Mordovian Water Vehicles from the Ethnological Perspective

DOI:10.33876/2311-0546/2025-2/301-323

Authors

Keywords:

water vehicles, types, tradition, Mordovians, shipping, boat pulling, folk knowledge, toponymy

Abstract

Rivers and lakes have always played an important role in the life of the Mordovian population living in the western and eastern regions of Mordovia and neighboring territories. The abundance of water (1,525 rivers and about 500 lakes) contributed to the spread of water transportation. Various types of boats were used in the traditional economy: boats, vessels, rafts and ferries. Boats were made of sawn planks or carved from tree trunks, they could be flat-bottomed or rounded-bottomed, narrow and long (up to 20-30 meters) or, on the contrary, short and wide. The boats could be moved by oars, sails, or poles that were used to push them. Vessels were more complex in construction, often specialized according to their purpose. There were fishing, cargo and passenger vessels (the latter could be either personal or public), but often a vessel would carry people and cargo at the same time. Large ships were moved by horses or burlaks (boat pullers) who walked along the riverbank and pulled the ship by ropes attached to it. From 1817 some vessels were moved by steam. Ferries and rafts were used to cross the river and to raft timber. The terminology, toponymy and native language reflect many facts that testify to the importance of water elements and water vehicles in the life of the Mordvians. Water vehicles are mentioned in incantations and proverbs. Sources (archives, memorial books, field data, etc.) and scientific literature allow us to say that for the Mordva and all the peoples of the Volga region water vehicles are an important part of the subsistence system.

Author Biography

  • Liudmila Nikonova, Research Institute of Humanities under the Government of the Republic of Mordovia

    Nikonova, Liudmila I. — Doctor of History, Professor, Leading Researcher of the Department of Regional Studies and Ethnology, Research Institute of Humanities under the Government of the Republic of Mordovia (Saransk, Russian Federation). E-mail: congress7@list.ru ORCID ID: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4327-9534

    For citation: Nikonova, L. I. 2025. Mordovian Water Vehicles from the Ethnological Perspective. Herald of Antopology (Vestnik Antropologii) 2: 301–323.

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Published

08.06.2025

Issue

No. 2 (2025): Herald of Anthropology (Vestnik antropologii)

Section

Folk Knowledge and Subsistence Systems