General Information

The Kumandins, an indigenous small-numbered people, live in South Siberia, one of Russia’s most multi-ethnic regions. They use several endonyms to identify themselves, for instance: Tatar-Kizhi, Tadarlar, Kumandy Kizhi. Recently, they have used the Kumandins endonym. Since the 18th century, Kumandins have traditionally lived on both shores of the middle reaches of the river Biya including all of its tributaries, and along the shores of the river Isha.

Kumandins  are a small Turkic people of Southern Siberia, having the status of an indigenous small people of the North, Siberia and the Far East.

The total number of Kumandins according to the All-Russian Population Census of 2002 was 3,114 people, in 2010 - 2892 people, and according to the 2020 census – 2,408 people. At the same time, according to the 2020 census, the areas of predominant residence of Kumandins remain the settlements of the Altai Territory (1,102 people), the Altai Republic (1,061 people) and the Kemerovo Region (128 people). Within the Altai Republic, the Kumandins are settled mainly in the northern regions and the city of Gorno-Altaisk. On the territory of the Altai Territory, the Kumandin population lives mainly in the city of Biysk, Krasnogorsk and Solton regions.

At the moment, Kumandins live in the Turochak district of the Altai Republic, Krasnogorskoye (formerly Staraya Barda), and Solton districts of the Altai territory. A small group of Kumandins live in the Tashtagol district of the Kemerovo region. Feofan Satlaev reports that Tashtagol Kumandins worked in the local mining industry. Large Kumandin groups also live in the cities of Gorno-Altaisk, Biysk, Barnaul, and some other Russian regions.

The Kumandin language is a dialect of the Altaic language of the Uighur group of Turkic languages. Scholars identify three Kumandin sub-dialects: the Turochak, the Solton, and the Staraya Barda sub-dialects. For centuries, Russians and other ethnic groups (Mordvins, Germans, and others) actively settled at the foot of the Northern Altai Mountains, and, as a result, Kumandins began to use Russian more in their communication. Today, Kumandin language speakers are mostly elderly Kumandins, while a significant number of young Kumandins use only Russian.

One reason for the Kumandin language disappearing relatively fast is a lack of qualified school teachers of Kumandin. Until recently, Kumandin was taught as an elective in a school in Biysk. Soon, as there were no longer any staff to teach the language, Kumandin was no longer taught. Currently, the Kumandin language is taught at the middle school in the village of Shatobal in the Solton district.

Ethnographers traditionally identify Upper (Ore Kumandy) and Lower (Altyna/Altna or Tyubyure Kumandy) Kumandins living in the upper and lower reaches of the Biya. This division is based on certain economic and cultural differences manifested by these two groups living in different climatic conditions and on these two groups having different ethnogenesis stages. Scholars believe that the “core of the Kumandin ethnicity” is formed by Upper Kumandins. They live in the taiga regions in the upper reaches of the Biya, while Lower Kumandins live mostly in the forest steppes of the Biya’s lower reaches. Visible differences between these two Kumandin groups have been administratively enshrined in the Upper Kumandin and Lower Kumandin Non- Slav districts (volost) with independent clan governance selected from among the Kumandins; these districts existed in the 19th-early 20th centuries.

Currently, Kumandins constitute an ethnic minority in the areas of their traditional settlement. They live in communities in hamlets and villages, district centers and cities, forming sort of “islands” amid the Russian-speaking majority. At the same time, both rural and urban Kumandins channel great efforts into preserving and developing their mother tongue and traditional culture and they are supported in their work by municipal, regional, and federal authorities. Kumandin public organizations are very active and extensively apply for grant funding aimed at supporting their ethnocultural projects. This work resulted in establishing folklore performing groups at ethnic centers in the villages of Solton and Krasnogorskoye and in the city of Biysk; in publishing informational and educational literature, in celebrating holidays and offering classes for the young Kumandin generation; in implementing other socially important projects. In the Altai territory, Kumandins are the only holders of the indigenous small-numbered people of the North, Siberia, and the Russian Far East status. Key events intended to preserve Kumandin culture are included in municipal and regional plans for implementing state ethnic policy in the region. Today, Kumandins’ ethnic cultural heritage (their traditional costume, rituals, folklore heritage, and traditional cuisine) is one of the region’s calling cards.