An “Overlooked Tradition”: Gathering as Occupation and Trade Among the Evenkis of South Yakutia
Although gathering is widely recognized as a part of indigenous economies in the Arctic, it has not yet been given the attention it deserves in Yakutia, including the framework of the local standards for ethnological expertise and assessments of damage to ancestral habitat by mining industries. Most regional experts believe that gathering does not support the traditional way of life as much as hunting and reindeer herding do and should not be considered an equal condition for assessing damage to the ancestral habitat. This article attempts to change the prevailing expert attitude toward wild plant gathering by presenting the practice and tradition of collecting non-timber forest resources as a dynamic ethno-economic institution responsive to the changing external conditions of the global world. The article examines gathering as a large-scale and locally rooted practice evolving in the contexts of digitalization, the COVID-19 pandemic, and other socially significant trends, including the demand for ethno- ecological knowledge and folk medicine. We classify gathering as an ‘occupation’ [zaniatie] and ‘trade’ [promysel]. The majority of local experts approach gathering as an ‘occupation’, leaving the ‘trade’ aspect aside, considering gathering a small-scale hobby for a narrow circle of local residents. We demonstrate that gathering is also a trade constituting a full-fledged branch of traditional economic activity. Moreover, it is gathering that helps to preserve and strengthen social ties between taiga, rural and urban spaces. Finally, gathering is