Tynda

Tynda is a city of regional subordination (since November 14, 1975), the administrative center of the Tynda district and the administrative center of the Baikal-Amur highway. Located in the valleys of the rivers Tynda and Hektan (tributary of Tynda) at an altitude of more than 500 meters above sea level. This is the youngest, highest located and northernmost city of the Amur region.
The settlement arose in 1928 as a working settlement Tyndinsky for servicing vehicles on the Amur-Yakutsk highway (Never-Aldan section). In connection with the construction of the BAM settlement of urban type Tyndinsky was transformed into a city of regional subordination and became known as Tynda.
What is the origin of the geographical name Tynda? What does it have to do with his appearance?
In M. Ivanov’s article “Where the Vetvistaya River flows” (“Socialist Yakutia”, 1979, October 12), this name is raised to the Evenki “tend”, the root of which “ten” is translated as “flat pass”, “forest on a flat watershed”, “terraced shore”, and the derivative “tendy” means “coast”. This explanation of the origin of the name Tynda seems to be incomplete and convincing. Evenki dictionaries do not record the word “tend”. “Ten” with these meanings is used only in some dialects and dialects, including Zei. From it it is possible to form an adjective with the help of the suffix -da with the sign "referring to something" (see Vasilevich G.M. Evenki-Russian dictionary). M., 1958). In addition, in Zei (and some other) dialects and dialects of Evenki, the sound “e” can change into “a”, but not “s” (see Vasilyevich G.M. Essay on the grammar of Evenki (Tunguska) language. L., 1940. One would expect the “ten” to form a “tenda”, but not a “tynda”.
The formation of the toponymy of a region is closely related to the peculiarities of its social and economic life.
Intensive replenishment and consolidation of the toponyms of the Amur region was greatly facilitated by geographical studies of this region and the development of private gold industry in the second half of the XIX century. The first of the Russians who passed with a caravan through the valley of Tynda almost to its mouth and, consequently, crossed the center of today's BAM, was A. F. Usoltsev (1858). In his materials, this river is called Tanda, Tanda (see Grum-Grjimaylo G.E. Description of the Amur region). St. Petersburg, 1894. Apparently, Tanda or Tanda should be considered a variant of Evenki "Tenda" "coastal". It is possible that the river received such an initial name from the coastal route named by the Evenki guides, which was followed by A. F. Usoltsev from Gilui.
The description of the area given by A. F. Usoltsev excludes any possibility of deriving the meaning of Tanda (a variant of Tenda) from certain meanings of the word “ten” (see above). The valley of the river was swampy, furnace, there was no meadow vegetation. “From the very pass we have already entered the marshy valley of Tanda. Here also began the absence of any meadow vegetation, a continuous chain of mountains and hollows fenced with more common forest and forest shrubs" - such an entry by A. F. Usoltsev leads Grum-Grzhimaylo "in the description of the Amur region.
It seems possible to connect the word Tynda with the verb Tungus-Manchurian root “ten”, meaning in Evenk language “to release the deer from the harness”, in Negidal and Even – “to release, unpack”, Udege and Ulch – “to release” (sounds tynda). The final element - yes is one of the variants (-yes, -de, -do) of the verb suffix of the chain, destination (Vasilevich G. M. Evenki-Russian dictionary). Thus, the toponym Tynda could be formed on the basis of the meaning of “free reindeer from the harness”.
The appearance of the toponym Tynda is probably due to the development of gold-bearing areas in the Zeysko-Amur basin, begun in the late 60s of the XIX century. The main means of transportation at that time were deer, guides (kayurami) - Evenki, Yakuts and Russians. Every 50 kilometers on the way were built "visiting" houses. Such a “visiting” house was built on the banks of the Tanda River. Here deer were freed from the harness to give them rest. This probably served to denote the stopping place with the word “Tynda”. Then the river got the same name.
T. Sergeeva (Journal “Russian speech” 1983 No. 3)