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«BULLETIN OF THE IRKUTSK STATE UNIVERSITY. GEOARCHAEOLOGY, ETHNOLOGY, AND ANTHROPOLOGY SERIES»
ISSN 2227-2380 (Print)

List of issues > «Geoarchaeology, Ethnology, and Anthropology Series». 2026. Vol 56

Tribal Groups of the Tuvans in the Works of Leonid Potapov in the Light of New Ethnographic Expedition Data

Full text (russian)
Author(s)

V. V. Dongak1, A. M. Mongush2, 3, E. V. Aiyzhy1

1 Tuva State University, Kyzyl, Russian Federation

2 Tuva Institute of Humanities and Applied Socio-Economic Research under the Government of the Republic of Tuva, Kyzyl, Russian Federation

3 Institute for the Development of National School of the Republic of Tyva, Kyzyl, Russian Federation

Abstract
This article analyzes the tribal structure of the Tuvans in the context of Leonid Potapov’s scholarly legacy, drawing on new field data. Given the growing interest among Tuvans in their ancestry and the history of their tribal groups, a reexamination of Potapov’s findings is timely. Potapov’s major works from 1969, such as “The Ethnic Composition and Origin of the Altaian” and “Essays on the Folk Life of the Tuvans”, as well as his field data, serve as valuable sources. Potapov considered the Irkit, Soyon, Tandy, Kobaly, Tumat, Todosh (Todot), Chapty, and Tongzhoan tribal groups to have been originally Tuvan. Later, as a result of migrations and complex historical processes in the 17th and 18th centuries, they became part of the Altai people. This study aims to develop Potapov’s thesis concerning shared ethnogenetic components among Tuvans and Altaians through a comparative analysis of the Soyan and Irkit (Irgit) groups. The findings confirm that similarly named seoks among Tuvans and Altaians indicate common stages of ethnogenesis, intensive migration, and long-term historical and cultural contacts. However, despite their shared roots, Soyan and Irgit seoks among Tuvans and Altaians show varying degrees of internal differentiation, indicating independent and long-term development within different ethnic communities. For example, among the Altaians, the Irkits were divided into Kara-Irkits (Black Irkits) and Sary-Irkits (Yellow Irkits). Among the Tuvans, the Irgits were divided into KaraIrgits, Chedi-Saryg-Irgits, and Kaksaan-Irgits (Kaskaan-Irgits). Among the Altaians, the Soyon clan had subdivisions such as Kara-Soyon and Sary-Soyon, as well as several local subclans. The Tuvans divided their Soyans into Ak-Soyon, Kyzyl-Soyon, Kashka-Soyon, and Choldak-Soyon groups. Thus, the presence of tribal units with similar names and structures clearly indicates close historical, cultural, and probably genetic ties between Altaians and Tuvans in the past.
About the Authors

Dongak Viktoria Viktorovna  

Postgraduate Student, Tuva State University;  

36, Lenin st., Kyzyl, 667000, Russian Federation  

e-mail: viktoriadongak08@gmail.com


Mongush Artysh Maadyr-oolovich  

Chief Specialist, Tuva Institute of Humanities and  

Applied Socio-Economic Research under the Government  

of the Republic of Tyva; 4, Kochetova st., Kyzyl, 667000,  

Russian Federation  

Leading Researcher, Institute for the Development of  

National School of the Republic of Tyva; 2,  

Rabochaya st., Kyzyl, 667000, Russian Federation  

e-mail: art510@mail.ru


Ayizhy Elena Valerievna  

Doctor of Sciences (History), Professor, Tuva State  

University; 36, Lenin st., Kyzyl, 667000, Russian  

Federation  

e-mail: aiygy@mail.ru

For citation
Dongak V. V., Mongush A. M., Aiyzhy E. V. Tribal Groups of the Tuvans in the Works of Leonid Potapov in the Light of New Ethnographic Expedition Data. Bulletin of the Irkutsk State University. Geoarchaeology, Ethnology, and Anthropology Series. 2026, Vol. 56, pp. 53–62. https://doi.org/10.26516/2227-2380.2026.56.53 (In Russ.)
Keywords
Leonid Potapov, Tuvans, Altaians, tribal structure, seok, Irkit (Irgit), Soyan, ethnogenesis, field ethnography, Southern Siberia.
UDC
39(=512.156)
DOI
https://doi.org/10.26516/2227-2380.2026.56.53
References

Sources

  1. Author's field materials 1. Expedition of the Department of Ethnography of TSPI to Mongun-Taiga District of the Republic of Tuva in 2017.
  2. Author's field materials 2. Expedition, within the framework of the project of the RNF grant N 22-18-20113 to Tes-Khemsky and Tere-Kholsky districts of the Republic of Tuva in 2023.
  3. Author's field materials 3. An expedition to the ethnic Tuvans, as part of the RNF grant project N 22-18-20113, to the Bayan-Ulgii and Khovd aimags of Mongolia, and to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China in 2024.

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