The last reindeer herders: China’s ethnic minority Ewenki keep a centuries-old tradition alive

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The Ewenki, an ethnic minority group in northeast China, are traditionally nomads who have herded reindeer for centuries. But today, only about 200 Ewenki still make a living as herders, and their native tongue has mostly died out. Valian, also known as Wang Ying, is one of the last Ewenki reindeer herders. As most of their people have moved into the cities and assimilated with the Chinese, Valian and her family are doing their best to maintain their people's traditional way of life.
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[@anfangerm]

3:08 magical shot

[@akouafray8616]

Beautiful. Will love to see more actions taken to protect the culture and traditions of the ewenki. Their language should not be allowed to extinct.

[@PasscodeAdvance]

Obviously

[@Carbuncle0168]

@@PasscodeAdvance their language and culture is protected by Chinese Law

[@user-vq6pg9oz9r]

I’ve been to a place like that and it was in Mongolia so I’m not sure if it’s the same place. There was an adorably baby reindeer that trotted around and all these massive ones. I tried to feed them but they kept trying to use their antlers to get the basket of food out of my hands which was terrifying for me but hilarious for my brother!!! They were really cute though and it was a lot of fun ❤️

[@alvonsorodriguez6924]

Outer or inner mongolia ?

[@user-vq6pg9oz9r]

@@alvonsorodriguez6924 It was in Hulunbuir which is in inner mongolia but is technicaly a city in China!

[@salvatorenostrade3331]

@@user-vq6pg9oz9r Inner Mongolia is "Chinese" in all honesty only part should. There are more Ethnic Mongolians in Inner-Mongolia than outer Mongolia and the CCP is trying to silence their language and customs.

[@salvatorenostrade3331]

@@ryoisun Lol I am Chinese, you think this KZbin name is real? You're just mad that I am right. I've lived in Jinan and Inner-Mongolia for a while. China is by no means bad but the CCP is trying to destroy a lot of ethnic minorities who refuse to bow down to them.

[@Amidat]

@@salvatorenostrade3331 absolute lie... Mongols in China use the original Mongol script while in Mongolia itself they do not.

[@heidiichigo-san3927]

As a Finn seeing this sort of environment, the way the woman and men are dressed and the reindeers... Well it looks like the Sami tribe we have in Finland and these folks right here have lots of things in common, even tho they are located in two totally different parts of the globe... The antlers part tho is not something that goes down in Finland...

[@scarykiss]

I agree! They look very similar. I have been to Rovaniemi and Northeast China. Even the Ewenki and the Sami have very similar religions, which is amazing!

[@mechannel7046]

40% of finnish men have haplogroup N, which originated in Northern China

[@TimCizej137]

So fascinating. Thank You. 🍀

[@cchen6522]

Life in northeast China is very hard in winter. The temperature can be as low as minus 50 degrees. More and more people migrate to the south, including these minorities. For the younger generation, the morden lifestyle is more attractive than the traditional one.

[@loritouma9767]

They are a beautiful species of reindeer!!!! Wow ive never seen one before until now... must b so incredible to b near them!!! Amazing really incredible!!!❤🖒

[@MrKikip1992]

What beautiful creatures

[@kubii2404]

Thanks for making this video or else I’d have no idea what people of the Ewenki Tribe look like. I just traced my ancestry back to the ewenki tribe who knew my ancestors were reindeer herders. My ancestors we got swept up and put into the 8 Manchu banner system during Qing dynasty they changed and listed our ethnicity to manchu and used them in their battles to conquer china after the fall of the Qing dynasty ancestors changed their last name to Han last names in order to try to protect the family as it was looked down upon to not be Han Chinese

[@chanvichet4347]

This Is Beautiful❤️😍 Merry Christmas 🌲🎄

[@donkeykong516]

So cool

[@DanBurgaud]

2:27 "...since the deer are like our kids, I feel bad." 😢😢😢😢😢

[@heli398]

Her mandarin is better than mine wow

[@voxymail7989]

mandarin is actually invented by these northern people

[@hazard1648]

Ofc mandarin originally from Manchuria

[@user-qwertyuiopasdfghj]

@@voxymail7989that’s simply not true. Mandarin is a sinitic language

[@peterretep1010]

Magical indeed.

[@condorX2]

Cuddly and nice scenery. Xmas.

[@machsix123]

Doesn’t look like they playin’ any reindeer games...

[@wenliu5051]

I fully support protection and restoration of native languages

[@Zenovarse]

Feeling bad. Might do a Solon playthrough in EU4.

[@firefly4784]

There is blood on the antlers cut down. Does it hurt?

[@dagdigdug1]

maybe u ask the deer dear

[@kutter_ttl6786]

No, the blood is there for the antlers growth but there's no nerve endings in antlers so it's not painful. The only way it would hurt is if you tore at it at the attachment point and damaged it along with the surrounding skin. They made a clean cut right above.

[@benjaminkwj2792]

Kristoff and Ryder can relate LOL

[@DjDandalandan]

Aw, so cute reindeers 😍 🦄🦄 sorry, no reindeer emoticon hehe) Merry Christmas 2019 everyone!!! 🎄 mabuhay!

[@gadgetgasspoll2923]

🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌⛄😀😘

[@aurora9252]

🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌

[@SonicCloud7]

哇塞，太美丽了

[@jackl2257]

Cool

[@GeorgeMartinus]

This is Evenki tribe in Northeast China. There's also a tribe from the same region that can create fish-skin cloth. I forget the name.

[@pureffecto]

赫哲族 鱼皮衣

[@Amidat]

they live in Russia as well

[@GeorgeMartinus]

@@Amidat The same with Ainu who lives in both Japan (Hokkaido) and Russia (Sakhalin and islands around).

[@roshalee5839]

Does it hurt? Are they bleeding?

[@user-pw4os7nu4h]

不会疼，它们有时候都会自然脱落。还有打架时候，都可能撞击掉了。不会疼的，和大象不一样

[@putrajaya7687]

Valian is nice name...

[@dariqaa]

Is this where Rudolph lives?

[@oscarn4931]

No, he lives on Finland

[@Macky1101]

Are these reindeer herder related to the ones in Siberia, Russia?

[@mechannel7046]

These are the Evenki people.

[@XuerLi]

Yes, the Russian Far East was the land of Mongolic, Turkic and Tungusic peoples including Evenkis, but hundreds years ago majority of them got slaughtered and assimilated by Russians who were armed with fire weapons. Outer Manchuria was part of Qing Dynasty, nowadays there are many pits in that regions, Russian soldiers basically massacred most of the native males and threw them inside(many were even buried alive).

[@user-gj1ff7iq5m]

@@XuerLi What are you talking about? We never slaughtered Northen tribes, Evenks, Yakyts, Udmurts, Eskimos and many, many others live in Russia till these days.

[@yeetman4953]

@@user-gj1ff7iq5m In the 17th century, the Russian empire made contact with the Evenks. Cossacks, who served as a kind of "border-guard" for the tsarist government, imposed a fur tax on the Siberian tribes. The Cossacks exploited the Evenk clan hierarchy, taking hostages from the highest members to ensure payment of the tax. Although there was some rebellion against local officials, the Evenks generally recognized the need for peaceful cultural relations with the Russians.[9] The Russians and their constant demands for fur taxes pushed the Evenks east all the way to Sakhalin island, where some still live today (Cassells). In the 19th century some groups migrated south and east into Mongolia and Manchuria.[10] Today there are still Evenk populations in Sakhalin, Mongolia, and Manchuria (Ethnologue), and to a lesser extent, their traditional Baikal region (Janhunen). Russian invasion of the Evenks caused them (and other indigenous peoples) language erosion, a decline in traditions, and identity loss, among others. This was especially true during the Soviet regime. Soviet policies of collectivization, forced sedentarization (sometimes referred to as sedentism), "unpromising villages", and Russification of the education system compromised social, cultural, and mental well-being of the Evenks.[11][12] Today, few people can speak the Evenki language, reindeer herding is in significant decline, the suicide rate is extremely high, and alcoholism is a serious issue. from wikipedia

[@helenal3956]

Write it down. Or make audio recordings.

[@whimsy7503]

Lack of people wanting to learn is the problem.

[@helenal3956]

Whimsy that can change. And the world is bigger than china.

[@whimsy7503]

@@helenal3956 i doubt that. That's only one of the dialects dying off in China. Even though kids are constantly exposed to their mother tongue, they choose to speak mandarin, the national language instead. And I doubt even more a foreigner will want to learn a minority language of China.

[@helenal3956]

Whimsy i hope the sun will shine on you, if not today one of the days coming.

[@funnyphone4817]

Plot twist: she is Mrs. Clause

[@jrukawa11]

不管什么人 都有好人和坏人

[@HerbertChen]

The offspring of the magic princess?

[@danielvibez4000]

I didn't even know they had reindeer in China.

[@notchurka3332]

Reindeers are everywhere in the northern hemisphere bro

[@kriskris4776]

Protect reindeer 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍 Endangered National Treasure

[@frederik_brugge1627]

😍🥰

[@user-rw6yo8qo1j]

Manchuria is not China

[@user-zg6ro8tk5z]

kim shut up

[@karma4990]

希望能保存您的文化！

[@main_tak_becus6689]

Real life Nara clan

[@anjiexox2711]

Nara and Evenki are completely different

[@ruthdawang9915]

Some comments below are so inappropriate. It just shows how ignorant people do not appreciate ancient culture and almost extinct animals. Instead, these cultures and animals should be revered and preserved.

[@pattimiller9157]

😳... Don't hurt them

[@user-pw4os7nu4h]

鹿个大象不一样，割鹿角不会伤害它们，反而是保护它们。割鹿角鹿也不会疼痛。鹿也会自然脱落鹿角

[@czankxduites5479]

Does she feed them with carrots too? 😁

[@goblinslayerchan7019]

The last of the Nara Clan.

[@sakurasoh]

Isnt that ribbon tied too tight to the neck?

[@ChiliHorse27]

Yes, but they don’t care as they only use them for money.

[@adanphu4325]

I have ~20% Chinese Dai at 90% confidence revealed through 23andMe and the other 80% is unknown Southern Chinese There are currently only ~

[@misascoffin]

FIRST COMMENT AND FIRST VIEWER AND FIRST LIKER

[@soccerflick2380]

Milky Way technically you are not the first viewer,the one who capture was the first view

[@shsshshhs1974]

lol everyone's commenting that

[@misascoffin]

Believe me or not it’s true that i’m first because i commented this comment 6 seconds ago.

[@shuhuapeng8804]

Idc

[@ashna3045]

=3=

[@deepakraj5352]

So do they raise them for their meat or something else?

[@756332366]

For their antlers.

[@mikegreen2291]

They sold their meat to European.

[@yeetman4953]

@@mikegreen2291 i think you mean the nordic countries.

[@user-qd8pl6es8f]

Nomads raise their animals as a way/mode of life as much as for economical reason. Being a Mongolian, I always have the longing to live as a herder when I am old, if I can.. Such a peaceful life. With any herds, horse, cattle, goats, sheep, yak, camel. Reindeer is almost sacred in my mind. The first animals our ancestors domesticated were obviously wolves and deer while living in forest of northeast. Sweeter than deer there is nothing.

[@wbgsci]

Tony Tony Chopper

[@Cj-tg3ms]

YOU CALLED?

[@wbgsci]

@@Cj-tg3ms Tanuki!

[@THENETESH]

save them common your country is rich.

[@jj-yc5xi]

The reindeers horn Why cut?? 😭😭

[@dagdigdug1]

money baby

[@TinyewPoon]

that's the main way the Ewenki make money to live, it's much better than to sell their reindeer, isn't it?

[@Vortexcube]

They naturally fall off and regrow every year. It's not predictable when they will be shed so they opt to cut it so they can sell it. It's all bone except for the velvet so the animals shouldn't be hurt. Much better with them knowing how to do it properly than other people.

[@kutter_ttl6786]

At 2:09 the caption states poachers try to remove the antlers, potentially hurting the reindeer. Most likely it's to prevent poachers from stealing their livelihood but also the Ewenki know how to do it without hurting the deer.

[@ChiliHorse27]

For money

[@yuwang6640]

The comments below make me sick and disgusted.

[@user-mp8yz4wd7i]

🦌🦌🦌🦌👍💥

[@megaaaa2784]

Santa Claus nation。

[@raniani6490]

Swen......

[@sandyrivera1827]

My ancestry on my mother line is 74%. This explains why I'm drawn to indigenous culture, and music. Hearing her speak gives me chills like I'm hearing my ancestor

[@Robert-ry6xe]

Jesus this seems cruel

[@themiddlekingdom9121]

Why you inserted religion on your comment ? The owners saw out the reindeer's' antlers for sale, part of making a living, nothing cruel is about it. The reindeer' antlers will grow back up anyway,, and there are no predators where they live so their antlers can't be used for protections.

[@wsmithe2209]

@@themiddlekingdom9121 - He said it was cruel because it happened in China. He wouldn't dare to criticize if this were happened in other part of the world. Actually, the same tribe is making the same living in Russia and Scandinavia.

[@Robert-ry6xe]

1: I didn’t insert religion into this, I’m an atheist. 2: I say it’s cruel because of the extreme pain they are in while having their antlers are being cut off

[@wsmithe2209]

@Chng Chee Hwee - Not just in Europe, there are people in the world that would go n hunt for whales, sharks and dolphins for living. The right groups only target and blame Japan and China for over fishing.

[@Vortexcube]

Every year they naturally shed and regrow new antlers. The antlers die once they stop growing and the skin, or velvet is shed right after. If they cut just about when the antlers are naturally shed, it shouldn't cause much pain.

[@mysterious379]

I am feeling sad for those 🦌 😒🙁

[@hazard1648]

I am feeling sad for you

[@certainordinary]

NARA clan

[@Quanic2000]

I'm torn: these are lovely people and their way of life and culture should be preserved. But I'm NOT down with the harvesting of antlers as souvenirs for tourists and Chinese medicine.

[@756332366]

Just like Artic people hunt seals and whales every year, LEGALLY.

[@Quanic2000]

@@756332366 I was going to argue about hunting for survival but if the Ewenki need tourism to survive I can't blame them. Maybe the issue is with mass tourism and "ancient" Chinese medicine.

[@756332366]

@@Quanic2000 Well, then try to delete the magic word "Chinese" to ancient medicine instead of ancient "Chinese" medicine. See if that makes more sense to u

[@Quanic2000]

@@756332366 no, the video clearly states @1:54 the antlers are used for Chinese Medicine.

[@756332366]

@@Quanic2000 I mean, you focus too much on the word Chinese and ignoring the fact that antlers has been use as medicine for thousands of years. Which implys that those people raise reindeers harvest antlers and trade for profit with others(well, Chinese) for thousands of years.

[@wavincewavince394]

is the ethnic system nowadays creating the same discriminating atmosphere as caste system or racial system.

[@zachjarsle4606]

No

[@wavincewavince394]

@@zachjarsle4606 because i saw han chinese being rude and acting weird to other ethnic such as bai miao and uighurs ethnic

[@zachjarsle4606]

@@wavincewavince394 Any videos?

[@godessworshipper4663]

She speaks mandarin, her culture must have been genocided. How come she was singing in her language?

[@yomgeete]

Really... I am from India.. North East part... We r tribal people with little over 1.4 million people. Here India govt. Have policy to protect our culture. Mainland Indian have to take permit (inner line permit) to visit our state and they r not allowed to own property here. Even after all these efforts by the government, I see our native culture disappearing... What do you think of that.. Please reply...

[@godessworshipper4663]

@@yomgeete Govt can only delay the death of these traditions and cultures. If something can not associate with modernization, it will die, sooner or later. Industrialization and modernization are the reasons, but the root cause is still the fact that people want to live a better life

[@cchen6522]

Tenshi all of us use English here，so? I think English will be the only language left in the world, sooner or later.

[@godessworshipper4663]

@@yomgeete Nope. In fact the need for learning English will be lesser in the future when AI can help you translate.

[@yomgeete]

I know that... But in your comment you said their culture must have been genocided... Genocide is a strong word... Must be use cautiously...

[@tazboy1934]

Hope chinese ccp dont oppress them

[@johnnyw6467]

@Christian B. How about do the research before posting biased and false comment? They are protected and fund to continue the tradition, unlike your kind who know only to seek to destroy.

[@itsnotaphase2074]

Christian B. And only China does it? Do you know about how America killed the native Americans?

[@zachjarsle4606]

@Christian B. Western bias explanations always give me refreshing but naive prejudice from white supremacist. LOL. Developed countries also have gone through urbanization like what you say that people leave rural village for big cities to make a living which is a trend for any developing countries. Now western people criticize urbanization in China is evil and destroys ethnic culture. Do you mean China doesn't deserve urbanization? And China should stop becoming stronger so that it would not break your white supremacist's little fragile heart. As for ethnic people, we get along well with them. Because we don't have the things such as Han supremacist like you guys have in the evil west.

[@muhdadib23]

No culture will survive with communism.You must leave ur culture & religion behind and follow CCP.

[@xwah5016]

adib zahier ur so dumb that it’s actually pathetic. It’s lost because of work, and cities and younger generation not caring. It’s similar to how a child of an immigrant who comes to America, and without the teaching of their native tongue and get lost in the national language, u forget. Not everything is gov intervene like ur brainwashing media tells u

[@jpmann8464]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/h4inaomvdtNko68 This is what brainwashing in China can do to you. It'll make you human again.

[@jackl2257]

That’s called progressing, ask how many Indians still knows their Culture

[@mikegreen2291]

So, please tell me how white people treat native American

[@yeetman4953]

troll

[@CherylMotherofSeven]

What a beautiful people. Thank you for showing us. I pray they know Jesus Christ as their Savior, for we live everyday for eternity with our creator.

[@xZzirrSicK]

No

[@yeetman4953]

everything was okay until you mention jesus, it seems whites cant stop colonizing.