Parilova V. D., Gavrilyeva T. N. Patterns of the traditional dishes consumption among rural population in the Sakha Republic (Yakutia): Zonal, ethnocultural and seasonal differences // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2026. V.11. №2. P. 170-190.

EDN: QNTRHC

Annotation

The article provides a systematic quantitative description of the rural population’s diet in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) based on the household survey conducted in 2021–2023 in 18 rural settlements (N = 400). The authors focus on 40 traditional dishes, for which self-reports on regular and seasonal consumption were collected. The diet is considered in three dimensions: everyday consumption, regional differences (social-economic zones), and seasonality. The findings show a stable group of technologically simple dishes — meat soup, pancakes, jams and drinks made from local berries — that form common everyday consumption in all settlements. Regional differences are determined primarily by local subsistence practices: venison in Arctic and southern settlements, dairy and horse-meat dishes in central and western settlements, northern fish in Arctic villages of Russian old-settlers and Evenki. A particularly notable finding is the substantial gap between seasonal-peak and regular frequencies of consumption for several dishes (kumys — 43.5% in June vs 1–4% regularly; stroganina — 76.3% in December vs 2–31% regularly), which indicates a seasonally distinct regime of their consumption. A comparison of the observed seasonal structure with the classical periodization of the Yakut food practices by A. A. Savvin (based on the 1930s–1940s data) reveals substantial continuity of the four-phase calendrical rhythm despite the disappearance of initial material conditions that once made this rhythm necessary. 

Keywords

Sociology and anthropology of food, indigenous peoples of the North, Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), traditional dishes, food seasonality, food systems.  

About the authors

Varvara D. Parilova, PhD Student, Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Tohoku University (Japan); Institute of Finances and Economics, North-Eastern Federal University. Belinskogo St., 58, Yakutsk, 677000, Russia.
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Tuyara N. Gavrilyeva, DSc (Economics), Chief Researcher, Head of the Department, Arctic Research Center of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). Kurashova St., 22, Yakutsk, 677000, Russia.
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Nazarenko G. A., Loktionov K. S., Alekseev A. I. Typology of transformations in rural settlements of the Lower Ob Region in the post-Soviet period // The Russian Peasant Studies. 2024. V.9. №4. P. 178-217.

DOI: 10.22394/2500-1809-2024-9-4-178-217

Annotation

The article considers the main post-Soviet transformation of functional types of rural settlements in the Khanty-Mansi and the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Regions within the Lower Ob Region. The article is based on the field data collected in July 2023 and on the statistical data from the Federal State Statistics Service, district and regional administrative departments, and state archives. The authors show that the transformation of functional types of rural settlements was influenced by the development of rural settlements, their ethnic composition, the traditional way of life preserved by indigenous northern minorities, peripheral and isolated nature of settlements, territorial infrastructural development, projects of extracting companies in oil production areas, peculiarities of local institutions and regional support for economic specialization. To identify the main directions of transformation, the authors provide a functional typology of settlements in the Lower Ob Region for 1989, 2002, and 2021: 1) simplified functional type due to the loss of forestry, agricultural and commercial functions by some industrial settlements, 2) development of agriculture, recreational functions and commuting in settlements near cities, 3) stabilization of the social-economic situation as a result of the oil production near the settlement, 4) polyfunctionalization of large rural settlements turning into district service centers, 5) preservation of traditional economic activities in rural settlements with a high share of minorities.

Keywords

Rural area, transformation trajectories, periphery, isolation, functional typology, development of Western Siberia, genesis, ethnic mosaicism, indigenous peoples of the North, oil production, institutional factor, infrastructural development.

About the authors

Grigory A. Nazarenko, Undergraduate Student, Department of Economic and Social Geography of Russia, Faculty of Geography, Lomonosov Moscow State University. Leninskie Gory, 1, Moscow, 119991, Russia.
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Kirill S. Loktionov, analyst, Scientific Center for the Study of Rural Problems; Master’s Student, Department of Economic and Social Geography of Russia, Faculty of Geography, Lomonosov Moscow State University. Leninskie Gory, 1, Moscow, 119991, Russia.
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Alexander I. Alekseev, DSc (Geography), Professor, Department of Economic and Social Geography of Russia, Faculty of Geography, Lomonosov Moscow State University. Leninskie Gory, 1, Moscow, 119991, Russia. E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.