抄録
The Chukchi are an indigenous people of the Chukot Peninsula in the northeastern part of Russia. The population of the Chukchi in 1989 was about 15,000. In the latter half of the nineteenth century, the Chukchi were divided by ethnographers into two groups, one group tending herds of reindeer and the other group living along the coast and depending on hunting sea mammals for their subsistence. However, due to the spread of socialism in the Soviet era, many of Chukchi work on state-run farms.
Cultural anthropologists have conducted some studies in recent years to examine changes in sea-mammal hunting in Russia following the collapse of the Soviet Union (Kerttula 2000). That particular study by Kerttula presented some information of sea-mammal hunting related to the ethnography at Sireniki village in the Russian Federation's Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. This report is intended to describe and present analyses of the current practice of sea-mammal hunting among the Chukchi. It presents the socioeconomic roles in the settlement from an ecological anthropology perspective. This report is based on a survey conducted by the author at Lorino Village, located in the Chukotsky District of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug.
The Lorino village is located along the Bering Strait; it lies within the territory of a vast inland tundra. According to data for 2004, villagers are engaged in sea-mammal hunting, reindeer herding, handicraft production, fur factories, etc. Sea-mammal hunters are 32 among 175 people belonging to the municipal unified enterprise of agricultural workers. They have hunted various sea mammals: gray whales, bowhead whales, walruses, bearded seals, ringed seals, etc. They have one hunting camp aside from the main fishing village. In recent years, new hunting organizations have emerged and have begun hunting sea mammals in that area. This report describes and clarifies hunting activities and the conflict between municipal enterprises and new organizations.
