The Naskapi Nation of Kawawachikamach recently had the privilege of welcoming Olzzi Ganbat, a Tsaatan caribou herder from the Mongolian Taiga. “Tsaa” in his language means caribou, and “Tsaatan” means caribou herder. His visit brought together Naskapi elders, former chiefs, and community youth for a remarkable exchange of knowledge rooted in a shared way of life.
The Tsaatan are a small people. Only about 500 remain, with just 70 families still actively herding reindeer across two communities, the West Taiga and the East Taiga, near a lake called Tsaganuur in northern Mongolia. They speak two languages: Mongolian, and their own original language called Toha.
Much like the Naskapi people, the Tsaatan once nomadically followed and hunted caribou. Around 3,000 to 5,000 years ago, they transitioned to domesticating and herding them. Today, each family cares for between 30 and 50 animals depending on family size, with the whole tribe maintaining a total herd of roughly 3,000. Caribou can live up to 15 years.
The Tsaatan remain semi-nomadic, migrating six to eight times a year. In summer, they drive their herds up into the mountains to keep the animals cool. In winter, they return to the valleys and forests for warmth, staying in one place from late October through April. Caribou are central to every part of their lives: providing meat, milk, and cheese curds, serving as riding animals and sled-pullers, and offering hides that become blankets, clothing, and warm winter boots made from leg skin. Every spring, when the caribou shed their antlers in March and April, families collect them and craft them into bracelets, necklaces, and earrings.
One of the most striking traditions Olzzi shared was that of the sitr, a shaman marking placed on a caribou’s neck. There are three types: blue, connected to the sky and mountain, offering safe passage through life; white, for health; and black, for protection from predators and negative energy. A caribou that receives a sitr becomes a sacred animal. It is never ridden, never milked, and is allowed to roam freely in the mountains for the rest of its life.
Olzzi also shared some practical knowledge that resonated with our hunters. Salt is how the Tsaatan attract and catch their free-roaming caribou: the animals are drawn to it and will come readily to a hand holding some. At night, caribou are tied near the camp to protect them from bears and wolves. Dogs are treated as full family members, with their own tipi built just for them, a reflection of how essential they are to camp life.
Children begin riding caribou as young as three or four years old. The community also holds a winter caribou racing festival at Tsaganuur, including a 5 km race that starts from the mountain, along with riding competitions and other traditional activities.
After the main presentation, a smaller group stayed back for a more intimate conversation. Among them were two of our former chiefs and a group of young community members who have been reviving traditional ways of preparing caribou meat, bones, and hides.
What stood out most to everyone was how closely the Tsaatan and Naskapi approaches to working with caribou resembled each other, right down to specific tools. Despite being separated by thousands and thousands of miles, the two peoples found far more similarities than differences.
We are deeply grateful to Olzzi for travelling to visit us in Kawawachikamach, and we very much hope to return the favour someday.