Siberia is a vast geographical region in modern day Russia. Siberia’s size is three-fourths of Russia’s landmass which is roughly the size of the United States. This area was previously known as the “land of banishment” since it was used as a primary location for prison camps and political exile. However, the population of Siberia is less than 30 million compared to a population in the United States that exceeds 300 million.

Recent discoveries indicate that Siberia inhabitants date back as early as 300,000 years ago as opposed to 40,000 years as previously thought. As a result of Russian conquest that took place between the 17th and 19th centuries, the majority of Siberia’s population is Russian or Ukrainian. However, there are still numerous indigenous groups in the region today.

It is still uncertain whether the first inhabitants in Siberia came from central and western Asia or Europe. Although, there is evidence of a Paleolithic settlement in southern Siberia as well as an indication that inhabitants participated in the Bronze Age. From around 1000 BC, southern Siberia came under Chinese rule and then under Turkic and Mongol rule around the beginning of the 3rd century.

With such an extensive and diverse cultural history in Siberia, there are now over 40 different indigenous tribes in the area. Divided into four main groups, these tribes are classified based on their language. These are the Uralic, Altaic, Yeniseian and Paleo-Siberian meaning “other”.

The Uralic family includes the Ugric peoples, the Samoyeds, and the Yugaghir. The location of the Ugric peoples is in the northern Urals. Spread between the northern and southern areas of Siberia is the Samoyeds. The Yugaghir’s location is in the east.

The largest of the four groups is the Altaic family. This consists of the Turkic peoples, the Mongolic group and the Tungusic group. The Turkic peoples live in the forests and steppes of south Siberia. The Mongolic group, the Buryats, with a population of over 435,000, makes up the largest ethnic minority group in Siberia today and inhabits the north.

The Yeniseian language family can be found mostly in central Siberia. There are only two known languages that survived the 20th century called Ket and Yugh. Only around 1000 people speak the Ket language. The Yugh language is possibly extinct today. According to Chinese sources, a Yeniseian group may have established a tribal confederation known as the Xiongnu which are descendants of the Huns. However, this information is difficult to confirm.

Paleo-Siberian is a term used to classify various unrelated languages spoken in northeastern Siberia. The numbers of people that speak the Paleo-Siberian languages are approximately 23,000. These languages are spoken throughout easternmost Siberia as well as along the coast and on some islands.

Given the extensive number of indigenous tribes and a mix between Chinese, Turkic, Mongol and Russian rule, Siberia has a complex blend of ethnic groups.