Selkup
The
Selkup (), until
1930s called
ostyak-
samoyeds (остя́ко-самое́ды) are a people in
Siberia,
Russia. They live in the northern parts of
Tomsk Oblast,
Krasnoyarsk Krai,
Yamalia, and
Nenetsia. They speak the
Selkup language, which belongs to the
Samoyedic languages of the
Uralic language family. Selkups as a people formed as a result of a long interaction and interbreeding between the
aboriginal population of the middle
basin of the
Ob River and
Samoyedic peoples, who had come to this region from the
Sayan Mountains in the beginning of the
1st millennium. In the
17th century, some of the Selkups relocated up north to live along the
Taz River and
Turukhan River. They were mainly engaged in
hunting,
fishing, and
reindeer breeding. In the
18th century, Selkups were subject to massive
baptism campaign. However, they managed to keep, their ancient religious beliefs and customs.
According to the
2002 census, there were 4,249 Selkups in
Russia (4,300 in
1970).There were 62 Selkups in Ukraine, of whom, only one is a native speaker of the Selkup language. (Ukrainian Census 2001).
