coffin spread to the bottom, sometimes it was covered with leaves from birch brooms or hay; the pillow was stuffed with hay or tow, and canvas or white cloth was laid on top. It happened that a pipe and a pouch of tobacco and a broom were placed in the coffin so that there would be something to take a steam bath in the next world. It was once believed that the deceased would need everything in the next world.

Before placing the deceased in the coffin, the coffin was fumigated with incense. The day of the funeral was usually set by the priest. They were usually buried during the day. Without a priest or deacon, the deceased was not placed in a coffin, because the deceased had to be sprinkled with holy water and fumigated with incense, and only a clergyman could do this. The deceased was usually taken out of the house in the morning in order to get to church in time for mass. But sometimes the deceased was brought there in the evening, and on the last night the coffin with him stood in the church.

The day of the burial was especially rich in ritual activities and manifestations of grief. According to traditional beliefs, the deceased on this day said goodbye to everything that surrounded him during his life - his house, yard, village. A horse was sent for the priest. Arriving at the house, the priest served a litany over the deceased, sprinkling the empty coffin with holy water. Then, in the presence of a priest, the deceased was placed in it. When they were carried out, the whole village was crowded into the hut, everyone was crying loudly. According to the peasants, the more mourners and the louder the crying, the more honorable the funeral. They had to cry out loud and lament every morning for nine days. On the day of the funeral, neighbors brought a candle, as well as two kopecks or a scoop of rye flour. All this went to the benefit of the church. In some places, before carrying the coffin to the church, close relatives of the deceased tied the priest and all male relatives with long linen towels. They carried the coffin with the deceased on themselves, and when they sat down, the temple was far away; they were transported on a horse, which, according to custom, was unharnessed near the church.

When the body was removed, many magical rituals were performed. They always carried out the deceased feet first.

After the funeral service in the church, the priest, if asked, accompanied the coffin to the burial place. Here the funeral procession was awaited by the men who were digging the grave. The depth of the grave could be no more than three arshins - the priests strictly monitored this. Its width was up to 3/4 arshin, and its length depended on the height of the deceased. The grave was supposed to be dug just before the funeral; When the hole was ready, the “diggers” remained near it, guarding the grave “from the demon.” At the grave, the priest, by order of the relatives of the deceased, once again celebrated the litiya. They burned incense inside the grave. Then the coffin was closed and slowly lowered into the hole on towels (ropes) and placed on logs or directly on the ground. They threw money into the grave, “so that the soul would have something to pay for transportation to the next world,” “so that there would be something to pay off sin”; funeral participants threw a handful of earth into the grave. This custom was widespread. The burial mound was covered with turf. In many places, trees were planted near the graves: birch, willow, linden, poplar, willow, rowan, etc. Wooden crosses were placed on the graves.

After the burial, they again served a memorial service, and then left the cemetery. In many provinces, commemoration was performed at graves immediately after burial: a tablecloth or piece of canvas was laid out on the grave, on which pies were placed, honey, and kutya were placed. The poor were served bread and pancakes.

After removing the deceased, the women who remained at home washed the floors. In some areas it was considered necessary to also wash the walls, benches and all utensils. Participants in the funeral procession, returning from the cemetery, usually washed in a specially heated bathhouse.

Throughout Russia, in relation to people who died an unnatural death (suicides, drunks, drowned people), the traditional funeral ritual was not fully observed. This attitude towards people who died of their own free will (guilt) or by chance is based on Christian precepts. There was no funeral service for the suicide, despite the fact that he could have been the closest person (father, son, husband). There were never funeral services for suicides. According to popular beliefs, remembering them even at home during prayer was considered a sin, not to mention the church. Suicides were not supposed to be buried in a cemetery.

Today, it is common to think that they used to drink a lot at Russian funerals. But in reality everything was different. In some localities there was, and still is, very little drinking on the day of a funeral. At lunch on the day of the funeral, if vodka was served, it was only a little (no more than two or three glasses). The abundance of strong drinks on this day was considered inappropriate. In some areas, the appearance of vodka and beer on the table set for people coming from the cemetery dates back to the time after the Civil War. Abundant funeral treats have their roots in the distant pagan past, recalling the ritual role of intoxicating drinks. The obligatory ritual dishes at lunch on the day of the funeral were kutia, honey, porridge, oatmeal or cranberry jelly, and in some areas - fish pies and pancakes. They called to remember everyone who participated in the funeral. As a rule, a lot of people gathered, so lunch was held in two or three sittings. At first, they treated church ministers, readers, washers and diggers, relatives and friends. The table was set twice - before the funeral service and after the clergy left. There were often cases when it was necessary to set the table with food for the third time. There was a widespread belief that the deceased was invisibly present at the wake; therefore, for the deceased, they placed a spoon (sometimes under the tablecloth) and a loaf of bread for him.

The funeral table always began with kutya, which was prepared differently in different provinces: from boiled rice or barley with honey. The meal always ended with rye or oatmeal jelly.

Commemoration of deceased relatives was celebrated on the 3rd, 9th, 20th and 40th days, on anniversaries and holidays. Remembrance was expressed in the service of memorial services and remembrances at liturgies, visits to graves, memorial dinners and the distribution of alms. In some areas people visited the graves every day for six weeks. Apparently, it was once believed that the soul stayed at home or visited a home for forty days. This idea is evidenced by the well-known custom in a number of provinces of placing a cup of water and a pancake or a piece of bread on the shrine the day after death. This bread was served to the poor every other day, and the water was poured out the window. This went on for forty days.

The 40th day after death, the so-called Sorochin, when, according to popular beliefs, the soul visited the house for the last time, was particularly complex and solemn. In many places, all actions carried out on this day were called farewells or calling out to the soul. On the 40th day, a lot of people were invited and a rich table was served. Basically, the ritual of the 40th day in different provinces followed the same scenario: they were sure to attend church if it was within reach, then they went to the grave of the deceased, and then they had dinner at home. The deceased was also commemorated a year after death.

After this, the remembrance stopped.

Funeral - funeral rituals live in any nation as an integral part of its cultural traditions; it reflects the characteristics of human connections and moral norms that determine the state of society in a given period. Respect for the dead demonstrates respect for the living. If family, birth and friendship ties are deformed and weakened in society, it makes no sense to expect the manifestation of deep feelings for those who have left this world. Strengthening the traditions associated with the memory of the departed allows us to think that in our society, despite all the difficulties and social experiments, healthy foundations have been preserved.

Based on the results of a survey conducted among older people, it follows that funeral and memorial traditions have remained virtually unchanged.

3. Conclusion.

Interest in Russian rituals and holidays emerged in the 30s and 40s of the 19th century. It was determined by the era of that time and reflected support for the monarchy and patriarchal antiquity. A trend of scientists emerged who put forward the theory of “official nationality.” The most interesting are the studies of I. M. Snegirev (1838), I. P. Sakharov (1841), A. V. Tereshchenko (1848), which highlight observations of folk rituals and holidays, an attempt was made to systematize records, and explain the emergence of historical roots going back to in the ancient times of the pagan Slavs. At the same time, works by P. A. Slovtsov (1830, 1915> 1938) were published according to the traditions of Russian Siberians, in which the author laid the foundations for the ethnographic study of the Russian population of Siberia. In his works, the researcher provides colorful descriptions of Siberian rituals, customs and holidays.

Collecting activity significantly revived after the creation of the Russian Geographical Society in 1845. Published in 1848 and 1859, the program contained a number of practical tips on collecting and recording folk life. A major role in collecting information about the spiritual and material culture of Russians in Siberia was played by local periodicals, primarily the Tomsk Provincial Gazette, on whose pages notes about the folk life of peasants were published. In the course of collecting ethnographic material, it was comprehended, and “theoretical works were created, different directions in ethnographic science arose. By the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th century, there were a small number of publications about the folk life of Russian Siberians. But their value lay in the fact that they were published in period of active existence of folk culture and thus, as it were, called upon researchers to the need to collect new information about the culture of Siberian peasants.

Tradition - from lat. (traditio - transmission) - elements of social and cultural heritage that are transmitted from generation to generation and preserved in certain societies and social groups for a long time. Tradition is defined as certain social institutions, norms of behavior, values, ideas, customs, rituals, etc.

Having studied the history of the emergence of Russian villages, having examined local rites, rituals, and customs, I concluded that part of Siberian folklore has been lost and requires detailed study and restoration for preservation and transmission to our descendants. The significance of the rituals discussed is great, since this is our history, this is the life of our ancestors. Knowing the conditions of their life, their way of life, traditions, we can recreate a more complete picture of work and leisure. First of all, the keepers of traditions are cultural and educational workers. Who, if not they, will bring ancient rituals and beliefs to the modern generation? They collect the remains of valuable information and support the ancient way of life and traditions of Siberian folklore. These people revive the love for customs, with their perseverance, proving that everything new is well forgotten old. We must pay tribute to those people who are professionally engaged in “excavations” of information about ancient rituals and traditions - these are ethnographers and historians. If it weren’t for them, today we would not know: how our grandparents celebrated Maslenitsa, Easter, New Year, Christmas; how weddings, baptismal ceremonies, and funerals used to be held; we would only guess about how diverse the life of our ancestors was. Folklorists made a special contribution to the development of ethnographic culture (Folkloristics is the science of folklore, including the collection, publication and study of works of folk art). After all, folklore is oral folk art; it was in it that, previously, all the events of folk culture were reflected.

After talking with the elderly residents of the village, we concluded that the life of our ancestors was very interesting and eventful. Why is that? Probably because people used to follow traditions and pass them on from generation to generation. And any traditions or customs are based on the beliefs of people. And now, many years later, some of them are completely lost, while others are greatly changed. If you remember all the rituals, you can immediately understand that if you celebrate all the holidays in the old way, it will be interesting, bright and colorful.

The territory of Siberia can be called truly multinational. Today its population mostly represented by Russians. Starting in 1897, the population has only been growing to this day. The bulk of the Russian population of Siberia were traders, Cossacks and peasants. The indigenous population is mainly located in Tobolsk, Tomsk, Krasnoyarsk and Irkutsk. At the beginning of the eighteenth century, the Russian population began to settle in the southern part of Siberia - Transbaikalia, Altai and the Minusinsk steppes. At the end of the eighteenth century, a huge number of peasants moved to Siberia. They are located mainly in Primorye, Kazakhstan and Altai. And after the construction of the railway began and the formation of cities, the population began to grow even faster.

Numerous peoples of Siberia

Current state

The Cossacks and local Yakuts who came to the Siberian lands became very friendly, they began to trust each other. After some time, they no longer divided themselves into locals and natives. International marriages took place, which entailed mixing of blood. The main peoples inhabiting Siberia are:

Chuvans

The Chuvans settled on the territory of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. The national language is Chukchi, which over time was completely replaced by Russian. The first population census at the end of the eighteenth century officially confirmed 275 representatives of the Chuvans who settled in Siberia and 177 who moved from place to place. Now the total number of representatives of this people is about 1300.

The Chuvans were engaged in hunting and fishing, and had sled dogs. And the main occupation of the people was reindeer herding.

Orochi

— located on the territory of the Khabarovsk Territory. This people had another name - Nani, which was also widely used. The language of the people is Oroch, only the oldest representatives of the people spoke it, and besides, it was unwritten. According to the official first census, the Orochi population was 915 people. The Orochi were primarily engaged in hunting. They caught not only forest inhabitants, but also game. Now there are about 1000 representatives of this people.Entsy

Enets

were a fairly small people. Their number in the first census was only 378 people. They roamed in the areas of the Yenisei and Lower Tunguska. The Enets language was similar to Nenets, the difference was in the sound composition. Now there are about 300 representatives left.

Itelmens

settled on the territory of Kamchatka, they were previously called Kamchadals. The native language of the people is Itelmen, which is quite complex and includes four dialects. The number of Itelmens, judging by the first census, was 825 people. The Itelmens were mostly engaged in catching salmon fish; collecting berries, mushrooms and spices was also common. Now (according to the 2010 census) there are slightly more than 3,000 representatives of this nationality. Ket

Chum salmon

- became indigenous residents of the Krasnoyarsk Territory. Their number at the end of the eighteenth century was 1017 people. The Ket language was isolated from other Asian languages. The Kets practiced agriculture, hunting and fishing. In addition, they became the founders of trade. The main product was furs. According to the 2010 census - 1219 people

Koryaks

— located on the territory of the Kamchatka region and the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. The Koryak language is closest to Chukchi. The main activity of the people is reindeer husbandry. Even the name of the people is translated into Russian as “rich in deer.” The population at the end of the eighteenth century was 7,335 people. Now ~9000.

Muncie

Of course, there are still many very small nationalities that live on the territory of Siberia and it would take more than one page to describe them, but the tendency towards assimilation over time leads to the complete disappearance of small peoples.

Formation of culture in Siberia

The culture of Siberia is as multi-layered as the number of nationalities living on its territory is huge. From each settlement, the local people accepted something new for themselves. First of all, this affected tools and household supplies. The newly arrived Cossacks began to use reindeer skins, local fishing tools, and malitsa from the everyday life of the Yakuts in everyday life. And they, in turn, looked after the natives’ livestock when they were away from their homes.

Various types of wood were used as construction materials, of which there are plenty in Siberia to this day. As a rule, it was spruce or pine.

The climate in Siberia is sharply continental, which manifests itself in harsh winters and hot summers. In such conditions, local residents grew sugar beets, potatoes, carrots and other vegetables well. In the forest zone it was possible to collect various mushrooms - milk mushrooms, boletus, boletus, and berries - blueberries, honeysuckle or bird cherry. Fruits were also grown in the south of the Krasnoyarsk Territory. As a rule, the obtained meat and caught fish were cooked over a fire, using taiga herbs as additives. At the moment, Siberian cuisine is distinguished by the active use of home canning.