The Nenets

This is one of the reasons I endeavor to learn Russian



These are clearly some of the most badass people on planet earth. Reindeer herding nomads who survived Stalin.

Look at their faces! They aren't Slavic. They Aren't Mongols. They aren't Nordic. They aren't Aleut or Chukchi.

I've had a Nenets phrase book c/o FreeLang dictionaries for almost 3 years now. I really want to hang out with these folks some day.

A little background from Wikipedia for folks like me who never heard of them before. The Russians call them ненцы, there are only about 45,000 of them, and they live in the far north of Russia, on the Ob and Yenesay rivers. (The Ob is the one that Soviet engineers imfamously spent decades planning to reverse the northward flow of, scheming to run it south to replenish the Aral sea. But they never actually did it.)

And here's some amazing soviet archival footage of tradition sustainable indigenous life in the high arctic shot in 1963.



These are the Nganasan

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nganasan_people

At the risk of sliding from 'permaculture' to 'culture' to 'Landon's Idea of an awesome freya's day night' Here is one more video on the Nganasan. This one is all in Russian and is a modern half hour spot documenting these peoples attempt to preserve their ancient beliefs and culture. I do not speak Russian fluently but it is clear that they have had their fill of Christian missionaries. Which is exactly how the indigenous people of the Yarapa basin in Peru felt. Similar circumstances I guess.

They practice a form of Shamanism and I am shocked at the similarities in some of the customs between Siberia and North America. It speaks to a very long tradition indeed.

Ray Mears did an episode with these folks as well

Cool! Got a link?? Or, must I be British to avoid paying royalties to the BBC?

...

And then theirs communism...

"No!"

"We are not going there..."

"Bad!"

"Bad permie!"

Do you have a link? I learn a whole lot watching traditional methods of doing stuff.

Sorry for the humor... I mostly just talk to my dog. He's Rad. he'd be an even Rader sled dog.

Wait, radler?

...

Hast du bier gehaben?

I need to look this shit up...

Who's Ray Mears?

Links would be great.

Landon, check the stuff from "Nicolas Vanier" if you like this sort of stuff.

Satamax,

Sounds interesting,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicolas_Vanier

No links as of yet. I guess I'll have to check at my local library.