Consolidation of tribal clans in the Republic of Buryatia using the example of the contemporary Barguzin Ekhirit Buryats (field research of 2017-2019)

This article analyzes the reasons for consolidation of tribal clan communities in the Republic of Buryatia using the example of ethnic cultural festivals of the Ekhirit clans, which have been organized and conducted by the Barguzin Buryats, based on the interviews with organizers of ethnic and cultural events. Main reasons which inspire the activists to unite people according to their clan affiliation and revive the lost traditional rituals and ceremonies are established; renewal of clan traditions using the example of the Barguzin Ekhirit Buryats is analyzed. The relevance of the article is associated with the increased scholarly interest in the role of clan communities in the Mongol- and Turkic-speaking environment and in the processes of “neotraditionalism.” The most important reasons for these processes include active migration of Buryat young people from the rural areas to the cities, desire to preserve self-identity among the Buryat youth, and raise of birth rates during the last twenty years, confirmed by statistical and field evidence. The role of totemic symbols in the process of clan consolidation of the Ekhirites is established and history behind the emergence of these symbols is described. Thus, the name of the Ekhirits is associated with the archaic beliefs of the Buryats who lived in the Cis-Baikal region, in the sacred fish burbot. The revival of archaic beliefs among the Buryats and organization ofpublic events designed to popularize ancient mythology, cults, and traditions in the form reformulated according to the current trends, are primarily associated with the need for unification and mutual support among rural migrants who have been currently moving to the city of Ulan-Ude and its suburbs in large numbers, and with strengthening ethnic identity of the Buryats in the context of contemporary globalization processes.