Editing Nenets (section)

== History and way of life ==
{{see also|Great Perm}}
[[File:Юрак (Ненец).jpg|thumb|left|upright|Nenets man, c. 1862]]
[[File:Nenets people near Dudinka (Ru200008050079).jpg|thumb|250px|A group of Nenets in [[Dudinka]] (2000)]]
[[File:Nenets.jpg|thumb|250px|Nenets family, 2006]]
There are two distinct groups of Nenets ''sensu stricto'', based on their economy: the [[Tundra Nenets]] (living far to the north) and the [[Khandeyar]], or Forest Nenets. A distinct third group of Nenets, (Yaran people), has emerged as a result of intermarriages between Nenets and [[Izhma Komi]] people.

The [[Samoyedic languages]] form a branch of the [[Uralic languages|Uralic language family]]. According to one theory, they moved from farther south in [[Siberia]] to the northernmost part of what later became Russia sometime before the 12th century.

They ended up between the [[Kanin Peninsula|Kanin]] and [[Taymyr Peninsula|Taymyr]] [[peninsula]]s, around the [[Ob River|Ob]] and [[Yenisei River|Yenisey]] rivers, with only a few of them settling into small communities like Kolva. Their main subsistence comes from hunting and [[reindeer herding]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Golovnev |first=Andreĭ Vladimirovich |url=https://books.google.com/books/about/Siberian_Survival.html?id=aDA9JQbdAf4C&source=kp_book_description |title=Siberian Survival: The Nenets and Their Story |last2=Osherenko |first2=Gail |date=1999 |publisher=Cornell University Press |isbn=978-0-8014-3631-4 |pages=7-8 |language=en}}</ref> Using reindeer as a draft animal throughout the year enables them to cover great distances. Large-scale reindeer herding emerged in the 18th century. They bred the [[Samoyed (dog)|Samoyed dog]] to help herd their reindeer and pull their sleds, and [[Europe]]an explorers later used these dogs for [[Geographical pole|polar]] expeditions, because they were well adapted to the [[arctic]] conditions. [[Tundra Wolf|Tundra wolves]] can cause considerable economic loss, as they prey on the reindeer herds which are the livelihood of some Nenets families.<ref name="soviet">Heptner, V. G. & Naumov, N., P. (editors) ''Mammals of the Soviet Union'' Vol.II Part 1a, SIRENIA AND CARNIVORA (Sea cows; Wolves and Bears), Science Publishers, Inc. USA. 1998. {{ISBN|1-886106-81-9}}</ref> However, the introduction of [[snowmobiles]] in the 1990s allowed the Nenets of the [[Yamal Peninsula]] to decimate the local wolf population, as the wolves have nowhere to hide on the open tundra.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Terekhina |first1=Alexandra |title=The context of an emerging predation problem: Nenets reindeer herders and Arctic foxes in Yamal. |journal=European Journal of Wildlife Research |date=2021 |volume=67 |issue=3 |pages=2–3|doi=10.1007/s10344-021-01497-z |bibcode=2021EJWR...67...52T |hdl=10037/24467 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> Along with reindeer meat, fish is a major component in the Nenets' diet. Nenets housing is conical [[yurt]] (mya).

They have a [[shaman]]istic and [[animistic]] belief system which stresses respect for the land and its resources.<ref name=":9" /> During migrations, the Nenets placed sacred items like bear skins, religious figures, coins and more on a holy sleigh. The contents of this sacred sleigh are only unpacked during special occasions or for religious rituals (like sacrifices). However, only esteemed elders are allowed to unpack the sacred sleigh.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Human: The Definitive Guide |publisher=[[Dorling Kindersley]] |year=2004 |isbn=0-7566-0520-2 |editor-last=Winston|editor-first=Robert |location=New York |pages=428}}</ref> They had a [[clan]]-based social structure. The Nenets shaman is called a [[Tadibya]].

[[File:SIIDA Inari, Suomi Finland 2013-03-10 Nenets - A People of the Tundra 01.jpg|thumb|Exhibition dedicated to the culture of the Nenets at [[Siida (museum)|Siida museum]] in Finland]]
After the [[Russian Revolution of 1917|Russian Revolution]], the Nenets culture suffered due to the [[Collectivization in the Soviet Union|Soviet]] [[collectivisation|collectivization]] policy. The government of the [[Soviet Union]] tried to force the nomadic Samoyeds to settle down permanently. They were forced to settle in villages and their children were educated in state boarding schools, which resulted in erosion of their cultural identity.<ref name=":9" /> One significant way in which the Nenets culture was affected was in the change of the male's societal role. Previously, in the tundra, the male had the very important task of herding the reindeer. However, once the Nenets had to transition to a life away from the tundra, men found that they had lost their role. Much of the responsibility that awaited them in the village was considered, from the traditional point of view, to be women's work.<ref name=":9" /> This erasure in the male identity was further enhanced by the Soviet government. In taiga villages occupations such as market gardening, fur farming, cattle breeding, trade, medicine, etc. were emphasized and these happened to be the ones that were marketed towards women.<ref name=":9" /> Lastly, the jobs offered by the Soviet government were often occupied by women and not men as many of the men had taken up the habit of hard drinking.<ref name=":9" /> Consequently, the once traditional culture of the Nenets people was swiftly upended. Many, especially in the [[Nenets Autonomous Okrug]], lost their mother tongue and became assimilated.
[[File:The Nenets camp (model) 01.JPG|thumb|A [[Kholmogory bone carving|walrus ivory model]] of the Nenets encampment (18th century)]]
One repercussion from the collectivization policy was reindeer ownership. Due to the collectivization policy, many herders moved north while many of those that remained were "deprived of their reindeer".<ref name=":9" /> Nenets people once owned many reindeer but after the war, many Nenets had to transition to small-scale herding.<ref name=":9" />  Although the Nenets herders were greatly affected, their lifestyle was not at threat for too long. While in the rest of Russia, the collectivization policy lasted for a very long time, it was only invoked onto the Yamal area for a decade.<ref name=":9" /> This was because after Stalin's death in 1953, traditional economies were saved. 1950 to 1960 saw a 50% increase of reindeer and this number had almost doubled by 1980.<ref name=":9" /> The next few decades saw the slow progress of the Nenets people regaining and preserving their traditional nomadic lifestyle. The accomplishment of appeasing officials while maintaining their culture was achieved through a series of stratagems. For example, herders would often mix up the herds so that inspectors would find it impossible to see the true ratio of private to collective deer.<ref name=":9" /> Another method was for young herders to get a job as official workers of the state and pasture their own collective reindeer herd along with the private herd of one of their relatives. Once these herds were together and migration commenced, officials would not be able to know which of the reindeer were privately owned.<ref name=":9" /> 

Since the 1930s, a few Nenets have expressed themselves professionally through cultural media. For instance, [[Tyko Vylka]] and [[Konstantin Pankov]] became well-known painters. [[Anna Nerkagi]] is one of the most celebrated Nenets writers. [[Yuri Vella]], though living as a reindeer herder, has become the first writer in the [[Forest Nenets language]].

In the context of the [[Russian invasion of Ukraine]] since 2022, the Nenets have been reported as one of Russia's [[Demographics of Russia|ethnic minority]] groups suffering from a disproportionally large [[Casualties of the Russo-Ukrainian War|casualty rate]] among Russian forces.<ref>{{cite news |title=2 Years Into Ukraine War, Russia's Ethnic Minorities Disproportionately Killed in Battle |url=https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/02/24/2-years-into-ukraine-war-russias-ethnic-minorities-disproportionately-killed-in-battle-a84170 |work=[[The Moscow Times]] |date=24 February 2024}}</ref> According to activist and researcher Maria Vyushkova, the oil and gas industry in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug "doesn't bring anything to the indigenous population. On the contrary, it destroys the environment and what they live on - reindeer herding and fishing. Consequently, being in a dire economic situation, people are forced to join the army."<ref>{{cite news |title=Ukraine war: Tuva and Buryatia pay the highest price, but latest BBC Russian casualty figures show poverty not ethnicity the key factor |url=https://bbcrussian.substack.com/p/ukraine-war-tuva-and-buryatia-pay-highest-price |work=BBC News Russian |date=30 November 2023}}</ref>