The Nanai people (self name ????; tr. "nani"; Russian: ???????, tr. "nanaitsy"; Chinese: ???, tr. "Hèzhézú"; formerly also known as Golds and Samagir) are a Tungusic people of the Far East, who have traditionally lived along Heilongjiang (Amur), Songhuajiang (Sunggari) and Ussuri rivers on the Middle Amur Basin. The ancestors of the Nanais were the Jurchens of northernmost Manchuria. The Nanai/Hezhe language belongs to the Manchu-Tungusic branch of the Altai languages. Culture The traditional clothing was made out of fish skins. These skins were left to dry. Once dry, they were struck repeatedly with a mallet to leave them completely smooth. Finally they were sewn together. The fish chosen to be used were those weighing more than 50 kilograms. Nanais in Russia In Russia the Nanais live on the Sea of Okhotsk, on the Amur River, downstream from Khabarovsk, on both sides of Komsomol

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