Tuva.Asia / The New Research of Tuva

Dear friends! We would like to offer you congratulations on a forthcoming 2011^th new year! We wish you fulfillment of your desires, new inventions, joyful meetings, perfect impressions, creative inspirations! Be happy and wealthy – by ideas, friends, soul, health (and financial welfare will subjoin). We would like to thank our regular authors and readers for their interest, understanding and cooperation. Not only we thank them in words, but would like to offer presents to the most active authors of a newswire. We present books as most valuable of all we have. Editorial Board of The New Research of Tuva posts the latest offers of tuvinology to two of our authors in January, 2011: to Novosibirsk for the student Inna Tarbastayeva and in Kyzyl to the staff scientist of the Tuvan Institute of Humanitarian Research Valeria Kan. One package will be sent to the USA for Heda Jindrak – translator, doctor, anthropologist and simply to a very good person! Thank you very much, dear friends!

Our colleague Konstantin Kuksin is a geographer and ethnographer, director of the Museum of  Nomadic Culture in Moscow. We are drinking tea and talk in the visitors' yurt of the museum just before, we have caught an excursion about the traditions and way of life of the Kirgiz, which Konstantin conducted for schoolchildren. The schedule of the museum is very busy, and the fact that schoolchildren come here, to Aviamotornaya, all the way from Krylatskoye, is in itself an indicator.

Nomadic peoples with their way of life - that is not just an echo of long-ago centuries. They live in 21^st century together with us, and have preserved their modest existence, while many mighty empires have disintegrated, and only their chronicles and monuments of architecture are left for us.

Usually people start thinking about arzhaans closer to July, around the time when they "ripen". But we have several reasons to talk about healing springs in December. First, our ancerstors would start preparations for  a trip to an arzhaan six months ahead of time, to get ready, and think everything out in great detail. Second, the project "Nine Treasures of Tuva" is coming to a close, and we would very much like arzhaans to be among the treasures. And the main reason is that after a political period in her life, Kara-Kys Arakchaa, a scientist-chemist, an author of  the popular brochure "Story of the Arzhaans of Tuva" and a delegate  to the State Duma, returned to Tuva.

Buryatia is located on the Russian border, next to Mongolia. The history of  our region is for that reason densely interwoven with that of other nations, cultures, and languages.

Buryats and Mongols used to have the same Old Mongolian script. Its old cursive can be seen to this day on various souvenirs as an ornament.

Just like the other languages of other peoples of the USSR which did not have their own writing system, the Buryat language was systematized in 1931 into Latin alphabet, and in 1937 into the basis of Russian alphabet. But the Buryat nation was not illiterate. Old Mongolian script was not used only for religious purposes, but in secular activities of the Buryats in the steppe Dumas as well. These organs of Buryat self-rule were established according to “Constitution about ruling other nations” in 1822. The Taishi  ruled the Buryats under the control of East Siberian administration. The Czarist authorities liquidated the Steppe Dumas even before the revolution. The documents from the Dumas are kept in the National Archive of Buryatia. They are written in beautiful Mongolian cursive.

In 2011, Mongolia will observe 2200 years from the founding of the Xiongnu (Hsiung-nu) Empire.

National committee  for organizing this historical event is to be headed by the minister of education, E. Otgonbayar.

The government believes that the celebration of this date will graphically show how the Mongols were the first among the nomads to create their own state, which conducted relationships with neighboring advanced civilizations on equal basis; it will strengthen the Mongols’ pride in their native country and will bring significant contribution to the formation of patriotism.

To present understanding the Empire of the Xiongnu was a multi-national state, which means that this date should be celebrated together with countries of Asia and Europe, which should give us a wonderful opportunity to propagate the history and culture of nomads.

Researchers proved that the Great Mongol State of 13^th Century  inherited and followed all the elements of state structure of  Xiongnu

All five post-Soviet Central Asian states are characterized by rampant nepotism, which has arguably become the main obstacle hampering their economic and political development. Kyrgyzstan's two post-Soviet leaders -- Askar Akaev and Kurmanbek Bakiev -- were both undone by the favoritism they showed their children and close relatives, a lesson that should not be lost on the heads of Kyrgyzstan's neighbors. Bakiev, who was ousted as president in April, appointed his son and brothers to high state positions. His son, Maksim, and his brother, Janysh, in fact, became some of the most influential political figures in the country. Leading opposition figure Azimbek Beknazarov went so far in 2007 as to say that Janysh and Maksim were actually running Kyrgyzstan. While politician Omurbek Tekebaev said Kyrgyzstan had established a system of medieval nepotism in which power is distributed solely on the basis of consanguinity.

On December 10, the first woman-stone carver of tyva,  a Laureate of  I. E. Repin Government Prize of RSFSR, Merited artist of Tuvan ASSR, Raisa  Azhievna Arakchaa, (1952-1990) would have turned 85 years. A gifted carved of wood and stone, she brought a significant contribution to the development of contemporary Tuvan stone sculpture art.  Her multifaceted  creative activities are noted in S. I. Vainshtein’s work “History of folk arts of Tuva”, and in C. M. Chervonnaya’s “Artists of Republic Tyva”. Raisa Azhievna Arakchaa was born on December 10 1925 in village Kara-Tal of Ulug-Khem kozhuun of TNR in an arat-herder family.  As a child, under the influence of her mother and uncle, she learned to make various artifacts and toys of bark and wood. At the end of the 40’s, she got married, worked in Todzha and Ulug-Khem districts, and from 1961 in Kyzyl. This is where, under the guidance of Khertek Toibukhaa,   her  life of art began; it was a new beginning for the modest worker from a milk store.

The production of four documentary films from a cycle “Turks of Russia”, about the people of Bashkortostan, Tatarstan, Tuva and Khakassia was finalized on the cinema studio “Mir”.

Users of the portal of Russian Geographic Society can be the first ones to see the films. The films explain what the Hungarian “Khurultai” and Tatar “sabantui” have in common, why almost every Bashkir family has members of unusual longevity, and what the expression “his wolf is howling”  means to a descendant of the Turks… “…And the wolf saved the warriors, and gave them his own strength and a new name; and the warriors worshipped him, and went on marches, and conquered many nations, and called all of them by the same name.  And time passed, and the great warriors disappeared. But the name was preserved: and even today those nations are called Turks”.

In the issue one can read a topical analytical article on what we should mean by “Tuvan studies” as a whole. Several articles — spick-and-span new — were written in accordance with the findings in the results of sociological studies that had been conducted by fellows of the Tuvan Institute for Research in the Humanities under the Government of the Republic of Tyva and the Tuvan Institute for Complex Natural Resources Development of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. There are four new authors of the magazine who work at the latter institute. The readers may find out about some Tuvan scholars’ investigations on the economic culture of the population of Tuva, social dispositions today, and condition of the Tuvan language and Tuvan book publishing. There are also some interesting works on contemporary funeral rituals of the inhabitants of the Republic, problems of studies on musical culture of nomadic nations. The issue is full of different kinds of information: reviews of large-size scientific Russian forums, presentations, and significant events. The size of the pdf version of the issue is 390 pages.

The most illustrious shamaness Ai-Churek has left us, departed for another world…

The life of a shaman is an endless struggle. Shamans, just like fighters in the ring are always in a fighting frame of mind in their spirit, but in contrast to athletes, who fight only in the ring, the Shamans Fight for Life and Strong Blood, and their Fight lasts their Whole Life on Earth and Afterwards…

The Tuvans say that the gods take those whom they especially like to themselves…

That is probably why shamans’ lives are not long and not many of them live until old age.

But their short lives in this world are filled with stormy events and powerful encounters with terrible spirits, and every ceremony of kamlanie is in its way a duel with spirits invisible to the eyes of ordinary people.

In 2010 in Tuva, in connection with the year of Tourism, an action to determine the “Nine Treasures” of Tuva is in process.  Tuvan “Charash-Tash” was nominated as one of the candidates for this title - a flat, roundish stone, which, according to local people grows out of the earth somewhere in the vicinity of Upper Shui in South-West Tuva. Many local legends are associated with “Charash-Tash; it is believed that a visit to this place brings luck. In August of 2010, the Ubsunur International Center, Senior scientific worker Tatiana Prudnikova, and  workers of V.V. Dokuchayev Soil institute, G. Chernousenko and D. Rukhovich, performed a scientific research expedition to the south-west part of Khemchik valley at Upper Shui, to study the “Charash-Tash and to determine its nature.

The head of Tuva Sholban Kara-ool announced the appointment of a new vice-premier of the government in the matters of development of informational communications. The adviser to the head of the region, editor-in-chief of IA “Tuvaonline” Dina Oyun will be appointed to this office; she will take up the task of realization of the program of adoption of “electronic government” in the republic, as well as of matters of development of informational politics. The head of the region Sholban Kara-ool emphasized that the task of developing an informational society, set by President of Russia, is becoming more relevant every day.

“”To establish “electronic government” in Tuva is not a simple task, - noted the Premier. - But we are obligated to realize this program and to secure easy access to information for our citizens; it is one of the most significant attributes of democratic development of the society.”

On November 21, one of the strongest Tuvan shamanesses, Ai-Churek (Moon Heart) passed away in Kyzyl; she was the head of organization of Tuvan shamans “Tos Deer” (Nine Heavens). In the words of one of the members of association “Dungur” (Drum), “Ai-Churek was called by the spirits.” in her opinion, that is also the cause of death. Officially  physicians determined the cause of death as a heart attack. Special funeral ritual is planned fro November 26. “The strongest shamans will gather and perform a mystery”,  as  “Dungur” announced.

Ai-Churek Shiizhekovna Oyun was born on august 15 1963 near river Tes in  “Tos Bazyryk” (nine kurgans), at the foot of Mt. Ak-Bedik. Shamanic roots can be traced in both her paternal and maternal lineages.