Yugra

In a modern context, the term Yugra generally refers to a political constituent of the Russian Federation formally known as Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug–Yugra, located in the lands historically known as Ioughoria.

At the beginning of the 16th century, the similarity between Yugria (the latinized form of the name) and ugry, an old Russian ethnonym for the Hungarians, was noted by scholars such as Maciej Miechowita.

The modern name of the Ugric language family, which includes Khanty and Mansi together with Hungarian, was also adopted on the assumption that the two words share a common origin.

Contemporary Uralic linguistics locates the Urheimat of the Ugric language family to Southwestern Siberia, at the margin of the Eurasian steppe.

[5] The Novgorodians were aware of the lands of Yugra from at least the 11th century, if not earlier, and launched expeditions to the region;[6] the first mention of Siberia in chronicles is recorded in the year 1032.

[7] The Novgorodians also launched military campaigns to extract tribute from the local population, but they often met resistance, such as in two expeditions in 1187 and 1193 mentioned in chronicles that were defeated.

Next, the golden idol is mentioned in the 16th century by the subjects of the grand prince of Moscow, commissioned to describe the trade and military routes of the expanding Russian state.

According to their heathen belief he was the god of the fish, depicted in a most impudent manner: a board of wood, nose like a tin tube, eyes of glass, little horns on top of the head, covered with rags, attired in a (gilt breasted) purple robe.

The frenzy ones thought that the atrocious monster is especially horrifying in the darkness and in the large waters, that he comes through all the depths where he watches over all fish and aquatic animals and gives everyone as much as he pleases.The Christianization of the Mansi en masse started at the beginning of the 18th century.

The words of the village elder and the caretaker of the sanctuary Nahratch Yeplayev have been recorded: We all know why you have come here – you want to pervert us from our ancient beliefs with your smooth-tongued flattery and damage and destroy our revered helper, but it is all in vain for you may take our heads but this we will not let you do.Novitsky describes the above-mentioned idol as follows: The idol was carved of wood, attired in green clothes, the evil looking face was covered with white iron, a black fox skin was placed on its head; the whole sanctuary, especially his site which was higher than anywhere else, was decorated with purple broadcloth.

Then we will decorate and build a church with all the icons ourselves, as a custom goes, and we will place ours also among these.This arrangement seems to have lasted for a while, but later it is recorded that this agreement was broken and the totems and idols so sacred to the Mansi and Khanty were burned by Russian Christian zealots.

The stronghold of the Pelym princes was also a significant religious centre; a sacred Siberian larch grew in its surroundings and even in the 18th century people used to hang the skins of sacrificed horses on its branches.

The treasures of Prince Agai of Konda who was imprisoned by the Russians in 1594 gives us a good picture of the wealth of the Yugran nobles of this period.

Preceding the coming of the Russians the Mansi of this region were farmers and according to the tradition Yermak collected tribute in the form of grain (Bahrushin 1955, 2:147).

At that time, the Russians probably came into contact with the Mansi who were still living in Europe, along the upper course of the river Pechora, in the neighbourhood of the ancient Komi realm of Great Perm.

In the 15th century, the most important Russian stronghold in Permland and the starting point for all expeditions going to the East was the diocese established on the Vym River by Stephan of Perm.

Moscow reciprocated by forming an alliance with Prince Vasily of Great Perm who together with the warriors of Vym who took part in the 1465 expedition to Yugra (Bahrushin 1955,1:76).

Continuing resistance to border conflagration led to the launching of a campaign in 1582–84 arranged and financed by the Stroganovs and led by the Cossack leader Yermak Timofeyevich, which began with the destruction of a Mansi war band that had invaded the Russian settlers territory and ended as a punitive expedition against the Pelym Mansi and their ally the Siberian Khan.

The close connections between the Yugrans and the Turkic Tartars are also demonstrated by the fact that even in the 1660s, the idea of restoring the Kuchum Khanate was still popular with the Khanty of Beryozovo (Bahrushin,2:143–144).

According to recent research by Aado Lintrop, one of the great-grandchildren of Satyga, the teacher of the Turinsky community school, Aleksander Satygin claimed the title "Prince of Konda" as late as 1842.

It is believed that Hungarians moved westwards from Yugra (present-day Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug), first settling on the western side of the Urals, in the region known as Magna Hungaria (Great Yugria).