Russia is |
Peoples of Russia
Evenks
The Evenks (Tungus; their self-designation is Evenkil) are the second largest among the native small-number peoples of the North after the Nenets (about 35 thousand people).
Language
The Evenki language belongs to the Tungus-Manchu branch of the Altai language family, and until the 1930s it did not have a writing system. Little by little the Evenki language, especially in cities and settlements, is replaced by the Russian, the Yakutian and the Buryat language.
Dispersion
The majority of the Evenks lives in Yakutia (18.2 thousand people, Olenyok, Bulun, Zhigan, Aldan, Ust-May regions, Yakutsk), Khabarovsk territory (4.5 thousand people), the Evenk district of the Krasnoyarsk territory (3.8 thousand), Buryatia (2.3 thousand), Amur (1.5 thousand) and Irkutsk (1.4 thousand) regions and the Transbaikal territory (1.3 thousand people).
Ethnic groups
Provisionally Evenks can be divided into two large groups: the western (the Evenks of the Western and Middle Siberia) and the eastern (the Evenks of the Transbaikalia and the Far East).
Traditional occupations
Hunting, fishing, cattle breeding, sea hunting.
Dwellings
The tent of the Tungus-Evenks was called dyu. In summer, it was covered with boiled birch bark (the birch bark tent was called tyksama dyu) or larch bark. The winter tents of the Evenks were called golomo uten and covered with felt, birchbark, reindeer skins, and over all this earth and snow were piled upon. Places to the right and to the left of the entrance were intended for the hosts, those to the sides of the hearth, for family members and female guests, and the warmest place (malu) behind the hearth, in front of the entrance, for male guests. In the absence of guests the place of honor was intended for male occupations: repairing tackle, woodwork, etc.
