The International Day of the World's Indigenous People, established by a resolution of the UN General Assembly, has been celebrated since 1994.

Indigenous peoples are bearers of a vast diversity of unique cultures, traditions, languages and knowledge systems. They have a special relationship with their lands and adhere to different concepts of development based on their own worldviews and priorities.
Although indigenous peoples make up only 5% of the world's population, they account for 15% of the poorest people on the planet. They continue to face many problems, and their rights are often violated. This holiday was established precisely to draw the attention of the public and authorities at various levels to the problems of indigenous peoples around the world. In 2025, the holiday is celebrated on an unofficial level and is accompanied by the opening of thematic exhibitions, organisation of educational events, excursions and festivals.

Currently, the total number of indigenous peoples on the planet is approximately 476 million people; they live in 90 countries and represent a multitude of languages and cultures.

In Russia, indigenous peoples are recognised as those peoples who live in the territories traditionally inhabited by their ancestors, preserve their traditional way of life, economy and crafts, number less than 50,000 people in the country and identify themselves as independent ethnic communities. There are 47 ethnic groups in the Russian Federation, including 40 indigenous peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East of Russia. They live in compact settlements in more than 30 regions of the Russian Federation, with more than 65% of them living in rural areas.

At the beginning of the 21^st century, there was a rise in ethnic self-awareness among small peoples. Public associations, educational centres, associations and trade unions were established. Communities and ancestral lands were recreated. All these trends are supported by the state. Living in extreme natural conditions, small ethnic groups preserve their traditional way of life, culture and languages, making Russia's multinational image multifaceted and one-of-a-kind.
The indigenous peoples of Russia have created unique forms of art that reflect their identity and way of life. These traditions are linked to everyday life, which includes hunting, reindeer herding and spiritual practices (shamanism). Materials for creating works of art are often sourced from the environment: animal skins, bones, fur, stones and wood.

Images and depictions of the northern peoples themselves are presented in various genres of art: painting, graphic art and sculpture. These images reflect the distinctive features of the indigenous peoples' costumes, occupations and way of life, and bear witness to their history.

The museum collection sections ‘Russian metal Artworks’ and ‘Russian Sculptures’ feature bronze statuettes of Samoyeds, made in the late 19^th century, during a period of genuine public interest in ethnography.

Samoyeds is an outdated name for the Samoyedic peoples, the indigenous peoples of Siberia: the Nenets, Enets, and Nganasans, who speak (or spoke) languages of the Samoyedic group, which together with the languages of the Finno-Ugric group form the Uralic language family. There is no consensus on the origin of the name. According to one version, they were named like that because of their customs of ritual cannibalism (however, this has not been confirmed by any documents and remains at the level of legends and tales). According to another version, the nickname Samoyed (or Samoyad, as they were called in Russ) came from another northern people, the Laplanders, who called their land Same-jiennam. Russian merchants heard a more understandable, albeit offensive, word in this name: Samoyed. The Nenets themselves have always called themselves ‘nenech,’ which means ‘real people.’ The ‘real people’ still consider themselves children of the reindeer. And for them, it is not just a totem animal, but the meaning of their existence. Reindeer provide food, shelter, and clothing. They provide the household with everything necessary and help them move across the endless expanses of the tundra. Of course, the modern world has left its mark on the life of the Nenets. They use mobile communications, and some carry small generators and fuel supplies with them. But one thing has not changed in the life of the Nenets-Samoyeds: their nomadic lifestyle. A ‘real person’ cannot imagine life without constantly moving across the vast, endless tundra. Family, raw-hide tent, reindeer, tundra – these are the main components of their existence.

A themed album with the images of Samoyeds featured in the ‘Russian Metal Artworks’ and ‘Russian Sculptures’ sections of the museum exposition is posted in our Photo Gallery.