Finno-Ugric countries. The Great Migration of Peoples or the history of the Finno-Ugric tribes

1. Title

The Finno-Ugric people were an autochthonous population between the Oka and Volga rivers; their tribes, the Estonians, All, Merya, Mordovians, and Cheremis, were part of the Gothic kingdom of Germanaric in the 4th century. The chronicler Nestor in the Ipatiev Chronicle indicates about twenty tribes of the Ural group (Ugro-Finivs): Chud, Livs, Vodi, Yam (Ӕm), all (also the North of them on the White Lake Sedѧt Vs), Karelians, Ugra, caves, Samoyeds, Perm (Perm) ), Cheremis, casting, Zimgola, Cors, Norom, Mordovians, Meria (and on the Rostov ѡzere, and on the tick -blessed and ѡzer - the same), Murom (and ѡ ѡ ѡ ѡ ѡ ѡ ѡ ѡ ѡ ѡ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕ ӕs The Muscovites called all local tribes Chud from the indigenous Chud, and accompanied this name with irony, explaining it through the Muscovite weird, weird, strange. Now these peoples have been completely assimilated by Russians, they have disappeared from the ethnic map of modern Russia forever, adding to the number of Russians and leaving only a wide range of their ethnic geographical names.

These are all the names of rivers from ending-wa: Moscow, Protva, Kosva, Silva, Sosva, Izva, etc. The Kama River has about 20 tributaries, the names of which end in na-va, means "water" in Finnish. From the very beginning, the Muscovite tribes felt their superiority over the local Finno-Ugric peoples. However, Finno-Ugric place names are found not only where these peoples today make up a significant part of the population, forming autonomous republics and national districts. Their distribution area is much larger, for example, Moscow.

According to archaeological data, the settlement area of ​​the Chud tribes in Eastern Europe remained unchanged for 2 thousand years. Beginning in the 9th century, the Finno-Ugric tribes of the European part of what is now Russia were gradually assimilated by Slavic colonists who came from Kievan Rus. This process formed the basis for the formation of modern Russian nation.

Finno-Ugric tribes belong to the Ural-Altai group and a thousand years ago were close to the Pechenegs, Cumans and Khazars, but were at a significantly lower level than the rest social development, in fact, the ancestors of the Russians were the same Pechenegs, only forest ones. At that time, these were the primitive and culturally most backward tribes of Europe. Not only in the distant past, but even at the turn of the 1st and 2nd millennia they were cannibals. The Greek historian Herodotus (5th century BC) called them androphages (eaters of people), and the chronicler Nestor, already during the period of the Russian state, called Samoyeds (Samoyed) .

Finno-Ugric tribes of a primitive gathering-hunting culture were the ancestors of the Russians. Scientists claim that the Moscow people received the greatest admixture of the Mongoloid race through the assimilation of the Finno-Ugric people, who came to Europe from Asia and partially absorbed the Caucasoid admixture even before the arrival of the Slavs. A mixture of Finno-Ugric, Mongolian and Tatar ethnic components contributed to the ethnogenesis of the Russians, which was formed with the participation of the Slavic tribes of the Radimichi and Vyatichi. Due to ethnic mixing with the Ugrofinans, and later with the Tatars and partly with the Mongols, Russians have an anthropological type that is different from the Kiev-Russian (Ukrainian). The Ukrainian diaspora jokes about this: “The eyes are narrow, the nose is plus - completely Russian.” Under the influence of the Finno-Ugric language environment, the formation of the Russian phonetic system (akanye, gekanya, ticking) took place. Today, “Ural” features are inherent to one degree or another in all the peoples of Russia: average height, wide face, nose, called “snub”, thin beard. The Mari and Udmurts often have eyes with the so-called Mongolian fold - epicanthus; they have very wide cheekbones and a thin beard. But at the same time she has blond and red hair, blue and gray eyes. The Mongolian fold is sometimes found among Estonians and Karelians. Komi are different: in those places where there are mixed marriages with adults, they are dark-haired and slanted, others are more reminiscent of Scandinavians, but with a slightly wider face.

According to the research of Meryanist Orest Tkachenko, “In the Russian people, connected on the maternal side to the Slavic ancestral home, the father was a Finn. On the paternal side, Russians descended from the Finno-Ugric peoples.” It should be noted that according to modern research halotypes of the Y-chromosome, in fact the situation was the opposite - Slavic men married women of the local Finno-Ugric population. According to Mikhail Pokrovsky, Russians are an ethnic mixture, in which Finns belong to 4/5, and Slavs -1/5. Remnants of Finno-Ugric culture in Russian culture can be traced in such features that are not found among other Slavic peoples: women's kokoshnik and sundress , men's shirt-shirt, bast shoes (bast shoes) in national costume, dumplings in dishes, style of folk architecture (tent buildings, porch), Russian bathhouse, sacred animal - bear, 5-tone singing scale, a-touch and vowel reduction, paired words like stitches-paths, arms-legs, alive and well, so-and-so, turnover I have(instead of I, characteristic of other Slavs) a fairytale beginning “once upon a time,” the absence of a rusal cycle, carols, the cult of Perun, the presence of a cult of birch rather than oak.

Not everyone knows that there is nothing Slavic in the surnames Shukshin, Vedenyapin, Piyashev, but they come from the name of the Shuksha tribe, the name of the war goddess Vedeno Ala, and the pre-Christian name Piyash. Thus, a significant part of the Finno-Ugrians was assimilated by the Slavs, and some, having converted to Islam, mixed with the Turks. Therefore, today Ugrofins do not make up the majority of the population even in the republics to which they gave their name. But, having dissolved in the mass of Russians (Rus. Russians), Ugrofins have retained their anthropological type, which is now perceived as typically Russian (Rus. Russian ) .

According to the vast majority of historians, Finnish tribes They had an extremely peaceful and meek disposition. This is how the Muscovites themselves explain the peaceful nature of colonization, declaring that there were no military clashes, because written sources do not remember anything like that. However, as the same V.O. Klyuchevsky notes, “in the legends of Great Russia, some vague memories of the struggle that broke out in some places survived.”

3. Toponymy

Toponyms of Meryan-Erzyan origin in Yaroslavl, Kostroma, Ivanovo, Vologda, Tver, Vladimir, Moscow regions account for 70-80% (Vexa, Voxenga, Elenga, Kovonga, Koloksa, Kukoboy, lekht, Melexa, Nadoxa, Nero (Inero), Nux, Nuksha, Palenga, Peleng, Pelenda, Peksoma, Puzhbol, Pulokhta, Sara, Seleksha, Sonokhta, Tolgobol, otherwise, Sheksheboy, Shekhroma, Shileksha, Shoksha, Shopsha, Yakhrenga, Yakhrobol(Yaroslavl region, 70-80%), Andoba, Vandoga, Vokhma, Vokhtoga, Voroksa, Lynger, Mezenda, Meremsha, Monza, Nerekhta (flicker), Neya, Notelga, Onga, Pechegda, Picherga, Poksha, Pong, Simonga, Sudolga, Toekhta, Urma, Shunga, Yakshanga(Kostroma region, 90-100%), Vazopol, Vichuga, Kineshma, Kistega, Kokhma, Ksty, Landeh, Nodoga, Paks, Palekh, Parsha, Pokshenga, Reshma, Sarokhta, Ukhtoma, Ukhtokhma, Shacha, Shizhegda, Shileksa, Shuya, Yukhma etc. (Ivanovo region), Vokhtoga, Selma, Senga, Solokhta, Sot, Tolshma, Shuya and others. (Vologda region),"" Valdai, Koy, Koksha, Koivushka, Lama, Maksatikha, Palenga, Palenka, Raida, Seliger, Siksha, Syshko, Talalga, Udomlya, Urdoma, Shomushka, Shosha, Yakhroma etc. (Tver region), Arsemaki, Velga, Voininga, Vorsha, Ineksha, Kirzhach, Klyazma, Koloksha, Mstera, Moloksha, Mothra, Nerl, Peksha, Pichegino, Soima, Sudogda, Suzdal, Tumonga, Undol etc. (Vladimir region), Vereya, Vorya, Volgusha, Lama,

In the first half of the 1st millennium AD. e. known development Finno-Ugric tribes living in the Oka and Kama basins are also experiencing this. Ancient authors mention the Finno-Ugric tribes under the name of Fenians (Tacitus) or Finns (Ptolemy), and possibly also Estii (Tacitus), although the name “Estii” could also refer to the Baltic tribes at that time. The first mention of individual Finno-Ugric tribes of Eastern Europe is found in the Gothic historian Jordanes, who attributes to the “king of the Goths” Hermanaric the victories over the Mordovians (“Mordens”), Mers (“Merens”) and other tribes. Archaeological data allows us to trace the fate of the Finno-Ugric tribes and for more early stages their development. Thus, they show that in the first half of the 1st millennium AD. e. Among the Finno-Ugric tribes, iron finally replaced bronze, from which only jewelry was now made - buckles, breast plates, brooches, bracelets, pendants, necklaces, characteristic women's headdresses with rims and pendants in the form of bells, ending in a spiral of earrings. Weapons, of which the most common were spears, javelins, axes and swords similar to Roman ones, were made of iron or equipped with iron parts: tips, etc. At the same time, many objects, in particular arrows, were still made of bone. As before, big role There was a hunt for fur-bearing animals, the fur of which was exported.

By the end of the first half of the 1st millennium, trade ties between the Kama tribes and Iran and the Eastern Roman Empire were strengthening. In the Kama region, especially in the region of Solikamsk and Kungur, one can often find silver Late Antique and Sasanian dishes decorated with highly artistic images, which came here in exchange for furs and, apparently, were used for the needs of the cult. In the Oka basin, the role of horse breeding continues to increase. In the graves of men, and sometimes women, horse harnesses are found, from which we can conclude that horses were now also used for riding. At the same time, the remains of woolen fabrics preserved in the graves indicate the development of sheep breeding, and the remains of linen fabrics, finds of sickles and hoes indicate that the Finno-Ugric tribes were also familiar with agriculture.

Wealth inequality was already quite significant. Along with poor graves, where only knives were found or no things were found at all, there are rich burials with big amount jewelry, weapons, etc. Especially a lot of jewelry is found in women's graves. However, property inequality, apparently, has not yet led to the disintegration of the clan system, since only personal items accumulated in the hands of individuals. The long-term preservation of former forms of life is evidenced by the similarity of the Finno-Ugric settlements of the first centuries of our era with earlier ones. Thus, the Pyanobor culture on the Kama, which replaced the Ananino culture, differs from it only in the style of bronze items and the predominance of iron.

Religious monuments and works of art are of significant interest. The latter is characterized by bronze relief pendants depicting deer, eagles with human face on the chest, lizards, seven-headed elk, people, as well as small bronze and lead idols in the form of birds, animals and people. About 2 thousand of these figurines were found 20 km from the city of Molotov, down the Kama, where, apparently, there was a sanctuary of the god to whom they were sacrificed. A huge number of bones of various sacrificial animals, about 2 thousand bone and iron arrowheads and about 15 thousand gilded glass beads were also discovered there. Another cult monument is a cave on the Chusovaya River, where several thousand bone and iron arrowheads were found. Archaeologists believe that archery competitions took place in this place in connection with some religious rituals.

Great definition

Incomplete definition ↓

Finno-Ugric tribes

History of the tribes that inhabited the Volga-Oka and Kama basins in the 1st millennium Don. e., is distinguished by significant originality. According to Herodotus, the Boudins, Tissagets and Irki lived in this part of the forest line. Noting the difference between these tribes from the Scythians and Sauromatians, he points out that their main occupation was hunting, which supplied not only food, but also furs for clothing. Herodotus especially notes the horse hunting of the hirks with the help of dogs. The information of the ancient historian is confirmed by archaeological sources indicating that hunting really occupied a large place in the life of the studied tribes. However, the population of the Volga-Oka and Kama basins was not limited only to those tribes mentioned by Herodotus. The names he gives can only be attributed to the southern tribes of this group - the immediate neighbors of the Scythians and Sauromatians. More detailed information about these tribes began to penetrate into ancient historiography only at the turn of our era. Tacitus probably relied on them when he described the life of the tribes in question, calling them Fenians (Finns). The main occupation of the Finno-Ugric tribes in the vast territory of their settlement should be considered cattle breeding and hunting. Swidden farming played minor role. Characteristic feature production among these tribes was that, along with iron tools, which came into use around the 7th century. BC e., bone tools were used here for a very long time. These features are typical of the so-called Dyakovo (interfluve of the Oka and Volga), Gorodets (southeast of the Oka) and Ananyin (Prikamye) archaeological cultures.

The southwestern neighbors of the Finno-Ugric tribes, the Slavs, throughout the 1st millennium AD. e. significantly advanced into the area of ​​​​settlement of Finnish tribes. This movement caused the displacement of part of the Finno-Ugric tribes, as an analysis of numerous Finnish names of rivers in the central part of European Russia shows. The processes under consideration occurred slowly and did not violate the cultural traditions of the Finnish tribes. This makes it possible to connect a number of local archaeological cultures with Finno-Ugric tribes, already known from Russian chronicles and other written sources. The descendants of the tribes of the Dyakovo archaeological culture were probably the Merya and Muroma tribes, the descendants of the tribes of the Gorodets culture - the Mordovians, and the origin of the chronicled Cheremis and Chuds goes back to the tribes that created the Ananyin archaeological culture.

Many interesting features The life of the Finnish tribes was studied in detail by archaeologists. The most ancient method of obtaining iron in the Volga-Oka basin is indicative: iron ore was smelted in clay vessels standing in the middle of open fires. This process, noted in settlements of the 9th-8th centuries, is characteristic of the initial stage of the development of metallurgy; later ovens appeared. Numerous bronze and iron products and the quality of their manufacture suggest that already in the first half of the 1st millennium BC. e. among the Finno-Ugric tribes of Eastern Europe, the transformation of domestic production industries into crafts, such as foundry and blacksmithing, began. Among other industries, the high development of weaving should be noted. The development of cattle breeding and the beginning emphasis on crafts, primarily metallurgy and metalworking, led to an increase in labor productivity, which in turn contributed to the emergence of property inequality. Nevertheless, the accumulation of property within the clan communities of the Volga-Oka basin occurred rather slowly; because of this, until the middle of the 1st millennium BC. e. the ancestral villages were relatively weakly fortified. Only in subsequent centuries did the settlements of the Dyakovo culture become stronger with powerful ramparts and ditches.

The picture of the social structure of the inhabitants of the Kama region is more complex. The burial inventory clearly indicates the presence of wealth stratification among local residents. Some burials dating back to the end of the 1st millennium allowed archaeologists to suggest the emergence of some kind of disadvantaged category of the population, possibly slaves from among prisoners of war. On the position of the tribal aristocracy in the middle of the 1st millennium BC. e. evidenced by one of the striking monuments of the Ananyinsky burial ground (near Yelabuga) - a stone tombstone with a relief image of a warrior armed with a dagger and a war hammer and decorated with a mane. The rich grave goods in the grave under this slab contained a dagger and a hammer made of iron, and a silver hryvnia. The buried warrior was undoubtedly one of the clan leaders. The isolation of the clan nobility especially intensified by the 2nd-1st centuries. BC e. It should be noted, however, that at this time the clan nobility was probably relatively few in number, since low labor productivity still greatly limited the number of members of society who lived off the labor of others.

Incomplete definition ↓

For the formation of Northern Rus', the turning point was the period of the early Middle Ages (IX-XI centuries), when a new ethnic group, the Old Russian, was formed on the basis of several peoples. In the XI-XIII centuries. Finno-Ugric tribes organically merged into this community and became an integral part of the fusion of different ethnic traditions in ancient Russian culture, where the leading role belonged to the Slavs.

By the second half of the 9th-10th centuries. include the first chronicle information about the Finno-Ugric “pagans” of Russia - Chud, Merya, Ves, Muroma, Cheremis, Mordovians, who took an important part in the events ancient Russian history. And if one part of the Finno-Ugric tribes continued to develop independently, the other gradually disappeared from the pages of history. This, in particular, was the fate of the chronicle Mary, whose name was not mentioned after 907. More recent information about the measure is available in hagiographic works. Thus, in the Life of Leonty, Bishop of Rostov, who spread Christianity in the Zalessk land in the second half of the 11th century, it was reported that the latter “was good at the Mer language.” Their lands finally became part of Ancient Rus' around 1024, when the unrest in Suzdal was suppressed, and Yaroslav “established that land.”

In the east, adjacent to the measures was the Muroma, which the Initial Chronicle of 862 reports as the “first inhabitants” of Murom. Already in 988 there is a certificate of approval of power Kyiv princes on the banks of the Oka. By the end of the 11th century. The merger of the Muromas with the Slavs was completed. Later, the Murom princes were constantly mentioned in Russian chronicles, and their squads took part in campaigns against the Polovtsians, Volga Bulgarians and Mordovians and other military actions of the Vladimir-Suzdal princes.

South of Klyazma, a few Meshchera burial grounds have been preserved, chronicle references to which are contained in the most recent lists of the Tale of Bygone Years, where this tribe is named along with the Merya and Muroma among the tributaries of the Kiev princes. Unlike the other two Finnish tribes, the Meshchera did not disappear from the pages of later Russian documents of the 13th-15th centuries.

One of the most mysterious Finno-Ugric tribes, whose further history, possibly related to the modern Vepsian people, were all and Chud. The whole lived mainly along Suda and Mologa, and the Chud lived northeast of White Lake. The last mentions of weights are associated with Oleg’s campaign against Smolensk and Kyiv in 882: “...Poim howl many, chud, sloveni, measure, all.” In the story about the movement of the Magi in the Rostov land and Belozerie, placed under 1071, not all of them are mentioned, but the Belozerstsy. The name “chud” continues to appear in chronicles, but is gradually becoming collective for all Baltic-Finnish peoples.

The lands of Izhora and Vodi were assigned to the Novgorod Republic. According to the chronicle story, in 1069 the Vod, which occupied the entire Izhora Upland, took part in the raid of the Polotsk prince Vseslav on Novgorod. Perhaps this campaign was the leaders’ response to changes in the nature of tributary relations with Novgorod. From the second half of the 12th century. Votic lands fell under the rule of Novgorod. In 1149, a large detachment of Finnish Emi attacked the Vod lands, and the Vod was able to fight back only with the help of the Novgorodians. However, in 1241, “the Germans came to Vod with Chud, and fought, and laid tribute on them, and destroyed the city in the Koporye churchyard.” The Novgorod prince Alexander Yaroslavich, moving to the rear of the Germans through the lands of Korel and Izhora, took Koporye and “Vozhan and Chudtsyu perevetniks”, after which he captured Narova and defeated the Germans and Estonians there. Despite the gradual Slavicization and Christianization of Voda, the outskirts of the Voda land were little affected, and the original Baltic-Finnish culture was preserved there for quite a long time.

Another Finnish-speaking people of the North-West, early information about which very little was known were the Izhorians. In written sources, for the first time in the chronicle of Henry of Latvia (1220), the Izhora land ("Ingaria") and its inhabitants - the Ingris ("ingaros") are named. In Russian chronicles under 1241, the Izhora elder Pelguy (or Pelgusy) is mentioned - he informed Alexander Nevsky about the landing of the Swedes on the shores of the Gulf of Finland. In Russian chronicles, the Izhorians may have been called by the collective name “Chud”. The area of ​​settlement of the Izhorians probably entered the Novgorod Republic in the 12th century, which predetermined the future fate of this people, in particular the fact that the Izhorians did not develop their own statehood. A permanent ally of Novgorod, the Izhora repelled the invasion of the Emi together with the Korela, and acted as a tribe that retained relative independence and was governed by elders. Slavic culture had a rather powerful impact on the Izhorians, but, despite the adoption of Christianity, the Izhorians continued to observe many pagan rituals and worship the old gods, which the Novgorod Metropolitan Macarius complained about in the 16th century.

The phenomenon of the formation of the Old Russian people is extremely complex and multifaceted; it includes the settlement of the Slavs, the merging of local Finno-Ugric peoples with them, and the mixing of cultures. At the end of the 1st - beginning of the 2nd millennium, written sources stopped mentioning Chud, Ves, Meryu, Murom, Meshchera. Finding themselves on the path of the mighty Slavic flow, the Finno-Ugric tribes almost completely disappeared among the newcomers.

Finno-Ugrians, their place in the history of the Russian nation and the Russian state is an academic question. However, in the last twenty years, at the level of the yellow press, the question of Finns and Ugrians began to discuss the delitants. I do not consider myself an expert in anthropology, but I am able to identify the main problematic junctions that do not allow Ukrainians and Russians to find mutual language and stick to the thread of the discussion.

The main problems in the issue of the history of the Finno-Ugric peoples, standing on the way to mutual understanding, are the following

Low level of education in the Internet era. Unfortunately, the majority of people do not strive for knowledge of academic ( scientific) parts of the question Slavs (including their appearance, jewelry, myths, tales, religion and culture) in the history of Russia. Unfortunately, reading academic literature is difficult because of the way the material is presented. And so it is! Read yellow press on the topic " Slavs"(or similar) with loud anti-Ukrainian phrases and extreme statements is very simple and, most importantly, remembered easily and quickly! Unfortunately! Moreover, having access to the Internet does not help solve the issue, but on the contrary, it complicates it. Exciting prospects for "shut up “the opponent’s mouth on the forum and mixing everything into one pile outweighs common sense and - one’s own mythology and zombification about the Finno-Ugric people began...

Reluctance of the authorities to meet people halfway. For the Russian authorities, this position of Russian citizens is extremely beneficial: no expenses on the part of Russia for the publication and promotion of academic literature; publish yellow press not at the expense of the state, naturally, and it spreads like lightning. Lots of literature on the topic Finno-Ugrians(and not only) was published back in the last century and the century before last, and today new-fangled clever people have not come up with anything new on this issue, but are relaying those old sources, without even bothering to review them for refutations. In addition, it is much easier to control stupid and embittered people - point your finger and say: “Fass!”

As a result, the following problem emerges: looking for himself and can't find(or afraid). However, Karamzin had already “found” Russia at one time. Since then that Karamzin's story influenced to some extent another Russian historian, Klyuchevsky. This is how it has happened since then - the main beneficial provisions of history flow Russian state Karamzin from one textbook to another, forgetting about the population and equating it with the state, which is extremely incorrect! In fact, Karamzin’s story became the first custom-made political version of Russian history, after which history moved from the plane of science to the plane of politics. It is possible that in Russia no one had studied history as a science before Karamzin. Otherwise, Karamzin would not have had to write it to the Tsar’s order.

What can help in resolving the issue of the Finno-Ugric peoples?

Separate the issues of language and DNA. It turns out that according to DNA (roots, clan), the population of Russia really consisted mostly of Finno-Ugric peoples ( read below). However, who said that the Finno-Ugrians cannot master Slavic language and, being essentially Finno-Ugric, speak Russian and beat your chest with your fist?

Having read all sorts of things about the Ukrainians from the time of Tsar Gorokh, the Russians, for some reason, accuse the Ukrainians of dislike for the Finno-Ugric people. We (Ukrainians) do not show dislike towards the Finno-Ugrians. We oppose the fact that the Russians themselves show dislike for the Finno-Ugrians, trying to disown kinship with them. As a result, the Russians are trying renounce a large part of yourself, and fill in this part, which is not relevant. I'm not saying that the Russians Dont Have nothing to do with , but the Russians pose the question this way that we (Ukrainians) remain out of work. As a result, the Russians themselves, with their behavior and lack of education, cause negativity on the part of Ukrainians, calling them names. Guys, Ukrainians by definition cannot! The question is, why do Russians disown their part of the Finno-Ugric heritage???

Lack of information gives rise to rumors and fabrications. In question with Finno-Ugric heritage on Russian territory the situation is similar. actively opposes filling in the blank spots in their Finno-Ugric history and this “forces” the Ukrainians (giving every reason and reason) to fill in these blank spots for the Russians, while stating, of course, your vision of the issue. But for all this responsibility The Russians themselves bear it - don’t be silent! Actively analyze yourself (and don’t invent) and thereby you will deprive your opponents of arguments. Who's stopping?

Additional information on the Finno-Ugric topic...

According to a successful comparison by academician Orest Borisovich Tkachenko, world famous Meryanist (a discipline in Finno-Ugric studies that deals with the study of the Meri people): " The Russian people, connected on the maternal side with the Slavic ancestral home, had a Finn as their father. On the paternal side, Russians go back to the Finno-Ugric peoples". This explanation makes clear many cultural facts in the life and development of the Russian nation. In the end, both Muscovite Rus' and Novgorod developed precisely on the lands inhabited by the Finno-Ugric tribes Chud, Meri and Meshchera, as well as on the Mordovian, Vepsian, Vodian-Izhora , Karelian and Permian territories.

The Slavs did not assimilate the Finnish tribes A. This Finno-Ugrians adapted to the new language and accepted part of the Byzantine spiritual culture. Therefore, Russians have a choice. Realize your roots in this land, discern in your ancestors not only and not so much Slavs, feel that culture Russian people based on Finno-Ugric basis.

Who are the Finno-Ugrians (literature on the topic)

Finno-Ugrians- an ethno-linguistic community of peoples numbering more than 20 million people. All Finno-Ugric peoples are indigenous to their territories. Ancestors of the Finno-Ugric peoples lived in Eastern Europe and the Urals since Neolithic times (New Stone Age). From the Baltic Sea to Western Siberia, from the forest-steppes of the Russian Plain to the coast of the Arctic Ocean - primordial Finno-Ugric lands and the Samoyed peoples close to them.

Linguistically Finno-Ugrians are divided into several subgroups. The Permo-Finnish subgroup consists of the Komi, Udmurts and Besermyans. Volga-Finnish group: Mordovians (Erzyans and Mokshans) and Mari. The Baltic Finns include: Finns, Ingrian Finns, Estonians, Setos, Kvens in Norway, the mysterious Vod, Izhorians, Karelians, Vepsians and descendants of the Meri. To a separate Ugric group belong to the Khanty, Mansi and Hungarians. The descendants of the medieval Meshchera and Murom most likely belong to the Volga Finns.

Anthropologically Finno-Ugric peoples heterogeneous. Some scientists highlight a special Ural race, transitional between Caucasians and Mongoloids. All peoples of the Finno-Ugric group have both Caucasoid and Mongoloid characteristics. The Ob Ugrians (Khanty and Mansi), part of the Mari, and the Mordovians have more pronounced Mongoloid features. For the rest, these traits are either equally distributed, or the Caucasoid component dominates. But this does not testify in favor of the Indo-European origin of the Finno-Ugrians; Indo-European anthropological features should be distinguished from the linguistic Indo-European community.

Finno-Ugrians all over the world are united by a common material and spiritual culture. All true Finno-Ugric people live in harmony with nature, with the world around them and with neighboring peoples. Only the Finno-Ugric peoples, even at the beginning of the third millennium, preserved in Europe the most complete traditional culture, including, paradoxically, Russian. However, this paradox can be explained. Unlike many peoples, Finno-Ugric people try to preserve as many customs and traditions as possible in their culture, including (perhaps in Russia this explains the rather large number of preserved ancient traditions and elements from the times of Rus').

The Karelian-Finnish epic "Kalevala" was preserved for history by the White Sea Karelians, and not by the urbanized Finns; almost all Russians ancient tales, epics and legends (epic folklore is the most ancient of all forms of oral folk culture) were recorded by ethnographers at the end of the 19th century in the areas inhabited by Karelians, Vepsians and descendants of Finno-Ugric peoples in the Arkhangelsk province. Most of the monuments of ancient Russian wooden architecture were inherited from the Finno-Ugric lands. Several years ago, the epic of the Erzyan people “Mastorava” was recorded and restored, which in itself is unique.

The spiritual life of the Finno-Ugric people is impossible without folk beliefs. Even baptized peoples long ago retained a huge layer of culture associated with pre-Christian beliefs. And some, like the Mari, still adhere mainly to the traditional faith. These beliefs should not be confused with paganism. The Mari, Erzyans, part of the Udmurts, and the Ob Ugrians have national religions.

Finno-Ugric question– this is without a doubt a Russian question. The question of ethnic identification of the Great Russian ethnos. In all the territories of the Russian Plain, where Russians now live, Finno-Ugric peoples used to live. The big problem is what was the nature of Slavic colonization. After all, Russians preserve the same material and spiritual traditional culture precisely with the Finno-Ugric peoples, and not with the southern Slavs or Turks. Psychological characteristics population, its national character, especially in the north, northwest and northeast of the European part of Russia (the most indigenous part of Russia), the Russians and Finno-Ugric peoples also have in common.

I hope that the information presented above on the topic of Finno-Ugric peoples and Russia will help to find problem areas in the history of Russia and understand in which direction the history of Russia itself should be built, putting politics aside.

Also on topic:

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• Fables about right and wrong nations. The Birth of Nations.
• Nationality: how to mean the nationality of a person (child) in our time
• Turning points in the formation of the Ukrainian nation: traditions, Ivan Franko
• Sheet to the Youth of Ivan Frank "The Sheet to the Galician Ukrainian Youth"
• Life of the nation. Vykoristanny of toponyms Rus', Muscovy, Ukraine, Russia
• Russian and Ukrainian historiography. Politics and history as science - how to tease out?
• The right of nations to self-determination. Bashkir experience in the Russian Federation
• A real state-forming nation has been formed in Ukraine and there is no place in it for the voters of Crimea and Donbass
• Development strategy of Ukraine - why is there no state development strategy in Ukraine?
• Russian friendship and its longevity as a kind of commercial project
• Finno-Ugric people and Russian culture. Finno-Ugric peoples are in the blood of Russians
• Russia is rewriting the history of neighboring peoples and states - why?
• Inheritance Birulevo - guest worker in Russia - support of Russia
• In Sochi, workers are not paid wages for three months - evidence from Roman Kuznetsov
• Unrest in Biryulyovo - redistribution of the land market and political raiding against the vegetable supply

Among those living on the planet today there are many unique, original and even slightly mysterious peoples and nationalities. These, undoubtedly, include the Finno-Ugric peoples, who are considered the largest ethno-linguistic community in Europe. It includes 24 nations. 17 of them live in the Russian Federation.

Composition of the ethnic group

All the numerous Finno-Ugric peoples are divided by researchers into several groups:

• Baltic-Finnish, the backbone of which consists of quite numerous Finns and Estonians, who formed their own states. This also includes the Setos, Ingrians, Kvens, Vyrs, Karelians, Izhorians, Vepsians, Vods and Livs.
• Sami (Lapp), which includes residents of Scandinavia and the Kola Peninsula.
• Volga-Finnish, which includes the Mari and Mordovians. The latter, in turn, are divided into Moksha and Erzya.
• Perm, which includes Komi, Komi-Permyaks, Komi-Zyryans, Komi-Izhemtsy, Komi-Yazvintsy, Besermyans and Udmurts.
• Ugorskaya. It includes the Hungarians, Khanty and Mansi, separated from each other by hundreds of kilometers.

Vanished Tribes

Among the modern Finno-Ugric peoples there are also numerous nations, and very small groups - less than 100 people. There are also those whose memory is preserved only in ancient chronicle sources. The disappeared, for example, include Merya, Chud and Muroma.

The Meryans built their settlements between the Volga and Oka several hundred years BC. According to some historians, this people subsequently assimilated with the East Slavic tribes and became the progenitor of the Mari people.

An even more ancient people were the Muroma, who lived in the Oka basin.

As for the Chud, this people lived along the Onega and Northern Dvina. There is an assumption that these were ancient Finnish tribes from which modern Estonians descended.

Regions of settlement

The Finno-Ugric group of peoples today is concentrated in northwestern Europe: from Scandinavia to the Urals, Volga-Kama, West Siberian Plain in the lower and middle reaches of the Tobol.

The only people who formed their own state at a considerable distance from their brethren are the Hungarians living in the Danube basin in the Carpathian Mountains region.

The most numerous Finno-Ugric people in Russia are the Karelians. In addition to the Republic of Karelia, many of them live in the Murmansk, Arkhangelsk, Tver and Leningrad regions of the country.

Most of the Mordovians live in the Republic of Mordva, but many of them also settled in neighboring republics and regions of the country.

In these same regions, as well as in Udmurtia, Nizhny Novgorod, Perm and other regions, you can also meet Finno-Ugric peoples, especially many Mari here. Although their main backbone lives in the Republic of Mari El.

The Komi Republic, as well as nearby regions and autonomous okrugs, is the place of permanent residence of the Komi people, and in the Komi-Permyak Autonomous Okrug and the Perm region live their closest “relatives” - the Komi-Permyaks.

More than a third of the population Udmurt Republic are ethnic Udmurts. In addition, there are small communities in many nearby regions.

As for the Khanty and Mansi, the bulk of them live in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug. In addition, large Khanty communities live in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug and the Tomsk region.

Appearance type

Among the ancestors of the Finno-Ugrians there were both ancient European and ancient Asian tribal communities, so in the appearance of modern representatives one can observe features inherent in both the Mongoloid and Caucasian races.

General features to distinctive features representatives of this ethnic group include average height, very light hair, wide cheekbones with an upturned nose.

Moreover, each nationality has its own “variations”. For example, the Erzya Mordvins are much taller than average, but at the same time they have pronounced blue-eyed blondes. But the Moksha Mordvins, on the contrary, are short, and their hair color is darker.

The Udmurts and Maris have “Mongolian type” eyes, which makes them similar to the Mongoloid race. But at the same time, the vast majority of representatives of the nationality are fair-haired and light-eyed. Similar facial features are also found among many Izhorians, Karelians, Vodians, and Estonians.

But Komi can be either dark-haired with slanted eyes, or fair-haired with pronounced Caucasian features.

Quantitative composition

In total, there are about 25 million Finno-Ugric people living in the world. The most numerous of them are Hungarians, who number more than 15 million. Finns are almost three times less - about 6 million, and the number of Estonians is a little more than a million.

The number of other nationalities does not exceed a million: Mordovians - 843 thousand; Udmurts - 637 thousand; Mari - 614 thousand; Ingrians - just over 30 thousand; Kvens - about 60 thousand; Võru - 74 thousand; setu - about 10 thousand, etc.

The most small peoples are the Livs, whose number does not exceed 400 people, and the Vods, whose community consists of 100 representatives.

An excursion into the history of the Finno-Ugric peoples

There are several versions about the origin and ancient history of the Finno-Ugric peoples. The most popular of them is the one that assumes the existence of a group of people who spoke the so-called Finno-Ugric proto-language, and maintained their unity until approximately the 3rd millennium BC. This Finno-Ugric group of peoples lived in the Urals and western Urals region. In those days, the ancestors of the Finno-Ugrians maintained contact with the Indo-Iranians, as evidenced by all kinds of myths and languages.

Later, the single community split into Ugric and Finno-Perm. From the second, the Baltic-Finnish, Volga-Finnish and Permian language subgroups subsequently emerged. Separation and isolation continued until the first centuries of our era.

Scientists consider the homeland of the ancestors of the Finno-Ugrians to be the region located on the border of Europe with Asia in the interfluve of the Volga and Kama, the Urals. At the same time, the settlements were located at a considerable distance from each other, which may have been the reason that they did not create their own unified state.

The main occupations of the tribes were agriculture, hunting and fishing. The earliest mentions of them are found in documents from the times of the Khazar Kaganate.

For many years, Finno-Ugric tribes paid tribute to the Bulgar khans and were part of the Kazan Khanate and Rus'.

In the 16th-18th centuries, the territory of Finno-Ugric tribes began to be settled by thousands of immigrants from various regions of Rus'. The owners often resisted such an invasion and did not want to recognize the power of the Russian rulers. The Mari resisted especially fiercely.

However, despite the resistance, gradually the traditions, customs and language of the “newcomers” began to supplant local speech and beliefs. Assimilation intensified during subsequent migration, when Finno-Ugrians began to move to various regions of Russia.

Finno-Ugric languages

Initially, there was a single Finno-Ugric language. As the group divided and different tribes settled further and further from each other, it changed, breaking up into separate dialects and independent languages.

Until now, Finno-Ugric languages ​​have been preserved by both large nations (Finns, Hungarians, Estonians) and small ones. ethnic groups(Khanty, Mansi, Udmurts, etc.). Thus, in the primary classes of a number of Russian schools, where representatives of the Finno-Ugric peoples study, they study the Sami, Khanty and Mansi languages.

Komi, Mari, Udmurts, and Mordovians can also study the languages ​​of their ancestors, starting from middle school.

Other peoples speaking Finno-Ugric languages, may also speak dialects similar to the main languages ​​of the group they belong to. For example, Besermyans communicate in one of the dialects Udmurt language, Ingrians - in the eastern dialect of Finnish, Kvens speak Finnish, Norwegian or Sami.

Currently, there are barely a thousand common words in all the languages ​​of the peoples belonging to the Finno-Ugric peoples. So, a “family” connection various peoples can be traced in the word “house”, which among the Finns sounds like koti, among the Estonians - kodu. “Kudu” (Mor.) and “Kudo” (Mari) have a similar sound.

Living next to other tribes and peoples, the Finno-Ugrians adopted their culture and language, but also generously shared theirs. For example, “rich and powerful” includes Finno-Ugric words such as “tundra”, “sprat”, “herring” and even “dumplings”.

Finno-Ugric culture

Archaeologists find cultural monuments of the Finno-Ugric peoples in the form of settlements, burials, household items and jewelry throughout the entire territory inhabited by the ethnic group. Most of the monuments date back to the beginning of our era and the early Middle Ages. Many peoples have managed to preserve their culture, traditions and customs until today.

Most often they manifest themselves in various rituals (weddings, folk festivals, etc.), dances, clothing and everyday life.

Literature

Finno-Ugric literature is conventionally divided by historians and researchers into three groups:

• Western, which includes works of Hungarian, Finnish, Estonian writers and poets. This literature was influenced by literature European peoples, has the richest history.
• Russian, the formation of which begins in the 18th century. It includes works by authors of the Komi, Mari, Mordovians, and Udmurts.
• Northern. The youngest group, developed only about a century ago. It includes works by Mansi, Nenets, and Khanty authors.

At the same time, all representatives of the ethnic group have a rich heritage of oral folk art. Every nationality has numerous epics and legends about heroes of the past. One of the most famous works The folk epic is “Kalevala,” which tells about the life, beliefs and customs of our ancestors.

Religious preferences

Most of the peoples belonging to the Finno-Ugrians profess Orthodoxy. Finns, Estonians and Western Sami adhere to the Lutheran faith, while Hungarians adhere to the Catholic faith. At the same time, ancient traditions are preserved in rituals, mostly wedding ones.

But the Udmurts and Mari in some places still retain their ancient religion, just like the Samoyeds and some peoples of Siberia, they worship their gods and practice shamanism.

Features of national cuisine

In ancient times, the main food product of the Finno-Ugric tribes was fish, which was fried, boiled, dried and even eaten raw. Moreover, each type of fish had its own cooking method.

The meat of forest birds and small animals caught in snares was also used as food. The most popular vegetables were turnips and radishes. The food was richly seasoned with spices such as horseradish, onions, hogweed, etc.

The Finno-Ugric peoples prepared porridges and jelly from barley and wheat. They were also used to fill homemade sausages.

Modern Finno-Ugric cuisine, which has been strongly influenced by neighboring peoples, has almost no special traditional features. But almost every nation has at least one traditional or ritual dish, the recipe for which has been handed down to the present day almost unchanged.

A distinctive feature of the cuisine of the Finno-Ugric peoples is that in food preparation preference is given to products grown in the place where the people live. But imported ingredients are used only in the most minimal quantities.

Save and increase

In order to preserve cultural heritage Finno-Ugric peoples and the transmission of traditions and customs of their ancestors to future generations, all kinds of centers and organizations are being created everywhere.

Much attention is paid to this in the Russian Federation. One of such organizations is the non-profit association Volga Center of Finno-Ugric Peoples, created 11 years ago (April 28, 2006).

As part of its work, the center not only helps large and small Finno-Ugric peoples not to lose their history, but also introduces other peoples of Russia to it, helping to strengthen mutual understanding and friendship between them.

Famous representatives

Like every nation, the Finno-Ugric peoples have their own heroes. Famous Representative Finno-Ugric people - the nanny of the great Russian poet - Arina Rodionovna, who was from the Ingrian village of Lampovo.

Also Finno-Ugrians are such historical and modern personalities, like Patriarch Nikon and Archpriest Avvakum (both were Mordvins), physiologist V. M. Bekhterev (Udmurt), composer A. Ya. Eshpai (Mari), athlete R. Smetanina (Komi) and many others.