Life in Yakutsk  -   Earth's Coldest City

‘Make sure you wrap up today!’

I would often hear these words from my mum before beginning my walk to school in Northern England, typically when the temperature dropped to near or below zero. Whether it was –1° or –3°, a good quality bobble hat and a warm fluffy coat sufficed. You could always tell when it was cold, because it took about ten minutes to defrost the car, you’d have several near-embarrassing moments trying to avoid slipping on black ice, and your every breath would appear like a white cloud in front of you. And in a very stereotypical British manner, everyone’s chosen topic for small talk would be how cold it was that day, and how they couldn’t wait for summer to come around again.

When I stumbled upon a video by Yakutsk native Kiun B on YouTube, it would be an understatement to say that I felt humbled. In a city where the lowest recorded temperature has reached –71°, with winters averaging at –50°, the region of Yakutia in Siberia feels like a world away from what I consider to be ‘cold’.

When the Yakutian residents featured in the videos venture outside, it doesn’t take long for them to develop frost on their eyelashes. They spend time putting on multiple layers, with one woman in a video using bear fat on her hands, which is essential to reduce the risk of frostbite. In another video, water for drinking is shown to be piled up in cubes, ready to be broken down to use for consumption, because pipes are frozen during the winter.

After watching several of Kiun’s documentary-style videos about how everyday Yakutian life operates, one thing remains constant: the cold does not stop Yakuts. Their resilience and perseverance become apparent when seemingly impossible tasks are second nature to them. In one video, a young boy gets ready for school. Kiun acknowledges that he has a morning routine just like any other child around the world: get up, brush your teeth, have breakfast, get dressed, and have your mum remind you to put on your layers to brave the harsh winter. However, this boy is withstanding harsher weather than I would ever be capable of. Regardless of where you are in the world, a mother always makes sure that her child has wrapped up before facing the elements!

Intertwined in Kiun’s videos is the bilingual nature of life in Yakutsk. The Sakha (also called Yakut) language has more than 440,000 native speakers. Most residents are also fluent in Russian. Children learn three languages in school: Sakha, Russian and English.

With language comes culture and tradition, and Yakutsk is no exception. To celebrate the beginning of summer, the Yhyakh festival on the 21st of June (the day of the Summer Solstice) is an event for residents and visitors alike, with the united goal of celebrating the warmer months to come. In a video about this unique festival, Kiun is dressed in a beautiful traditional costume, Haladai. There is also the annual “Games of Dygyn”, where men from across the region compete in a variety of physical challenges.

There is so much more to learn about this fascinating region and the people living there. The more I watch Kiun’s videos, the more apparent it becomes that Yakuts go about their daily lives just like you and me, even if I never have to think about the risk of frostbite from simply going outside...

More information on Yakutia and its rich traditions can be found here: Blog 2 — Kiun B