Xxii ICE-BOUND ON KOLGUEV 
The Russian name of the curious people who call 
themselves ‘Nyanitz’ has been much discussed. That 
the word is simply Samo-yedi, 2.e. self-eaters, is the 
common view in Russia. The peasants and small 
traders of Arctic Russia—men who have lived for 
generations among the Samoyeds, and are well beyond 
the reach of books and theories—gave me this explana- 
tion as one which admitted of no question. They said 
that the Russians had ‘always’ called the Samoyeds by 
that name ‘because they used to be cannibals.’ And the 
Samoyeds, when we asked them, always agreed. The 
words of On Tipa the Samoyed, when we talked it over 
in Alexander’s hut, were ‘Da, da-Pravdah. Tepair nieto, 
nieto-Davno, davno!’ z.e. ‘ Yes, truly. But not now, no, 
no, long, long ago!’ At the same time it would seem 
not impossible that the idea may have originated from 
their habit of eating raw flesh. The Russians of the 
Petchora familiarly address these people as ‘Samodine.’ 
This I take to be a diminutive. When speaking of them 
in the common colloquial way they say ‘Sam-yad,’ 
because, as Alexander explained, it is said ‘more quickly.’ 
My own imperfect knowledge of the subject does not 
entitle me to an opinion; so with this I leave the word 
to the ethnologist. 
