Who Are the Shor?
The Shor are an indigenous Turkic people of the mountainous region of southern Kemerovo Oblast (Kuzbass) and adjacent areas of the Altai Republic and Khakassia in Russia, numbering approximately 12,000-14,000. They speak Shor, a Turkic language of the Siberian branch. The Shor traditionally inhabited the taiga-covered slopes of the northern Altai-Sayan mountain system, practicing hunting, gathering, and small-scale metallurgy. They were historically known as the "Kuznets Tatars" (Blacksmith Tatars) for their ironworking skills. Their homeland now lies within Russia's major coal-mining region, bringing both economic opportunities and environmental devastation.
The Blacksmith Tradition
The Shor were renowned for metalworking—the name "Kuznets" (blacksmith) that Russians gave to their land and river derives from this skill. Using local iron ore deposits, Shor smiths produced tools, weapons, and trade goods before Russian colonization. Iron smelting and forging were important economic activities with associated ritual significance. The blacksmith held respected social position. This metallurgical tradition connected the Shor to broader Central Asian cultural patterns where smithcraft carried spiritual associations. Russian colonization, which sought to exploit the region's minerals industrially, disrupted traditional metallurgy, though smithing knowledge persisted into the Soviet period.
Impact of Mining
The Kuzbass basin contains enormous coal deposits that have been exploited since the 18th century. Industrial-scale mining expanded massively under Soviet development, transforming the Shor homeland into one of Russia's most important (and polluted) industrial regions. Open-pit mining has destroyed villages and traditional territories. Air and water pollution affects health. Economic opportunities in mining draw some Shor, but the industry primarily employs non-indigenous migrants. The environmental devastation of Kuzbass coal mining represents one of Russia's severest industrial impacts on indigenous peoples. Shor activists have protested mining expansion into remaining traditional territories with limited success.
Contemporary Shor
Modern Shor face challenges of cultural survival amid industrial transformation of their homeland. The Shor language is endangered though better preserved than many Siberian languages, with perhaps 2,000-3,000 speakers. Some Shor have integrated into the industrial economy; others maintain traditional livelihoods in remote taiga areas. The Tashtago Raion is designated for indigenous development but resources are limited. Cultural organizations work to preserve language, traditions, and throat-singing (kai), the Shor epic performance tradition related to Tuvan and Altai styles. How the Shor maintain identity and traditional practices in one of Russia's most industrialized regions poses ongoing challenges.
References
- Potapov, L. P. (1936). Essays on the History of the Shor
- Funk, D. A. (1993). Shor Tales, Legends, and Traditions
- Forsyth, J. (1992). A History of the Peoples of Siberia