Forest Enets

Forest Enets (Bay, Pe-bay, Karasino Yenissey Samoyed) is a Northern Samoyedic Uralic language traditionally spoken in northern central Siberia. Currently, about 30 speakers, all over 45, have fluent or near-fluent command of Forest Enets. They mostly live in the village of Potapovo and in the town of Dudinka on the Enissei river.

A forest enets dialog

A short conversation between two Forest Nenets speakers, Zoya Tretyakova and Nina Borisova.

The freak and his brother

An ancient Nenets tale narrating the adventures of two brothers.

Funny bears

A short story about the funny bears.

Gennadiy Ivanov

Germans’ earth-house

A man tells how the Germans from the Volga region lived in an earth-house during WW2.

Ghost

A man tells a story of a person who saw a ghost.

Ghost (2)

A man tells a story of a person who saw a ghost, part 2.

Glutton

A story about a glutton.

Glutton (2)

A story about a glutton, part 2.

Going to school on a reindeer

A true account by a Forest Enets speaker of his childhood travels on reindeers across the Tundra to go to school.

Granddaughter

A man speaks of his Enets granddaughter.

Hare snares

A man explains how hare snares are used by the Enets.

Hare’s way

A man shows a hareâs way in the forest.

Harness

A man explains how one should use a reindeer harness.

A harness-ghost

Recorded by Andrey Shluinsky and Natalya Stoynova in 2010.

Head to head with bears

A short narrative in which an Enets man tells of his encounter with two fighting bears while on a trip with his reind

Here in winter

A man tells how he arrived to the same place in the winter.

Hiding from a bear on a fence

A story about a man who was hiding form a bear on a fence.

Hill

A man gives a short introduction to a nearby hill.

How I ate ember-gooses

A story of a man who ate the ember-gooses he caught with his fishing-nets.

How I fell through ice

A story of a man who fell through ice.

How I harness the dogs

A man explains how he harnesses dogs for sledge riding.

How I made poles

A man explains how he made poles for his tent when he got married.

How I raise a dog

A man tells an everyday story about the training of a good dog.

How people used to bury

A man tells how people used to bury the dead according to an ancient Enets custom.

How the tobacco finished

A story about the people who live without tobacco.

How to conserve the cloudberries

A man explains how one should preserve cloudberries.

How to go back

A man explains how to find your way home when being outdoors.

How to go to the Red lake

A man shows the way to the Red lake.

How to hunt partridge

An Enets speaker explains how to hunt partridge; with a snare first and if it fails, with a gun!

How to install a net

A man explains how the Enets install the fishing nets.

How to install a tent

A man explains how one sets up and installs a traditional tent.

How to install a tent (2)

A man explains how one sets up and installs a traditional tent, part 2.

How to make a lasso

A man explains how to make a traditional lasso.

How to make a lasso (2)

A man explains how to make a traditional lasso, part 2.

How to make glue

A man explains how to make traditional fish glue.

How to use a lasso

A man explains how to use a traditional lasso to catch reindeer.

How trousers were burnt down

A funny little story about burnt down trousers.

Huge fish

A true event narrative in which a Forest Enets fisherman recalls the day he caught a huge fish.

Hunting Partridge

A very short recording of a Forest Enets speaker about hunting partridge birds.

Hunting wild reindeer

A true account by a speaker of Forest Enets of a particular reindeer hunting day.

I saw a wood-grouse

A short audio recording in which an Enets man describes a big black bird he once saw near a lake.

Innokentiy Bolin

Ivan Silkin

Kamuses for an old man

An amusing little tale of an old man teasing the young woman who cleaned his kamuses.

Kirill Yamkin

Kirill Danilovich Yamkin, 1912-1970

Lakes and rivers

A short chat with a Forest Enets speaker near the Kosoj stream.