The aboriginal peoples of the lower Yenisey valley: An ethnographic overview of recent political developments in North Central Siberia

Abstract

The author, an anthropologist having special familiarity with the problems and development of the indigenous peoples of the Russian North, surveys the impacts of modernization and post‐Soviet social, economic, and political change on the native peoples of the lower Yenisey River valley. The survey combines insights gained from one and one‐half years of field work on the Taymyr Peninsula, an extensive review of the literature, and ongoing research conducted under the auspices of the International Northern Sea Route Programme. The focus is on changes in indigenous lifestyles in light of the privatization of resources, devolution of political power, and curtailment of state subsidies in the northern economy.