The Arctic territory of Yakutia has been a place of active interethnic contacts for many centuries. This situation has caused problems of ethnic identification of the peoples living here today. This area was attractive for development due to the abundance of fish, sea animals and reindeer. The first ethnic stratum here were the ancestors of the Yukaghirs and Samoyeds, the next - the Tungus-Manchurian tribes. Ethnic processes in northern Yakutia were greatly influenced in the XVII century by Yakuts and Russian old-timers, who made up a significant part of the population of the district. Already in the earliest periods there were mixed ethnic communities: Tungus-Samoyed, Even-Evenk, Yukagir-Evenk, Even-Yukagir, Yakut-Tungus, Yakut-Yukagir, etc. The peoples moving to the Arctic territories lost their traditional economic activities (hunting, cattle breeding), switching to fishing. This situation led to the loss of national features of culture, rituals, customs and language. By the beginning of the 20th century, almost the entire population here switched to the Yakut language. The formation of the ethnic composition of the region in the twentieth century was influenced by socio-political and economic processes, the influence of Russian culture increased. Thus, the multiculturalism of the region has become the main cause of the problems of the formation of ethnic identity, the modern generation can hardly name their nationality. In the current situation, only the education system, measures to revive the native language and culture, can help preserve the ethnic identity of indigenous peoples.