Selection of articles
Big Problems of a Small Village
The main today’s problems of our village are important for all settlements of our region. High level of unemployment has resulted in low level of life. The main occupation of the unemployed has become drinking, although they could find a way out if they wanted.
I was born and grew up in Kudama village of Pryazhino Region. Our village was built in the postwar years on the Syamozero lakeside in picturesque places and joined two Karelian villages – Lakhta and Ruga. The villagers remember the times when people from different areas of our country came there. They could work, regulate their life, give education to their children. Kudama had a hospital, a kindergarten, a school, the house of services and a leisure center, logging depot and the administration. People didn’t worry for their future.
The hard 1990s years influenced our village too. The main working place of the village was logging depot, but in that period the number of the working places began to reduce. People were leaving the village and looking for a job and better life.
Now there are about three hundred inhabitants in the village. Half of the population is pensioners. The young are going to Petrozavodsk for higher education after school and they don’t return to their native place, as there are no prospects for realization of their possibilities. But those, who have stayed here, love their motherland and hope life will change for better. Leisure center is the only source of culture working thanks to enthusiasm of our people. Here we can celebrate our holidays, hold meetings. For the last months we hear more and more often that the center can be closed because of the lack of funds. After that a lot of problems can arise which are impossible to solve without the work of the center.
Using the base of the leisure center and the knowledge received during the training program in the Information Legal Center of Indigenous Peoples NEVOND we can establish the Center of Culture of Indigenous Peoples, as the main part of the population are Karelians, whose culture needs to be supported and developed. For this work we can use knowledge of the old villagers.
As one of the prospects for development of our village, tourist business can be grown, and leisure center can be involved in this business. Let’s hope, the administration of the region will pay necessary attention to us.
Valentina
Kudama village
Trends of Development of Social Life of Kola Saami
Saami are indigenous peoples of the North of Europe. In the past they led nomads’ life with deer herds, hunted and fished on vast territories. Now a considerable part of their lands was divided between four countries: Sweden, Finland, Norway and Russia. Despite borders and differences between the dialects, Saami are known as a single people, who achieved considerable success in protection of their rights and resisted assimilation. No doubt, the changes of the situation of the Saami people are their own achievement. Saami were the first among indigenous peoples to obtain establishment of legal elective representative bodies – Saami Parliament. In every northern country they carry on a dialogue with the government on behalf of their people. The joint work of Saami of different countries began since forming in 1956 of non-governmental organization – Saami Council of the North. Its main task was to join Saami as a single people and their recognition as such by the world society, contribution to and establishment of a single legislation related to Saami in northern countries. The first parliament of this kind was formed in 1973 in Finland. In 1989 Saami Parliament was elected in Norway and only in 1993 in Sweden. In Russia the changes in federal legislation are made in prejudice of indigenous peoples. In the trends of development of political life of Kola Saami some changes can be noticed. They have decided to establish their own Saami Parliament at last.
On 6 March 2005 there was held a conference the main objective of which was establishment of elective representative agency – Saami Parliament, working out regulations and mechanisms of its functioning. This proposal was approved by the Danish society “Infonor”. They are ready to make a financial support of the project. This April the negotiations between the Public Organization of Saami of Murmanskaya Oblast and Danish organization “Infonor”, representatives of communities and lawyers were carried out.
For the last time, the main problems of Kola Saami are marked more and more often. In this connection the ways of their further solving are determined. One of the first tasks is saving and development of culture, language, national originality, in short – all those things which make up the general picture of living activity of the Saami people. One of the achievements of the Organization of Saami of Murmanskaya Oblast was the conference “Saami Language 2000”, as a result of which the decision was made to increase the number of the language lessons in schools and to organize special language courses. Moreover, in the National Cultural Center with financial support and cooperation of Norwegian Saami Mission such course was organized for everybody wishing to learn their native language. On its basis there were organized different groups for study of traditional activities. At present active campaign for attracting the youth is taking place.
An important role for development of the language and culture is played by economical stability. Now the situation with agricultural enterprise of the region is very poor, and it makes people to think about their future, and first of all about the future of their children. And the future of deer-breeding, as a traditional Saami economy, is in development of private Saami deer farms – communities. The aim of these communities is to make privately owned farms, to take land on lease and to work on their land and to tend deer on their own, using traditional experience and knowledge coming from generation to generation. This is the only way to improve economical situation of local population living in the Polar North. Public Organization of Saami of Murmanskaya Oblast is taking an active part in forming these communities. This organization is giving different consultations on economic and legal issues.
The aim of the Saami Parliament is participation of Kola Saami in solving the issues of land usage, keeping up originality, culture, language. Saami people need such governmental agency, which could represent their interests, protect their rights at all levels of state government and abroad. I hope that Saami Parliament in Murmanskaya Oblast will link government and people and will be able to solve a lot of issues.
A. Bazhenova
Lovozero village
Revival of Traditional Culture – the Step to Development of National Culture
In the period April 2004 – April 2005 in the Karelia Republic there was implemented the project “Revival of the Culture of Indigenous Peoples via Development of Musical Culture”. The project is worked out and implemented by the youth public organization “Nuori Karjala” and the Republican Center of National Cultures. Republican youth public organization “Nuori Karjala” (Young Karelia) is a voluntary public organization the aims and objectives of which are propaganda and distribution of spiritual values of Baltic-Finnish people, keeping up and development of the Karelian, Veps and Finnish languages and culture.
From the beginning of 1990s in the Karelia Republic national consciousness has started to rise, when the older generation of national intelligentsia has become more active in the field of development of national culture. Creative persons became more interested in folk art and traditional musical culture as a source of forming and development of national culture of indigenous peoples of the Karelia Republic. The interest of children and youth to the folk art is also growing. One of the comprehensible forms of understanding of folk culture at the level of amateur is playing folk musical instruments: everybody, who wants, in short time can learn to play 5-string cantel, youhikko, different wind and percussion instruments.
Taking into consideration the facts that in Karelia there appeared some pedagogues-musicians – the graduators of the Department of Finnish-Ugric Music of Petrozavodsk State Conservatoire skillful in playing folk musical instruments, among which the author of the article, and that the desire of children and youth to play these instruments is great, there was a necessity to work out and implement the project for provision of the groups of amateurs and folk groups with folk musical instruments.
One of the main objectives of the project was support of children and youth’s creative work in the field of mastering the culture of indigenous peoples of the Karelia Republic – Karelians, Veps, Finns. The target group of the project included 9 creative groups from different towns of the republic presenting original culture of these peoples: 5 groups from Petrozavodsk – children’s Karelian ensemble "Iloine", children’s Karelian ensemble "Lulukka", ensemble “Kulkuset”, children’s Finnish ensemble “Lasten Piiri”, Veps folklore ensemble "Kevaz'vezi"; folklore ensemble “Karelskaya Gornitsa” from Kostomuksha town, “Randaine” ensemble from Olonets town, instrumental group “Pajuine” from Kondopoga, ensemble of folk music from Kem. The work on the project went in three different directions:
1.
Making traditional folk musical instruments by craftsmen
2.
Education in the field of playing a traditional folk instrument
3.
Cultural events presenting the culture of Karelians, Veps and Finns
Within the limits of the grant rewarded by Canadian Agency of International Development and Canadian Embassy in Moscow, the craftsmen made 86 traditional Karelain, Veps and Finnish instruments.
During the project period the heads of creative groups passed the training courses in the Center of Folk Music in Kaustinen (Finland), where they studies styles of playing a traditional instrument cantle.
The cultural events, held within the frameworks of the project (festival of folk music “Kanteletar” in Kostomuksha, international cultural marathon “Kalevala Mosiac”, youth festival “Rohkei tytto” in Kem, festival of folk music “Successors of Vyainemenen”), were organized by the partners: the Republican Center of National Cultures (Petrozavodsk) and the State Committee on National Policy of the Karelia Republic, and received the financial support of the Ministry of Culture of the Karelia Republic and the Council of Ministers of the Northern Countries.
Taking into consideration the lack of published notes showing traditional musical culture of Karelians, Veps and Finns, the important step of our work was preparation and publishing of notes “Melodies of Kalevala Times”.
In conclusion we can state that the main objectives of the project – to support national consciousness of young Finnish-Ugric people and to disseminate the interest to traditional musical instruments of Karels, Veps and Finns – were achieved, and the project “Revival of Culture of Indigenous Peoples via Development of Musical Culture” became one more step on the way to saving and development of the original culture of the Karelians, Veps and Finns – the unique ethnic groups of the northern territories of the world.
Olga Vlasova
A Thread to the Past
In Lodeinopolsky region there is a small village Tervenichi. The village is known for the active women’s monastery. For the good of the monastery, along with the nuns, pilgrims and people who lost the right way in the life, started drinking and drugs addiction, are working. Everybody will find what to do there and can input a drop of its work to the cloister. Tourists come there from different places. They are also very interested in the history of Tervenich.
The village is very old. It is mentioned in the chronicles of 12th century. Its first settlers were the tribe of Ves’ – the present Veps people. They were mainly occupied with logging and selling timber. That’s where the name of the village came from – “terv” in the Veps language means “resin”. There is one more version – the origin of the name is from the word “terveht” said for wishing health. It is supposed that loggers met and greeted each other in Tervenichi. On this land there were created life, culture, traditions, language of the Veps people who are disappearing now. Russian researcher A. Kolmogorov wrote, “…not very far, but next to the capital… in great straits and ignorance the whole nationality is living its days out”. Nowadays it’s very important to save cultural heritage of this people for the descendants, so that they know and remember their historical roots, to avoid what an old Veps Timoy said, “If you forgot your father, mother – you are lost for your clan. If you forgot the language – you are lost for your people. If you forgot your land – you’ll become a bird’s feather. That feather is flying higher than a bird, but what a sense of it?”
Since 1980s in our region the work on saving and development of ethnical originality of Veps has started gradually. Folklore holidays are celebrated every year. A Veps ensemble “Pihleine” is organized. Due to the initiative of Nina Potasheva, a history teacher, the Museum of the Veps Culture is founded in the village. First it was a corner of native history is the school. Children collected the artifacts by grains, studied the history of life of Veps, their language, participated in competitions, with pleasure held excursions for the guests. Closure of the school became a threat of finishing of this activity. Thanks to the Department of Culture and the director of the House of Culture of the village – Evgenia Klimova – this corner was granted a room. Nobody but the monastery helped with repair works. Mother Lukiana granted funds for the workers who in short period put everything in order. The museum was born for the second time – on 9th May it had the ceremony of opening. New exhibitions were made and more artifacts were added. The visitors are amazed and carried away to the past with a fascinating story about the life of our ancestors, their national way of living. The museum is working only thanks to the enthusiasm of its leader. It doesn’t have a status and considered as public. Development of culture receives little funds from the budget, and of course a small village museum receives nothing. Whether it will continue its existence is a big question. But the head of the museum is more worried with disconnection of Veps of Leningadskaya Oblast, because they don’t have the field to apply their power, skills, knowledge, experience, energy. Besides, cooperation of Veps of different subjects of the Russian Federation is not provided legally, which has negative effect on development of the culture and language of our people.
It will be very painful if this thread to the past breaks.
Svetlana Mudrova
Lodeinoye Pole
Optimization or Liquidation
Fifteen years have passed from the moment of the first congress of Karelians. A big number of children’s Karelian creative groups were formed in institutions of optional education and culture in the Karelia Republic. Their establishment is caused by several reasons: in families communication in the native language is being lost, and in educational institutions it is impossible to give its knowledge in full volume.
Many groups were created in Karelia, and it gladdens people. But in the process of wide optimization of expenses in the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Education, they raised the question to liquidate some groups, first of all in Petrozavodsk.
At present, according to the data of the Ministry of Education of the Karelia Republic, the Karelian language is studied in Petrozavodsk by 444 students, among them 252 are students of Finnish-Ugric school and 192 – secondary school No 2. This is 20% of the total number of students learning the Karelian language. Thus, Petrozavodsk is a place of dense residence of the Karelian people, and according to the Constitution of the Russian Federation Karelians cannot be deprived their cultural demand to study their native language.
The problem of reduction of children’s groups became sharp from the moment when they were demanded to satisfy requirements not for experimental groups, but for professional groups. The officials often don’t understand that the development of Karelian culture is built around the development and functioning of the native language, because national culture is impossible without language.
Up to the present the repertoire of children’s Karelian group depends on the knowledge and skills in the field of the Karelian language and culture, experience and intuition of its leader. The head of the group, besides art education and development of creative abilities of children, has some other tasks. He must be a researcher, a scientist, sometimes a specialist in literature, folklore, a bit a composer, a choreographer and an ethnographer. Only a few can carry such a load. That’s why it’s so important to have basic children’s and youth’s groups in the Karelia Republic which collect and propagandize the experience, and the group itself being a constant ground for experiments.
At this moment, I think, there are several tasks in the republic: the first one is not only to save, but to expand the forms of amateur art creative work of children and youth as a factor providing perspective of development of national culture of the Karelians; the second refers to the fact that the more forms of activity is introduced in the national culture, the more perspectives for keeping and development of the language and traditions of the Karelian people, which are the premises for development of professional work: literature, music, choreography and theatre.
It is very important to develop national culture of the Karelian people as a complex entity, and along with art, material forms of culture must be developed, such as crafts and economical activities, which have the same meaning as spiritual culture. And the complex forms of activities are most suitable for children and youth due to their psychological peculiarities.
Children’s and youth’s Karelian groups must be in all educational institutions where the Karelian language is learned, in all cultural institutions in the places of dense residence of Karelians.
On behalf of the leaders of children’s and youth’s groups of the Karelia Republic, I’d like to appeal to the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Education of the republic with the request to consider the possibilities of saving children’s and youth’s creative groups working in the Karelia Republic, as well as to promote the growth of their number. It is very important that these groups have state funding, because the State guarantees saving and development of the language and culture of the peoples of the Russian Federation, including Karelians.
Emma Yelyna
Leader of children’s musical-drama studio “Iloine”
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