Modern culture and crafts, folklore groups, professional art

Athletic games and competitions make an important part of the Soyot’s cultural identity. They had many competitions where an adolescent or an adult had to demonstrate their strength, agility, and other qualities. Today, the Soyot’s folk games are on the list of Buryat athletic competitions held at various celebrations. The Oka Soyot’s most popular games include lasso throwing, jumping over sleds, and tebeg (a coin game). Such competitions are an excellent occasion for the young indigenous generation to demonstrate their skills.

Reindeer herders need the skills of jumping over sleds in their everyday lives, for instance, when they need to rescue a reindeer that is part of a sled train. The train comprises seven or eight sleds harnessed to two reindeer, which are harnessed to a pack sled in front of them. One of the reindeer pulling the pack sled may fall. Meanwhile, the train will keep moving, and unless rescue comes quickly, the noose may strangle the reindeer. Rescuing the animal requires getting to it as soon as possible, and that involves the reindeer herder jumping over a certain number of sleds in the train. Repeated exercises honed these skills to such a degree that the reindeer herders could do it blindfolded. The competition where the reindeer herders could demonstrate their skills happened in winter among Soyot men. Ten sleds were placed parallel to each other on a snow patch. To win, a competitor had to jump over the entire setup without taking a break, and jumping over sleds without touching them requires effort.

Lasso throwing is an art in itself and a popular children’s game among the people of the North. The skills learned in this game (agility, dexterity, distance judging) are a sine qua non for reindeer herding. In the traditional Soyot way of life, boys receive their first lasso from their father when they turn four or five. Their first games usually involve practicing their skills in lassoing sawed-off antlers or small trees. At nine, they begin to lasso baby reindeer. At 13, boys become proficient with their lasso. Traditionally, lasso-throwing competitions took place at any time of year. The Soyot used to say that a lasso is the reindeer herders’ hands, something they cannot do without.

Folk dances preserve Soyot culture, traditions, customs, and rituals. Soyot dances are an integral part of Soyot ethnic culture. These dances are typically very dynamic and energetic group dances. Soyot folk choreography has preserved its rich cultural and creative legacy and history.

The first Soyot ethnic celebration "Ulug-dag" happened in the Oka district in 2004. Before, this celebration was called Zhogtaar (“meeting”). The Ulug-Dag celebration received a republic-wide status and in 2017, it gained its emblem designed by the local artists Oyuna Ayusheeva and Alexandra Ochirova. The emblem depicts the golden eagle, a Soyot totemic animal, and the reindeer, one of the most revered animals in the Oka district.

The revived celebration is already 18 years old, and it is intrinsically connected with the current history of the Soyot, its recognition by the government, and the Soyot’s minor and major triumphs in various areas and sectors. In Soyot, it means “the great mountain,” and it is the Soyot name for Mount Munko-Saridak which was the center of the Soyot’s nomadic life several centuries ago. It also means that the sacred peak of the Eastern Sayan Mountains and their lord Buren-Khaan are patrons of this celebration. The Soyot’s relatives, the Tsaatan, live on the other side of this mountain.

Generally, the celebration features many original ethnic costumes and folk competitions; guests are welcomed with ethnic foods served in the traditional Soyot homes called the Ursa. The celebration features performances, traders’ booths, and exhibitions that include competitions and entertainment programs.

In 1992, residents of the Sorok ulus suggested founding a Soyot Culture Center. Next year, the Presidium of the Supreme Council of Buryatia issued a decree on establishing the Soyot Ethnic Village Council. The new building of the Soyot Culture and Folk Arts Center was unveiled on January 29, 2019, in the village of Orlik. The Center was built in a little under two years at the cost of about 28 million Rubles. The new Center houses an art school for children, a Museum of Soyot Cultural History, and folk arts and crafts workshops that make ethnic clothes, ethnic items, and artwork of fabric, leather, felt, etc.

Additionally, the Sorok ulus has the Sorok Soyot Boarding Comprehensive School that teaches Soyot as an elective and offers classes in the history and culture of the indigenous small-numbered people. In 2000, the school revived its local history museum.

Despite its tremendous potential, ethnic tourism in the Oka district in the Republic of Buryatia is virtually non-existent, mostly because its district center, the village of Orlik, is a long distance away from cities and the rail: 458 km to Irkutsk, 713 km to Ulan-Ude, and 369 km to the nearest railway station of Slyudyanka. The last 150 km of the Mondy-Orlik highway have no tarmac, which makes for a much longer time on the road. Location in the highlands means abundant precipitation that erodes the road and makes the district a hard-to-reach region. The last decade saw a spike in white-water rafting on the rivers Zhombolok and Oka, and in visits to the Volcano Valley and the Zhoygan (Choygan in Tuvan) healing springs that are easier to access from Buryatia, although they are in Tuva. Visiting tourists are frequently unaware of the region’s ethnic specifics and learn about Buryat culture and Buddhism only when they arrive there.