Ayon Island
Encyclopedia
Ayon Island is an island
in the coast of Chukotka
in the East Siberian Sea
. The island itself consists mainly of low lying tundra, is populated mainly by Chukchi, who use the tundra as pasture for their reindeer herds.
, directly off the Nutel'gyrgym Peninsula, at the eastern end of the Kolyma Gulf
. The island is 63 km long and 38 km wide. It is generally low and flat and there are many small lakes and swamps. Ayon Island is separated from the mainland by the Malyy Chaunskiy Strait, a shallow channel which is barely 2 km wide in its narrowest spot. The bay to the south and east is Chaunskaya Guba. Administratively and municipally, Ayon Island belongs to Chaunsky District
, part of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
of the Russian Federation.
There are two small settlements, El'vuney (now abandoned) and Ayon in the NW end of the island.
word "Ayo", meaning "brain", as the islands shape is somewhat like a brain. The second school of though is that it is derived from Chukchi meaning "coming alive", in reference to the fact that although the island is covered in ice and snow during the winter, in the summer, this melts and the island provides a good pasture for reindeer herds as well as being the home to swarms of midge
s and gadflies
.
that would eventually have around 22,000 reindeer under its control. In addition to reindeer herding, the new collective was also engaged in sea-hunting and the collection of furs.
A polar station was established on the site of the village in 1941 and the icebreaker
Krasin
brought Pyotr Sidersky and a crew of seven people to man the new station. This was the first time that the village site had been inhabited permanently, with indigenous people living there only during the summer when the reindeer were taken to pasture, with the exception of a few individuals who would over-winter in order to hunt.
By 1944, the settlement had become increasingly permanent and there were 103 people living in 23 houses.
The result of this is that the herds have shrunk from 22,000 to only around 4,000. the result of this is that there is considerable unemployment in the town. This has led to a lot of drinking, which not only has sociological effects, but the litter produced also encourages disease from which the reindeer now suffer, further reducing the size of the herd.
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
in the coast of Chukotka
Chukchi Peninsula
The Chukchi Peninsula, Chukotka Peninsula or Chukotski Peninsula , at about 66° N 172° W, is the northeastern extremity of Asia. Its eastern end is at Cape Dezhnev near the village of Uelen. It is bordered by the Chukchi Sea to the north, the Bering Sea to the south, and the Bering Strait to the...
in the East Siberian Sea
East Siberian Sea
The East Siberian Sea is a marginal sea in the Arctic Ocean. It is located between the Arctic Cape to the north, the coast of Siberia to the south, the New Siberian Islands to the west and Cape Billings, close to Chukotka, and Wrangel Island to the east...
. The island itself consists mainly of low lying tundra, is populated mainly by Chukchi, who use the tundra as pasture for their reindeer herds.
Geography
It is located on the western side of the Chaunskaya BayChaunskaya Bay
The Chaunskaya Bay or Chaun Bay is an Arctic bay in the East Siberian Sea, in the Chaunsky District of Chukotka, northeast Siberia.The bay is open to the north and is 140 km in length. Its maximum width is 110 km. Its mouth is defined by Cape Shelagsky to the east and an unnamed part of...
, directly off the Nutel'gyrgym Peninsula, at the eastern end of the Kolyma Gulf
Kolyma Gulf
The Kolyma Gulf is the largest gulf of the East Siberian Sea...
. The island is 63 km long and 38 km wide. It is generally low and flat and there are many small lakes and swamps. Ayon Island is separated from the mainland by the Malyy Chaunskiy Strait, a shallow channel which is barely 2 km wide in its narrowest spot. The bay to the south and east is Chaunskaya Guba. Administratively and municipally, Ayon Island belongs to Chaunsky District
Chaunsky District
Chaunsky District is an administrative and municipal district , one of the six in Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, Russia. It is located on the northern shore of the autonomous okrug and in terms of the administrative divisions borders Shmidtovsky District in the northeast, Anadyrsky District in the...
, part of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
Chukotka Autonomous Okrug , or Chukotka , is a federal subject of Russia located in the Russian Far East.Chukotka has a population of 53,824 according to the 2002 Census, and a surface area of . The principal town and the administrative center is Anadyr...
of the Russian Federation.
There are two small settlements, El'vuney (now abandoned) and Ayon in the NW end of the island.
Etymology
The name of the island is thought to come from one of two sources. Firstly, it is suggested that it comes from the ChukchiChukchi language
The Chukchi language is a Palaeosiberian language spoken by Chukchi people in the easternmost extremity of Siberia, mainly in Chukotka Autonomous Okrug...
word "Ayo", meaning "brain", as the islands shape is somewhat like a brain. The second school of though is that it is derived from Chukchi meaning "coming alive", in reference to the fact that although the island is covered in ice and snow during the winter, in the summer, this melts and the island provides a good pasture for reindeer herds as well as being the home to swarms of midge
Midge
A midge is a very small, two-winged flying insect. "Midge" may also refer to:-Real:* Midge Costanza , American politician* Mildred Gillars , aka "Midge", American broadcaster of Nazi propaganda during World War II...
s and gadflies
Gadfly
Gadfly can refer to:* "Gadfly", a fly that annoys horses and other livestock, usually a horse-fly or a botfly*Social gadfly, a person who upsets the status quo*Gadfly , a relational database in the Python programming language...
.
Soviet Russia
Following the rise of communism in the Soviet Union in the first part of the twentieth century, the native herds were collectivised in 1933 into a group called "Enmitagino". Such collectivisation was very successful on the island and in 1950, the collective in Ayon was turned into a formal KolkhozKolkhoz
A kolkhoz , plural kolkhozy, was a form of collective farming in the Soviet Union that existed along with state farms . The word is a contraction of коллекти́вное хозя́йство, or "collective farm", while sovkhoz is a contraction of советское хозяйство...
that would eventually have around 22,000 reindeer under its control. In addition to reindeer herding, the new collective was also engaged in sea-hunting and the collection of furs.
A polar station was established on the site of the village in 1941 and the icebreaker
Icebreaker
An icebreaker is a special-purpose ship or boat designed to move and navigate through ice-covered waters. Although the term usually refers to ice-breaking ships, it may also refer to smaller vessels .For a ship to be considered an icebreaker, it requires three traits most...
Krasin
Krasin (1916 icebreaker)
The first icebreaker Krasin was built for the Imperial Russian Navy as Svyatogor. She had a long, distinguished career in rescue operations, as well as a pathfinder and explorer of the Northern Sea Route...
brought Pyotr Sidersky and a crew of seven people to man the new station. This was the first time that the village site had been inhabited permanently, with indigenous people living there only during the summer when the reindeer were taken to pasture, with the exception of a few individuals who would over-winter in order to hunt.
By 1944, the settlement had become increasingly permanent and there were 103 people living in 23 houses.
Post-Soviet
However, following the collapse of the Soviet Union, state support was withdrawn and the herders, who had been used to being supplied with the latest technology by the state now found that not only did they have to fend for themselves with regards to the day to day herding, but that there was no guarantee that they would even receive the money they were owed for the meat they provided to the state.The result of this is that the herds have shrunk from 22,000 to only around 4,000. the result of this is that there is considerable unemployment in the town. This has led to a lot of drinking, which not only has sociological effects, but the litter produced also encourages disease from which the reindeer now suffer, further reducing the size of the herd.
Adjacent islands
- Ryyanranot Island (Ostrov Ryyanranot) 69.992°N 168.608°E is a 8 km long and 1.5 km wide island located off the northern shores of Ayon Island. It is separated from it by a 1.2 km wide sound.
- Chengkuul Island (Ostrov Chengkuul) 69.930°N 169.226°E is 10.5 km long and 1.7 km at its widest point. It is located off the northeastern coast of Ayon Island, separated from it by a 5 km wide sound. Its western end is also known as Yanrachenkool.
- Mosey Island (Ostrov Mosey) 69.648°N 169.234°E is a small island located between the southern coast of Ayon and the continent. It is 3 km in length.
See also
- List of inhabited localities in Chaunsky District
- List of islands of Russia