Tuvan Throat Singing (Khöömei)

Tuvan throat singing (Höömey) is the traditional vocal practice of the Tuvan Turks in southern Siberia. It is based on a single performer producing multiple audible pitches or voices simultaneously. This simultaneity is achieved through selective amplification of formants in the vocal tract.

Höömey is a product of the Tuvan culture’s nature-centered relationship with sound. It is a multilayered vocal tradition grounded in acoustic formant selection and carrying social and ritual functions. Variations among styles are explained by both performer technique and geographic and cultural context. Over the 20th century, recordings, research, and stage performances have given Höömey visibility extending from local to global scales.

Terminology, Origin, and Distribution

The term “Höömey” is linked to the Mongolian word for “throat” or “larynx.” In Tuvan, it refers both to a specific sub-style and to the general tradition of throat singing. Similar traditions exist in neighboring cultures under different names: kai in the Altai region, xai in Khakassia, and höömii in Mongolia.

History

Höömey emerged among Turkic-Mongolic communities in the southern Siberia–western Mongolia region. Early documentation and notation efforts in Tuva became institutionalized in the first half of the 20th century. A. N. Aksenov analyzed musical notations from recordings made during the Tannu-Tuva period, laying the foundation for research into Tuvan folk music.

After the Soviet era, interest in the West grew rapidly. The ensemble Huun-Huur-Tu and Kongar-ool Ondar’s success at the 1992 UNESCO-supported International Throat Singing Competition brought this tradition to a global audience. The visibility of female performers and female ensembles also became prominent from the 1990s onward.

Acoustic and Physiological Basis

The performer shapes the harmonics (H2, H3, ...) of the fundamental tone produced by the larynx using configurations of the lips, tongue, and soft palate. When one or two harmonics align with formants, a distinct melodic “whistle” or “tone” becomes audible above. For example, retracting the tongue root lowers the second formant (F2), while raising the middle of the tongue in the sıgıt style increases F2. These mechanisms have been demonstrated through X-ray and spectral analysis.

Main Styles and Technical Terms

The literature identifies five primary styles:

• Höömey,
• Sıgıt,
• Kargıraa,
• Borbaŋnadır,
• Ezeŋgileer.

Aksenov defined these types according to their melodic-auditory characteristics. The Tuvan names often also convey timbral and source imagery. For instance, sıgıt means “whistle,” kargıraa means “growl” or “rasp,” and borbaŋnadır means “rolling” or “water rustle.”

Höömey: A mid-range style with lips nearly closed in a “v” position; sometimes characterized by the simultaneous perception of the fundamental tone and one or two upper pitches. Functional subtypes include ninni-type songs such as öpey höömey.

Kargıraa: The lowest and most noisy style, featuring a prominent “growl” component. Variants include subtypes associated with mountain and steppe environments (dag/hovu kargıraa) and others named after ridge-valley imagery (kojagar, kaşpal).

Sıgıt: The highest and most tense style. The upper melody is whistle-like and is regulated by controlled airflow and subtle tongue movements.

Borbaŋnadır: A softer, smoother tone resembling the lower register of a bass clarinet. It is associated with the image of water striking stones. Some pieces exhibit transitional qualities between borbaŋnadır and kargıraa.

Ezeŋgileer: Performed at the sıgıt pitch level. It features improvisational melodic variants linked to horse-herding traditions through sub-patterns such as çıraa, sayak, and çeler.

Relationship to Lived Experience

The natural sounds of Tuva’s vast steppes and taiga forests—wind, water, and animal calls—have shaped the acoustic environment of nomadic herders. Höömey is understood as a musical imitation of this sonic landscape. Regional dominance of specific styles is observed—for example, kargıraa in Bay-Tayga and sıgıt in Süt-Höl.

Höömey is performed during pastoral migration, as well as in life-cycle rituals such as weddings and funerals, celebrations like holidays and festivals, and sporting events. It is also closely tied to Tuvan animism and shamanism. Shamans use specific vocal techniques and Höömey as tools in rituals to communicate with nature spirits. With the institutional revival of shamanism in the 1990s—through associations and research centers—the connection between music and shamanism has again become a subject of scholarly inquiry.

Linguistic and Phonetic Background

Tuvan Turkic retains archaic features of Old Turkic, including pharyngealized vowels. The high vowel density, which preserves continuity in the vocal tract, directly influences the flow of throat singing. The constriction required by certain consonants, which interrupt the airflow, helps explain the vowel-dominated articulation characteristic of Höömey.