Po Dikim Stepyam Zabaikalya
The song was known since 1880s, when it appeared and proliferated among prisoners of Siberian penitentiaries. In 1908 it was published under the title of "Brodyaga" (The Tramp), by the Swedish composer Wilhelm Harteveld, who had collected it in 1906, during a trip to Siberia. The words author was printed to be I. K. Kondratiev, an expert on songs and a Russian Empire writer, who published several studies on Russian songs. His authorship can't be proven though, because the poem is not included in his last published volume of poems "Under the noise of the Oak Groves" (1898). <---A photo illustration: The prisoners are building the Ussuri railroad |
The first Russian prison camp in Siberia arose at the end of the 17th century, as the two double tsars, Ivan V and Peter I who reigned between 1682 en 1696, made a proclamation in which was captured that some death sentences could be put into community service. This prison labour would take place in a so-called Katorga, a remote penal camp with minimum facilities.
Siberia is and was rich in its nature and its natural resources. It has large deposits of nickel, silver, gold, zinc, lead, iron, and other minerals, such as tin, manganese and platinum, in addition to its great wealth of coal and wood.
But the temperatures that can reach in winters to -60°C made the living conditions almost unbearable. For this reason it was most obvious to send the prisoners to the mines. As there were no true connections, the convicts had to make the travel to their place of exile on foot, a journey that could take up to three years. And the heavy weather conditions, together with the endless ice fields of the area, made sure that escape for most of them was nearly impossible. Over the next 130 years about 1.2 million prisoners were sent to Siberia, where they were put to work in the mining, but also in agriculture, because during summers the temperature in Siberia can raise up to +30°C, or in logging. Others were required to help with the construction of new infrastructure, including the 2000 km-long Amur Cart Road and the Trans-Siberian Railway. |
The convicts who didn't work hard enough were terribly beaten or chained up and even when their sentence had been completed and their chains had been removed, they were often forced to continue living and working in Siberia.
At first only serious criminals were sent there on exile, but over time the prison camps were also increasingly used to eliminate political opponents. One of the best known political prisoners who ever was sent to Siberia, was Joseph Stalin. Nevertheless, this experience did not prevent him from extending the system of the GULAG, the government agency that was responsible for the penal and labour camps.
At first only serious criminals were sent there on exile, but over time the prison camps were also increasingly used to eliminate political opponents. One of the best known political prisoners who ever was sent to Siberia, was Joseph Stalin. Nevertheless, this experience did not prevent him from extending the system of the GULAG, the government agency that was responsible for the penal and labour camps.
A large percentage of the political prisoners tried to escape from the camps. It was very hard to catch a runaway, but the chances were also real that the escaped prisoner would be drowned in the river, or frozen to death in the primeval forests.
From 1953 on, after Stalin's death, the petty criminals were immediately pardoned by the politburo and in 1960 the gulag project was completely shut down. The system of the penal colonies, however, has persisted up to the present day.
From 1953 on, after Stalin's death, the petty criminals were immediately pardoned by the politburo and in 1960 the gulag project was completely shut down. The system of the penal colonies, however, has persisted up to the present day.
Po dikim stepyam Zabaikalya
The song says about an escaped prisoner, who crosses the Baikal and meets his family. The song was recorded in the period before the revolution by Nadezhda Plevizkaya and Semion Sadovnikov. A recording of this song performed by Peter Letschenko was published in 1940s in Bucharest. In 1946 the Soviet songstress Lidia Ruslanova recorded the song. It was also been performed by the Piatnizkiy Choir. The Polish singer Czesław Niemen included the song in his Russian album in 1973. Zhanna Bichevskaya recorded the song for her album in 1980. Some contemporary Russian music groups perform it also, so as "Монгол Шуудан" and "ЧайФ". Sources:http://www.siberiaclass.org/siberia-yesterday-and-today/imprisonment-and-exile; http://www.isgeschiedenis.nl/nieuws/geschiedenis-van-de-strafkampen-in-siberie/; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulag; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Po_dikim_stepyam_Zabaikalya
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Performed by V. Druzhnikov.
An extract from the film "The Saga Of The Siberian Land" |
Russian lyrics
1 По диким степям Забайкалья, Где золото роют в горах, Бродяга, судьбу проклиная, Тащился с сумой на плечах. 2 Идёт он густою тайгою, Где пташки одни лишь поют, Котел его сбоку тревожит, Сухие коты ноги бьют. 3 На нем рубашонка худая, И множество разных заплат, Шапчонка на нем арестанта И серый тюремный халат. 4 Бежал из тюрьмы тёмной ночью, В тюрьме он за правду страдал. Идти дальше нет уже мочи – Пред ним расстилался Байкал. 5 Бродяга к Байкалу подходит, Рыбацкую лодку берёт И грустную песню заводит, Про Родину что-то поёт. 6 "Оставил жену молодую И малых оставил детей, Теперь я иду наудачу, Бог знает, увижусь ли с ней!" 7 Бродяга Байкал переехал, Навстречу - родимая мать. "Ах, здравствуй, ах, здравствуй, мамаша, Здоров ли отец мой да брат?" 8 "Отец твой давно уж в могиле, Землею сырою лежит, А брат твой давно уж в Сибири, Давно кандалами гремит". 9 "Пойдём же, пойдём, мой сыночек, Пойдём же в курень наш родной, Жена там по мужу скучает, И плачут детишки гурьбой". |
Transliteration 1 Po dikim stepyam Zabaikalya, Gde zoloto royut v gorakh, Brodyaga, sudbu proklinaya, Tashilsya s sumoi na plechakh. 2 Idyot on gustoyu taigoyu, Gde ptashki odni lish poyut, Kotel ego sboku trevozhit, Sukhie koty nogi byut 3 Na niom rubashonka khudaya, I mnozhestvo rasnykh zaplat, Shapchonka na nem arestsanta И seryi tyuremnyi khalat. 4 Bezhal iz tyurmy tyomnoi nochyu, V tyurme on za pravdu stradal. Idti dalshe net uzhe mochi – Pred nim rasstilalsya Baikal. 5 Brodyaga k Baikalu podkhodit, Rybatzkuyu lodky beryot I grustnuyu pesnyu zavodit Pro Rodinu chto-to poyot. 6 "Оstavil zhenu moloduyu I malykh ostavil detei, Teper ya idu naudachu, Bog znayet, uvizhus li s nei!" 7 Brodyaga Baikal pereyekhal, Navstrechu - rodimaya mat. "Аkh, zdravstvuy, аkh zdravstvuy, mamasha, Zdorov li otets moi i brat?" 8 "Otets tvoi davno uzh v mogile Zemlioyu syroyu lezhit А brat tvoi davno uzh v Sibiri, Davno kandalami gremit". 9 "Poidyom zhe, poidyom, moi synochek Poidyom zhe kuren nash rodnoi Zhena tam po muzhu skuchayet, Plachut detishki gurboi". |
English lyrics
1 On the wild steppes of Transbaikalia, Where people dig for gold in the mountains, A vagrant, bemoaning his fate, Is wandering with a bag on his back. 2 He walks through the thick taiga, Where only a few birds sing, He carries a tin can on his side, His feet are strapped in dry skins. 3 He wears a worn-out shirt And a lot of different patches. The cap on his head is a convict’s cap And he wears a grey convict’s uniform. 4 He escaped from prison during a dark night Where he was imprisoned for defending the truth. But he could not go any further In front of him was Lake Baikal. 5 The vagrant walks to the shore And climbs in to a fisherman's boat. He starts to sing a sad song Telling something about his native land. 6 "I left my wife when she was young And left her with my small children, Now I wander aimlessly, God knows, whether I shall meet her again!" 7 He crosses the lake, His mother comes to meet him. ”O my dear mother let me embrace you, Are my father and my brother well?” 8 "Your father has been dead for a long time; He now rests in the damp earth. And your brother is serving his sentence, Wearing chains, somewhere in Siberia." 9 "Let's go, let’s go, my son, Let's go home to our house, Where your wife misses her husband, And all your little children are crying." |