View source for Buryats

{{short description|Siberian ethnic group}}
{{Infobox ethnic group
| group            = Buryats
| native_name      = {{MongolUnicode|1=ᠪᠤᠷᠢᠶᠠᠳ}}<br />Буряад<br />Buryaad
| native_name_lang = Buryat
| flag             = Flag of Buryatia.svg
| flag_caption     = Flag of [[Buryatia]]
| image            = Buryat wrestling 01.jpg
| caption          = A [[Mongolian wrestling|Buryat wrestling]] match during the Altargana Festival
| population       = 556,000<ref name="britannica.com">{{cite web | url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Buryat | title=Buryat &#124; Mongolia, Siberia, Shamanism &#124; Britannica }}</ref>
| region1          = {{flagcountry|Russia}}
| pop1             = 460,053
| ref1             = <ref name=census2021>{{cite web|title=Национальный состав населения|url=https://rosstat.gov.ru/storage/mediabank/Tom5_tab1_VPN-2020.xlsx|publisher=[[Federal State Statistics Service (Russia)|Federal State Statistics Service]]|access-date=30 December 2022}}</ref>
| region2          = {{nbsp|4}}{{flag|Buryatia}}
| pop2             = 295,273
| region3          = {{nbsp|4}}{{flag|Irkutsk Oblast}}
| pop3             = 74,746
| region4          = {{nbsp|4}}{{flag|Zabaykalsky Krai}}
| pop4             = 65,590
| region5          = {{flagcountry |Mongolia}}
| pop5             = 43,661
| ref5             = <ref>{{Cite web|title=2020 POPULATION AND HOUSING CENSUS OF MONGOLIA /summary/|url=https://www.1212.mn/BookLibraryDownload.ashx?url=Census2020_Mongolia_Eng.pdf&ln=En|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210715110250/https://www.1212.mn/BookLibraryDownload.ashx?url=Census2020_Mongolia_Eng.pdf&ln=En |archive-date=2021-07-15 }}</ref>
| region6          = {{flagcountry|CHN}}
| pop6             = 10,000
| ref6             = <ref name="CRJ">{{Cite web |url=http://gb.cri.cn/12764/2006/08/22/1865@1184844_3.htm |title=China Radio International, 2006 |access-date=2013-01-19 |archive-date=2016-03-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303232952/http://gb.cri.cn/12764/2006/08/22/1865@1184844_3.htm }}</ref>–70,000<ref name="britannica.com"/>
| langs            = [[Buryat language|Buryat]] ([[native language|L1]]);<br/>[[Russian language|Russian]], [[Mongolian Language|Mongolian]]
| rels             = [[Buddhism in Buryatia|Buddhism]],<ref name=":2" /><ref name="HR">{{cite journal |last=Chackars |first=Melissa |date=November 2020 |title=Buddhism and the Siberian Buryat Chronicles: Stories of Origin, Rivalry, and Negotiation in the Russian Empire |editor1-last=Copp |editor1-first=Paul |editor2-last=Wedemeyer |editor2-first=Christian K. |editor2-link=Christian K. Wedemeyer |journal=[[History of Religions (journal)|History of Religions]] |publisher=[[University of Chicago Press]] for the [[University of Chicago Divinity School]] |volume=60 |issue=2 |pages=81–102 |doi=10.1086/710574 |jstor=00182710 |s2cid=229366370 |lccn=64001081 |oclc=299661763}}</ref> [[Russian Orthodoxy|Orthodox Christianity]],<ref name=":2"/> [[Mongolian shamanism]]<ref name=":03"/><ref name="Quijada" />
| related          = Other [[Mongolic peoples]]
}}

The '''Buryats'''{{efn|{{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|ʊr|i|æ|t|s}};<ref>Laurie Bauer, 2007, ''The Linguistics Student's Handbook'', Edinburgh</ref> {{langx|bua|Буряад|Buryaad}}; {{langx|mn|{{MongolUnicode|ᠪᠣᠷᠢᠶᠠᠳ}}|Buriad}}; {{langx|ru|Буряты}}; {{lang-zh|布里亚特人}}}} are a [[Mongolic peoples|Mongolic]] [[ethnic group]] native to southeastern [[Siberia]] who speak the [[Buryat language]]. They are one of the two largest indigenous groups in [[Siberia]], the other being the [[Yakuts]]. The majority of the Buryats today live in their titular homeland, the [[Republic of Buryatia]], a [[Federal subjects of Russia|federal subject]] of [[Russia]] which sprawls along the southern border and partially straddles [[Lake Baikal]]. Smaller groups of Buryats also inhabit [[Ust-Orda Buryat Okrug]] ([[Irkutsk Oblast]]) and the  [[Agin-Buryat Okrug]] ([[Zabaykalsky Krai]]) which are to the west and east of Buryatia respectively as well as northeastern [[Mongolia]] and [[Inner Mongolia|Inner Mongolia, China]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|title= Encyclopedia of the World's Minorities|publisher= Routledge|year= 2005|isbn= 1-57958-468-3|editor-last= Skutsch|editor-first= Carl|location= New York|page= 251}}</ref> Traditionally, they formed the major northern subgroup of the [[Mongols]].<ref>''The New Encyclopædia Britannica'', 15th Edition. (1977). Vol. II, p. 396. {{ISBN|0-85229-315-1}}.</ref>

Buryats share many customs with other [[Mongolic peoples]], including [[Nomadic pastoralism|nomadic herding]], and erecting [[Yurt|ger]]s for shelter. Today the majority of Buryats live in and around [[Ulan-Ude]], the capital of the [[Buryat Republic]], although many still follow a more traditional lifestyle in the countryside. They speak a central [[Mongolic languages|Mongolic language]] called [[Buryat language|Buryat]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.ethnologue.com/show_family.asp?subid=90485 |title= Invalid id |publisher= Ethnologue.com |access-date= 2012-08-13 |archive-date= 2006-05-12 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20060512041131/http://www.ethnologue.com/show_family.asp?subid=90485 }}</ref> [[UNESCO]]'s 2010 edition of the ''[[Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger]]'' classifies the [[Buryat language]] as "[[List of endangered languages in Russia|severely endangered]]".<ref>{{Cite web|url= http://www.unesco.org/languages-atlas/en/atlasmap/language-id-507.html|title= UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in danger|website= www.unesco.org|access-date= 2019-04-19}}
</ref>

==History==
[[File:Mongol Empire c.1207.png|thumb|[[Mongol Empire]] circa 1207]]

The Buryats were formed from various ethnic components of [[Mongolic peoples|Mongolic]], [[Turkic peoples|Turkic]], [[Tungusic peoples|Tungusic]] and [[Samoyedic peoples|Samoyedic]] origin. The earliest inhabitants of the [[Baikal]] region were presumably Tungusic and Samoyedic tribes.<ref>{{cite web |title=Буряты: этногенез и этническая история |url=https://www.dissercat.com/content/buryaty-etnogenez-i-etnicheskaya-istoriya |website=DisserCat |year=2000 |place=Ulan-Ude|language=ru |access-date=2025-09-01| quote=Имеющиеся данные позволяют говорить о наличии в их составе этнических компонентов монгольского, тюркского, тунгусского, самодийского и, возможно, иного происхождения. | author= Nimaev, Daba}}</ref> It is believed that the ethnogenesis of the Buryats involved such tribes as the [[Bayirku]] and the [[Kurykans]] , who were part of the tribal union of the [[Tiele people|Tiele]]. At the same time, with regard to the Bayyrku and the Kurykans, alongside the Turkic version there are also hypotheses suggesting that they represented Mongolic elements within the Tiele confederation.<ref>{{cite web |title=Buryats |url=https://bigenc.ru/c/buriaty-cdb311 |website=Great Russian Encyclopedia |language=ru |access-date=2025-09-01 |quote=In Russian: "Время появления монголов в Прибайкалье разные исследователи датируют от 2-го тыс. до н. э. (Г. Н. Румянцев) до 13 в. н. э. (С. А. Токарев). Вероятно, с ними можно связывать баргутов (кит. байегу, тюрк. байырку), известных с 1-го тыс. в Баргузинской котловине." In English: "The time of the Mongols' appearance in the Baikal region is dated by different researchers from as early as the 2nd millennium BC (G. N. Rumyantsev) to as late as the 13th century AD (S. A. Tokarev). They can probably be associated with the Barguts (known in Chinese sources as baigu and in Turkic sources as bayïrqu), known from the 1st millennium in the Barguzin Valley."}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Kurumchi culture |url=https://old.bigenc.ru/archeology/text/2123222 |website=Great Russian Encyclopedia |language=ru |access-date=2025-09-01 |quote=In Russian: "Носители К. к. соотносятся с народом гулигань кит. источников эпохи Тан; курыканами, упоминаемыми в орхоно-енисейских надписях; кури (фури) арабоязычных авторов; кули кит. хроники династии Юань (жили в округе Ангкола, по-видимому названному по р. Ангара). Судя по всему, это монголоязычный народ хори, участвовавший в этногенезе бурят и части якутов." In English: "The bearers of the Kurumchi culture are identified with the people called Guligan in Chinese sources of the Tang era; with the Kurykans mentioned in the Orkhon–Yenisei inscriptions; with the Kuri (or Furi) of Arabic-speaking authors; and with the Kuli of the Yuan dynasty Chinese chronicle (who lived in the Angkola area, apparently named after the Angara River). By all accounts, this was the Mongolic-speaking people known as the Khori, who took part in the ethnogenesis of the Buryats and partly of the Yakuts."}}</ref> The hypothesis of the Turkic origin of the Bayirku is shared by a number of researchers, such as N. A. Aristov, É. Chavannes, A. N. Bernshtam, B. R. Zoriktuev.<ref name=":Konovalov">{{Cite journal |author=P. B. Konovalov, S. B. Miyagasheva |date=2012 |title=To the problem of the Bargut's ethnogenesis |url=https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/k-probleme-etnogeneza-bargutov |journal=Вестник БГУ |language=ru |pages=174-182 |number=8}}</ref> The version of the Ancient Mongolic origin of the Bayegu/Bayïrku was first put forward in detail by G. N. Rumyantsev.<ref name=":Konovalov1">{{Cite journal |author=P. B. Konovalov, S. B. Miyagasheva |date=2012 |title=To the problem of the Bargut's ethnogenesis |url=https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/k-probleme-etnogeneza-bargutov |journal=Вестник БГУ |language=ru |pages=174-182 |number=8 |quote=In Russian: Версию древнемонгольского происхождения байегу/байырку впервые развернуто выдвинул Г.Н. Румянцев.}}</ref> The Mongolic hypothesis of the origin of the Bayegu/Bayïrku was supported by scholars Ts. B. Tsydendambaev,<ref name=":Konovalov5">{{Cite journal |author=P. B. Konovalov, S. B. Miyagasheva |date=2012 |title=To the problem of the Bargut's ethnogenesis |url=https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/k-probleme-etnogeneza-bargutov |journal=Вестник БГУ |language=ru |pages=174-182 |number=8 |quote=In Russian: Монгольскую гипотезу происхождения байегу/байырку поддержал Ц.Б. Цыдендамбаев, по мнению которого монгольское слово баргу является калькой тюркского слова байырку, и они имеют одинаковый смысл – «грубый, примитивный, стародавний»; к тому же, тюрки имели обыкновение называть инородные им племена путем перевода их самоназваний на тюркский язык, – пишет ученый.}}</ref> A. Ochir, P. B. Konovalov, S. B. Miyagasheva,<ref name=":Konovalov6">{{Cite journal |author=P. B. Konovalov, S. B. Miyagasheva |date=2012 |title=To the problem of the Bargut's ethnogenesis |url=https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/k-probleme-etnogeneza-bargutov |journal=Вестник БГУ |language=ru |pages=174-182 |number=8 |quote=In Russian: Справедливым представляется точка зрения Очира, который указывает на монгольскую основу байегу, несмотря на то, что данное племенное образование повсеместно включало в себя монгольские, тюркские и тунгусские компоненты.}}</ref> G. Tubshinima.<ref name=":Konovalov7">{{Cite journal |author=P. B. Konovalov, S. B. Miyagasheva |date=2012 |title=To the problem of the Bargut's ethnogenesis |url=https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/k-probleme-etnogeneza-bargutov |journal=Вестник БГУ |language=ru |pages=174-182 |number=8 |quote=In Russian: Монгольскую версию происхождения байегу/байырку выдвигают исследователи Внутренней Монголии. Так, Г. Тубшинима приводит три довода: первый касается территории проживания байегу в VI-VII вв., когда они занимали бассейн оз. Буйр, среднее течение р. Онон и Керулен, и тем самым входили в ареал кочевий монгольских племен под названием шивэй, и занимали земли восточнее тюркоязычных племен. Второй довод заключается в различии между языками теле и байегу, которые упоминаются в «Тан шу», т.е. отличие в языке байегу может свидетельствовать о том, что они разговаривали не на тюркском, а на древнемонгольском, и титул иркин у них является монгольским словом и означает «предводитель, глава». Третий довод исследователь связывает с исключительно разными тотемами – если у тюрков тотемом выступает волк, у баргутов и у бурят тотемным животным считается птица-лебедь.}}</ref> The Kurykans were regarded as Turkic-speaking by P. Meliorsky, A. P. Okladnikov, S. E. Malov, S. A. Tokarev, B. O. Dolgikh.<ref name=":Konovalov"/> A Mongolic affiliation of the Kurykans was proposed by V. V. Bartold, P. Pelliot, L. Hambis, Yu. D. Talko-Gryntsevich, V. L. Kotwicz, A. N. Bernshtam,<ref name=":Konovalov2">{{Cite journal |author=P. B. Konovalov, S. B. Miyagasheva |date=2012 |title=To the problem of the Bargut's ethnogenesis |url=https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/k-probleme-etnogeneza-bargutov |journal=Вестник БГУ |language=ru |pages=174-182 |number=8 |quote=In Russian: Тюркоязычными курыкан считали П. Мелиоранский, А.П. Окладников, С.Е. Малов, С.А. Токарев, Б.О. Долгих, а монголоязычными – В.В. Бартольд, П. Пелльо, Л. Амби, Ю.Д. Талько-Грынцевич, В.Л. Котвич и А.Н. Бернштам.}}</ref> G. N. Rumyantsev,<ref name=":Konovalov3">{{Cite journal |author=P. B. Konovalov, S. B. Miyagasheva |date=2012 |title=To the problem of the Bargut's ethnogenesis |url=https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/k-probleme-etnogeneza-bargutov |journal=Вестник БГУ |language=ru |pages=174-182 |number=8 |quote=In Russian: Г.Н. Румянцев выдвинул ряд обоснованных возражений сторонникам тюркизма, доказывая монголоязычие курыкан и баргутов.}}</ref> B. B. Dashibalov.<ref name=":Konovalov4">{{Cite journal |author=P. B. Konovalov, S. B. Miyagasheva |date=2012 |title=To the problem of the Bargut's ethnogenesis |url=https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/k-probleme-etnogeneza-bargutov |journal=Вестник БГУ |language=ru |pages=174-182 |number=8 |quote=In Russian: Всецело в русле концепции Г.Н. Румянцева исследовал курыканско-курумчинскую проблему Б.Б. Дашибалов. Идею монголоязычия курыкан он дополнил новыми аргументами по этимологии имени курыкан со ссылками на Г.В. Ксенофонтова, В.Л. Серошевского, Э.В. Шавкунова и И.В. Кормушина.}}</ref>

The name "Buriyad" is mentioned as one of the forest people for the first time in ''[[The Secret History of the Mongols]]'' (possibly 1240).<ref>Erich Haenisch, ''Die Geheime Geschichte der Mongolen'', Leipzig 1948, p. 112</ref> It says [[Jochi]], the eldest son of [[Genghis Khan]], marched north to subjugate the Buryats in 1207.<ref>Owen Lattimore-The Mongols of Manchuria, p. 165</ref> the Buryats lived along the [[Angara River]] and its tributaries at this time. Meanwhile, their component, [[Barga Mongol|Barga]], appeared both west of Baikal and in northern Buryatia's [[Barguzin Valley|Barguzin valley]]. Linked also to the Bargas were the {{ill|Khori-Tumed|ru|Хори-туматы}} along the [[Arig River]] in eastern [[Khövsgöl Province]] and the [[Angara River|Angara]].<ref>C.P.Atwood, ''Encyclopedia of Mongolia and the Mongol Empire'', p. 61</ref> A [[Tumed|Tumad]] rebellion broke out in 1217, when Genghis Khan allowed his viceroy to seize 30 Tumad maidens. Genghis Khan's commander [[Dorbei the Fierce]] of the [[Dörbeds]] smashed them in response. The Buryats joined the [[Oirats]] challenging the imperial rule of the [[Khalkhas|Eastern Mongols]] during the [[Northern Yuan Dynasty|Northern Yuan]] period in the late 14th century.<ref>D. T︠S︡ėvėėndorzh, Tu̇u̇khiĭn Khu̇rėėlėn (Mongolyn Shinzhlėkh Ukhaany Akademi) – Mongol Ulsyn tu̇u̇kh: XIV zuuny dund u̇eės XVII zuuny ėkhėn u̇e, p. 43</ref>

Historically, the territories around Lake Baikal belonged to [[Mongolia]], Buryats were subject to [[Tüsheet Khan]] and [[Setsen Khan]] of [[Khalkha Mongols|Khalkha Mongolia]]. When the Russians expanded into [[Transbaikalia]] (eastern Siberia) in 1609, the [[Cossacks]] found only a small core of tribal groups speaking a Mongol dialect called Buryat and paying tribute to the [[Khalkha]].<ref>University of Pittsburgh. University Center for International Studies, Temple University. ''Russian History: Histoire Russe'', p. 464</ref> However, they were powerful enough to compel the [[Ket people|Ket]] and [[Samoyedic peoples|Samoyed peoples]] on the [[Kan (river)|Kan]] and the [[Evenks]] on the lower [[Angara]] to pay tribute. According to Bowles, the ancestors of most modern Buryats were speaking a variety of [[Turkic languages|Turkic]]-[[Tungusic languages|Tungusic]] dialects at that time.<ref>Bowles, Gordon T. (1977). ''The People of Asia'', pp. 278–279. Weidenfeld and Nicolson, London. {{ISBN|0-297-77360-7}}.</ref> However, according to the Russian researcher Nanzatov, the Tungusic and Turkic groups then lived on the outskirts of the Buryat area. They were small fragments assimilated by the Buryat population.<ref name="Nanzatov">Нанзатов Б. Р. (2005). "Этногенез западных бурят (VI - XIX вв.)". Иркутск. Pages 116-117.</ref> In addition to genuine Buryat-Mongol tribes ([[Bulagad]], [[Khori tribe|Khori]], [[Ekhired]], [[Khongoodor]]) that merged with the Buryats, the Buryats also assimilated other groups, including some [[Oirats]], the [[Khalkha]], Tungus ([[Evenks]]) and others. The [[Khori-Barga]] had migrated out of the [[Barguzin Range|Barguzin]] eastward to the lands between the [[Greater Khingan]] and the [[Argun (Amur)|Argun]]. Around 1594, most of them fled back to the [[Aga (river)|Aga]] and [[Nerchinsk]] in order to escape subjection by the [[Daurs]].

The Russians reached Lake Baikal in 1643 but the Buryats resisted them and their forces. The Buryats were defeated, though they attempted to revolt a few times. These revolts were suppressed.<ref name=":2" /> The territory and people were formally annexed to the Russian state by treaties in 1689 and 1727, when the territories on both the sides of [[Lake Baikal]] were separated from [[Mongolia]].

Consolidation of modern Buryat tribes and groups took place under the conditions of the [[Russia]]n state. From the middle of the 17th century to the beginning of the 20th century, the Buryat population increased from 77,000<ref>[http://www.bur-culture.ru/index.php?id=news-detail&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=42&cHash=effe903f9ae6737362277ed761d6c2ca] {{Dead link|date=July 2020|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}} Традиционная материальная культура бурятского этноса Предбайкалья. Этногенез и расселение. Средовая культура бурят (Russian)</ref> (27,700<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.nupi.no/cgi-win/Russland/etnisk_b.exe?Buryatian|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061110184854/http://www.nupi.no/cgi-win/Russland/etnisk_b.exe?Buryatian|title=Buryats|archive-date=Nov 10, 2006|access-date=Jul 17, 2022}}</ref>–60,000<ref>[http://www.ugaizam.narod.ru/num_012/n_0012_001.html П.Б. Абзаев. Буряты на рубеже XX-XXI вв. Численность, состав, занятия] (Russian)</ref>) to 300,000. Another estimate of the rapid growth in people referring to themselves as Buryat is based on the clan list names paying tribute in the form of a [[sable]]-skin tax. This indicates a population of about 77,000 in 1640 rising to 157,000 in 1823 and more than a million by 1950.<ref>Bowles, Gordon T. (1977). ''The People of Asia'', p. 279. Weidenfeld and Nicolson, London. {{ISBN|0-297-77360-7}}.</ref>

The historical roots of the Buryat culture are related to the Mongolic peoples. After Buryatia was incorporated into Russia, it was exposed to two traditions&nbsp;– [[Tibetan Buddhism|Buddhism]] and [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox Christianity]]. Buryats west of [[Lake Baikal]] and [[Olkhon]] ([[Irkut Buryats]]), are more "[[Russification|Russified]]", and they soon abandoned [[nomad]]ism for agriculture, whereas the eastern (Transbaikal) Buryats are closer to the Khalkha, may live in [[yurt]]s and are mostly Buddhists. In 1741, the [[Tibet]]an branch of Buddhism was recognized as one of the official religions in Russia, and the first Buryat [[datsan]] (Buddhist monastery) was built.

The second half of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century was a time of growth for the Buryat Buddhist religion (48 datsans in Buryatia in 1914). Buddhism became an important factor in the cultural development of Buryatia. Because of their skills in horsemanship and mounted combat, many were enlisted into the [[Amur Cossacks]] host. During the [[Russian Civil War]] most of the Buryats sided with the [[White movement|White]] forces of [[Roman von Ungern-Sternberg|Baron Ungern-Sternberg]] and [[Grigory Mikhaylovich Semyonov|Ataman Semenov]]. They formed a sizable portion of Ungern's forces and often received favorable treatment when compared with other ethnic groups in the Baron's army. After the Revolution, most of the [[lama]]s were loyal to Soviet power. In 1925, a battle against religion and clergy in Buryatia began. Datsans were gradually closed down and the activity of the clergy was curtailed. Consequently, in the late 1930s the Buddhist clergy ceased to exist and thousands of cultural treasures were destroyed. Attempts to revive Buddhism started during [[World War II]], and it was officially re-established in 1946. A revival of Buddhism has taken place since the late 1980s as an important factor in the national consolidation.

In the 1930s, Buryat-Mongolia was one of the sites of Soviet studies aimed to disprove [[Nazism and race|Nazi race theories]]. Among other things, Soviet physicians studied the "endurance and fatigue levels" of Russian, Buryat-Mongol, and Russian-Buryat-Mongol workers to prove that all three groups were equally able.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hirsch |first1=Francine |title=Race without the Practice of Racial Politics |journal=Slavic Review |date=2002 |volume=61 |issue=1 |pages=30–43 |doi=10.2307/2696979 |jstor=2696979 |s2cid=147121638}}</ref>

In 1923, the [[Buryat-Mongol Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic]] was formed and included Baikal province ([[Pribaykalskaya guberniya]]) with Russian population. The Buryats rebelled against the communist rule and [[collectivization]] of their herds in 1929. The rebellion was quickly crushed by the [[Red Army]] with loss of 35,000 Buryats.<ref>James Minahan. ''Encyclopedia of the Stateless Nations'', Vol. 2: ''S–Z'', p. 345</ref> The Buryat refugees fled to [[Mongolia]] and resettled, however, only a few of them joined the [[Shambala rebellion]] there. In 1937, in an effort to disperse Buryats, Stalin's government separated a number of counties (''[[raion]]s'') from the [[Buryat Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic|Buryat-Mongol Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic]] and formed [[Ust-Orda Buryat Autonomous Okrug]] and [[Agin-Buryat Autonomous Okrug]]; at the same time, some raions with Buryat populations were left out. Fearing Buryat nationalism, [[Joseph Stalin]] had more than 10,000 Buryats killed.<ref>James Stuart Olson, Lee Brigance Pappas, Nicholas Charles Pappas. ''An Ethnohistorical Dictionary of the Russian and Soviet Empires'', p. 125</ref> Moreover, [[Stalinist repressions in Mongolia|Stalinist purge]] of Buryats spread into Mongolia, known as the [[incident of L'humbee]].

In 1958, the name "Mongol" was removed from the name of the republic ([[Buryat Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic|Buryat ASSR]]). Also around 1958, the [[Mongolian script]] was banned and replaced by [[Cyrillic script|Cyrillic]].<ref name=":2" /> BASSR declared its sovereignty in 1990 and adopted the name [[Republic of Buryatia]] in 1992. The constitution of the Republic was adopted by the [[People's Khural of the Republic of Buryatia|People's Khural]] in 1994, and a bilateral treaty with the [[Russian Federation]] was signed in 1995.

In the context of the [[Russian invasion of Ukraine]] since 2022, the Buryats have been reported as one of Russia's ethnic minority groups suffering from a disproportionally large casualty rate among Russian forces, reinforcing the processes of assimilation and Russification.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bessonov |first=Ania |date=2022-10-05 |title=Russian ethnic minorities bearing brunt of Russia's war mobilization in Ukraine |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/russia-mobilization-ethnic-minorities-buryat-1.6605501 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221005081859/https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/russia-mobilization-ethnic-minorities-buryat-1.6605501 | archive-date=2022-10-05 |website=[[CBC News]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-08-12 |title=The 'Savage Warriors' of Siberia: How an Ethnic Minority in Russia Came to Be Unfairly Blamed for the Worst War Crimes in Ukraine |url=https://www.media-diversity.org/the-savage-warriors-of-siberia-how-an-ethnic-minority-in-russia-came-to-be-unfairly-blamed-for-the-worst-war-crimes-in-ukraine/ | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221129024740/https://www.media-diversity.org/the-savage-warriors-of-siberia-how-an-ethnic-minority-in-russia-came-to-be-unfairly-blamed-for-the-worst-war-crimes-in-ukraine/ | archive-date=2022-11-29 |access-date=2023-06-10 |website=Media Diversity Institute |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref name="CEPA1">{{Cite web | title=Russia's Bonfire of the Nationalities Fuels Ukraine Conflagration - CEPA | author=Aliide Naylor | url=https://cepa.org/article/russias-bonfire-of-the-nationalities-fuels-ukraine-conflagration/ | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231112181915/https://cepa.org/article/russias-bonfire-of-the-nationalities-fuels-ukraine-conflagration/ | date=2023-09-22 | access-date=2023-11-12 | archive-date=2023-11-12 | publisher=Center for European Policy Analysis | language=en | quote=...greatest burden of..imperial war of expansion has overwhelmingly fallen on the captive peoples...by far the highest proportion came from places like eastern Siberia's Buryatia...Asian ethnicities as Buryats..the risk of dying in this war is several times greater than for ethnic Russians...Russian authorities..used intensive coercion..also using financial and other incentives...Systemic discrimination of the Indigenous people, such as Buryats..also affects their economic mobility...a lot in common between how Ukrainians..and how the identities..indigenous people were devalued..after they had been conquered}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Petkova |first=Mariya |title='Putin is using ethnic minorities to fight in Ukraine' |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2022/10/25/russia-putin-is-using-ethnic-minorities-to-fight-in-ukraine |access-date=2023-06-10 |website=www.aljazeera.com |language=en}}</ref> Ethnic Buryats often enlist in the army because of financial reasons.<ref name="CEPA1"/><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-06-30 |title=The Republic of Buryatia: invasion of Ukraine is an extension of Russia's domestic dominance over the country's ethnic minorities |url=https://globalvoices.org/2022/06/30/the-republic-of-buryatia-the-invasion-of-ukraine-is-an-extension-of-russias-domestic-dominance-over-its-ethnic-minorities/ |access-date=2023-06-10 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220630112128/https://globalvoices.org/2022/06/30/the-republic-of-buryatia-the-invasion-of-ukraine-is-an-extension-of-russias-domestic-dominance-over-its-ethnic-minorities/| archive-date=2022-06-30 |website=[[Global Voices]] |language=en}}</ref>

<gallery widths="200" heights="200">
File:Расселение бурят в СФО по городским и сельским поселениям, в %.png|Settlement of Buryats in the Siberian Federal District (2010 census)
File:Buryat-Mongol ASSR in 1925.jpg|[[Buryat-Mongol Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic]] in 1925
File:USSR map Asia.jpg|Buryat-Mongol ASSR in 1929
File:The Soviet Union 1933 CPA 416 stamp (Peoples of the Soviet Union. Buryats) cancelled.jpg|Buryats depicted on a 1933 "Peoples of the Soviet Union" stamp
File:Soviet Union Administrative Divisions 1989.jpg|Buryat-Mongol ASSR in 1989
File:Buryatia01.png|Map of autonomous Buryat territories (until 2008): [[Republic of Buryatia]] and autonomous okrugs of [[Aga Buryatia]] and [[Ust-Orda Buryatia]]
</gallery>

==Culture and traditions==
[[File:Irkutsk (?) - 2 men (Mongols?) carrying load on pole between their shoulders; large church in background LCCN2004708111.tif|thumb|left|Two men of Buryatia carrying load on pole between their shoulders]]
[[File:Buryat yurt in the Ethnographic Museum in Ulan Ude, Russia.jpg|thumb|Traditional wooden hut of Buryatia]]
[[File:Buryatdress.jpg|thumb|upright|Traditional Buryat dress]]

===Relationship with nature===
The Buryat national tradition is ecological by origin in that the religious and mythological ideas of the Buryat people have been based on a theology of nature. The environment has traditionally been deeply respected by Buryats due to the nomadic way of life and religious culture. The harsh climatic conditions of the region have in turn created a fragile balance between humans, society and the environment itself. This has led to a delicate approach to nature, oriented not towards its conquest but rather towards a harmonious interaction and equal partnership with it. A synthesis of [[Buddhism]] and traditional beliefs that formed a system of ecological traditions has thus constituted a major attribute of Buryat eco-culture.<ref>[http://www.unspecial.org/2013/01/buryatia-a-symbol-of-eurasia-in-the-heartland-of-baikal Esuna Dugarova. Buryatia – a symbol of Eurasia in the heartland of Baikal.] [[UN Special (magazine)]]</ref>

===Kinship and marriage===
Prior to the arrival of the Russians, Buryats lived in semi-nomadic groups scattered across the [[steppe]]s. Kinship was immensely important in Buryat society, both in spiritual and social terms. All Buryats traced their lineage to a single mythical individual, with the particular ancestor varying based upon geographical region.<ref name=":03">{{cite journal |last1=Krader |first1=Lawrence |title=Buryat Religion and Society |journal=Southwestern Journal of Anthropology |date=October 1954 |volume=10 |issue=3 |pages=322–351 |doi=10.1086/soutjanth.10.3.3629134 |s2cid=130687667}}</ref> Kinship also determined proximity, as neighbours were nearly always related.<ref name=":03"/> Groups of relatives that inhabited the same grazing land organized themselves into clans based on genealogy. While coalitions between clans did occur, they were infrequent and often relied on looser interpretations of kinship and relations.<ref name=":03"/>

Marriage was arranged by the family, at times occurring as early as one to two years old.<ref name=":1">{{cite journal |last1=Newyear |first1=Tristra |title='Our Primitive Customs' and 'Lord Kalym': The Evolving Buryat Discourse on Bride Price, 1880–1930 |journal=Inner Asia |date=2009 |volume=11 |issue=1 |pages=5–22 |doi=10.1163/000000009793066596 |jstor=23614933}}</ref> A unique aspect of traditional Buryat marriage was the ''[[kalym]]'', an exchange that combined both [[Bride price|bride wealth]] and a [[dowry]].<ref name=":1" /> ''Kalym'' involved a husband exchanging an agreed number of head of cattle for his bride, while the bride's family would provide dowry in the form of a yurt and other essential household goods.<ref name=":1" /> If a husband did not have enough cattle, a period of [[bride service]] would be arranged. Polygamy was permitted, however only men of extreme wealth could afford the price of multiple wives. Marriage ceremonies involved rituals such as the bride stoking the fire in the grooms tent with three pieces of fat, and sprinkling fat upon the clothing of the groom's father.<ref name=":03"/>

The arrival of the Russians saw drastic changes to the way ''kalym'' system worked. Money became a significant part of the exchange. Over time, the price of a bride significantly increased to the point where "in the 1890s, bride price involved '400 to 600 rubles' in addition to 86–107 head of livestock, when 70 years earlier only the wealthiest Western Buryats gave 100 heads (of cattle)."<ref>{{Cite book|title=Sobranie sochinenii, torn I & II [Collected Works, vols. 1 & 2]|last=Khangalov|first=M.|year=1958|location=Ulan-Ude |publisher=Buriatskoe knizhnoe izdatel'stvo (Бурятское книжное изд-во) |oclc=12559746 |page=57}}</ref> As the situation worsened, many men engaged in multi-year work contracts with wealthy herd-owners under the promise their employer would aid them in gaining a wife.<ref name=":1" /> Later on, the ''kalym'' system fell out of favour, and was replaced by marriages arrangements based upon courtship and romantic feelings.

===Religion===
{{seealso|Buddhism in Buryatia}}

Religion today in the Republic of Buryatia is primarily divided between Russian Orthodoxy, Buddhism, and irreligious.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2012|title=Arena: Atlas of Religions and Nationalities in Russia|url=http://sreda.org/en/arena|website=Sreda}}</ref> Shamanism has undergone a revival in rural areas, however it is still small. Those involved practise either [[Yellow shamanism]], [[Black shamanism]], or a mixture of the two.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Shimamura |first=Ippei (島村一平) |author-link=Ippei Shimamura |year=2014 |title=The roots seekers: Shamanism and ethnicity among the Mongol Buriats |edition=English |location=Yokohama, Kanazawa, Japan |publisher=Shumpusha Publishing |isbn=978-4-86110-397-1 |oclc=873448431}}</ref> Similarly, Buddhism has seen a revival among the Buryats. Construction of monasteries, training of monks, and the increasing piety of the Buryats has seen growth.<ref name=":4">{{Cite journal|last1=Norwicka|first1=Ewa|last2=Połeć|first2=Wojciech|date=2019|title=Religious Diversity for the Sake of Ethnic Unity?: Shamanism and Buddhism in Creating Buryat ethnic Identity|journal=[[Polish Sociological Review]]|issue=206|pages=237–247}}</ref>

==== Shamanism (Tengrism) ====
[[File:Khagdaev 02.jpg|thumb|Buryat [[shaman]] of [[Olkhon Island|Olkhon]], Lake Baikal]]

Buryats traditionally practised [[shamanism]], also called [[Tengrism]], with a focus on worship of nature. A core concept of Buryat shamanism is the "triple division" of the physical and spiritual world.<ref name="Quijada">{{cite journal |surname1=Quijada |given1=Jastine B.|surname2=Graber |given2=Kathryn E. |surname3=Stephen |given3=Eric |title=Finding "Their Own": Revitalizing Buryat Culture Through Shamanic Practices in Ulan-Ude |journal=Problems of Post-Communism |year=2015 |volume=62 |issue=5 |pages=258–72 |doi= 10.1080/10758216.2015.1057040 |s2cid=143106014 |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10758216.2015.1057040|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref name=":03"/> There are three divisions within the spirit world: the ''[[Tengri|tengeri]]'', the ''[[bōxoldoy]]'', and lower spirits.<ref name=":03"/> These spirits are the supreme rulers of mankind, the spirits of commoners, and the spirits of slaves respectively. In parallel to this is the concept that man is divided into three parts: the body (''beye''), the "breath and life" of a man, and the soul.<ref name=":03"/> The soul is further divided into three parts: first, second, and third. The first soul is contained within the entirety of the physical skeleton, and that damage to it damages the soul. Rituals involving the sacrifice of animals involve great care not to damage the bones, lest the deity receiving the offering reject it.<ref name=":03"/> The second soul is believed to have the power to leave the body, transform into other beings, and is stored in the organs. The third soul is similar to the second, differing only in that its passing marks the end of one's life.<ref name=":03"/>

The number three and multiples of it are deeply sacred to the Buryat. Examples of this [[numerology]] include three major yearly sacrifices, shamans prolonging the lives of the sick by three or nine years, the total number of ''tengeri'' being 99, and countless other examples.

Shamans are divided into two classes: "great" shamans of [[Arctic region]]s and "little" shamans from the [[taiga]]. Shamans often are associated with nervous disorders, and in some cases are prone to seizure.<ref name=":03"/> Shamans can also be divided into [[Sagaan Ubgen|"White" shamans]] that summon good spirits and "Black" shamans that summon malicious ones. Yellow shamanism refers to shamanistic practices that have been heavily influenced by Buddhism. Shamans exist to heal, especially in regards to psychological illnesses.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Coming Together:Buryat and Mongolian Healers Meet in Post-Soviet Reality|url=https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/coming-togetherburyat-and-mongolian-healers-meet-post|access-date=2019-04-19|website=www.culturalsurvival.org|date=26 March 2010 }}</ref> Buryat shamanism is not necessarily hereditary, and other members of the kinship-group can receive the calling (however, shamans do keep records of their lineage, and a descendant is preferred).<ref name=":03" /> Shamans could both control and be controlled by spirits.

There are variations in belief between different traditional groups, so there is no consensus on beliefs and practices. For example, Western Buryats along the [[Kuda river]] believe in reincarnation of the third soul, likely a result of their exposure to Buddhism.

==== Buddhism ====
[[File:Dacan Iwołgiński 4.jpg|thumb|[[Ivolginsky Datsan]] is a monastery complex consisting of seven [[Buddhist temple]]s]]

A majority of the Buryats are followers of [[Buddhism in Russia|Buddhism]].<ref name=":2" /><ref name="HR"/> The Buryats converted to [[Tibetan Buddhism]] in the early eighteenth century under the influence of Tibetan and Mongolian [[Missionary|missionaries]].<ref name=":2" /><ref name="HR"/>

==== Other religions ====
A small minority of Buryats are converts to [[Christianity]]. The earliest [[Orthodoxy|Orthodox]] mission was established in [[Irkutsk Oblast|Irkutsk]] in 1731. Some Buryats converted to Christianity for material incentives while others were forcefully converted.<ref name=":2" /> Despite its presence in the area, Christianity is not perceived as a "Buryat" religion.<ref name=":4" />

===Subsistence===
Traditionally, the Buryats were semi-nomadic [[Pastoralism|pastoralists]]. Buryat nomads tended [[Herding|herds]] of [[cattle]], [[sheep]], [[goat]]s, and [[Bactrian camel|camels]].<ref name=":03"/> Buryats also relied greatly on local resources to supplement their diets. Following colonization by Russia, pastoralism was gradually replaced by agriculture. The Buryat of today are largely agrarian but most in rural areas still focus on raising [[livestock]] as their main way of surviving.

The Buryats located in Siberia are still largely focused on raising livestock due to the shortness of the growing season. They focus on the raising of dairy cattle and the growing of berries to sustain most of their diet. There are also some communities that farm various types of trees and cash crops such as wheat and rye.<ref name=":02">{{Cite web|url=http://jsbednet.com/vol-2-no-3-4-december-2014-abstract-7-jsbed|title=Family Farming in Russian Regions, Small-Scale Agriculture and Food Supporting Russia's Food Self-Sufficiency: Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship Development|website=jsbednet.com|access-date=2019-10-15|archive-date=2019-12-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191223134308/http://jsbednet.com/vol-2-no-3-4-december-2014-abstract-7-jsbed}}</ref> On the slopes of the [[Sayan Mountains|Sayan]] and [[Altai Mountains|Altai]] Mountains, there are communities whose way of life is breeding [[reindeer]].<ref name=":03"/>

Mongolian Buryats are farmers as well but are typically semi-settled. They build sheds and fences to keep livestock contained and use hay as their main source of food for the livestock.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hürelbaatar |first1=A. |title=An Introduction to the History and Religion of the Buryat Mongols of Shinehen in China |journal=Inner Asia |date=2000 |volume=2 |issue=1 |pages=73–116 |doi=10.1163/146481700793647931 |jstor=23615472 }}</ref> However, the Buryats located in Buryatia are more focused on the agriculture aspect of farming and not the livestock raising aspect.

=== Traditional medicine ===
Buryat healing practices incorporates folk shamanic traditions and Tibeto-Mongolian medicine. Before the adoption of Buddhism, the Buryats relied on shamanic rituals to stop or cure pain and illness which was said to be caused by evil spirits. With the conversion to Tibetan Buddhism, Buryats incorporated [[Traditional Tibetan medicine|Tibetan medical practices]] to their healing practices. Medical schools were soon established and Buryats studying in these schools learned about medical and prescription techniques. Training in treatment and diagnostics was also given in these schools. Buryats soon contributed to expanding the Tibeto-Mongolian medical literature.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|last=Bolsokhoyeva|first=Natalia|date=2007|title=Tibetan Medical Schools of the Aga Area (Chita Region)|url=https://brill.com/downloadpdf/journals/asme/3/2/article-p334_12.pdf|url-status=live|access-date=15 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210515204954/https://brill.com/downloadpdf/journals/asme/3/2/article-p334_12.pdf |archive-date=2021-05-15 }}</ref>

[[Buryat medicine|Traditional Buryat medicine]] emphasises the use of mineral and thermal springs for healing. A balanced diet (of meat, [[offal]], plants and herbs) and proper nutrition were recommended to cure illness. The use of herbs for medical purposes was minimal because of the lack of vegetation in the [[Semideserts|semi-deserts]] and [[dry steppe]]s. However, Buryat healers were considered skilled in healing wounds, treating head trauma, midwifery and [[Bonesetter|bone-setting]]. In the modern age, some practices derived from Buryat [[folk medicine]] have been incorporated into contemporary settings.<ref name=":3" />

===Cuisine===
[[File:Буузы.JPG |thumb|[[Buuz]], a steamed meat dumpling, is probably the most iconic dish of [[Buryat cuisine]]]]

[[Buryat cuisine]] is very similar to [[Mongolian cuisine]] and share many dishes like [[buuz]] and [[khuushuur]]. Dairy products are an important part of the cuisine, and traditional dishes are often hearty and simple. Most main courses are usually meat based, but fish like [[omul]] is common especially around [[Lake Baikal]].

==Genetics==
=== Mitochondrial DNA haplogroups ===
The Buryats have a diverse pool of [[human mitochondrial DNA haplogroups|mitochondrial DNA]], with about 83.7% (247/295) belonging to haplogroups of [[Eastern Eurasian]] origin or affinity and about 16.3% (48/295) belonging to haplogroups of [[Western Eurasian]] origin or affinity. The most common Eastern Eurasian mtDNA haplogroups among present-day Buryats are [[haplogroup D (mtDNA)|D4]] (approximately 29% of the total Buryat population), [[haplogroup C (mtDNA)|C]] (approximately 16.6%), and [[haplogroup G (mtDNA)|G2a]] (approximately 11%). The most common Western Eurasian mtDNA haplogroups among the Buryats are [[haplogroup H (mtDNA)|H]] (approximately 6.8%) and [[haplogroup U (mtDNA)|U]] (approximately 5.4%).<ref name = "Derenko2007">{{cite journal |last1=Derenko |first1=Miroslava |last2=Malyarchuk |first2=Boris |last3=Grzybowski |first3=Tomasz |last4=Denisova |first4=Galina |last5=Dambueva |first5=Irina |last6=Perkova |first6=Maria |last7=Dorzhu |first7=Choduraa |last8=Luzina |first8=Faina |last9=Lee |first9=Hong Kyu |last10=Vanecek |first10=Tomas |last11=Villems |first11=Richard |last12=Zakharov |first12=Ilia |title=Phylogeographic Analysis of Mitochondrial DNA in Northern Asian Populations |journal=The American Journal of Human Genetics |date=November 2007 |volume=81 |issue=5 |pages=1025–1041 |doi=10.1086/522933 |pmid=17924343 |pmc=2265662 }}</ref>

Another mtDNA study of Buryats shows they have 24% (6/25) of West Eurasian maternal lineages.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Starikovskaya |first1=Elena B. |last2=Sukernik |first2=Rem I. |last3=Derbeneva |first3=Olga A. |last4=Volodko |first4=Natalia V. |last5=Ruiz-Pesini |first5=Eduardo |last6=Torroni |first6=Antonio |last7=Brown |first7=Michael D. |last8=Lott |first8=Marie T. |last9=Hosseini |first9=Seyed H. |last10=Huoponen |first10=Kirsi |last11=Wallace |first11=Douglas C. |title=Mitochondrial DNA Diversity in Indigenous Populations of the Southern Extent of Siberia, and the Origins of Native American Haplogroups |journal=Annals of Human Genetics |date=January 2005 |volume=69 |issue=1 |pages=67–89 |doi=10.1046/j.1529-8817.2003.00127.x |pmid=15638829 |pmc=3905771 }}</ref>

=== Y-chromosome DNA haplogroups ===
Lell et al. (2002) tested a sample of thirteen Buryat males collected in Kushun village, [[Nizhneudinsky District|Nizhneudinsk District]], [[Irkutsk Oblast|Irkutsk Region]], representing the Buryats of the Sayan-Baikal upland. The Y-chromosomes of these individuals were assigned to the following haplogroups: 6/13 = 46.2% O-M119, 3/13 = 23.1% N-Tat, 2/13 = 15.4% N-DYS7Cdel(xTat), 1/13 = 7.7% C-M48, 1/13 = 7.7% F-M89(xK-M9).<ref name = "Lell2002">{{cite journal |last1=Lell |first1=Jeffrey T. |last2=Sukernik |first2=Rem I. |last3=Starikovskaya |first3=Yelena B. |last4=Su |first4=Bing |last5=Jin |first5=Li |last6=Schurr |first6=Theodore G. |last7=Underhill |first7=Peter A. |last8=Wallace |first8=Douglas C. |title=The Dual Origin and Siberian Affinities of Native American Y Chromosomes |journal=The American Journal of Human Genetics |date=January 2002 |volume=70 |issue=1 |pages=192–206 |doi=10.1086/338457 |pmid=11731934 |pmc=384887 }}</ref> This sample entirely lacks C-M407 and instead has a great proportion of [[haplogroup O-M119|O-M119]]; thus, it appears very different from published samples of Y-DNA collected from Buryats east of Lake Baikal.

Derenko et al. (2006) tested a sample of 238 Buryat males and found the following Y-DNA haplogroup distribution: 4/238 = 1.7% P*-92R7(xQ-DYS199/M3, R1-M173), 2/238 = 0.8% R1*-M173(xR1a-SRY1532b), 5/238 = 2.1% R1a1-M17, 3/238 = 1.3% N*-LLY22g(xTat), 45/238 = 18.9% N3-Tat, 152/238 = 63.9% C-RPS4Y/M130, 4/238 = 1.7% F*-M89(xG-M201, H-M52, I-M170, J-12f2, K-M9), 1/238 = 0.4% G-M201, 1/238 = 0.4% I-M170, 21/238 = 8.8% K*-M9(xL-M20, N-LLY22g, P-92R7).<ref name = "Derenko2006">{{cite journal |last1=Derenko |first1=Miroslava |last2=Malyarchuk |first2=Boris |last3=Denisova |first3=Galina A. |last4=Wozniak |first4=Marcin |last5=Dambueva |first5=Irina |last6=Dorzhu |first6=Choduraa |last7=Luzina |first7=Faina |last8=Miścicka-Śliwka |first8=Danuta |last9=Zakharov |first9=Ilia |title=Contrasting patterns of Y-chromosome variation in South Siberian populations from Baikal and Altai-Sayan regions |journal=Human Genetics |date=January 2006 |volume=118 |issue=5 |pages=591–604 |doi=10.1007/s00439-005-0076-y |pmid=16261343 |s2cid=23011845 }}</ref> Boris Malyarchuk, Miroslava Derenko, Galina Denisova, ''et al.'' (2010) retested 217 of these 238 Buryats and found that they were 148/217 (68.2%) haplogroup C-RPS4Y711/M130, including 117/217 (53.9%) C3d-M407, 18/217 (8.3%) C3∗-M217(xC3a-M93, C3b-P39, C3c-M77, C3d-M407, C3e-P53.1, C3f-P62), and 13/217 (6.0%) C3c-M77. Fourteen of the 217 Buryats (6.5%) had STR haplotypes belonging to the "star cluster" in C3*, from which it might be inferred that they most likely belonged to C2a1a3-P369/M504.<ref name = "Malyarchuk2010">{{cite journal |last1=Malyarchuk |first1=Boris |last2=Derenko |first2=Miroslava |last3=Denisova |first3=Galina |last4=Wozniak |first4=Marcin |last5=Grzybowski |first5=Tomasz |last6=Dambueva |first6=Irina |last7=Zakharov |first7=Ilia |title=Phylogeography of the Y-chromosome haplogroup C in northern Eurasia: Y-chromosome haplogroup C phylogeography |journal=Annals of Human Genetics |date=November 2010 |volume=74 |issue=6 |pages=539–546 |doi=10.1111/j.1469-1809.2010.00601.x |pmid=20726964 |s2cid=40763875 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

Karafet et al. (2006) tested a sample of 81 Buryat males and found that they belonged to the following Y-DNA haplogroups: 45/81 = 55.6% C-M217(xM86), 4/81 = 4.9% C-M86, 1/81 = 1.2% G-M201, 1/81 = 1.2% J-12f2, 2/81 = 2.5% N-P43, 23/81 = 28.4% N-M178, 2/81 = 2.5% O-LINE, 3/81 = 3.7% R-M207.<ref name = "Hammer2006">{{cite journal |last1=Hammer |first1=Michael F. |last2=Karafet |first2=Tatiana M. |last3=Park |first3=Hwayong |last4=Omoto |first4=Keiichi |last5=Harihara |first5=Shinji |last6=Stoneking |first6=Mark |last7=Horai |first7=Satoshi |title=Dual origins of the Japanese: common ground for hunter-gatherer and farmer Y chromosomes |journal=Journal of Human Genetics |date=January 2006 |volume=51 |issue=1 |pages=47–58 |doi=10.1007/s10038-005-0322-0 |pmid=16328082 |s2cid=6559289 |doi-access=free }}</ref> Karafet ''et al.'' (2018) retested the same sample of Buryat males (minus the G-M201 singleton) and found that they belonged to the following haplogroups: 4/80 = 5.0% C2a1a2a-M86, 5/80 = 6.3% C2a1a3-P369, 40/80 = 50.0% C2b1a1a1a-M407, 1/80 = 1.3% J2a1-P354(xJ2a1a-L27), 2/80 = 2.5% N1a2b1-P63(xP362), 23/80 = 28.8% N1a1a1a1a3a-P89, 2/80 = 2.5% O2a1b-JST002611, 1/80 = 1.3% R2a-M124, 1/80 = 1.3% R1a1a1b1a-Z282, 1/80 = 1.3% R1b1a1b1a1a2-P312(xL21).<ref name = "Karafet2018">{{cite journal |last1=Karafet |first1=Tatiana M. |last2=Osipova |first2=Ludmila P. |last3=Savina |first3=Olga V. |last4=Hallmark |first4=Brian |last5=Hammer |first5=Michael F. |title=Siberian genetic diversity reveals complex origins of the Samoyedic-speaking populations |journal=American Journal of Human Biology |date=November 2018 |volume=30 |issue=6 |article-number=e23194 |doi=10.1002/ajhb.23194 |pmid=30408262 |s2cid=53238849 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

Kim et al. (2011) reported the following Y-DNA haplogroup distribution in a sample of "Mongolians (Buryats)":<ref name = "Kim2000">{{cite journal |last1=Kim |first1=W. |last2=Shin |first2=D. J. |last3=Harihara |first3=S. |last4=Kim |first4=Y. J. |title=Y chromosomal DNA variation in East Asian populations and its potential for inferring the peopling of Korea |journal=Journal of Human Genetics |date=March 2000 |volume=45 |issue=2 |pages=76–83 |doi=10.1007/s100380050015 |pmid=10721667 |s2cid=1753653 |doi-access=free }}</ref> 16/36 = 44.44% C2-M217, 1/36 = 2.78% D1a1a-M15, 1/36 = 2.78% F-M89(xK-M9), 9/36 = 25.00% N-M231, 1/36 = 2.78% O1b2-SRY465(x47z), 1/36 = 2.78% O2a-M324(xO2a1b-JST002611, O2a2-P201), 6/36 = 16.67% O2a2-P201, 1/36 = 2.78% R-M207.<ref name = "Kim2011">{{cite journal |last1=Kim |first1=Soon-Hee |last2=Kim |first2=Ki-Cheol |last3=Shin |first3=Dong-Jik |last4=Jin |first4=Han-Jun |last5=Kwak |first5=Kyoung-Don |last6=Han |first6=Myun-Soo |last7=Song |first7=Joon-Myong |last8=Kim |first8=Won |last9=Kim |first9=Wook |title=High frequencies of Y-chromosome haplogroup O2b-SRY465 lineages in Korea: a genetic perspective on the peopling of Korea |journal=Investigative Genetics |date=2011 |volume=2 |issue=1 |page=10 |doi=10.1186/2041-2223-2-10 |pmid=21463511 |pmc=3087676 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

[[File:Buryat costumes 23.JPG|thumb|Buryat women]]

Kharkov et al. (2014) examined blood samples obtained from a total of 297 ethnic Buryats, separated into eight geographical groups according to the location of sample collection: Okinsky district (N = 53) (southwest of the Republic of Buryatia, ethnoterritorial group of Oka Buryats); Dzhida (N = 31) and Kyakhta (N = 27) (south, ethnoterritorial group of Selenga Buryats); the Kizhinga (N = 64) and Eravninsky (N = 30) regions (east, ethnoterritorial group of Khorin Buryats); Kurumkan village (N = 23) (north, ethnoterritorial group of Barguzin Buryats); Ulan-Ude and Khuramsha (30&nbsp;km west of Ulan-Ude) (N = 26) (ethnoterritorial group of Kudarinsk Buryats); and Aginskoe village (N = 44) (Agin–Buryat Autonomous Region of Chita, Agin Buryats). For the statistical treatment, samples from Ulan-Ude and Khuramsha village were united into one group designated as "Ulan-Ude". The authors found significant differences among eastern Buryats (Khorin Buryats from Kizhinga and Eravninsky districts of Buryatia plus Agin Buryats from Agin-Buryat Okrug of Zabaykalsky Krai), southern and central Buryats (Selenga Buryats from Dzhida and Kyakhta plus Kudarinsk Buryats from Ulan-Ude and Khuramsha), and southwestern and northern Buryats (Oka Buryats from Okinsky district of Buryatia plus Barguzin Buryats from Kurumkan village). Similar to the Buryat samples examined by Malyarchuk ''et al.'' (2010) and Karafet ''et al.'' (2018), the southwestern and northern Buryat samples of Kharkov ''et al.'' (2014) exhibited an extremely high frequency of haplogroup C2-M407: 48/76 = 63.2% C3d-M407, 14/76 = 18.4% N1c1-Tat, 4/76 = 5.3% O3a3c*-M134(xM117), 3/76 = 3.9% C3*-M217(xM77, M86, M407), 2/76 = 2.6% C3c-M77/M86, 2/76 = 2.6% O3a3c1-M117, 2/76 = 2.6% R1a1a-M17, 1/76 = 1.3% N1b-P43. In contrast, the eastern Buryat samples of Kharkov ''et al.'' (2014) exhibited an extremely high frequency of haplogroup N-Tat: 102/138 = 73.9% N1c1-Tat, 19/138 = 13.8% C3d-M407, 5/138 = 3.6% C3c-M77/M86, 4/138 = 2.9% E, 3/138 = 2.2% C3*-M217(xM77, M86, M407), 2/138 = 1.4% R1a1a-M17, 1/138 = 0.7% O3a*-M324(xM7, M134), 1/138 = 0.7% O3a3c1-M117, 1/138 = 0.7% R2a-M124. The southern and central Buryat samples of Kharkov ''et al.'' (2014) exhibited a significant proportion of C3*-M217(xM77, M86, M407), which may be related to Y-DNA subclades that often have been observed among Mongols in Mongolia, while also exhibiting both N-Tat and C-M407 with moderate frequency: 26/84 = 31.0% N1c1-Tat, 19/84 = 22.6% C3d-M407, 16/84 = 19.0% C3*-M217(xM77, M86, M407), 8/84 = 9.5% R1a1a-M17, 7/84 = 8.3% R2a-M124, 4/84 = 4.8% C3c-M77/M86, 4/84 = 4.8% O3a*-M324(xM7, M134).<ref name = "Kharkov2014" />

Haplogroup N-M178 is found mainly among the indigenous peoples of northern Eurasia (e.g. [[Yakuts]], [[Finns]]). Among Buryats, haplogroup N-M178 is more common toward the east (''cf.'' 50/64 = 78.2% N1c1 in a sample of Buryat from [[Kizhinginsky District]], 34/44 = 77.3% N1c1 in a sample of Buryat from [[Agin-Buryat Okrug|Aga Buryatia]], and 18/30 = 60.0% N1c1 in a sample of Buryat from [[Yeravninsky District]], every one of which regions is located at a substantial distance east of the eastern shore of the southern half of Lake Baikal, ''versus'' 6/31 = 19.4% N1c1 in a sample of Buryat from [[Dzhidinsky District]], which is slightly south of the southwestern end of the lake, and 2/23 = 8.7% N1c1 in a sample of Buryat from [[Kurumkansky District]], which is slightly east of the northeastern end of the lake<ref name = "Kharkov2014">{{cite journal |last1=Kharkov |first1=V. N. |last2=Khamina |first2=K. V. |last3=Medvedeva |first3=O. F. |last4=Simonova |first4=K. V. |last5=Eremina |first5=E. R. |last6=Stepanov |first6=V. A. |title=Gene pool of Buryats: Clinal variability and territorial subdivision based on data of Y-chromosome markers |journal=Russian Journal of Genetics |date=February 2014 |volume=50 |issue=2 |pages=180–190 |doi=10.1134/S1022795413110082 |s2cid=15595963 }}</ref>), and it mostly belongs to a subclade (N-F4205) that reaches its maximal frequency among Buryats, but which also has been found in some other [[Mongols|Mongolic peoples]] as well as in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkey, Ukraine, and Poland. N-F4205 is estimated to share a common ancestor with N-B202, which has been found in many present-day inhabitants of [[Chukotka Autonomous Okrug|Chukotka]], approximately 4,600 (95% CI 3,700 <-> 5,500) years before present.<ref name = "YFull">{{Cite web|url=https://www.yfull.com/tree/N-Y16323/|title=N-Y16323 YTree|website=www.yfull.com|access-date=Jul 17, 2022}}</ref>

Haplogroup C3d (M407) is found mainly among the northern and southwestern Buryats, [[Barga Mongols|Barghuts]], [[Hamnigan]]s, [[Soyot]]s, [[Khongirad#Kazakhstan|Kazakh Khongirad]],<ref name="Ashirbekov2017">{{Cite web |url=http://nblib.library.kz/elib/library.kz/jurnal/%D0%94%D0%BE%D0%BA%D0%BB%D0%B0%D0%B4_06_2017%20(2)/12-%20Biology%20E.E.Ashirbekov0617.pdf |title=E. E. Ashirbekov, D. M. Botbaev, A. M. Belkozhaev, A. O. Abayldaev, A. S. Neupokoeva, J. E. Mukhataev, B. Alzhanuly, D. A. Sharafutdinova, D. D. Mukushkina, M. B. Rakhymgozhin, A. K. Khanseitova, S. A. Limborska, N. A. Aytkhozhina, "Distribution of Y-Chromosome Haplogroups of the Kazakh from the South Kazakhstan, Zhambyl, and Almaty Regions." ''Reports of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Kazakhstan'', ISSN 2224-5227, Volume 6, Number 316 (2017), 85 – 95. |access-date=2021-06-25 |archive-date=2021-09-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210923024313/http://nblib.library.kz/elib/library.kz/jurnal/%D0%94%D0%BE%D0%BA%D0%BB%D0%B0%D0%B4_06_2017%20(2)/12-%20Biology%20E.E.Ashirbekov0617.pdf }}</ref> and Dörbet [[Kalmyks]].

=== Nuclear DNA genetic history ===
A large scale genetic study from 2021 shows that the Buryats, as well as other [[Mongolic languages|Mongolic ethnic groups]], such as [[Mongols]], have nearly exclusively East-Eurasian (East Asian-related) genetic ancestry (≈95% to 98%), which can be largely traced back to Neolithic millet agriculturalists of [[Northeast Asia]], but also [[Paleo-Siberian]]s, and "Yellow river farmers" from around the [[Yellow River]] region of Northern [[China]]. Genetic evidence shows that Northeast Asian like ancestry massively expanded westwards during the [[Bronze Age]] and [[Iron Age]] in several waves. Although Buryats are closer to their Mongolic and Tungusic-speaking neighbors, out of the major East Asian ethnic groups, they are genetically closest to the [[Koreans]], followed by [[Han Chinese|Northern Han]], [[Japanese people|Japanese]] and [[Han Chinese|Southern Han]], in that order, according to FST genetic distance measurements.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Wang |first1=Chuan-Chao |last2=Yeh |first2=Hui-Yuan |last3=Popov |first3=Alexander N. |last4=Zhang |first4=Hu-Qin |last5=Matsumura |first5=Hirofumi |last6=Sirak |first6=Kendra |last7=Cheronet |first7=Olivia |last8=Kovalev |first8=Alexey |last9=Rohland |first9=Nadin |last10=Kim |first10=Alexander M. |last11=Mallick |first11=Swapan |date=March 2021 |title=Genomic insights into the formation of human populations in East Asia |journal=Nature |language=en |volume=591 |issue=7850 |pages=413–419 |doi=10.1038/s41586-021-03336-2 |pmid=33618348 |pmc=7993749 |bibcode=2021Natur.591..413W |issn=1476-4687}}</ref>

==Subgroups==
{{Unreferenced section|date=October 2022}}
[[File:Mongolia XVI.png|thumb|[[List of Mongol states|Mongol states]] in the 14th to 17th centuries.]]

According to the Buryat creation myth, there were 11 Buryat tribes or clans. According to the myth, all 11 tribes are descendants of a man and a mysterious but beautiful creature that turns into a swan during the day and a woman during the night. After the two married, the man asked her to give him her wings so that she would not turn into a swan anymore. However, it is said that after some time the woman asked for her wings back and flew away never to return. Today there are a number of different Buryat tribes, or clans.

===Major tribes===
*[[Bulagad]] – [[Alagui tribe|Alagui]], [[Gotol]], [[Sharaldai]], [[Bubai]], [[Khogoi]], [[Erkhidei]], [[Kholtubai]], [[Onkhotoi]], [[Ongoy]], [[Bulut tribe|Bulut]], [[Barai tribe|Barai]], [[Yengut]], [[Buin tribe|Buin]], [[Olzoy]], [[Murui]], [[Khulmenge]], [[Khurkhut]], [[Soyot]], [[Noyot]], [[Kharanut]], [[Ashabagat]], [[Abaganat]], [[Buzgan]], [[Dalakhai]].
*[[Khongodor]] – [[Ashkhai]], [[Ashata]], [[Kholsho]], [[Uta-Baima]], [[Dasha tribe|Dasha]], [[Naidar tribe|Naidar]], [[Nashan tribe|Nashan]], [[Badarkhan]], [[Boldoy]], [[Terte]], [[Shoshoolog]].
*{{ill|Khori-Buryats|ru|Хори-буряты}} – [[Galzut]], [[Sharait]], [[Khubduut]], [[Gushit]], [[Khuatsai]], [[Khargana tribe|Khargana]], [[Batanai]], [[Bodonguut]], [[Khudai tribe|Khudai]], [[Sagaan tribe|Sagaan]], [[Khalbin tribe|Khalbin]].
*[[Ekhirid]] – [[Shono tribe|Shono]], [[Khengelder]], [[Abzay]], [[Bayanday tribe|Bayanday]], [[Olzon tribe|Olzon]], [[Segenut]], [[Galzut]], [[Kharbyat]], [[Khaital]].
*[[Sartuul Buryats]] – [[Khorchin Mongols|Khorchin]], [[Khirid]], [[Khatagin]], [[Saljiud]], [[Batod]], [[Atagan]], [[Khorlid]], [[Onkhod]], [[Khoit]], [[Uriankhai]], [[Khereit]].
*[[Songol]]

===Other tribes===
*[[Dzungar people|Dzungar]] origin – [[Galzut]], [[Segenut]], [[Ikinat]], [[Bukot]], [[Zamot]], [[Khaital]], [[Dzungar people|Zungar]], [[Khuramsha tribe|Khuramsha]].
*[[Atagan]]
*[[Khamnigan]] Buryats
*[[Darkhad|Darkhat]]
*[[Khangin]]
*[[Khorchin Mongols|Khorchin]]

== Notable people ==
{{Main list|List of Buryats}}
* [[Valéry Inkijinoff]], French actor
* [[Balzhinima Tsyrempilov]], Russian archer
* [[Yuriy Yekhanurov]], former [[Prime Minister of Ukraine]]
* [[Agvan Dorjiev]], Buddhist monk, tutor of the [[13th Dalai Lama]]
* [[Dashi Namdakov]], sculptor 
* [[Irina Pantaeva]], model
* [[Yul Brynner]], actor
* [[Ōrora Satoshi]], sumo wrestler
* [[Rōga Tokiyoshi]], sumo wrestler (half Buryat)
* [[Dorzhi Banzarov]], academic
* [[Grigory Mikhaylovich Semyonov]], Cossack [[ataman]].
* [[Damba Ayusheev]], Russian Buddhist monk

==See also==
* [[Buddhism in Russia]]
* [[Far Eastern Republic]]
* [[List of indigenous peoples of Russia]]
* [[Shamanism in Siberia]]
* [[Buryat nationalism]]

== Notes ==
{{Notelist}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
{{Further reading cleanup|date=August 2022}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20061110184854/http://www.nupi.no/cgi-win/Russland/etnisk_b.exe?Buryatian Ethnic groups&nbsp;— Buryats]
* J.G. Gruelin, Siberia.
* Pierre Simon Pallas, Sammlungen historischer Nachrichten über die mongolischen Volkerschaften (St. Petersburg, 1776–1802).
* M.A. Castrén, Versuch einer buriatischen Sprachlehre (1857).
* Sir H.H. Howorth, History of the Mongols (1876–1888).
* The film ''[[A Pearl in the Forest]]'' (МОЙЛХОН) illustrates the heavy price paid by the Buryats in the 1930s during the Stalinist purges.
* Murphy, Dervla (2007) "Silverland: A Winter Journey Beyond the Urals", London, John Murray
* [[Natalia Zhukovskaia]] (Ed.) Buryaty. Moskva: Nauka, 2004 (a classic general description).
* {{cite journal |last1=Derenko |first1=MV |last2=Malyarchuk |first2=BA |last3=Dambueva |first3=IK |last4=Shaikhaev |first4=GO |last5=Dorzhu |first5=CM |last6=Nimaev |first6=DD |last7=Zakharov |first7=IA |title=Mitochondrial DNA variation in two South Siberian Aboriginal populations: implications for the genetic history of North Asia. |journal=Human Biology |date=December 2000 |volume=72 |issue=6 |pages=945–73 |pmid=11236866 }}
* ''Anthology of Buryat folklore'', Pushkinskiĭ dom, 2000 (CD)
* Vyushkova, Maria. "[https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/11/14/putin-pulls-from-stalins-playbook-in-sending-north-koreans-disguised-as-buryats-to-ukraine-a86857 Sending North Koreans Disguised as Buryats to Ukraine]. ''The Moscow Times'', November 14, 2024. — The role of Buryats in the Korean War and the Russian invasion of Ukraine are two episodes of the same story: an Indigenous minority being exploited in imperial wars by an imperial power. — "... in the Ukrainian public discourse [about the [[Russo-Ukrainian War]]], "Buryat" became a collective term for any Asian-looking Russian troops, no matter their actual ethnicity."

==External links==
{{EB1911 poster|Buriats}}
*{{commons category-inline}}

{{Mongol Yastan}}
{{Ethnic groups of Russia}}
{{Ethnic groups of Mongolia}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Buryat people| ]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Siberia]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in China]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Mongolia]]
[[Category:Indigenous peoples of Siberia]]
[[Category:Irkutsk Oblast]]
[[Category:Mongol peoples]]
[[Category:Modern nomads]]
[[Category:Zabaykalsky Krai]]