Merili Metsvahi | University of Tartu (original) (raw)

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Papers by Merili Metsvahi

The Northern Forest. La Foret Nordique, 2022

A short overview of the Estonian werewolf tradition of the 16th and 17th centuries and a glimpse ... more A short overview of the Estonian werewolf tradition of the 16th and 17th centuries and a glimpse of the 19th and 20th century werewolf beliefs offering a comparison of the perceptions of the werewolf of the earlier and later periods. The differences of the perceptions of these two eras are examined against the background of theoretical approaches of Tim Ingold and Philippe Descola, which help to interpret changes in worldview based on the shift from pre-modern society to modernity

Tatjana sõnul ütles ta Tiiu Jaagole: "Teate, et ehk pakub huvi, et mul on kodus selline vanaema, ... more Tatjana sõnul ütles ta Tiiu Jaagole: "Teate, et ehk pakub huvi, et mul on kodus selline vanaema, kes oskab fantastiliselt rääkida setu muinasjutte. Ja see on Tartus, kohe ülikooli külje all." (intervjuu 15.04.2007) 4 Seda, et isegi 20. sajandi lõpu tippfolkloristid on tunnetanud end 11. tunnil tegutsevate kogujatena, kelle kohustus on jäädvustada seda, mida veel jäädvustada annab, tõendab tsitaat Lauri Honkolt India välitööde käigus läbi viidud Siri eepose talletamise kohta: "Meie projekti eesmärk oli päästa üks suuline eepos unustuse hõlma jäämisest /-/." (Honko 2000: 21)

Familien-Politiken in Nordosteuropa (18.-20. Jahrhundert): Innerfamiliale Hierarchien und Machtverhältnisse. Nordost-Archiv. Zeitschrift für Regionalgeschichte, 28. Jahrgang, 2021

The article provides an overview of marriage and how was it regulated in Estonia and Livonia duri... more The article provides an overview of marriage and how was it regulated in Estonia and Livonia during the 18th century. An introduction to the social and historical background of Estonian peasant life is given as an aid to understand these regulations and the way they were (or were not) applied.
The topic of marriage and issues connected with marriage are presented following the life span of the couple. The overview starts with the issues that are related to their life before marriage (how young people got to know each other in a village), and ends with the questions of possible divorce.
During the 18th century the Swedish Church Law (1686) was of key importance in the juristiction of the territory of Estonia and Livonia. Therefore, almost every section describes how the issue under consideration (betrothal, wedding, sexual relationship outside marriage, widowing etc.) was regulated under Swedish Church Law. However, as this legislation was not always in accordance with local habits and customs, information on local regulations and the actual practices among the peasants is also included.

Akadeemia 4, 2020

2018. aasta lõpul ilmus Ants Heina koostatud mahukas tekstikogumik Vanaaja pulm. Et raamatu kohta... more 2018. aasta lõpul ilmus Ants Heina koostatud mahukas tekstikogumik Vanaaja pulm. Et raamatu kohta seni ilmunud sisuliste arvustuste vähe-sus (Tamm 2019; Ird 2019; Jääts 2019) ei ole tasakaalus sellega, kuivõrd olulise panuse annab teos eesti rahvakultuuri uurimisse, tasub sõna sek-ka öelda ka poolteist aastat pärast selle ilmumist. Raamat pakub lugejale rohkelt etnograafilisi kirjeldusi, millest terve hulk ilmub esimest korda eesti keelde tõlgituna, kusjuures tõlke autoriks on paljudel juhtudel koostaja ise. Tõlked on mahlakad ja täpsed, valitud tekstikohad asjakohased ja põnevad. Kokku on kasutatud umbes 120 allikat, nende hulgas nii trükiallikaid kui erinevatest arhiividest pärit käsikirjalist materjali, nii tekste kui ka pilte-viimastegi seast paljud esimest korda avaldatuna. Tähelepanu on suunatud esmajoones eestlastele, aga infot leiab ka rannarootslaste ja vadjalaste ning Lätimaal asunud leivude ehk Koiva eestlaste pulmakombestiku kohta. Žanriliselt on tegemist mitmekesise ainesega, ent valdav ülekaal on reisimeeste ja teiste kõrgemast soost vaatlejate etnograafilistel kirjeldustel eestlaste kommetest, tavadest ja harjumustest. Teose keskmes on pulmatsükli kombestik, s.t peale pulmade ka kosjakombestik ning kosjade ja pulmade vaheline tavand, ent autor ei piirdu ainult sellega. Ajalises järjestuses avaldatud pulmakirjelduste vahele on pikitud halli taustaga vaheosi, nn kõrvalepõikeid, mille temaatika on lai, aga seostub pulmadega kas pidustuste või paarisuhete valdkonna kaudu.

Forschungen zur baltische Geschichte, 2019

Die estnisceh nationale Erzählung wurde seit der zweiten Hälfte des 19. Jahrhunderts geschaffen u... more Die estnisceh nationale Erzählung wurde seit der zweiten Hälfte des 19. Jahrhunderts geschaffen und prägt die estnische Gesellscahft bis heute. Dei Vorstellung des 'Rechts der ersten Nacht (ius primae noctis) war dazu geeigneit, die "Meistererzählung" von der "700-jährigen Nact der Sklaverei" zu verfertigen.
Das zentrale Thema dieses Aufsatzes ist nicht, wie die Vorstellung vom "Recht der ersten Nacht' dem estnischen Publikum schmackhaft gemacht wurde, sondern die Vorgeschichte dieser Einführung. Dafür, dass das Thema des Rechts der ersten Nacht in Estland aufgeworfen werden konnte, war erforderlich, dass im Gedächtnis der Esten irgendwelche Hinweise auf sexuelle Beziehungen zwischen Gutsbesitzern und Bauernmägde zu finden waren.

Sacralization of Landscape and Sacred Places, ZIA. Vol 10, 2018. Pp. 367-374., 2018

A popular Estonian legend, known above all in southern Estonia and the West-Estonian islands is a... more A popular Estonian legend, known above all in southern Estonia and the West-Estonian islands is analysed. The legend tells about a brother and a sister from a higher stratum of society, who are intent to getting married to one another. Despite a special permission obtained from the Pope, at the big moment the house of the ceremony, with all the wedding guests, disappears under the ground and a lake appears instead. The only one to survive is a brother of the couple’s mother. Most of the 20th-century records refer the legend to lake Valgjärv of Koorküla where the only known remains of an Estonian pile settlement were found.
According to several written records, the legend had been recorded in the Livonian Chronicle written by monk (later canon) Siegbert of Riga in 1489. According to that (probably perished) book the described events took place in about 1300.
In the article the meaning of the legend is interpreted in the context of Estonian family history research, with an emphasis on the fact that there are as many as seventy three versions of the legend telling about the wedding of a brother and sister (but only one similar story about a father and daughter). As a strong tabooing as well as folklorisation of brother-sister incest is characteristic of the folklore of matrilineal societies with a strong female position it is considered likely that the Estonian territory was also inhabited by a matrilineal community, where women’s status was relatively high. This argument is supported by facts from archaeology and legal history.
The analysis leads to the suggestion that the legend reflects a conflict of two cultures in the 13th-century southern Estonia. The folk tale presents the country people’s view of an event, possibly a cousin marriage among German settlers. Most likely, the local community, whose social order still bore relicts of collectivity and matrilineality had a radically different idea about endo- and exogamy than the German-speaking arrivals from a more individualizing society.

Postimehe arvamusartikkel, ilmus veebiväljaandes 30. dets. 2016

Veidi Hupeli elust ja tegemistest, seksuaalküsimustest ja ehalkäimisest Eestis. Ilmumisandmed: Tu... more Veidi Hupeli elust ja tegemistest, seksuaalküsimustest ja ehalkäimisest Eestis. Ilmumisandmed: Tuna 4 /2016, lk 7-13

August Wilhelm Hupeli artikli (Ueber den Werth der Jungfrauschaft unter Ehsten und Letten - Nordi... more August Wilhelm Hupeli artikli (Ueber den Werth der Jungfrauschaft unter Ehsten und Letten - Nordische Miscellaneen, St. 26, Riga, 1791, 279-298; 1791) tõlge

Keel ja Kirjandus, 2015

E esti Rahvaluule Arhiivis (ERA) on hulk muistenditekste, mis räägivad järve tekkest mõne tabu ri... more E esti Rahvaluule Arhiivis (ERA) on hulk muistenditekste, mis räägivad järve tekkest mõne tabu rikkumise tagajärjel. Üks järve sünni põhjus on abielu õe ja venna vahel. Selle kohta olen ERA-st leidnud 73 teksti, aga nende koguarvu on võimatu öelda, sest neid võib olla veel ka süstematiseerimata materjali hulgas. Suurem osa variante on pärit Lõuna-Eestist, üsna palju ka Saaremaalt. Põhja-Eestist on üles kirjutatud ainult mõned üksikud tekstid.

Overview and interpretations of the Estonian werewolf legends - article in Hungarian

The aim of this article is to introduce the work of August Wilhem Hupel, a Baltic German author o... more The aim of this article is to introduce the work of August Wilhem Hupel, a Baltic German author of the 18th century. The article focuses on the sections in his most voluminous work Topographische Nachrichten von Lief- und Ehstland (1774–1782) that describe Estonian peasants’ sexuality. Hupel’s writings belong to the sources of the history of the Estonian family, a field that has been rediscovered at the beginning of the 21st century. Thanks to the work of Marika Mägi and Nils Blomkvist, a new paradigm for research in this field has been opened up. This article adheres to that paradigm.

published in: Vernacular Religion in Everyday Life. Expressions of Belief. Ed. by Marion Bowman, ... more published in: Vernacular Religion in Everyday Life. Expressions of Belief. Ed. by Marion Bowman, Ülo Valk. Sheffield: Equinox, 2012. Pp.161-191