Who Are the Buryat?
The Buryat are a Mongolic people inhabiting the regions around Lake Baikal in southern Siberia, with significant populations also in Mongolia and China. Numbering approximately 500,000 (with about 460,000 in Russia), they speak Buryat, a Mongolic language closely related to Mongolian. The Buryat are the largest indigenous group in Siberia and have maintained strong cultural identity despite centuries of Russian rule. They are the northernmost traditionally Buddhist people, with Tibetan Buddhism having arrived in the 17th-18th centuries. The Buryat Republic, located around the eastern shore of Lake Baikal, provides political and cultural autonomy within Russia.
Pastoral Culture
Traditional Buryat economy was based on pastoral nomadism, herding horses, cattle, sheep, goats, and camels across the steppes and forest-steppes around Lake Baikal. Unlike more northern Siberian peoples, the Buryat practiced an economy similar to Mongolian pastoralism, with the horse holding special cultural importance. Yurts (ger) provided shelter. Different Buryat groups developed regional variations—western Buryat showed more Russian agricultural influence, while eastern Buryat maintained more purely pastoral traditions. Hunting, fishing (Lake Baikal supported significant fisheries), and gathering supplemented herding. The "five kinds of livestock" (horse, cattle, sheep, goat, camel) formed the basis of wealth and sustenance. This pastoral tradition continued even through Soviet collectivization.
Buddhism and Shamanism
Buryat spiritual life combines Tibetan Buddhism with older shamanic traditions. Buddhism spread among the eastern Buryat in the 17th-18th centuries, with datsans (monasteries) becoming centers of religious and cultural life. The Buryat developed their own Buddhist traditions within the Tibetan framework, producing notable lamas and scholars. Western Buryat groups, coming under Russian influence earlier, retained stronger shamanic traditions. Both traditions suffered severe suppression during the Soviet period—datsans were destroyed, lamas were executed or exiled, and shamanic practice was forbidden. Since the 1990s, both Buddhism and shamanism have revived, with datsans rebuilt and active, and shamanic practitioners reemerging. Many Buryat practice both traditions or combine elements of each.
Contemporary Buryat
Modern Buryat navigate between Russian, Mongolian, and indigenous identities. The Buryat language is endangered, with Russian dominant among younger urban generations, though revitalization efforts continue. The Buddhist revival has been substantial, with the Ivolginsky Datsan near Ulan-Ude serving as the center of Russian Buddhism. Traditional practices including pastoral nomadism, hospitality customs, and cultural festivals persist. Buryat wrestling, archery, and horse racing continue at festivals. Artists and scholars work to maintain and revive cultural traditions. The unique position around Lake Baikal (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) creates both environmental challenges and tourism opportunities. Buryat communities in Mongolia and China maintain connections with Russian Buryat. The Buryat demonstrate how a relatively large indigenous population can maintain cultural distinctiveness within a dominant state.
References
- Humphrey, C. (1998). Marx Went Away—But Karl Stayed Behind: Buryatia
- Krader, L. (1963). Social Organization of the Mongol-Turkic Pastoral Nomads
- Zhukovskaya, N. L. (2001). The Category of Time in the World View of Mongol Peoples