Traditional economic activities and the utilisation of natural resources are the most important factors, supporting cultural independence and ethnic entirety among the indigenous peoples of the North. This gives special significance to the problems, which are connected with the re-establishment and stabilisation of the complex traditional economy of these nations. In the form of a territorial organisation of traditional nature utilisation, in various regions of Siberia, during the last decade, the family lands have been re-established (industrial lands, the name family lands is not precise enough). This paper deals with some of the problems connected with the functioning of this institute, using the example of Ob-Ugrians in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug (hereinafter KMAO). Can these family lands serve as a basis for ethnic revival of indigenous people? – this is the question I would like to discuss.

Since the beginning of the 1990s, parallel with the collapse of state and collective enterprises, which used to be the framework for the functioning of traditional branches of economy in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, the resettlement of the indigenous people to the lands of their ancestors was launched. The expectations of the Northern indigenous minority nations to maintain and develop their traditional life and environment, which is the basis of their existence, language, ethnic culture and self-identification, are connected with the implementation of legal acts, concerning land and natural resources. The attempt of indigenous people to legally safeguard the lands of traditional economic activities, was the most important reason for the creation of family lands in the KMAO. According to the "Regulation about the status of family lands in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug" (1992), these lands are determined as a natural-territorial complex where the indigenous people have historically lived a traditional life. Pursuant to the Regulation, the owners of family lands independently use the natural resources or dealing with the traditional economy (hunting, fishing, animal husbandry, reindeer herding, collection of natural products, etc.), within the boundaries of the family lands (Article 14).

In the territory of the indigenous people of the North, it is possible to form communities which are entitled to determine the rules for the usage of these lands (Article 6) and resources (Article 14) and, on a negotiated basis, issue the right for fishing, hunting wild animals, collection of natural products, using other resources of these lands to companies and natural persons (Article 19).

Settlement of disputed questions and conflict situations is carried out, according to the "Regulation about the status of family lands", by the responsible administration or by court. Prerogatives of the administration include rules for the allotment of family lands (Article 9), registration and execution of the document for the right of ownership of family lands (Article 10), deeds of conveyance (Article 12). On the territories of family lands, as long as with the approval of their owners, local (village) authorities may allocate plots of land for hobby hunting and fishing, collection of natural products, for the production of animal food and for herding of the cattle (Article 18).

Today, there are approximately 460 family lands registered in the territory, about 5% of the Okrug's indigenous population lives there. The average area of family lands, 30 thousand hectares, is strongly differentiated between separate regions (from 5 thousand hectares in Kondinsk to 90 thousand hectares in Berezovsk). From the total area of the Okrug, the family lands occupy about 27% of the lands. The largest share of family lands is in the Surgut region of the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug – 54% of the territory, in Nefteyugansk – 49%, in Nizhnevartovsk – 25%.

Such territorial organisation for the traditional use of nature was conceived for the protection of the ancient life environment of the indigenous peoples of the North, for the maintenance and revival of traditional ways of life and spiritual culture of the indigenous peoples of the North. How much these objectives correspond with actual circumstances, can be judged with the help of concrete examples from the life of indigenous people living in family lands.

This paper uses the material collected during the summer of 1999, in the Khanty-Mansi region of the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug (geographically, the region lies in the Nazym basin, the administrative centre is Kyshik village). Since ancient times, the indigenous people in the Nazym basin have had two ways of using natural resources conditioned by natural-geographical factors. In the lower course of the river, the main occupation of the population was fishing, supported by animal breeding, hunting and collection of natural products; however, since the end of the 19^th century, horticulture has also been developed.

In the upper course of the river Nazym, hunting and reindeer herding were predominant, whereas fishing and collection of natural products was of secondary importance. The above-mentioned fields of occupation have preserved until today, but great changes have taken place in the structure and technology of reindeer herding and other industries. Narrow specialisation of large kolkhozes ruined the complexity of the traditional economy; the principles of the organisation of traditional occupations have changed. Industrial lands were far away from village centres. Some of these lands began to de-industrialise, they were neglected, the owners of the lands changed. New conditions led to the introduction of such forms of the usage of natural resources, which were not known earlier by the peoples of the North. Modern means of labour and transportation came into people's life. Traditional branches of the economy were organised differently – planes were used for taking people on fishing expeditions, hunters were sent to hunting lands for a long period of time.

The main part of family lands in the Khanty-Mansi region of the KMAO came into use during 1992–1994, into life-long heritable ownership, during the next year; these lands were rented to the indigenous population, with a term of 2–5 years. According to the data from 1999, 50 family lands were registered (approximately 22% of the total area of the region). An average area of one family land in the region ranges from 2,000 to 54,000 hectares.

Almost all these lands are registered to private persons (to the representatives of the indigenous peoples of the North, as well as to persons who had lived in the region for a long time, and to migrants), only two communities appear to be the owners of the lands ("Trenka" in the Nyalinsk territory and "Sogomsk" in the village of the same name).

Residential and household buildings of the owners of the family lands are mainly in the same place where the "ancient" sites of the Khanty and Mansi used to exist. However, the principles of allocating family lands within the borders of the territory, traditionally used by the ancestors, are not always followed (Article 8 of the "Regulation about the status of family lands"). When obtaining lands, the places, which are closer to the village, are preferred. Every landlord has the photocopy of the map depicting his plot of land and the marking of boundaries. In reality, the borders are not indicated and are currently open to everybody. With the consent of the owners, people from nearby residential areas can go fishing, hunting, pick berries, walnuts, mushrooms. The owners themselves say that exact borderlines are necessary only for regulating mutual relationships with oil and gas producers and geologists relating to signing contracts with industrial enterprises, regarding the compensation for damages for trespassing in the lands.

During the expeditions we managed to visit the lands at the river Ityakh, in the Nazym territory of the Khanty-Mansi region, KMAO. 865 persons have been registered there, 451 out of them are the representatives of the indigenous people of the North (the Khanties are in the majority). The total list of people living in the family lands in 1999 included 42 persons – this is about 9% of the indigenous population (436 Khanties, 12 Nenets, 2 Evenks). The owners of the lands who have united into 14 household economies comprise 18% of the number of single-nationality Khanty families or 11% of the total number of families where at least one member is a Khanty. 9 of these families live in the family lands all the time.

The housing sites of the people who live in the family lands are located on high banks, this was also characteristic of the traditional settlement (it helped to avoid water during floods and the wind kept off mosquitoes and gnats).

The farms of reindeer herders are usually deep in the taiga, surrounded with enclosures made of wooden stakes. In some of these places, traditional Khanty houses have been preserved: winter houses with long awnings above the door and a slightly gabled roof, and summer houses with shelters, the walls of which are made of vertically set wooden blocks.

In N. M. Lozyamov's (b. 1916) cabin, which is as valuable as a museum, there is even a chuval (a small clay stove), which cannot be seen very often, in modern life. In every household, there are clay ovens for baking bread – an important element of traditional Khanty culture, which has been lost in many regions of the Okrug.

Summer kitchens are similarly very common; these places have a cast iron oven, which is closed from the wind with a wooden construction on three sides. Near the summer kitchen, there is usually a big table with benches and a smaller table for kitchen utensils. The inevitable attributes of Khanty households – piled storehouses – are still in use, meant for keeping tools and dry food products.

Only these elements of material culture which are necessary for industrial activities with a traditional characteristic, are still in use today. Fishing tools, which have been made according to traditional technologies, are constantly in use: nets, seines, weirs, wicks, etc. For the preparation of fish, the Khanties use old barrels and drying poles. There are many traditional ways for the conservation of food and recipes for dishes. Of hunting equipment, nooses and traps are most commonly used, also used for catching bears and gluttons. Several traditional means of transportation are still in use (nartas, skis and boats), and the skills of sewing traditional clothes have been preserved. However, many cultural phenomena have irreversibly disappeared.

The elements of traditional Khanty culture in the infrastructure of the farmlands live side by side with innovative spirit. In their family lands, the Khanties build solid hewn houses with saunas and toilets. Many people have electric generators, for this reason, there is electricity in the houses, radios and cassette recorders are working, and some even have TV-sets. People use industrially manufactured standard tools, means of transportation and buy clothes from shops. Brought-in goods have become the part of people's nutrition. Many "landers" have flats in villages and stay in the family lands episodically. Some of those people have a steady job; others live on their pension. It is very problematic to survive in these places when dealing only with traditional branches of the economy.

The most important foodstuff is fish (chebak, ide, pike, roach). The shortage and expensiveness of petrol and the lack of promising markets hamper the freighting out of production. Hunting practice and the fur industry seem to be most unprofitable, this is related to the drastic drop in fur prices (in 1998, a fur of a sable cost 200–250 roubles, fox fur – 150, marten fur – 100–150, ondatra – 8–12, hare – 2–5 roubles; elk meat was bought in for 10 roubles a kilogram).

The collection of natural products (cranberries, cowberries, cedar cones) has become a substantial support for the modern household of the local Khanties. However, it is also remarkably difficult to export these products. In order to have enough to eat, the Khanties are trying to grow potatoes in the lands, and to breed sheep (they are brought from the village for the summer, in motorboats).

When asked, why do they still prefer living in the forest, the Khanties would answer: "We are retired, why sit in the village, why here. It is more peaceful here, fresh air, no tractors and no boiler room."

Trying to summarise the above-mentioned, it is possible to say that the allocation of family lands facilitated the revival of an important layer of traditional culture of the Ob-Ugrians.

Today, a large number of various traditional dwellings, household buildings, implements, food, some types of clothing, hunting and fishing tools, means of transportation and other phenomena of the relevant culture are functioning, in different combinations and levels of preservation, on these lands. In the industrial sphere, traditional technologies are continuing to exist. There is a clear tendency among the northern indigenous people for returning to their traditional lifestyle, however, to my mind, it can be hardly possible to solve the subject of family lands only by their legal determination. The further development of family lands depends on several objective and subjective problems. Dealing with the traditional branches of the economy in the given area does not provide a stable livelihood. People, who currently live on the lands of their ancestors, do not have a permanent source of food stocks provided by the traditional lifestyle, without an additional income, they cannot survive. The amount of money, earned from selling of traditional articles of trade can hardly cover the manufacturing costs due to the collapse of the market system and high transportation expenses.

The "tribal economy", which has been created today, does more likely adapt the people of the North to the conditions of economic reforms and industrial pressure; it isn't the return to the traditional system of livelihood. In connection with this, other questions arise. As the functioning of traditional culture involves, first of all, traditional activities, it is inevitable that this will broach a question about the perspectives of the traditional branches of the Northern economy. It is obvious that among the various Northern nations, and even among distinct groups within one nationality, the situation is different, depending on concrete natural-economic and social conditions. The situation is not unambiguous in various branches of the Northern economy. Together with the latter, there are moments which, unfortunately, decrease the optimism regarding the future of Northern economies. For the indigenous peoples of the North, the traditional ways of obtaining the means of existence in modern conditions involve a number of problems – it can be the heritage from Soviet times or brought to life due to the new socio-economic situation. Today, the traditional branches of the economy are in deep crisis. They cannot guarantee an adequate material level of life for the indigenous peoples, and, according to the prognoses of numerous specialists, are doomed to perish. First of all, due to the shrinkage of raw resources, conditioned by the industrial penetration of their residential territories. Secondly, due to the reluctance of a large part of young people to live in an "uncivilised" way and the remarkable lumpenisation of indigenous people (increase of marginal groups who have totally lost interest in work).

The current and most deep crisis in the traditional sector of economy of the indigenous peoples of the North can probably be surpassed only with the large-scale support by the state. In this case, from the point of view of maintaining the traditional set-up of these nations, the priority should be given to the households who can provide themselves with food and preserve traditional culture. The protection of the natural environment should be of special concern. It is presumed that the above-mentioned problems should not be examined without the context of modern transformations in the lifestyle of indigenous people.

It is necessary to consider the ever-changing economic and social-demographic realities of today, and, in particular, the far-reaching processes of assimilation and acculturation, which destroy the ethnic basis of northern indigenous communities. Remarkable stratification has taken place in the society of aborigines, it is very common that only a small number of people from among these nations continues to conduct traditional lifestyle, whereas the majority of population lives in villages and towns and works in other branches of economy. Currently, there are no reliable data regarding the number of indigenous people who are involved or would like to be involved in traditional economy. The large number of children who were born and brought up in villages and towns and who went through the system of boarding schools regard the new environment as something natural and traditional. The current situation in several places of the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug impedes the idea of the revival of traditional lifestyle. So far, the attempts of finding a way out of the existing situation have not led to expected outcomes.

Translated by Mall Leman

¹ This article has been prepared by support of the Russian Humanitarian Science Foundation (project No. 99-01-00025).