Shamanism in Siberia
[1][2] The people of Siberia comprise a variety of ethnic groups, many of whom continue to observe shamanistic practices in modern times.
[3] Siberian shamans' spirit-journeys[7] (reenacting their dreams wherein they had rescued the soul of the client) were conducted in, e.g., Oroch, Altai, and Nganasan healing séances.
Although the Sami people live outside of Siberia, many of their shamanistic beliefs and practice shared important features with those of some Siberian cultures.
This can be contrasted to bel canto, which intends to exploit human speech organs on the highest level to achieve an almost "superhuman" sound.
(The Nganasan shaman used three different crowns, according to the situation: one for upper world, one for underneath word, one for occasion of childbirth.
[14][28] One of the occasions in which the shaman partook was the clean tent rite, held after the polar night, which included sacrifices.
In the late 20th century, some old people had passive or uncertain knowledge of the language, but collecting reliable scientific data was no longer possible.
[32] Whether this shamanism is borrowed entirely from neighboring Turkic peoples, or whether it has some ethnic features, maybe remnants of Samoyedic origin, is unresolved.
Comparative considerations suggest, that Starting from the late 9th century onwards, the ancestors of the Hungarian people migrated from their Proto-Uralic homeland in Siberia to the Pannonian Basin, an area that includes present-day Hungary.
Comparative methods reveal that some motifs used in folktales, fragments of songs and folk rhymes retain aspects of the ancient belief system.
[47] Mihály Hoppál continued Diószegi Vilmos's work[48] comparing shamanic beliefs of speakers of Uralic languages[49] with those of several non-Uralic Siberian peoples.
[53] Traditional culture of Ket people was researched by Matthias Castrén, Vasiliy Ivanovich Anuchin, Kai Donner, Hans Findeisen, Yevgeniya Alekseyevna Alekseyenko.
[55] Besides that, there were several types of shamans,[56][57] differing in function (sacral rites, curing), power and associated animal (deer, bear).
In some cases, shamanism has been widely amalgamated with Islam, in others with Buddhism, but there are surviving traditions among the Siberian Tatars,[58] Tuvans, and Tofalar.
[64] Yup'ik groups comprise a huge area stretching from Eastern Siberia through Alaska and Northern Canada (including Labrador Peninsula) to Greenland.
Shamanism was a central part of religious and spiritual traditions of the Nivkhs, who are indigenous to the Amur river basin and adjacent Sakhalin island.
[73][74] The 2002 census of the Russian Federation reports 123,423 (0.23% of the population) people of ethnic groups which dominantly adhere to "traditional beliefs"
