"The Space through which Shamans Journey: A Nanai Case Study" by Tatiana Bulgakova, former Fellow of the Institute in 2012-2013

Tatiana Bulgakova was born in Khabarovsk close to Nanay settlements, which determined her interest in their culture. She has been doing fieldwork among the Nanay since the beginning of the 80’s.Since 1986 and till now she has been teaching Folklore, Ethnography of the peoples of the North and Social and Cultural Anthropology in Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia. In 2001 she completed her second (doctorate) PhD on socio-religious aspects of Nanay culture.

She has recently published an article in the review Sibirica on the work she has done during her fellowship at the IAS-Nantes.

The article concerns the space through which shamans journey (its relationship to physical space as well as to the person), and how it is represented in indigenous Nanai discourse. The research done permit the conclusion that, for practicing traditional shamans, spiritual space is objective and in relation to the person is externally situated.

> More information on the website of the journal Sibirica