The ancient kingdom forging a modern identity on the Russian border

For centuries, the Setos people have maintained their culture in the midst up political upheaval on the borders of Estonia and Russia, and against all odds, they’re determined to establish a kingdom enshrining those beliefs. The fight for what most would consider a quaint prize began after the fall of the Soviet Union, amidst the struggle to define a border between the two countries in which they now lived. “The border came, and it broke their daily life,” says Elena Nikiforova, a research fellow at the Center for Independent Social Research in St. Petersburg who conducted field work in Setomaa as the border was strengthened. “The border became this trigger for them to start thinking of themselves as a separate people,” she says. “Being divided by the border, they became united.” Their polyphonic singing style, generally performed in groups, has been recognized by UNESCO, and their religion is a mix of Russian Orthodox and their own set of beliefs. It remains to be seen what the fate of their kingdom will be, but National Geographic has a stunning collection of pictures to give us a glimpse of what does survive today.

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