Why do Buryats jump holding hands and sing: “Yokhor”?
Just imagine! Hundreds of people gather in a large ring around the fire, take each other’s hands and jump around in a circle, speeding up and slowing down while singing: “Yokhor, yokhor!”
It’s an ancient circular dance, which has a ritual meaning. It is connected with the circular movement of the Sun.
In ancient times, such round dances were part of shamanic rituals. True, there is a version that nomadic peoples with the help of yokhor could also hunt wild animals, closing them in the circle.
Yokhor is divided into three parts: slow movement to songs, then the circle closes more tightly, and then the participants jump, hop and even begin running.
In each district of Buryatia, the movements for yokhor are different. To date, it is customary to distinguish eight main types of dance (Barguzinsky, Okinsky and so on).
It is believed that the more people take part in the dance, the more prosperous the year will be.
