The Vakh () is a

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of ...

Khanty–Mansia Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug–Yugra ( Russian and Mansi: Ханты-Мансийский автономный округ — Югра, ''Khanty-Mansiysky avtonomny okrug — Yugra;'' Khanty: Хӑнты-Мансийской Aвтономно� ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

. It is a right

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drai ...

of the Ob. The Vakh is long with a basin area of . The river is a status B Ramsar wetland, nominated for designation as a Wetland of International Importance in 2000.

Course

Its source is near the drainage basins of the

Yenisei The Yenisey (russian: Енисе́й, ''Yeniséy''; mn, Горлог мөрөн, ''Gorlog mörön''; Buryat: Горлог мүрэн, ''Gorlog müren''; Tuvan: Улуг-Хем, ''Uluğ-Hem''; Khakas: Ким суғ, ''Kim suğ''; Ket: Ӄук, ...

and the Taz. Since the Vakh, like the

Ket Kentucky Educational Television (KET) is a state network of PBS member television stations serving the U.S. Commonwealth of Kentucky. It is operated by the Kentucky Authority for Educational Television, an agency of the Kentucky state governme ...

, flows from east to west, it was an important early transportation route. A short portage connects its headwaters to the

Sym #REDIRECT Sym{{R from other capitalisation The Size Ya Maghas Index (SYM) or body size index is derived from the Body Shape and height of a female between the ages of 18 and 35 in the Maghas Clan of the Elgon Masai Community. The SYM is general ...

, which flows into the Yenisei. To the northeast lies the basin of the Vatinsky Yogan.

Tributaries

The Vakh's main tributaries are the Kulynigol, the Sabun, the

Kolikyogan The Kolikyogan (russian: Коликъёган,string bog A string bog or string mire is a bog consisting of slightly elevated ridges and islands, with woody plants, alternating with flat, wet sedge mat areas. String bogs occur on slightly sloping surfaces, with the ridges at right angles to the direction ...

s covering .

History

Early pottery from the Vakh basin, Vasyugan and Tomsk-Chulym is dominated by

comb-pit The Comb Ceramic culture or Pit-Comb Ware culture, often abbreviated as CCC or PCW, was a northeast European culture characterised by its Pit–Comb Ware. It existed from around 4200 BCE to around 2000 BCE. The bearers of the Comb Ceramic cultur ...

decorations. An 1875 account of the people of the region said, "The Samoyedes of Southern Siberia are neighbours of the Youraks, and inhabit the Upper Taz, the Yelogouï, and the affluents of the Vakh river. They are pure Samoyedes as regards race." Russians began to significantly affect the

Khanty people The Khanty ( Khanty: ханти, ''hanti''), also known in older literature as Ostyaks (russian: остяки) are a Ugric indigenous people, living in Khanty–Mansi Autonomous Okrug, a region historically known as " Yugra" in Russia, togeth ...

on the Vakh river area by 1896. These people were eking out a living by hunting, fishing and selling squirrel skins. The Russians introduced tobacco and alcohol. Moral codes began breaking down, and new infectious diseases were introduced. There was a brief attempt to counter the problems through shamanistic ceremonies. Valuable horses were sacrificed, but without effect.

References

Citations Sources * * * * Rivers of Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug {{Russia-river-stub