On the territory of Ugra land the Khanty and Mansi, peoples with original and unique culture, have been living more than 5000 years. Not only legends, fairy-tales and ancestral song-stories keep their customs and traditions till our days, not only peculiar to the aboriginal nations of the North philosophy of outward world, nature and person perception, but the way of these people life, living in an affecting chime with fragile, vulnerable, though appeared to be severe on the face of it, nature of the North.
The common name of these two kindred nations is the “Ob Ugrs”. Ethnonims “khanty” and “mansi” were formed from the names of nations “khante” (khande, kantyk) and “man’si”, which means “human being”. The old names of the Ob Ugrs which used till 1930 were “ostyaki” and “voguly”.
The explorers consider the culture of the Ob Ugrs as two-componential. Northern, taiga-aboriginal, component includes the elements of culture, which spread among the nations of taiga zone of the Western Siberia (boats, skies, sledges and etc.). Southern component testifies to the acquaintance of their ancestors with steppe culture (embroidered clothes, metal work instruments, a shawl and the special role of a horse).
Since olden days the Khanty and Mansi peoples were engaged in hunting and fishing. The most important trade animals were a reindeer, an elk and a beaver. The prey of water-fowl, hunting, constructing of fences and catching-holes played a very important role in life of the Ob Ugrs. Since olden days the aboriginal inhabitants practiced fish catching in artificially paled ponds or parts of rivers.
The land of Ugra is rich in berries (cloudberries, cowberries, cranberries and etc.), mushrooms and cedar nuts, therefore gathering is widely spread among Northern peoples.
The culture of the Khanty and Mansi was heathen till the 17-th century, but comparing with other nations of Siberia the Khanty and Mansi have felt more essential influence of Christianity. Spreading of Orthodox belief caused the inclusion into the heathen pantheon the figure of Mikol Toruma (Nicholas Ugodnik), correlation of the triad of main divinities Numi-Torum (the God of Heaven), Mir-susne-hum (the person, who looking after the world) and Kaltash-Ekvy (the Goddess of motherhood and life) with the figures of the Father, the Son and the God’s mother. Calendar rites of the Ob Ugrs turned out dated for Orthodox dates, but haven’t lost their heathen base, for example the Crow day corresponded to Annunciation, donations to water spirits after opening of rivers and to forest spirits at the beginning of winter hunting corresponded with Peter day and the Protection.
In religious-mythological view of the Ob Ugrs the Universe consists of the Heaven (Torum), the Earth (Khanty - Mykh, Mansi - Syan-Torum) and the Underground world (Khanty - Il-Torum, Mansi - Yoli-Ma). The head of the pantheon of Ugrian idols is the master of the Upper world (Heavan) – Torum-iki (Numi-Torum). His name means “heaven”, “universe”, “weather”, “higher idol”. He considered as the earth creator and the world-order organizer. The Heaven sphere is multi-layer. Spirits of the Higher World live on each of seven iron layers, among them Moon-old man (Khanty – Tylys-iki, Mansi – Etpos-oika), Sun-woman (Khanty – Hatl-imi, Mansi – Hotl-ekva), Wind-old man (Khanty – Vat-iki), Thunder-old man (Khanty – Pai-iki, Mansi – Syahyl-Torum).
Numi-Torum’s wife is the Heaven goddess Kaltash, who respected as the progenitress and the hostess of everything earthy. Great Goddess-Mother makes person’s soul, rocking seven times seven heavenly cradles on the golden roof of her dwelling.
The Underground world (Hell) is the realm of dead, illnesses and death, it belongs to Black old man (Khanty – Hyn-iki, Mansi – Kul-otyr). He is Numi-Torum’s brother-enemy and an accomplice of the world creation. He was born underground and considered as evil personification. He damages to people, sends trials and illnesses. People bring a piece of black fabric to their homes from Black old man’s sanctuary and sew clothes for his home incarnation – sharp-headed threshold keeper (khanty – Kur-iltpi-iki, mansi – Samsai-oika). A six-fingered monster Perne, evil spirits-kuli, numerous hordes of gnats and mosquitoes, who dwell in the Underground world, submit to the God of the Underground world, who can take the form of a loom or a black raven. Such is a world-order established.
It wasn’t always peace in Heaven, on Earth and in Underground. Long-long ago according the ancient Ugrs legend the duck-“luly” has got the Earth from under water by order of High God Torum. Numerous sons and daughters of Torum and Kaltash possess the Earth, they were got down from heaven to manage people’s affairs.
The men looking-after-the world (Khanty – Mir-savite-ho, Mansi – Mir-susne-hum) won superiority on the earth, conquered his elder brothers in a contest, organized by Torum. The Milky Way appearance in the vault of heaven connected with Mir-susne-hum’s hunting for “a six-legged and six-armed animal” (an elk). The legendary hunter fastened the elk skin to the vault of heaven – it is the Constellation of Elk (the Great Bear) and a track of his skies was left in the sky (The Milky Way). In mythological legends Mir-susne-hum considered as people’s defender and a mediator between the world of people and the world of gods, as a shaman’s teacher. In myths and legends he appeared in a form of a goose, a swan, a fox or an otter.
The elder of Torum’s sons is Ob-old man (Khanty As-iki, Mansi As-oika). According to the Khanty and Mansi peoples’ conceptions he dwells in the “patterned house, made by scales of small fish” and sends fish to the river Ob and its tributaries. People address their requests about successful fishing to him.
The most honourable spirit of the Ob Ugrs is Mother of Fire (Khanty – Nai-imi, Mansi – Nai-ekva). Mother of Fire lives in each fireplace and her soul abides in a blue edge of fire. She arises as a woman dressed in a red robe-“sah” and a shawl. It considered that Nai-imi protects a dwelling from evil spirits, keeps its inmates from illnesses and helps to save happiness.
Traditional religious beliefs of the Ob Ugrs are founded on belief in great number of spirits. Numerous children of High God Torum are esteemed as river hosts and at the same time as spirit-protectors of different territorial groups of the Khanty and Mansi.
Urman old man and old woman (Khanty – Vont-iki and Vot-imi, Mansi Vorkul) were the hosts of taiga and animals and birds, who dwell there. Sometimes daughters of the hosts of taiga got married the ordinary people. A successful marriage guaranteed the fortune in trades, abundance and longevity.
One of the traditional holidays of the Khanty and Mansi peoples was “bear merrymaking”. Among all animals a bear is the most respected one. His figure occupies an important place in the Ob-Ugrian mythological conceptions. According the Khanty and Mansi traditional view a bear killed during the hunting stays “alive”. Prey of a bear was a holiday and a fun it was the arrival of a desired “guest” to the hunter’s home. A bear’s fell was taken away with special ceremonies with its head and forepaws. The head was packed up the hoop-cradle maid of a bird cherry tree and was conveyed to a settlement on sledge or on boat. Having heard preventive shots or shouts the women met the hunters. Strewing with snow or showering on water signified ablution and represent the beginning of merrymaking. Carrying the animal into a house and imposition of it on a honourable place – to the front corner, accompanied with thrice-repeated shout-greeting. The bear was dressed out, eyes and nose were hid with circles made of birchen bark or with metallic buttons, a cap was put on the head and a belt (if it was a male) or a shawl (if it was a female), paws were decorated with beads and rings. People put food out – bread, fish, berries and wine. In view of that, relatives and neighbors gathered from everywhere. It supposed that not only people, but also spirits-divinities represented by men-actors in mythological dances and songs gathered to this holiday. Sounds of musical instruments haven’t ceased for 4-5 or even 7 nights. Actors have a rest only during a day. Animals taking soul away (a sea-gull, a fox, a cock, a crane, an eagle owl) visited “bear merrymaking” the last day of it. Their arrival and scornful attitude to the bear initialized the leaving of the taiga “guest” soul to heaven. The mourning declared after “bear merrymaking”. The bear’s skull was placed on a roof of a house or on a tree. The decorated head quite often was kept as a spirit-protector among other home relics.
According traditional conceptions of the Ob Ugrs the Heaven Virgin, who takes a figure of a crow, brings spring on her wings. Birds’ return, whose loud hubbub awakes dormant nature, turned into the holiday of the Sun and spring, which is called the “Crow day”.
Imposing divine pantheon of the Khanty and Mansi peoples supposed the existence of different religious places. One of the traditional variants of the Ob Ugrs’ heathen temples are the so-called “shaman’s” hills-heights, which serves as the place of people and High spirits communication. The territory bordering to the religious place considered as the spirit’s patrimony. It was prohibited to break a branch, to hunt, to fish, to gather berries and to cut a tree down unnecessarily. The man- the host of a spirit - elected by old men or by shamans to look after divinities and the heathen temple. He had a right to organize holidays and sacrifices. Any domestic animal could be a sacrificial animal, such as a deer, a hose, cattle, a ram or a cock.
A deer was the main wealth of the Northern nations. A deer is life. Tire-covers for “chums”, clothes and boots are made of deer fells, meet and blood of the animal are widely used as food, details of a harness, arrow-heads, cover plates for a bow, hooks for cradles and so on are made of deer bones. Reindeer put into sledges are used as a carrier. Dog-breeding is very popular among aboriginal nations. Dogs are used for hunting and also people put them into harness.
The Ob Ugrs led half-settled life, that’s why their settlements and dwellings had season character. During a year the Khanty and Mansi live in 2-4 settlements. They situated several kilometers from each other. The herds-reindeer men always built their summer settlements on a morass, where were fewer mosquitos. Summer settlements are built on a forest land of a river bank, covered from wind, where is possible to gather berries, to catch fish, to get wild fowl, reindeer and elks. Winter settlements with heated dwellings, with supplies of firewood and with depot for frozen fish are built in forests. Spring settlements are constructed on open places, where pasture of deer is possible.
Probably nowhere people behave themselves so touchingly towards children, as in the North. “A child is born!” – this fact quickly passes from one nomad camp to another as though inviting to the family holiday. The special consideration was given to the upbringing of growing up children. Parents tried to prepare them to that life, which their grandfathers and great-grandfather lived.
