The Social and Symbolic Construction of Alaas Landscapes in the Siberian Forest
The Social and Symbolic Construction of Alaas Landscapes in the Siberian Forest among the Sakha

Summary/Abstract: The issue of land in a sociocultural context is still an important enigma in Siberian anthropological studies. It is certain that the private property system was legally established following the collapse of the Soviet socialist regime, but land, particularly production land including forests and fields, remains somehow under the former ways of the regime. It enables local administrations to treat various matters at their own discretion. Oil and gas development launched more than a decade ago through state sponsorship strengthens this tendency. These institutional settings rather create these underlying complex social factors. The most important social space among the Siberian indigenous peoples overlaps these spheres of production land and mining, being strongly associated with their traditional cultures, economies, and identities. Here, I would like to examine the land property issue of the Siberian indigenous peoples in terms of the sociocultural context. My intention is to show the cultural richness in how the people relate with and manage their land or ordinary Siberian forest and grassland despite drastic institutional changes.

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