Other Definitions
yakutsk (dest)
yakutsk (enc)
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Yakutsk The Sakha Republic is the traditional homeland of the Yakut people who today represent about one-third of the population. Yakuts (Yakuti in Russian) live in Siberia in the basin of the Middle Lena River and the Aldan and Vilyuy rivers and farther north. It is an area of primarily taiga vegetation. The country is partly mountainous and partly lowland. The northern area is a tundra region. The climate is dry, with long and severe winters. The vegetation consists predominantly of larch, with some birch and pine. The animal life includes squirrel, Siberian ferret, ermine, hare, fox, bear, wolverine, elk, blue fox, wild reindeer, and musk deer. Fish are also abundant. Yakuts were primarily pastoralists, whereas their neighbors were hunters and fishers. Nine-tenths of the population lived in the central regions, in the former Okrugs of Yakutskiy and Vilyuyskiy, and these people were the "typical" Yakuts. A third group in the region of Olekminsk was considerably Russianized, while the northern groups, e.g., the Dolgan, were reindeer herders and in general resembled the Tungus and Yukagirs. The feature that most clearly distinguished the Yakut from their neighbors was the fact that their dominant economic activity was the herding of horses and cattle. Pastoralism preserved a semi-nomadic way of life. The Yakut moved twice a year between winter and summer camps, and their settlements were very widely scattered. The winter camps consisted of two or three dwellings with a total population of less than 20. The summer camps were usually somewhat larger. The yurt, the predominant type of dwelling, was a square structure with a pyramidal roof. Fire was religiously important--it was considered the protector of the family--and consequently the hearth was the most important area of the dwelling. Fishing was the second most important economic activity. Hunting was done primarily for furs. The Russians introduced agriculture in the mid-nineteenth century, but it was never widely practiced. The diet consisted primarily of dairy products, secondarily of fish, thirdly of vegetable products, and lastly of meat. At the time of Russian contact, the Yakut were divided into a number of subgroups, called d'on or aymakh, which were engaged in constant warfare with each other. The aymakh were exogamic, and fellow members were considered "clansmen." The aymakh were further subdivided into smaller clans. An aristocracy headed the clans, the toyons, who were also military leaders. The toyons were wealthy and had large herds, and they employed the labor of slaves and their dependent clansmen. The primary social unit was the nuclear family. Marriages were usually monogamous, but in the early nineteenth century, polygamy was practiced among the wealthy. This situation gave rise to the erroneous notion of maternal clans. Yakut clans were definitely patrilineal. They were, however, subdivided. These subdivisions were all descended from the same progenitor but by different wives. The clans were maintained up to the time of the Revolution in the form of administrative units. Each clan constituted a community called an aga-usa. The community elected elders and formed a council. The next level of organization was a naslegi, and the level after that was an ulus. Each level had a council of elected elders. Siberian peoples are known for shamanism. The shaman among the Yakut was considered to be an attendant to the spirits. Men or women could be shamans, but women were considered to be more powerful. The main duties of a shaman were to cure sick people and prevent catastrophes. Source: Marlene M. Martin Other indigenous people who live in Yakutia include Eveni, Evenki, Dolgane, Chukchi and Yukaghiri. Like Yakuts, they herd reindeer and hunt and fish.
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