Oroqen people

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Oroqen
Alternative names:
Elunchunzu, Orochon, Orochen

Oroqen
Total population
c. 8,689 (est.)
Regions with significant populations
China: Heilongjiang, Inner Mongolia
China	8,259[1]
Languages
Oroqen, Chinese
Religion
Shamanism, Tibetan Buddhism
Related ethnic groups
Evens, Evenks, other Tungusic peoples

The Oroqen or Orochen people (Oroqen:ɔrɔtʃeen; simplified Chinese: 鄂伦春族; traditional Chinese: 鄂倫春族; pinyin: Èlúnchūnzú; Mongolian: Orčun) are an ethnic group in northern China. They form one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China.^[2]: 1.6 The Oroqen people are largely concentrated in the northern Chinese provinces of Heilongjiang and Inner Mongolia, which are home to 45.54% and 41.94% of the 8,259 Oroqen people living in China. The Oroqen Autonomous Banner is also located in Inner Mongolia.

The Oroqens are mainly hunters, and customarily use animal fur and skins for clothing. Many of them have given up hunting and adhered to laws that aimed to protect wildlife in the People's Republic of China. The government has provided modern dwellings for those who have left behind the traditional way of life.^[3] The Oroqen are represented in the People's Congress by their own delegate and are a recognized ethnic minority.

In the Russian Empire, various peoples in various places were called Orochen (Russian: Ороченъ; orthography before Soviet reform), in several variants (орочон, орончон, орочен). One of the most commonly accepted hypotheses is that the term is derived from the Manchu language: орунчунь (orunchun) meaning "deer people", or "deer herders" (cf. pinyin "Èlúnchūn"). This is not a self-naming of these peoples, but an exonym, i.e., assigned to them by Manchu, Tungus, or Russians, sometimes due to misunderstanding.^[4] Therefore old documents speaking about orochon/orochen must be considered cautiously.