Reaching "the last line of the world"

The Nenets tribe has existed for thousands of years and is one of the oldest nomadic tribes in the Arctic tundra. They are reindeer herders who have migrated across the Yamal Peninsula for over a millennium. Their annual migrations are always over 1,000 km long, including 48 km across the frozen waters of the Ob River.

The Nenets live in tents made of reindeer hides, strung around long wooden stakes. These tents move slowly during their migration. The Nenets typically pitch their tents in locations with good pasture and soil, and importantly, near a water source so they can brew their favorite drink, Sri Lankan black tea. After inspecting the vegetation, the leader places his reindeer-steering stick (Khorei) into the ground at the precise spot he wants to center the tent.

When speaking to each other, the Nenets speak a language called Finno-Ugric. However, Nenets under 50 can all speak fluent Russian because, from the late Stalin era onwards, all children were enrolled in Soviet boarding schools. Initially, families resisted this policy, but today, boarding schools have become a part of Nenets life, and parents are increasingly supportive of the educational opportunities they offer.

The Nenets view reindeer as a revered symbol. They believe that humans and reindeer have entered into a kind of social contract in which reindeer assist humans in their livelihoods and transportation. In return, humans agree to accompany them on seasonal migrations and protect them from predators.

Reindeer play an incredibly important role in the life and traditions of the Nenets people. Beyond their market value, reindeer are a source of food, provide hides for shelter and clothing, are used as a means of transportation, and hold spiritual and social significance. For this reason, the practice of exchanging the value of a bride or dowry in the form of reindeer remains common among the Nenets community.

Today, more than 10,000 nomadic people herd 300,000 reindeer across the grasslands of the Arctic tundra. For their nomadic journeys, reindeer are used to pull sleds carrying people and tents. Reindeer caravans can stretch for up to 8 kilometers.

After thousands of years of existence, the Nenets are facing their greatest challenge yet. Since the discovery of oil and gas reserves in the 1970s, the Nenets have had increasing contact with the outside world, and infrastructure on the Yamal Peninsula has rapidly expanded. The tundra is now home to numerous gas workers, covered with thousands of drilling sites, and is the site of a new railway connecting Russia to the West.

The construction of infrastructure on the icy peninsula with its many lakes and swamps has had significant consequences for the traditional lifestyle of the Nenets, whose lives are inherently intertwined with their surroundings.

However, the Nenets people today still retain many traditional tribal features, such as their traditional clothing. Women wear a Yagushka consisting of about eight layers of reindeer hide. Both men and women wear tall reindeer hide shoes, including an inner pair (Tobaki) and an outer pair (Kisy).

The Nenets have always relied on traditional clothing sewn by the women of the tribe. Nenets men wear a Malitsa, a hooded jacket made from about four layers of reindeer hide, fur on the inside, and skin on the outside. In extremely cold conditions, men wear an additional layer of reindeer fur, called a Gus.

While men's roles include caring for and herding reindeer, slaughtering them, and selecting pastures, women's roles are primarily focused on childcare, preparing and cooking meat and fish dishes, repairing clothes, packing, and organizing belongings for families during migration.

Shamanism is still practiced regularly in the Nenets' tundra. They place strong faith in local deities, "recreated" in symbolic wooden figures. The Nenets often carry these sacred wooden figures on their sleds; the figures also represent their ancestors, making them extremely important.

When they sacrificed a reindeer, they split the animal in half, starting from the skull. They ate one half and left the other as a gift to the gods. The Nenets also believed that some of the oddly shaped stones were remnants left behind by the gods after protecting them for millennia.

Aside from their favorite drink, Sri Lankan tea, the Nenets nomads rarely depend on outside food sources. They live on reindeer, fish, and whatever else they can find in the Arctic. In the summer, when meat has been stockpiled, fish becomes the main dish in the Nenets' meals.

Hannah Nguyen