The present issue Arctic Studies 5 (which is also Pro Ethnologia 11) contains a digest of reports which were outlined within the annual conference of the Estonian National Museum called Identity of Arctic Cultures, held between the 1315 April 2000. This issue is a sequel to the publication of the conference materials started in Pro Ethnologia 10.
The conference involved participants, from five countries (namely Finland, Hungary, Norway, Russia and Estonia), all being outstanding researchers. The conference dealt with miscellaneous subject areas, considering both geographical aspects (e.g. Ainus, North-Siberian peoples, Smis, as well as some peoples inhabiting the areas near the Northern Pole), and also cultural aspects. The main elements of the Arctic peoples identity were seen as language, sources of livelihood, material cultural heritage, environmental conditions, overall socio-economic situation, contemporary literature tradition, as well as world view and folk art. The topics also involved descriptions of Arctic cultures on the basis of museum exhibits and other data available in museums, and also the opinions of different researchers about essential aspects of Arctic cultures. Relevant discussions were also provided in the workshop Changing Ethnic Identities held within the conference.
Tatyana Bulgakova (Sankt-Petersburg) analyses in her article the experiences of Nanai shamans on a stage before an audience. During the Soviet period, they started to perform in folklore festivals and concerts. Bulgakova discusses how this fits into Nanais traditional world view.
Tatyana Sem (Sankt-Petersburg) examines the connections between the traditional world view and mythology of Nanais. The author creates fascinating links between different aspects of Nanais world view and puts up intriguing interpretations of the underlying aspects of Nanais identity.
Irina Karapetova and Karina Solovyova, researchers of the Russian Ethnography Museum (Sankt-Petersburg), in their research, analyse Khanty oral tradition recounting Yavun-iki, a guardian spirit of the river Yugan. They also examine Yugan Khanties mythology in a wider context.
Yelena Pivneva (Moscow) deals her article The Re-establishment of Ob-Ugrian Traditional Family Lands Back to the Past or a Step Towards the Future? with the current issues of the use of land and water resources in Khanty and Mansi communities.
Yelena Martynovas (Tobolsk) article Reindeer Herding as a Possibility for Maintaining Ethnic Traditions in the Modern Environment. (The Ob-Ugrian Experience) is also dedicated to the present day survival possibilities of Ob-Ugrians.
Anzori Barkalaja, rector of the Viljandi College of Culture (Estonia), examines identity changes of the Pim River Khanties in a context of environmental changes. He claims that until the 1980s, the Pim Khanties lived in a relative isolation, with Christianisation, civilisation and Sovietisation campaigns having little impact on their attitudes. Within the last two decades, however, expansion of oil industry, road-building and town-planning has changed considerably the environment in the area around the river Pim. In a situation of radical change, Khanties have chosen diverse survival strategies.
Tatyana Minniyakhmetova (Tartu) touches on connections between Udmurt traditional world view and Udmurt identity. She considers the peripheral Udmurt group living on the other side of the Kama River as an example. According to her, the Udmurts living over the Kama River have maintained a number of archaic attitudes in their everyday life, which can be regarded as the underlying aspects of Udmurt tradition.
Gbor Wilhelm (Budapest) looks at the development of the current identity of Ainu people. The present day cultural identity of Ainus has been established through protest movements for their surroundings. Wilhelm claims that although that protests may not have a considerable impact on the life of small ethnic groups, they increase cultural activity.
Finally, a short surveys of the multidisciplinary journal The Northern Review, published by the Yukon College, Canada, is included in this issue.
The board wants to thank the Finnish Institute in Estonia, Tartu Branch Office, as well as the Tartu NEFA group and the Estonian Cultural Endowment, being the groups which supported the conference. Also, the conference was part of the grant No 3134, noted as Identity of Arctic Cultures of the Estonian Science Foundation. The organising committee and editorial board are grateful to everybody who assisted the organisation of the conference and the publication of the present issue.
January 2001
