DPeopleTurkic republics in Russia
Shors
The taiga people of Mountain Shoria. Long famed as blacksmiths, they gave the region its Russian name "Kuznetsk" (the smiths' land).
The Shors are a Turkic people of the Siberian branch living in the mountain taiga of southern Kemerovo Oblast. Historically they were skilled smiths who made tools and weapons from iron ore; Russian sources called them the "Kuznetsk Tatars".
Traditionally the Shors lived by hunting, fishing and gathering cedar nuts. Today the Shor language is endangered, and the people are on Russia's list of small indigenous peoples.
Updated: September 28, 2026