On the territory of Russia there are many different nationalities with their own customs, traditions, and beliefs. These are Buryats, Cheremis, Tatars and many others. It is very interesting to study the history and culture of these nationalities: customs and traditions have been formed for centuries, they are unique for each ethnic group. Not many people know for sure which ethnic group lives where, even if its name is well known. For example, cheremis - who is this?
Place of population
Cheremis is the former name of the Mari people. That is, people living in the territory of the Republic of Mari El.
Cheremis - a people that can be met on the territory of the Volga region, the Urals, the interfluve of the rivers Vetluga and Vyatka. Depending on the territory in which they live, several groups of Mari or Cheremis are distinguished: mountain (on the banks of the Volga), north-western (Kirov and Nizhny Novgorod regions), meadow (between Vyatka and Volga), eastern (Bashkiria and Ural regions).
Nationality of Cheremis
So, what nationalities fall under this definition? In the period from the fourteenth to the eighteenth centuries, who was attributed to cheremis? The Chuvash and Mari were considered representatives of this nation at that time. However, a later idea of this ethnos changed. starting from the 19th century, experts came to the conclusion that Cheremis is already only the Mari. What is known about this nation?
History of Cheremis
The historian Jordan in the VI century first mentioned this nation. The Cheremis tribe began to form from the lower coast of Vetluga to Vyatka (east direction) and Kazanka (south direction). It is believed that until the 8th century they had ties with the ancient Germanic Goths, and then, until the 15th century, they were part of the Golden Horde and the Bulgarian Vilayat, however, it is known that they fought not only on the side of the Bulgars and the Horde, but also for the Russians. In 1552, the Khanate fell, and the land of the Mari became a part of the Russian state. This accession did not go bloodless: it is known about several major uprisings of the Mari, which went down in history as the Cheremis wars (there were three in total, they lasted, in total, from 1552 to 1585).
The first Cheremis war began on the Volga with attacks on merchants by units of the Mari and Chuvash. They were able to find all those involved in these attacks and, by order of the governor Boris Saltykov, were hanged. Such punishment caused a wave of indignation, but it was also suppressed. Having dealt with the uprisings, the authorities organized a taxation system, the Mari had to pay yasak - the fur tax. In 1553, the meadow Mari killed two yasak pickers and revolted. They could crush it only in 1557.
The second rebellion of the Cheremis began in 1571, after the khan Devlet-Gireyevm made a trip to Moscow. One of the reasons for the uprising was the forced baptism of the Cheremis priests. The leader of the uprising was Prince Kachak. The tsarist regime suppressed the uprising by punitive operations and negotiations. In 1574 it was completely suppressed.
The third war began in 1581. Not only the Mari participated in it, but also the Chuvash, Mordovians, Tatars and Udmurts. The troops suppressing the uprising were commanded by Prince Ivan Mstislavsky. Punitive operations were carried out, and the rebels were promised that in case of sincere repentance, they would be pardoned. So, in 1585, most of the rebels took the oath of allegiance. This rebellion was crushed thanks to promises and royal gifts.
As for modern history, in 1926 the Mari territories were proclaimed an autonomous region, and in 1936 - an autonomous republic.
“Cheremis” is a word that supposedly came from the Urals and means “tribal man” or “forest man”.
Beliefs
At the moment, the Mari profess mainly Orthodoxy, but they also have ancient religious pagan traditions. In ancient times, religion controlled all spheres of public life. The most important feature of Mari beliefs was the veneration of the world. It was nature that symbolized the divine principle, higher powers. According to the Mari religion, representatives of not only the animal, but also the plant world have their own soul, will, consciousness. It was customary among the people to respect animals and plants, to show respect for them. For example, trees were considered the guardians of vitality and the patrons of the genus. Even today, echoes of fetishism and veneration of plants and animals (for example, moose or swan) have been preserved.
In addition to the cult of nature, there was also a cult of spirits. It was believed that every home has a spirit that protects it - vodage. Also, the waters could protect the garden, manor, field, pond or the whole settlement. The spirit that protects the family was called Cremet. In his image, the forces of the surrounding nature, the waters, the souls of the dead joined together. They prayed to the creméts only in groves specially designated for this, called Keremeti.
The connecting link between the world of spirits and the world of people were sorcerers and vorozhsky. In the rites they performed, it was often possible to recognize elements of shamanism.
An important place in the Mari beliefs was given to the cult of the soul of the dead. It was believed that after the death of the body, the soul moves to the other world and continues to exist there.
The cult of land and agriculture occupied a special place. The goddess of the earth was called Mlanda Ava, her patron was He or Khan. This cult also included the fertile power of Mlande schochin, the key keeper of the underground pantries of Mlande sravoch, the manager of Mlande saus and other spirits.
Prayed in the so-called Sacred Groves. It was impossible to hunt, make fires, cut down trees and litter. Groves have survived and now, there are about five hundred of them in the territory of Mari El. This grove is called Kyushoto.
During prayer, the Maris cook sacrificial geese and ducks, mix their blood and cereals. They speak during prayers only in the Mari language.
As for Christianity, it was adopted among the Mari in XVIII. Baptism was forced, but it was rather a formality: most representatives of the Cheremis people at that time did not even know the basics of Orthodox teaching.
Now among the Mari you can meet Orthodox, Muslims, representatives of the traditional Mari religion (A. I. Tanygin leads this movement).
Traditions and rituals
Cheremis is a people rich in interesting customs and traditions. Some of these are related to events such as weddings. Each participant in this event has a special role to play. The order and execution of all the necessary rituals is the responsibility of the Savush (best man). He uses a traditional wedding whip - Suan Lupsh, driving away evil spirits from the newlyweds. Savush waved a whip over his head and cleared it for the bride and groom.
The parents of the newlyweds always took on most of the costs: the bride's family brought food and drinks, and the bridegroom brought the future spouses a sheep or a cow.
After the wedding, the young wife usually returned home to her parents for a while.
Modern Mari marriage involves registration in the registry office, a trip around the city, modern entertainment. However, you can still see at the wedding suan lupush, which Savush brandishes, as if driving away evil spirits.
As for the funeral rites, since the Cheremis believed that after the death of the human soul does not end its existence, many rituals were aimed at helping the soul in the afterlife.
During the sewing of funeral vestments, they tried to perform many actions on the contrary, believing that this corresponded to the afterlife. So that the deceased could observe earthly life, a window was made in his coffin. In the coffin itself were placed objects that could help the deceased in the afterlife: a knife, food, coins, a stick (to protect against dark forces), a thread (which served as a guide in the other world). During the funeral dinner, the deceased was asked forgiveness for the insults inflicted on him during his lifetime, and wished him a safe existence in another world.
It was customary to install a pole (and later a cross) on the grave, on which a towel was tied.
The Mari living in Bashkiria also depicted a cuckoo at the end of the pole, as it was considered a symbol of loss and sadness. Also, sometimes two strings were tied to a pole, on which, according to the Mari, the soul swayed.
After the funeral, in order to cleanse the room of evil spirits and exclude repetition of misfortune, the house where the coffin stood was thoroughly washed, and a jug of water was put in its place and a hot stone was thrown there.
In honor of each deceased relative, one small candle burned in the house. Thus the Mari revered departed loved ones.
As for national holidays, the most famous ones that have survived to this day are Peleidysh Payrem and Shorykyol.
The first holiday is the flower picking holiday, it is held in the summer, after all field work is completed. Now this day is celebrated on July 12, on the territory of Mari El is timed to the Day of Russia. It was first celebrated in 1920. Peleidysh shares the firearm into two parts: official and entertaining. During the first part, the results of field work are announced, the administration makes congratulations, raise the flag. During the entertainment part, concerts and folk festivals are held, games, recreational events, costume processions are held.
Shorykyol is a Christmas holiday. The annual cycle at Cheremis began precisely from this holiday. On this day, they made mounds of snow, shook the trees growing in the garden - it was believed that all these actions would increase the yield in the future. Children and mummers went to the homes of fellow villagers, sang songs, left wishes to the owners and gathered refreshments, and it was believed that the more treats, the better the coming year. Mummers often wore clothes inside out - this was considered a symbol of the renewal of life and the triumph of death.
National dishes
The cuisine of the Mari (or Cheremis) is rich and diverse. Its basis is soups (there are a lot of them: with sorrel, sour dough, nettles, fish, potatoes, even soup with viburnum), dumplings and dumplings, sausages, pancakes and tortillas. Quite often, cereals are used in food (oat, buckwheat and barley are most often used in local cuisine), to which meat or pumpkin was added.
One of the most popular dishes is soup with dumplings made from rye or wheat flour (in Mari it is called lashka). In addition to dumplings from sour dough, it also includes potatoes, herbs and beaten eggs.
The process of making pancakes is interesting: they are three-layer. First, knead the dough from rye flour, salt and eggs, then roll it into thin layers and fry it. After this, smear with sour milk mixed with oatmeal, fry again. At the final stage, the pancake is smeared with oatmeal soaked in sour cream and roasted. Such three-layer pancakes are called kommelna and served with butter or ghee.
Traditional Mari dumplings are significantly different from the usual. The dough for them is made from potatoes, oatmeal or wheat flour and eggs. This potato dough is divided into thin cakes and rolled out. In the middle of each lay a filling of finely chopped lard, onions, salt and pepper. Then the cake is folded in half, the edges are sealed and deep-fried. This dish is called Nuzhymo parenge. The more familiar dumplings are called Shuyl sub-quill. They are prepared from unleavened dough and meat filling. Boiled in salt water and watered with oil before serving.
Another popular meat dish is Shyrdan sausage. They make it from finely chopped meat (most often it is a mixture of beef, pork and lamb), oatmeal (pre-dried), chopped onions and water. As spices use salt, black pepper and bay leaf. Such a mixture is thoroughly mixed and placed in a previously prepared mutton stomach. The edges of the stomach are sutured with a thread. First bake it until cooked, and then re-place in the oven, but already at a low temperature to dry the dish.
Mari sweets
If we talk about desserts, then one of the most popular is Sukkir Kind - pastries with berries and honey. A honey and berry filling is placed in a dough yeast dough, greased with honey, baked and again greased with a bee product.
Traditional drinks
A rather unusual version of the drink is Turismo Toryk Wood. It is prepared from cottage cheese, which is ground until smooth and mixed with water or milk. One of the Mari’s favorite drinks is kvass, it is sometimes even used in the preparation of first courses. From alcohol, drinks such as bread or potato vodka (called araka), beer on bread, and hoppy honey are used.
Famous Maris
Are there any famous people among the Cheremis? Biographies of prominent people from this nationality are interesting. Among the outstanding Mari there are composers, scientists, actors, writers and poets.
So, for example, Andrei Eshpay, a native of the city of Kozmodemyansk, is a composer, a laureate of prizes (including the State Prize of the USSR) and a national artist of Russia. He was born in 1925, but already in 1928 he ended up in Moscow. He graduated from the music school at the Moscow Conservatory, and then the conservatory itself. Eshpai is the author of nine symphonies, several concerts for instruments with an orchestra, music for songs and many other works. It was he who wrote the music for such compositions as “And it is snowing” (verses by Yevgeny Yevtushenko), “Muscovites (author of the text Yevgeny Vinokurov), “ Song of the Motherland ”(verses by Lev Oshanin).
Composer Andrei Yakovlevich Eshpay died in 1925, in the city of Kozmodemyansk, a children’s art school was named after him and a memorial plaque was opened.
Another famous native of the Kozmodemyansk province is the poet and prose writer Pet. Pershut. The real name of the author is Peter G. Pershutkin. He was born in 1909. He graduated from the Kozmodemyansk Pedagogical College, then worked in a publishing house and collected folklore. In the twenties, his works were published in magazines such as Kyralshy and U sem. He wrote the poem “Kutko Sÿan” (translated as “Ant Wedding”), the collection of poems “Fascism Vashtaresh” (“Against Fascism”) and other works. Distinctive features of his author's style are the folk language, folklore motifs, and journalistic orientation.
In 19442, the poet and prose writer was captured by the Nazis and died a year later in a concentration camp.
A great contribution to linguistics and the study of the Finno-Ugric group of languages was made by a native of the village of Pernyangashi Lyudmila Petrovna Vasikova. She became the first Mari woman to be awarded the title of Doctor of Science. Lyudmila Vasikova graduated from the Department of History and Philology of the Mari State Institute and graduate school at the University of Tartu in Estonia. She has written nearly 200 scientific publications, including 10 monographs on linguistics.
