The monograph gives a survey of one of the most numerous peoples of the north, formerly called Tungus. Various materials were used for the work, both written and museum sources, and ethnographic materials from the author's numerous expeditions.
The book consists of an introduction, three sections, and a conclusion, as well as an appendix ‘Generic Names and Their Prevalence in the Seventeenth-Twentieth Centuries’. In the introduction, the author gives data on the history of distribution of Evenks, their numbers, names and self-names, historical and archaeological information, and also gives a bibliographic sketch of existing works on Tungus, indicating his own position in relation to the cited authors.
The first section ‘Economy and Material Culture’ includes the following chapters: Calendar and the economic year, Hunting, Reindeer husbandry, Fishing, Cattle breeding and secondary economic activities, Means of transportation, Camp, dwelling, outbuildings, utensils, Food, drinks, Clothes. The second section, ‘Social Relations’, consists of the following chapters: The System of Kinship and Remnants of Marriage Groups and the Maternal Clan, Family, Forms of Marriage and Wedding Rites, Woman and Children, Social Stratification by the early twentieth Century. Finally, the section ‘Spiritual Culture’ includes such chapters as: Folk Knowledge, Folklore, Art, Evenks' ideas about the world around them, Rites and rituals, Shamans and their vestments.
In the conclusion, the author summarizes his main findings, pointing out exactly which objects formed the basis of the pra-Tungus culture, how exactly the shaping of the Evenk culture took place, how local variants of the common Tungus culture appeared (through dialogue with the aboriginal culture), how certain of its elements continued to exist as remnants and also proves that reindeer husbandry is not typical for all groups of Evenks.
Thus, despite the relatively small volume, the work covers all spheres of the life of Evenks. The work was written in the classical anthropological paradigm, which opens up opportunities for its usage by anthropologists and ethnographers nowadays.