Natural Conditionsand Life Support of the Tungus of the Baikal Regions (XVII – late XIX centuries)

This article examines the influence of natural and climatic conditions on the life activity of the Tungus in the 17th-19th centuries.The unstable nature of biological resources, due to the specific climate, affected both the indigenous ethnic groups of the taiga and Russian settlers.The article compares information about famine, crop failures in the region and the ice regime of the Angara River.A coincidence was revealed between intra-century decreases in air temperature and most economic crises.The results indicate repeated periods of lower average annual temperatures, which were accompanied by extreme natural events.The interaction of the Tungus with peasants, merchants and authorities took place against this changing natural and climatic background.Climatic fluctuations directly and indirectly led to the formation of various ways of adaptation of the Tungus: from strengthening exchange ties and transition to hybrid semi-sedentary forms of economy, to migration to more productive areas remote from Russian villages.Natural factors, combined with social and economic prerequisites, have led to the emergence of a complex set of adaptation processes.Networks of mutual aid, trade, and cultural exchange were formed in response to climate and social risks, strengthening the position of the Tungus.Data from folklore, chronicles, statistics and archival documents confirm the influence of intra-century climate variability on the Tungus.Years of famine, crop failures, epidemics and associated changes in the economy affected all groups of the population.The consequences of this impact were culturally and environmentally specific.The diversity and dynamics of neighboring cultures and geographical conditions contributed to the uniqueness of the Tungus economy, the different rates of their acculturation and the formation of an interconnected ethnocultural landscape.