The so-called chum (tent made of skin or bark) is the traditional dwelling of the nomadic peoples, engaged in raindeerbreeding. The ways of installation, transportation and the sequence of disassembling of chum are considered to be optimal in the conditions of taiga and tundra.
This habitation is called “chom” in the Komi-Zyrians language, “mya” – in Nenets, and “nyucky khot” in the Khanty language. Russian has borrowed the word “chum” from the Komi language.
Chum is the universal dwelling of the northerners. It represents a portable, cone-shaped tent. The conic shape is considered to be the most convenient, because the steep surface doesn’t hold snow back, and it slides down freely, so that when moving to another place, there is no need to clean the tent before disassembling. The conic shape also makes chum stable during the snowstorms and strong winds.
Usually chum of the raindeerbreeders – Khanty, Nenets, Komi, Enets- consists of 25-40 poles and several coverings, which are stowed on the special sleigh, the so-called “narty”, when moving to another place. The dimensions of the dwelling depend on the length of poles and their amount: the more poles, the more spacious chum is. The coverings are stretched upon the poles. After the installation of the chum women make beds inside. Over the mats they put the raindeer’s fells
In the centre of the chum there is a stove, which serves both for heating and cooking. Besides, the warmth rising from the stove doesn’t let the precipitations in, because they evaporate of high temperature.
The summer chum is usually smaller in size than the winter one. The raindeerbreeders choose the lighter materials for the construction to make the moving from one site to another easier. In the ancient times chum was covered with covers made of birch-bark. Nowadays they are no longer used. The achievements of modern industry let the raindeerbreeders use tarpaulin for this purpose, because it is much faster in manufacturing and more convenient in transporting. The installation of chum is the whole family’s business, and even children take part in it, thus is preserved a certain sequence in installation of the dwelling.
T. A. Moldanov
