Themes

Despite its extreme climate the North offers a wealth of food resources. Knowledge of the sustainable use of these and a lifestyle that reflects this have been handed down from generation to generation over thousands of years. At the same time, technologies and knowledge of other nations were integrated into one’s own traditional knowledge. This is how most indigenous peoples of the North managed to hold on to the autonomy and control of their own subsistence for a long time. Since the 19th century, colonization, Soviet collectivization and modern extractive industries have intervened increasingly, exerting an influence on the volume and type of natural resources available to the northern indigenous peoples. The principal resources in the coastal regions of the Arctic are fishing and sea mammal hunting. Together with reindeer herding further inland and the hunting of terrestrial animals they ended up developing complementary dual economic systems. Exchange and trade guaranteed a high degree of resilience during periods of limited supplies. At the same time, both the inland and coastal communities would make the most of the short summer season to gather plants and berries which could provide vitamins for the rest of the year, if preserved properly.

Fish are the principal source of food for the Itelmen and Koryak living on the lower course of rivers close to the coast of Kamchatka. However, the increasingly unsustainable use of salmon resources for commercial purposes is threatening their basic livelihood. The transmission of traditional knowledge of how to live with nature that has allowed indigenous communities to survive in difficult conditions is also threatened.

Koryak knowledge of fishing was the theme of Erich Kasten’s contribution to a seminar at the School for Advanced Research in Santa Fe in 2010, where the example of the Nymylans, living around the village of Lesnaya, was also documented.

See also Fishing among other peoples of the North.

Reindeer herders have extensive knowledge of dealing with the animals of their herds and reading natural signs. Their lifestyle, which may seem harsh and marked by privation, is well adapted to climatic conditions and the migrations of the reindeer. Reindeer herding has thus offered both emotional satisfaction and a solid livelihood to generation after generation of indigenous people.

Yet, sustaining current forms of reindeer herding will only be possible if the required ecological knowledge and corresponding views of how to live with nature are transmitted to the younger generations. There are examples from Kamchatka of handing down such knowledge in traditional ways inside an indigenous family today. This is how reindeer herding may continue to be an important economic activity for them while also forming a part of their cultural heritage.

See also Reindeer herding among other peoples of the North.

A slideshow offers stunning views of Kamchatka’s landscapes.

As well as fishing, hunting of sea mammals provides an important livelihood for coastal populations. On the Kamchatka coasts, seals and bearded seals are hunted, which also play a special role during the autumn reconciliation feasts with nature. Whales were also hunted there in the past, as is reflected in the whale feasts documented around 1900. Today, only in Chukotka do indigenous people living on the coast go whaling, according to the quotas set by the International Whaling Commission.

See also Hunting among peoples of the North.

In addition to small game, such as the hare, the snow sheep is considered the preferred hunting game of the indigenous peoples of Kamchatka, although its population is increasingly threatened by poaching and commercial hunting tourism. Bears, despite their large population, are used less for food purposes, presumably because of the sometimes questionable quality of the meat or because of the special role the bear plays in ritual and world view. Trapping fur animals was once an important activity for tribute payments. By means of exchange or trade it has served since then to enable the acquisition of vital goods from other people.

See also Hunting among peoples of the North.

The short snow-free period of the summer is used to gather vitamin-rich plants. In spring (June) these include fresh plant shoots and, for example, wild garlic. Later in the summer, willowherbs, grasses and a variety of berries,, which grow mainly in the tundra, are added. In autumn the berries of the mountain ash and the seeds of the Siberian pine are collected. Roots are dug out with hooks, or rodent caches are excavated. Plant parts are also often used as materials, such as alder bark for tanning skins.

See also Gathering plants among peoples of the North.

The seasonal use of resources at different locations and the extensive exchange of local products has always required a high degree of mobility. Today, modern means of transport are available to supply remote settlements with vital goods, in addition to traditional and proven means of transport. Underway in Kamchatka gives an impression of this.