Цаатаны: История и современная жизнь оленеводов Северной Монголии.

Community of reindeer herders living in northern Mongolia
the Pali word

The Tsaatan, whose name means ‘those who have reindeer’ in the Mongolian language, were originally Tuvinian reindeer herders.

The Dukhan language (SIL International dkh) is an endangered Turkic variety spoken by approximately five hundred people in the Tsagaan Nuur county of the Khövsgöl region of northern Mongolia. Dukhan belongs to the Taiga subgroup of Sayan Turkic (Tuvan, Tofa). Today, many Dukha are fluent in both the Dukhan language and Mongolian. Many youth are educated in Mongolia and are well versed in Mongolian as a result.

The Tuvans are descended from a clan called the Kazylgans, who lived in modern day Tuva from the 7th to the 3rd century BCE. Pastoral Hun tribes then replaced them in the 2nd century BCE and continued to populate the region until the 1st century AD. These tribes are believed to have spoken Kettic and Samoyedic languages. From 551 to 744 AD, Turkic tribes brought on by the Turkish reign began intermixing with the natives. Additionally, the Dubo people settled in the Eastern Sayan region in the 7th century. Following that, the Uigurs overtook the Turkish empire and became the ancestors of four modern day ethnic Tuvan groups, one of them being the Dukha people. Many Dukha, who had settled in Mongolia due to fear of Soviet collectivization of their reindeer, food shortages from World War II, and intertribal relations, were separated from their family in Tuva as a result. Under Soviet influenced Mongolian socialism, the Dukhan way of life suffered significantly, particularly reindeer herding after it became collectivized and state run. The Tuvan language also began to be replaced by Mongolian. In 1956 the government finally gave the Dukha Mongolian citizenship and resettled them at Tsagaan Nuur Lake on the Shishigt River. The economic revolution of the 1990s, which marked a change from socialism to privatization, saw the transition of many Dukha back to reindeer herding after years of taking urban jobs. The lack of government subsidization for herding led to difficulty in maintaining herds, but the advent of tourism in the mid 1990s began to support herders financially.

The Dukha people frequently marry into other ethnic groups in the region, such as the Bargash, Soyan, or Orat. These clans are called jono, each of which has sub clans within it. Interclan relations are strictly for the purpose of exogamy. Dukha communities on the taiga are usually a group of tents of two to seven households that move camp to find optimum grazing for the reindeer. Herding tasks are shared amongst the camp with children at a young age learning to care for the reindeer and keeping them safe. The girls and younger women do the milking and make yogurt, cheese, and milk tea. Young men and women and elders help with herding. A few of the men stay with the reindeer in the winter months, living in the open air with their herds to protect them from wolves and other predators. The men also make and repair their hunting tools and reindeer saddles and carts. Since they rarely kill a reindeer, they supplement their diet of reindeer milk products by hunting wild animals from the forest. Dukha raise their reindeer primarily for milk. Reindeer milk, reindeer yoghurt and reindeer cheese are the staples of the Dukha diet. The reindeer also provide transportation. Because the taiga area is typically hilly and covered with forest, reindeer are not used for pulling sledges, but for riding and as pack animals. They take the Dukha for daily grazing, hunting, the collection of firewood, seasonal migrations, visiting relatives and friends, and traveling to the sum for shopping and trade. The Dukha begin training reindeer for riding when the reindeer (called dongor at this age) are two years old. Adults are too heavy for dongor, so it is usually the children's job to train them. Children frequently learn to ride reindeer without saddles. Various parts of the reindeer are used to make essential items; for example, winter coats are made of reindeer pelts, while bags, traveling mats, and shoes are composed of skin. The antlers have been sold for decades for the creation of traditional Chinese medicine. Additionally, the practice of cutting reindeer antlers has started to decline in recent years due to ethical concerns. Climate change has negatively altered the taiga inhabited by the Dukha, and the effects, such as a lack of lichen as a source of food, has led to a decline in reindeer herds. Only a few reindeer are slaughtered during the year for meat and pelts.

The Dukha are semi nomadic. The Shamanistic practices among Dukha people differ from those of other Shamanistic religions in the region. Shaman worship among the Tsaatan people is thought to represent the oldest variant of Shamanism practiced by Turkic and Mongolian nomads. Not only do they worship their Shaman, whom they call 'Boo', but they have many mystical holy books as well, and use many different treatises in their daily lives, including those for hunting and for calling or banishing the rain. Other traditions include shaman ceremonies for welcoming the new moon and specific practices for retrieving river water. The Shamanistic beliefs of the Dhuka revolve around the sacredness of the reindeer. These beliefs prevent them from slaughtering and eating reindeer for the most part, as they are considered sacred animals. Instead, they hunt and eat elk, moose, bear, sable, and boar for protein.