Traditionally, the Nentsy lived in non-permanent settlements in a clan-based social structure, small bands all belonging to a clan name based on paternal descent. They were nomadic, migrating seasonally through the tundra and forests due to both economic and religious reasons; their shamanistic and animistic belief system stressed respect for the land and its resources and incorporated shamans, called Tadibya, forming the belief in a symbiotic relationship between the Nentsy and nature.