#ARCTIC. #SIBERIA. THIS IS TAIMYR. An interesting and unusual event took place at the international exhibition Russia, which opened on November 4 in Moscow. Two couples tied the knot at once – and not just couples, but representatives of indigenous peoples living in the Far North. The wedding took place in compliance with ancient rituals that they inherited from their ancestors. This was reported by the press service of the international exhibition.
Maria Spiridonova and Alexey Chuprin are Dolgans, their homeland is the Taimyr peninsula. A handsome groom and a beautiful bride appeared on stage in national costumes. Their fellow countrymen – artists of the folk group Dorgon and the ensemble Heiro – also came to support the young family. They showed the features of a Dolgan wedding and created the atmosphere of the family and tribal holiday Haka Kuruma with original musical accompaniment.
“We’ve been preparing for a long time, took part in rehearsals for the wedding ceremony in the national traditions of Taimyr, because we respect our rituals and culture”, noted the young family head Alexey Chuprin.
Another couple is an Evenk one, Faina Mikhailova and Yuri Tyukpiekov. The bride admitted that she would never have believed that she would have a wedding in Moscow, and even in such an environment. The groom supported his wife: when they were offered this option, they didn’t even doubt it for a minute and agreed.
The Evenk matchmaking ritual, which was shown to the exhibition guests, is called Kurum, during which the bride price size – kalym – was discussed, and then the marriage registration turned into traditional national competitions. The ceremony was concluded with a ritual round dance – Ehorye.
As a gift, the newlyweds were given certificates for tickets of the regional airline KrasAvia, which will take the newlyweds to any point in the country where its planes fly, as well as abroad.
Earlier, we reported that scientists are working on creating a virtual museum of the North indigenous peoples’ culture.
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Text: Polina Bardik, Photo: Nikolay Shchipko