Chaldony and Samokhody: Myths of Identity and Ethnographic Reality

Abstract

Among the vibrant expressions of ethnic and cultural identity of Eastern Slavic population of Siberia is the presence of two particular groups therein – namely, those of Chaldony and Samokhody. The former was often associated with old settlers, while the latter with peasant migrants of the second half of the nineteenth – early twentieth centuries. Around the Chaldony and Samokhody, there arose a number of myths explaining their origins, identity, and common historical pathways. An examination of these myths points to the fact that both designations must have initially had more specific or narrow meanings, which gradually acquired a wider semantic load. As a result, they came to be thought of as related to ethnic and cultural stereotypes of old settlers and migrants. The Chaldony and Samokhody may be considered as dispersed groups which consist of multiple local communities that are not related to each other and vary to a certain degree in their ethnic and cultural makeup, yet at the same time possess a shared symbolic identity uniting them.