Mikhail Erentsenov, About Clans of Bolshederbetovskiy Ulus

Abstract

Mikhail:There are no pure clans among Kalmyks, only mixed ones. My clan of Kazhikhn belongs to Abganer, which is a bigger clan. As Erdniev wrote, among the Kazhikhn there are also Merkits, which is another clan. Each Kalmyk clan had its own land, lords (noyons) and temple. The Chonos clan was the biggest landowner, comprising 6-7 large settlements. Kalmyks had a semi-nomadic way of life. I lived in Matrosovo village. The Chonos clan is comprised of many families, including the Menkenovs, Dzhapovs, Marminovs, Seperovs, Setenovs, Shurginovs, Zurumkhinovs, Bembeevs and others. One Alexei Chudenov of the Chonos clan went to war when he was 16, killed four Germans with a shovel, for which he received a medal. He was sent to Siberia with his medal. There when he went to register at the commandant's office, the commandant did not believe that a young Kalmyk guy could have a medal and accused him of theft. Alexei picked up a bench and smashed the head of the commandant, which killed him. For this he could have been shot. Alexei fled on a train to Western Ukraine to his uncle Zurumkhinov, where he had himself recorded as a Bashkir and lived until 1992 under the surname Soloviev. He could not receive his medal back from the military enlistment office until he changed his surname back to Chudenov.