Bashkir people celebrate at a samovar dance event. Photo: Dinis Yalmurzin/Samauyrly Ritayim, used with permission
This article first appeared in Novaya Vkladka on June 17, 2025. An edited version is being republished on Global Voices under a content partnership agreement.
Bashkiria is one of those regions of Russia where the past remains palpably alive. It lingers in the vast steppe landscape, in the melodic intonations of the language, in the way people greet one another, in traditions that have never been relegated to museum shelves. The Indigenous people of the area, the Bashkirs, have for centuries preserved a unique system of clan-based associations, each with its own land, origin legends, and ancestral tamgas — symbols that can still be found in crafts, on flags, and in heraldry.
A Turkic people, the Bashkirs make up the Indigenous population of Bashkortostan — one of the largest ethnic groups in Russia, numbering around 1.6 million. Today, Bashkir identity is experiencing a renewed surge of interest, especially among youth. Some learn the language through online courses, others return to their home villages for the holidays, and some head to ritaiym gatherings in Ufa to hear the kurai (a traditional wind instrument), taste kumis, and feel once again that tradition is not a forgotten chapter of history but a living presence.
A new season of Samauryly Ritaiym — the samovar dances — has kicked off in the capital of Bashkortostan. What began five years ago as an informal gathering of barely a dozen young people on Ufa’s riverfront, sharing tea and music, has since grown into vibrant events that draw more than 2,000 participants. Why have these parties become so compelling to young people, and what makes them a place where people of different ethnic backgrounds come together?
From friendly gatherings to a citywide celebration
Along the Agidel River embankment in Ufa, the soft, resonant notes of the kurai float through the misty air. A large samovar stands beside an improvised stage, while volunteers clear a space for a bonfire. Young women in traditional Bashkir dresses spread a tablecloth, arrange plates of chak-chak, and set bottles of kumis on the table. Some of the young men wear fur-trimmed Bashkir hats with fox tails; others have brought flags of the Republic of Bashkortostan. Despite the light drizzle, people follow the sound of music and within minutes, hundreds of young people have gathered.
Tea gatherings around a samovar are a long-standing tradition in Bashkir villages, but scenes like this were once unheard of in the republic’s cities. On June 17, 2020, no more than 15 people showed up for the very first samovar dances along Ufa’s riverfront. “Hosting a tea gathering in an urban setting felt both authentic and full of potential,” recalls Rustam Abdrazakov, one of the initiators of the samovar discos. “I invited my friends and everyone loved it.