The Yukagirs

Approx. 1500 Yukagirs live in Yakutia.

Yukagirs, autodenomination is Odul/ Vadul, “strong», co-existed with the names of the separate territorial and tribal groups: chuvan, anaul, khodyn, omok, etc.

The Yukagirs are divided into few tribes. The biggest ones were the Khodyns, Chuvans and Anauls. They were characterized by the low level of the ethnic consciousness.

According to the place of living the Yukagirs were divided into some territorial-economic groups.

Anthropologically the Yukagirs belong to the Baikal type of the North Asia race. The Yukagirs are in the middle Ural group (Mansi, Nenets, Khants), but have a big expression of the Mongoloid complex, that shows the former Ural-Yukagir unity.

The Yukagir language systematic place is ambiguous. Traditionally it is included into the Paleo-Asiatic linguistic family. The Ural basis presence allows including it into the Ural-Yukagir linguistic family. Territorially it is divided into the verkhnekolymsky and tundra dialects. The Yukagirs are considered to be the descendants of the North-East Siberia ancient people; their culture is genetically connected with the late Neolithic Ymyyahtah culture tradition, represented in the archeological memorials from Kheta to Chukotka.

Provided by Youth Assembly of the Peoples of the Republic Sakhà (Yakutia).
Translated by Yulia Rodina, 4th year student of Foreign Languages Faculty, Yakutsk State University.