Sireniki

Sireniki (Russian: Сиреники; Yupik: Сиӷинык, literally Mountain of Horns; Chukchi: Вутээн) is a village (selo) in Providensky District of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, in the Far Eastern Federal District of Russia. Population: 469 (2010 Census);[2] [3] Municipally, Sireniki is subordinated to Providensky/Providenia Municipal District.[5] In 2010, a law was passed abolishing the municipal rural settlement of Sireniki. The village continues to exist, but is now municipally part of Providenia Urban Settlement.[5]

This article is about the settlement. For the people, see Sirenik Eskimos.

Sireniki Сиреники
Selo[1]
Location of Sireniki
Sireniki Location of Sireniki Show map of Russia Sireniki Sireniki (Chukotka Autonomous Okrug) Show map of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
Coordinates: 64°25′00″N 173°57′00″W
Country	Russia
Federal subject	Chukotka Autonomous Okrug[1]
Administrative district	Providensky District
Population  (2010 Census)[2][3]
• Total	469
• Estimate  (January 2016)[4]	376
Municipal status
• Municipal district	Providensky Municipal District[5]
• Urban settlement	Provideniya Urban Settlement[5]
Time zone	UTC+12 (MSK+9 [6])
Postal code(s)[7]	689273
Dialing code(s)	+7 42735[8]
OKTMO ID	77710000116

Geography

The placement of the settlement owes much to a sizeable polynya at the shore of the village,[9][10] allowing the inhabitants to hunt all year round. The village is situated north of Cape Stoletiya and Southeast of Cape Zelyony[11] on the coast where the Maingyvykvyn, Sirenik-Keivuk and Sineveyem empty into the sea.[11] There are numerous high cliffs surrounding the village,[9][10] some of which have been named by the local people with poetic names such as "Sokol" (falcon) and "Yablochko" (little apple).[12] Nearby is a marine grotto called "Sochi" after the Black Sea resort, which the villagers use for swimming in the summer.[12]

Wildlife

The existence of the polynya attracts a wide variety of sea life, numerous[11] species of whales and seals inhabit the area, and the village is situated along the main spring migration route of the Bowhead whale, the target of the majority of the Yupik inhabitants hunting.[9] To the east of the village, the Imtuk Lagoon is rich in fish[9][10] and the inhabitants catch cod during the winter and salmon in the summer.[9] there are also a wide range of different bird species that nest in the high cliffs surrounding the village, including puffins and gulls.[11]

History

Early history

Sireniki is the only historically Yupik settlement in Chukotka,[9][10] and the village has been established on the same site for 2-2,500 years,[9][10] and originated because it was situated on the migration route of whales.[9][10] It is also the only pre-historic village in Chukotka to have been continuously occupied to the present day.[11] There are numerous traces of ancient Yupik settlement in and around the village,[9][10] however the majority of this is now buried under the village fox farm.[12] There are three separately identified areas of ancient settlement.[12] The oldest of these is called Valvurak, which was inhabited from the 1st century AD until its abandonment in the 19th century.[12] The other two are called Sliygu, a set of three dugout dwellings dating from the Punuk Period[12] and Tykylia, another set of dugout dwellings cut into the side of a volcano and used as habitation from the start of the 19th century to the mid twentieth century.[12] The dwellings in these old part of the village were supported by the bones of the whales that the inhabitants harvested.[9][10]

The origin of the name of the village is a matter of debate. Some sources state that it means "Mountain of Horns",[9][10][12] though others suggest it comes from the words for "Valley of the Sun"[9][10] or "Wheatgrass".[9][10]

Recent history

Historically the village has been populated by Yupik, however in the 1960s, following a drive to force the reindeer herding, nomadic Chukchi to live a more settled life, a number who lived in the Kurupkan River valley were moved to the village,[9][10] though the Yupik of the village still practice traditional marine hunting.[9][10]

The Sirenik Eskimo language, which some consider as separate from Yupik and Inuit language groups, was spoken by the Sirenik people in the village until 1997, when the last native speaker died.[13][14][15]

Municipal reorganisation

Sireniki, Provideniya Bay, and surrounding area

On September 10, 2010, a law was passed abolishing Novoye Chaplino and Sireniki at municipal level.[5] Novoye Chaplino as an entity continues to exist, but it is no longer a rural settlement on its own, but simply an inhabited locality within Provideniya urban settlement. The right of the village to local administration was removed[5] and such responsibilities were taken over by Provideniya municipal administration on January 1, 2011.[5] Provideniya municipal administration also took control of all municipal property, all municipal property rights and all local budgets on this date.[5]

Demographics

The population according to the most recent census data is 469, of whom 239 were male and 230 female,[2][3] a reduction on a 2006 estimate of 533[12] (although other sources merely state a population over 500[9]). The head of the rural settlement is Natalia Protopopova.[10]

Economics

The Yupik population in the village continues traditional sea hunting practices,[9] and preserve traditional methods of construction for boats.[9] In addition there is also a fox farm which, along with sea hunting is the main source of employment in the village.[12] There is also a general store, a school and a library in the village,[12] though following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the school shrunk from a ten-grade school to a six-grade school due to the difficulty in finding suitably qualified teachers.[16]

Transport

The village is a 15-minute flight from Provideniya, although according to a 2006 source, there are no scheduled flights available.[12] Other than approaching the village by sea, the only other route is a 70 km unpaved road across a number of mountain passes.[12]

Climate

Sireniki has a Tundra climate (ET)[17] because the warmest month has an average temperature between 0 °C (32 °F) and 10 °C (50 °F). The coldest month of the year is January, whilst the warmest is July. On average, the temperature does not rise above freezing between November and April and it snows at least once in every month except July and August.

Climate data for Sireniki
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	3 (37)	7 (45)	3 (37)	6 (43)	14 (57)	22 (72)	23.9 (75.0)	22.2 (72.0)	19.1 (66.4)	8 (46)	6.1 (43.0)	4.4 (39.9)	23.9 (75.0)
Average high °C (°F)	−11.1 (12.0)	−12.1 (10.2)	−9.1 (15.6)	−5.1 (22.8)	2.4 (36.3)	8.1 (46.6)	11.9 (53.4)	11.2 (52.2)	6.9 (44.4)	0.4 (32.7)	−5.6 (21.9)	−9.6 (14.7)	1.0 (33.8)
Average low °C (°F)	−15.5 (4.1)	−17.5 (0.5)	−15.6 (3.9)	−11.6 (11.1)	−2.2 (28.0)	2.5 (36.5)	6.2 (43.2)	6.1 (43.0)	2.4 (36.3)	−2.9 (26.8)	−9.2 (15.4)	−13.7 (7.3)	−5.9 (21.4)
Record low °C (°F)	−39.1 (−38.4)	−33.7 (−28.7)	−32.2 (−26.0)	−27.3 (−17.1)	−17 (1)	−4.1 (24.6)	1.7 (35.1)	−1 (30)	−5.6 (21.9)	−16.8 (1.8)	−25.7 (−14.3)	−30.4 (−22.7)	−39.1 (−38.4)
Average rainfall mm (inches)	48 (1.9)	36 (1.4)	30 (1.2)	33 (1.3)	30 (1.2)	36 (1.4)	54 (2.1)	81 (3.2)	81 (3.2)	60 (2.4)	75 (3.0)	60 (2.4)	624 (24.6)
Average snowy days	18	14	14	19	13	2	0	0	3	16	19	19	137
Source: [18]

See also

• List of inhabited localities in Providensky District

References

Notes

1. Law #33-OZ, Article 9.2
2. Russian Federal State Statistics Service (2011). "Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года. Том 1" [2010 All-Russian Population Census, vol. 1]. Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года [2010 All-Russia Population Census] (in Russian). Federal State Statistics Service.
3. The results of the 2010 Census are given for Sireniki Rural Settlement, then a municipal formation of Providensky Municipal District, though now abolished. According to Law #148-OZ, Sireniki was the only inhabited locality on the territory of Sireniki Rural Settlement.
4. Chukotka Autonomous Okrug Territorial Branch of the Federal State Statistics Service. Численность постоянного населения Чукотского автономного округа по муниципальным образованиям на 1 января 2016 года (in Russian)
5. Law #45-OZ
6. "Об исчислении времени". Официальный интернет-портал правовой информации (in Russian). 3 June 2011. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
7. Почта России. Информационно-вычислительный центр ОАСУ РПО. (Russian Post). Поиск объектов почтовой связи (Postal Objects Search) (in Russian)
8. Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation Providensky Municipal District (in Russian)
9. Sireniki - The Electoral Commission of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug (in Russian)
10. Sireniki village Archived 2014-05-17 at the Wayback Machine Providensky District Official Website (in Russian)
11. Park Areas - Sireniki Nature Ethnic Park Beringia
12. Strogoff et al. p.134
13. Vakhtin 1998: 162
14. Linguist List's description about Nikolai Vakhtin's book: The Old Sirinek Language: Texts, Lexicon, Grammatical Notes. The author's untransliterated (original) name is “Н.Б. Вахтин Archived 2007-09-10 at the Wayback Machine”.
15. Support for Siberian Indigenous Peoples Rights (Поддержка прав коренных народов Сибири) Archived 2007-11-03 at the Wayback Machine – see the section on Eskimos Archived 2007-08-30 at the Wayback Machine
16. Krupnik and Vakhtin, p.14
17. McKnight and Hess, pp.235-7
18. "Weather Averages for Sireniki from meoweather.com". meoweather.com. Retrieved 14 June 2013.

Sources

• Дума Чукотского автономного округа. Закон №33-ОЗ от 30 июня 1998 г. «Об административно-территориальном устройстве Чукотского автономного округа», в ред. Закона №55-ОЗ от 9 июня 2012 г. «О внесении изменений в Закон Чукотского автономного округа "Об административно-территориальном устройстве Чукотского автономного округа"». Вступил в силу по истечении десяти дней со дня его официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Ведомости", №7 (28), 14 мая 1999 г. (Duma of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. Law #33-OZ of June 30, 1998 On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, as amended by the Law #55-OZ of June 9, 2012 On Amending the Law of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug "On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug". Effective as of after ten days from the day of the official publication.). (in Russian)
• Дума Чукотского автономного округа. Закон №45-ОЗ от 29 ноября 2004 г. «О статусе, границах и административных центрах муниципальных образований на территории Провиденского района Чукотского автономного округа», в ред. Закона №89-ОЗ от 20 октября 2010 г «О преобразовании путём объединения поселений на территории Провиденского муниципального района и внесении изменений в Закон Чукотского автономного округа "О статусе, границах и административных центрах муниципальных образований на территории Провиденского района Чукотского автономного округа"». Вступил в силу через десять дней со дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Ведомости", №31/1 (178/1), 10 декабря 2004 г. (Duma of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. Law #45-OZ of November 29, 2004 On the Status, Borders, and Administrative Centers of the Municipal Formations on the Territory of Providensky District of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, as amended by the Law #89-OZ of October 20, 2010 On the Transformation via Merger of the Settlements on the Territory of Providensky Municipal District and on Amending the Law of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug "On the Status, Borders, and Administrative Centers of the Municipal Formations on the Territory of Providensky District of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug". Effective as of the day which is ten days after the official publication date.). (in Russian)
• I. Krupnik and N. Vakhtin In the 'House of Dismay': Knowledge, Culture and Post-Soviet Politics in Chukotka, 1995-6 (2002) in People and the Land. Pathways to Reform in Post-Soviet Siberia, ed. E. Kasten
• McKnight, Tom L; Hess, Darrel (2000). "Climate Zones and Types". Physical Geography: A Landscape Appreciation. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. ISBN 0-13-020263-0.
• M Strogoff, P-C Brochet, and D. Auzias Petit Futé: Chukotka (2006). "Avant-Garde" Publishing House.