Editing Yukaghir people

{{Short description|Ethnic group in the Kolyma basin of the Russian Far East}}
{{About||the mountains|Yukaghir Highlands|the rural settlement in the Sakha Republic|Yukagir}}
{{Multiple issues|
{{more citations needed|date=March 2009}}
{{more footnotes needed|date= March 2009}}
{{Expand Russian|Юкагиры|date=September 2017}}
}}
{{infobox ethnic group
| group            = Yukaghir
| native_name      = деткиль, одул, вадул, алаи
| image            = Yukaghirs.jpg
| caption          = Yukaghirs from Yakutia, 1905.
| poptime          = 
| popplace         = 
| region1          = {{flag|Russia}}
* {{flag|Sakha}}: 1267
* {{flag|Chukotka}}: 205
* {{flag|Magadan Oblast}}: 70
| pop1             = 1,802
| ref1             = <ref>{{Cite web |title=Росстат — Всероссийская перепись населения 2020 |url=https://rosstat.gov.ru/vpn_popul |access-date=2023-01-03 |website=rosstat.gov.ru}}</ref>
| region2          = {{flag|Ukraine}}
| pop2             = 12
| ref2             = <ref name="2001.ukrcensus.gov.ua">[http://2001.ukrcensus.gov.ua/results/nationality_population/nationality_popul1/select_5/?botton=cens_db&box=5.1W&k_t=00&p=125&rz=1_1&rz_b=2_1%20%20&n_page=6 State statistics committee of Ukraine - National composition of population, 2001 census] (Ukrainian)</ref>
| region3          = {{flag|United States}}
| pop3             = 5
| rels             = [[Shamanism]], [[Russian Orthodoxy]]
| langs            = [[Yukaghir languages|Yukaghir]], [[Russian language|Russian]], [[Yakut language|Yakut]]
}}

The '''Yukaghirs''', or '''Yukagirs''' ({{Langx|ykg|вадул, деткиль}} ({{Transliteration|ykg|wadul, detkil}}), {{langx|ru|юкаги&#769;ры}}), are a [[Indigenous peoples of Siberia|Siberian]] [[ethnic group]] in the [[Russian Far East]], living in the [[drainage basin|basin]] of the [[Kolyma River]].

==Geographic distribution==
[[File:Расселение юкагиров в ДФО по городским и сельским поселениям, в %.png|thumb|400px|Settlement of Yukaghirs in the Far Eastern Federal District by urban and rural settlements in%, 2010 census]]
The Tundra Yukaghirs live in the Lower Kolyma region in the [[Sakha Republic]]; the Taiga Yukaghirs in the Upper Kolyma region in the Sakha Republic and in [[Srednekansky District]] of [[Magadan Oblast]]. By the time of Russian [[colonization]] in the 17th century, the Yukaghir tribal groups occupied territories from the [[Lena River]] to the mouth of the [[Anadyr River]]. The number of the Yukaghirs decreased between the 17th and 19th centuries due to [[epidemics]], internecine wars and [[Tsarist]] colonial policy which may have included genocide against the sedentary hunter-fisher Anaouls. Some of the Yukaghirs have assimilated with the [[Yakuts]], [[Evens]], and [[Russians]].

Currently, Yukaghirs live in the [[Sakha Republic]] and the [[Chukotka Autonomous Okrug]] of the Russian Federation. According to the 2002 Census, their total number was 1,509 people, up from 1,112 recorded in the [[Soviet Census (1989)|1989 Census]].

According to the latest 2001 all Ukrainian census, 12 Yukaghirs are living in [[Ukraine]]. Only 2 of them indicated [[Yukaghir languages|Yukaghir]] as their native language. For the remaining others (6) it is [[Russian language|Russian]] and for 1 it is some other tongue.<ref name="2001.ukrcensus.gov.ua"/>

Yukaghirs (including [[Chuvans]]) by selected settlements:<ref>{{Cite web |title=Паспорт муниципального образования |url=https://rosstat.gov.ru/scripts/db_inet2/passport/munr.aspx?base=munst98 |access-date=2024-12-17 |website=rosstat.gov.ru}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://std.gmcrosstata.ru/webapi/opendatabase?id=vpn2002_pert |access-date=2024-12-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190712135622/http://std.gmcrosstata.ru/webapi/opendatabase?id=vpn2002_pert |archive-date=12 July 2019 }}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|+
!Name&nbsp;
!Total population
!Yukaghir population
!Percentage of Yukaghir population
|-
|[[Nelemnoye|Nalemnoye]]
|230
|130
|56.52%
|-
|[[Andryushkino]]
|741
|197
|26.59%
|-
|[[Chersky (urban-type settlement)|Chersky]]
|2,641
|50
|1.90%
|-
|[[Markovo, Chukotka Autonomous Okrug|Markovo]]
|922
|255
|27.66%
|-
|[[Anadyr (town)|Anadyr]]
|13,043
|211
|1.62%
|-
|[[Chuvanskoye]]
|226
|134
|59.29%
|-
|[[Snezhnoye, Chukotka Autonomous Okrug|Snezhnoye]]
|313
|111
|35.46%
|}

== Genetics ==
Genetically, Yukaghirs exhibit roughly equal frequencies of the [[Y-DNA haplogroup]]s [[Haplogroup N-M231|N1c]], [[Haplogroup Q-M242|Q1]], and [[Haplogroup C-M217|C2]] (formerly C3).<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Duggan |first1=Ana T. |last2=Whitten |first2=Mark |last3=Wiebe |first3=Victor |last4=Crawford |first4=Michael |last5=Butthof |first5=Anne |last6=Spitsyn |first6=Victor |last7=Makarov |first7=Sergey |last8=Novgorodov |first8=Innokentiy |last9=Osakovsky |first9=Vladimir |last10=Pakendorf |first10=Brigitte |date=2013 |title=Investigating the Prehistory of Tungusic Peoples of Siberia and the Amur-Ussuri Region with Complete mtDNA Genome Sequences and Y-chromosomal Markers |journal=PLOS ONE |language=en |volume=8 |issue=12 |pages=e83570 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0083570 |doi-access=free |pmc=3861515 |pmid=24349531|bibcode=2013PLoSO...883570D }}</ref>

According to another study, out of 11 Yukaghir males 3 turned out to belong to the Y-haplogroup N1c (different subclade from the one found in Yakuts), another 4 - to the Y-haplogroup C2 (former C3; for the most part, the same subclade that's also found in [[Koryaks]]), one more - to the Y-[[Haplogroup O-M175|haplogroup O]], and the rest 3 exhibit apparent Russian genetic influence (two individuals belonging to the Y-[[haplogroup R1a]], and one more - to the Y-[[haplogroup I2a]]). The study also found no similarities between Yukaghirs and [[Chukchis]] in regards to [[mitochondrial DNA]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Fedorova |first1=Sardana A. |last2=Reidla |first2=Maere |last3=Metspalu |first3=Ene |last4=Metspalu |first4=Mait |last5=Rootsi |first5=Siiri |last6=Tambets |first6=Kristiina |last7=Trofimova |first7=Natalya |last8=Zhadanov |first8=Sergey I. |last9=Hooshiar Kashani |first9=Baharak |last10=Olivieri |first10=Anna |last11=Voevoda |first11=Mikhail I. |last12=Osipova |first12=Ludmila P. |last13=Platonov |first13=Fedor A. |last14=Tomsky |first14=Mikhail I. |last15=Khusnutdinova |first15=Elza K. |date=2013 |title=Autosomal and uniparental portraits of the native populations of Sakha (Yakutia): implications for the peopling of Northeast Eurasia |journal=BMC Evolutionary Biology |volume=13 |issue=1 |pages=127 |doi=10.1186/1471-2148-13-127 |doi-access=free |pmc=3695835 |pmid=23782551|bibcode=2013BMCEE..13..127F }}</ref>

==Subethnic groups==
[[File:Yukaghir shaman.jpg|thumb|400px|Yukaghir [[shaman]], 1902]]
Modern Yukaghirs are thought to be descendants of the late Neolithic [[Ymyyakhtakh culture]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Эверстов |first=Степан |date=2014 |title=Некоторые параллели в культурах древних ымыяхтахцев и юкагиров XVII-XIX вв |trans-title=Some cultural parallels between the ancient Ymyyakhtakh and the 17-19th century Yukaghirs |url=https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/nekotorye-paralleli-v-kulturah-drevnih-ymyyahtahtsev-i-yukagirov-xvii-xix-vv |language=ru |journal=Арктика и Север |issue=15 |access-date=2024-01-27}}</ref>

The 13 tribes that once constituted the Yukaghir group are: [[Vadul]]-[[Alais yukaghir|Alais]], [[Odul yukaghir|Odul]], [[Chuvans|Chuvan]], [[Anaoul]], [[Lavren yukaghir|Lavren]], [[Olyuben]], [[Omok language|Omok]], [[Penjin]], [[Khodynts yukaghir|Khodynts]], [[Khoromoy]], [[Shoromboy]], [[Yandin]], and Yandyr.

The surviving three tribes are the Odul of Nelemnoe, the Vadul of [[Andryushkino]] and the Chuvan of the Anadyr river area. Of the extinct groups, the most important were the Khodynts, the Anaoul (both of the Anadyr River area), and the Omok (north of the Chuvan). Sometimes the Chuvan are considered a separate people. The Chuvantsy language has been extinct since the early 20th century. In 2002, 1,087 identified themselves as Chuvan compared to more than 1,300 in 1989. The Vadul are mainly involved in reindeer herding while the Odul (Kogime) are mostly hunter-gatherers. The Vadul are also known as Tundra Yukaghir. The Odul are also known as Taiga Yukaghir or Kolyma Yukaghir. The Vadul and Odul languages are as different as [[German language|German]] is from [[Dutch language|Dutch]]. Both are nearing extinction, and Odul is in a much weaker state compared to Vadul. In the 1989 census, more than 700 of the Yukaghirs identified as Vadul while fewer than 400 were Odul.

The Yukaghir are one of the oldest peoples in North-Eastern Asia. Originally they lived over a huge territory from Lake Baikal to the Arctic Ocean. By the time of the first encounter with Russians, Yukaghir were divided into twelve tribes with around 9,000 people. The Yukagir ethnonym is ''Odul'' or ''Vadul'', which means “mighty”.

Tribal divisions among the Yukaghir are fading now, although in every census from 1926, significant number of tribesmen identified themselves with tribal divisions like Anaoul, Odul and Vadul rather than describing themselves as Yukaghir. The Soviet government actively discouraged this tendency and now only the most elderly identify this way. In the 2002 census, out of the 1,509 Yukaghirs, 51 identified themselves as Omok, 40 as Alais, 21 as Odul, 17 as Vadul, 6 as Khangait and 4 as Detkil.

===Clan system===
The head of every clan was an elder called a ''Ligey Shomorokh''. His was the final word in all aspects of life. Hunting leaders were ''Khangitche'', and war leaders were ''Tonbaia Shomorokh'' ("the mighty man"). Women and teenagers had equal voices with men. The internal life of the community was under the control of the older women. Their decisions in those matters were indisputable.

In the beginning of every summer all clans gathered for the ''Sakhadzibe'' festival, where mutual Yukaghir questions were discussed.

In the Yakut-Sakha Republic there are three nomadic extended family communities. These are Tchaila in [[Nizhnekolymsky District]], Teki Odulok in [[Verkhnekolymsky District]] and Ianugail in [[Ust-Yansky District]]. The head of Ianugail is I. I. Tomsky. The community's main activities are deer hunting and fishing. Tchaila is the biggest of the three. Its head is S. I. Kurilov. They have 4000 domesticated reindeer, 200 horses, and 20 cows. The community also hunts deer and polar foxes. There is also a shop where traditional skin and fur garments are made. The head of Teki Odulok is N. I. Shalugin. Their base is the village of Nelemnoe. This community is in the most difficult situation. Due to the “creative interpretation” of various Perestroika and privatization laws by the local and district administration and so-called businessmen, the community has lost all their reindeer, cows and even part of its land. All they have left are about 50 horses. They have no money for supplies for hunting and fishing. 80% of all adult population is ''de facto'' unemployed.

The highest forum for Yukagir is the all-people gathering ''Suktuul''.

==Culture==
[[File:Yukaghir man with dogs.jpg|left|thumb|Photo of Yukaghir man with his [[Laika (dog type)|laika]] taken by [[Vladimir Jochelson]] during the [[Jesup North Pacific Expedition]] in 1901]]
[[File:Irina Duskulova.png|thumb|Modern Yukaghir singer [[Irina Duskulova]]]]
The main traditional activity is nomadic and semi-nomadic hunting of deer, moose, wild sheep, and sable, as well as fishing. Reindeer are bred mostly for transportation. [[Horse]]s are known among the Yukaghir as "domestic reindeer of [[Yakuts]]" (''Yoqod ile'' in [[Tundra Yukaghir language|Tundra Yukaghir]] or ''Yaqad āçə'' in [[Southern Yukaghir language|Kolyma Yukaghir]]). A Yukaghir house is called a ''chum''.

The decline of traditional economic activities, the unfavorable environmental situation of the Yukaghir's traditional lands and waters, and the absence of local and federal laws and executive mechanisms protecting indigenous peoples in Russia, have not aided the welfare and continuation of traditional Yukaghir communities. The average life span for men is 45 years, and 54 years for women. Child mortality is the highest in the Yakut-Sakha Republic. In addition, one expedition made to the Yukaghir found that most had no knowledge of traditional Yukaghir culture.

===Language===
The [[Yukaghir languages]] are a small language family of two closely related languages, Tundra Yukaghir and Kolyma Yukaghir, although there used to be more. They are unclassified languages: their origin and relation to other languages are unknown; some scholars consider them distantly related to the [[Uralic languages]],<ref name=UralicYukaghir>{{harvnb|Nikolaeva|Mayer|2004|loc=ch. “[http://www.sgr.fi/yukaghir/start1.html About the Yukaghirs]”}}</ref> but this classification is not accepted by the majority of specialists in Uralic linguistics. The languages are regarded as moribund, since less than 370 people can speak either Yukaghir language. Most Yukaghirs today speak [[Yakut language|Yakut]] and [[Russian language|Russian]].

===Religion===
Alongside Russian Orthodox beliefs, Yukaghirs practice [[shamanism]]. The dominant cults are ancestral spirits, the spirits of Fire, [[Pugu (deity)|Sun (Pugu)]], Hunting, Earth, and Water, which can act as protectors or as enemies of people. The most important is the cult of ''Pugu'', the Sun, who is the highest judge in all disputes. The spirits of the dead go to a place called ''Aibidzi''. Every clan had a shaman called an ''alma''. After death every ''alma'' was treated as a deity, and the body of the dead ''alma'' was dismembered and kept by the clan as relics. The Yukaghir still continue traditions stemming from their origins as nomadic reindeer-hunters: they practice dog sacrifice and have an epic poem based around crows. The animal cult was especially strong in the elk cult. There was a number of rituals and taboos connected with elk and deer hunting.<ref>[https://www.insidethenewrussia.com/yukagir/ Inside the New Russia (1994): Yukagirs]</ref>

==See also==
*[[Paleosiberian languages]]
*[[Uralic–Yukaghir languages]]
<!-- *[[Uralic languages|Uralic]]
*[[Eurasiatic languages|Eurasiatic]]
*[[Nostratic languages|Nostratic]] -->
*[[Yukaghir birch-bark carvings]]

==References==
===Notes===
* {{cite web |last1=Nikolaeva |first1=Irina |last2=Mayer |first2=Thomas |title=Online Documentation of Kolyma Yukaghir |publisher=Suomalais-Ugrilainen Seura (Finno-Ugrian Society, Société Finno-Ougrienne) |year=2004 |url=http://www.sgr.fi/yukaghir/}} Also free online available audio materials (tales, songs).
* {{cite web |first=Lembit |last=Vaba |title=The Yukaghirs |publisher=NGO Red Book |work=The Red Book of the Peoples of the Russian Empire |url=http://www.eki.ee/books/redbook/yukaghirs.shtml}}
* {{cite web |title=Yukaghirs |publisher=SC Publishing |work=Inside the New Russia | year=1994 |url=https://www.insidethenewrussia.com/yukagir/}}

===Footnotes===
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://arctic-megapedia.ru/wiki/%D0%9F%D0%BE%D1%80%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%BB:%D0%AE%D0%BA%D0%B0%D0%B3%D0%B8%D1%80%D1%8B Yukaghir portal] in Arctic Megapedia {{in lang|ru}}
* [https://www.youtube.com/@irinakurilova8679/videos Irina Kurilova's channel] (mostly Yukaghir-related videos, sometimes featuring other indigenous peoples of Yakutia) {{in lang|ru}}

'''Modern culture:'''

* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfWpKd3oHXk Irina Duskulova - "Chakhadan" (live, w/ English subtitles)]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BQRuOZmipM Irina Duskulova - "Ulegen Nume" (music video)]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DjfzmqiHgTg Irina Duskulova - "Shakhadjibe" (music video, 2023)]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSv3GYlRLnY Concert @ 5th Yukaghir congress] (20 March 2016)
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8SY9CkP23Y Yukaghir folk singer Ragtyna Tymkal]
* ''[[Den Pobedy]]'' [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wj_rfCflWWc&t=47 in Yukaghir by Anastasia Kurilova]
* ''[[Ave Maria]]'' [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3iATuPhPCTE in Yukaghir by Yakut singer Saina]

{{Indigenous peoples of Russia}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Yukaghir people| ]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Russia]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Siberia]]
[[Category:Indigenous peoples of Siberia]]
[[Category:Indigenous small-numbered peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East]]
[[Category:Hunter-gatherers of Asia]]
[[Category:Modern nomads]]
[[Category:Nomadic groups in Eurasia]]
[[Category:People from Chukotka Autonomous Okrug]]
[[Category:People from Magadan Oblast]]
[[Category:People from the Sakha Republic]]