Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)'s image
Created: 2014-09-16 17:58
Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology
Editors' group: (not set)
Description: In Kalmyk culture the father represents the whole family and takes all-important decisions. The mother's role is to look after the household, and to bare, and bring up children. Being at the bottom of the family hierarchy, the children are supposed to obey their parents and support them in their old age. Children, especially young ones, are not supposed to participate in the conversations of elders and are taught to do household chores from an early age.

Relatives on the father's side (avgnr) enjoy special privileges and respect, which is reflected in their treatment and roles. For example, during celebrations they sit on the most prestigious seats, are the first to be given gifts as well as the right to utter the first well-wishes. Important decisions relating to the clan or lineage, including the performance of various rituals, weddings etc., are, as a rule, made by these relatives. Also, out of respect, the bride is not supposed to utter the names of her husband's paternal relatives. Instead, she has to find name substitutes or nick-names when addressing them. This name-calling prohibition, also known as khadmlkhn, is part of a wider tradition of name-tabooing. Paternal relatives are also expected to be more formal, demanding, and businesslike. In contrast, relatives on the mother's side (nagtsnr) are viewed as more forgiving and easy-going, which reflects traditional ideas about 'maternity' and 'femininity'. Their influence on clan-related matters is supposed to be only implicit. Nevertheless, maternal relatives are given important roles in certain rituals such as a child’s first haircut where the maternal uncle first cuts a lock from the child’s hair.

On this page, you can watch videos and listen to stories of how Kalmyks educate their children, venerate their elders, kinsfolk, and ancestors.
 

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Alena Lidzhieva, About Traditional Education


   51 views

Alena says that in her youth she could not go out freely. In general, children had to ask their parents for permission. Alena grew up without a mother. Alena’s father never...

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Fri 12 Jun 2015


Alexandr Tarancheev, Respect for Older People


   12 views

Alexandr talks about how children should behave in the presence of older people:

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Sun 28 Apr 2019


Alexandra Sangadzhieva, Respect for Kin


   16 views

Alexandra says that people should respect their relatives. She reminisces about her paternal uncle who helped her family in Siberia.
Alexandra conveys that her father had the...

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Sat 12 May 2018


Bulyash Chumudova, Respect for Elders


   43 views

Bulyash says that in the past Kalmyks addressed different people differently, depending on their gender, age and the degree of kinship. She also says that the young people...

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Tue 13 Mar 2018


Ekaterina Dorzhieva, Respect for Older People


   29 views

Some people commemorate their diseased relatives a year, two, three, five, or even 15 years after their death. I am already in my 70s. I live with my husband. Our parents passed...

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Tue 13 Mar 2018


Galina Erdneeva, My Advice to Young People


   19 views

Galina gives advice and laments the loss of traditional values among the younger generation.

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Fri 26 Jan 2018


Galina Erdneeva, Naming Practices and Rules of Behaviour


   24 views

Galina talks about how married women behaved, and how they addressed their husbands’ brothers. She also laments that the Kalmyks have forgotten their traditions and native...

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Fri 26 Jan 2018


Galina Mamonova, Hospitality and Respect for Older People


   18 views

Galina talks about how Kalmyks showed their respect to their elders. She says that older people were always offered to sit in respectable places and were served fresh tea and...

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Sun 28 Oct 2018


Galina Mandzhieva, About the Aavikhn Clan, Its Land and My Father


   27 views

In this interview Galina talks about the Aavikhn clan, its land, and about his father who was from the Bootkhud clan.

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Thu 15 Mar 2018


Galina Tikeeva, My Respect for My Ancestors


   26 views

Galina says the following: I do not know much about my ancestors, but my mother used to say to me: ‘You have many ancestors. Commemorate them once or twice a year. Book well...

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Tue 13 Mar 2018


Galina Yavanova, About Communal Spirit and Respect for Older People


   16 views

Galina says that when she was a child in her village people helped each other and respected older people.

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Tue 13 Mar 2018


Irina Lidzhieva, About Learning From Elders


   30 views

Irina recalls that when she was young, old men always emphasized the importance of daily prayers. Hence, Irina prays every morning as soon as she gets up. She prays for the...

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Fri 19 Jun 2015


Ivan Modunkaev, My Mother


   25 views

Ivan reminisces about his mother whom he loved dearly.

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Wed 20 May 2015


Lyalya Dzhavanova, About My In-Laws


   7 views

Lyalya says that she was always obedient to her mother-in-law and never complained about her in-laws to her husband. Lyalya always wore a headscarf and socks in front of her...

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Sat 13 Jul 2019


Maria Pozharova, About Traditional Women


   8 views

Maria says that in the past at weddings people sang a special song to make the bride sob. It was believed that sobbing at her wedding would make her married life happy. Today, in...

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Tue 11 Jun 2019


Nadvid Ubushiev, Taboo Words and Expressions


   24 views

Nadvid relays a legend about the origin of taboo words and expressions.

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Wed 3 Jun 2015


Nina Koksunova, Parental Advice


   16 views

Nina is a teacher of the Kalmyk language at a secondary school in Khar-Buluk. In this video she talks about what parents teach their children.

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Fri 25 Sep 2015


Olzyata Badmaeva, The Respect and Worship of Kin, Ancestors, and Land


   37 views

In this interview Olzyata talks about the ritual of gazr tyaklgn (a worship of the spiritual masters of land and water), the local spirits, and the Master of earth.

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Wed 2 Aug 2017


Rimma Dysheva, Respect for One's Husband's Relatives


   19 views

Rimma talks about how to show respect to one's husband's relatives and how a Kalmyk bride should behave.

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Sun 22 Apr 2018


Sergei Muchiryaev, Respect of Elders


   34 views

Sergei talks about traditional upbringing and the importance of growing up with one’s grandparents.

Collection: Kalmyk Cultural Heritage Project (FAMILY STRUCTURE AND RESPECT OF KIN)

Institution: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Created: Fri 4 Aug 2017


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