Skiing is one of the oldest means of transportation in the world, dating back thousands of years. However, collecting accurate information from that time is a challenging task. While the exact origins of skiing remain unclear, evidence suggests that it was initially employed as a practical means of transportation and hunting in regions characterized by snowy terrain, such as Scandinavia and Central Asia.
There are two theories about the birth of skiing as a form of transportation. One in Northern Europe (Norway, Sweden, Finland, and northwest Russia) and the other in the Altai region, at the junction of Russia, Kazakhstan, China, and Mongolia.
The oldest skis found were discovered in Karelia (a region in western Russia on the border with Finland) and date back to 6000 BCE. Numerous pieces of evidence of skiing have been found in Nordic countries dating from those years up to modern times.
According to the theory of evolution formulated by Charles Darwin, humanity originated in Africa, and then migration patterns lasting thousands of years spread human populations across almost the entire world. It’s said that 40,000 years ago, the first humans entered Europe through its southeastern regions. According to this theory, before reaching the Nordic countries, which were covered in ice for thousands of years, hindering the arrival of their first inhabitants, the initial contact with permanent icy and snowy territories happened in central Asia. It’s reasonable to assume that for practical reasons, our ancestors realized that using two wooden planks on their feet for transport and hunting would be incredibly useful to avoid sinking into the snow and to slide more quickly during descents.
The discovery of fragments of the oldest skis in the Karelia region suggests Northern Europe (including Norway, Sweden, Finland, and their border with Russia) as the birthplace of skiing; however, additional evidence points elsewhere. Rock paintings found in China´s Xinjiang’s Altai region, a crossroads of Russia, China, Kazakhstan, and Mongolia inhabited by diverse Tuva and Kazakh ethnic groups, depict rows of figures on skis with herds of animals below. These cave paintings, dated by archaeologists, including Chinese skiing pioneer and historian Shan Zhaojian, span an impressive range from 10,000 to 30,000 years ago, offering valuable insights into skiing’s history and the lives of ancient Altai cultures.
Based on this evidence, there’s no doubt that skiing has been practiced for thousands of years in both the Altai region and Northern Europe. It’s clear that thousands of years ago, the countries, as we know them today, didn’t exist, so the theory of the origin of skiing remains open.
What we can confirm is that in modern China, one of the earliest regions to adopt skiing as a means of transportation, the skiing industry is presently undergoing noteworthy expansion. This growth is drawing an increasing number of skiers, offering over 350 ski resorts in numerous mountainous areas.
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