Mediating the Otherworld (original) (raw)
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Przegląd Religioznawczy - The Religious Studies Review, 2(288)/2023, 2023
The article deals with some aspects of the problem of the participation of Iranian peoples in the process of formation of the Proto-Slavic cultural and linguistic community, which has been discussed for many years. By taking as a basis the methodology of semiotic study of language and culture in its diachronic aspects, an attempt was made to reconstruct the cultural contexts in which Proto-Slavic tradition incorporated, in the form of the words *bogъ and *svętъ-elements of Scythian mythology. By juxtaposing historical, linguistic, and ethnographic materials, a corpus of several motifs ("mythologemes") was reconstructed, which could have accompanied the processes of the so-called "Iranian inversion", which are very well known for Slavic philology, but less for anthropological and mythological reconstructions.
Thesis for a Candidate Degree in Philology. Speciality 10.02.01 – Ukrainian Language. – Yuriy Fed’kovych Chernivtsi National University, Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, Chernivtsi, 2016. The thesis is dedicated to the analysis of the features of mythological ethnocode of culture representation in Ukrainian phraseology. Special attention is paid to the definition of a key term of the research: the code of culture, the ethnocode of culture, the mythological ethnocode of culture, the intercode transition. The study specifies the structure of the mythological ethnocode of culture owing to the distinction of the central (ideas of Slavic gods, demonic and half-demonic beings) and peripheral (a combination of mythological and Christian ideas, a concept of animism of natural forces and phenomena, a mythological interpretation of time periods, space, etc.) parts. The ethno-linguistic analysis of Ukrainian phraseology, stipulated by Slavic mythology, is performed on the material of folk and lexicographical sources of the XVIII – XXI centuries. Encoded elements of mythological worldview are associated primarily with demonological (nature spirits, evil spirits, demons of assignation, generalized image of evil spirits, illnesses animization, folk demonological images) and half-demonological (a witch, a vampire, a werewolf) notions; a notion of Slavic gods (Perun, Veles, Troyan, Svaroh, Chornoboh) is represented less. In Ukrainian ethnic culture demonological notions continue to evolve. As a result, this phraseological composition is enriched by new units. The process of demythologization of ideas, which results in changes in the semantics of phraseological units, also takes place. Anthropocentrism is characteristic of the phraseology of the Ukrainian language. It is stipulated by the mythological ethnocode of culture. Phraseological units mostly encode such human knowledge achievements as typical outer signs of demonic creatures; the phenomenon of extra-linguistic reality constituting potential danger to a human. In most cases, phraseology encodes the processes and phenomena of extra-linguistic reality which do not meet the established standards. Periphery of the mythological ethnocode of culture in Ukrainian phraseology is represented by intercode transitions. Their appearance is caused by the change of the ideological paradigm and the demythologization of ideas. The mythological-Christian intercode transition characterizes the symbiosis of primitive mythological and Christian ideas, especially of evil spirits, as well as soul and its origin. The mythological-natural intercode transition is represented by inspiration of nature with elements of deification of heavenly bodies (sun, moon), natural elements (earth, water, fire) and atmospheric conditions (wind, thunder, frost). The peculiarity of representation of the mythological-temporal intercode transition in phraseological units, reflecting the idea of time, is the realization of the opposition "good / bad (evil)". It assigns time periods with the attributes peculiar for demonic beings, personification of days of the week, ancestor worship. The mythological-spatial intercode transition is represented in phraseology by comparison "this / other world" that correlates with the opposition "light / dark", "life / death". The dialectal phraseology of the Ukrainian language, stipulated by the mythological ethnocode of culture, encodes ideas specific for a certain area. In the patois of the southwestern dialect phraseological units euphemisms referring to the devil are widely spread. Phraseology of southeastern dialects encodes modern mythological ideas of the mine spirit. Phraseological units where the detailed appearance of demonic creatures is represented are peculiar to the Polissia dialects, which indicates the implanting of archaic mythological ideas in the minds of their carriers. Dialectal phraseological units motivated by the Slavic mythology mostly differ in lexical content. However, the content, meaning, vision of mythical creatures or situation are similar indicating representation of the all-Ukrainian space of ethnic culture in phraseology. The established basis of ethnocultural origin of phraseological units under study has revealed their etymological specification.
The ethnobotanical character of the Polish Dictionary of Folk Stereotypes and Symbols
Ethnobotany Research and Applications, 2020
Background: The aim of the article is to present the ethnolinguistic methodology used by a team of Lublin-based ethnolinguists centered around Jerzy Bartmiński, the originator and editor of Słownik stereotypów i symboli ludowych [Dictionary of Folk Stereotypes and Symbols], which has been published since the 1980s, and to demonstrate the ethnobotanic character of the second volume of the Lublin ethnolinguistic dictionary. By outlining the areas common to ethnobotany and ethnolinguistics, the article hopes to pave a way for a satisfactory cooperation between the representatives of both fields. Methods: Using the methodology applied in the abovementioned ethnolinguistic dictionary, in particular the cognitive definition method, the author reconstructs the dictionary entry mirt 'myrtle' (Myrtus communis). On the basis of the collected source material (lexicographic, folklore and ethnographic data), the following semantic subcategories in the cognitive definition of the myrtle are distinguished: complexes, collections and equivalents; appearance and properties; location; cultivation and care; practical, ritualistic, magical and medicinal applications; prophecies; fortune-telling and symbolism, which follow the analysis of names and ways of categorising plants, according to the postulate of the subjective reconstruction of the linguistic worldview. Results: The author presents a tabular compilation of selected semantic subcategories, which are used in Słownik stereotypów i symboli ludowych to describe plants and explains how they are understood. As a result, the proposed facets can inspire other similar research in Europe or worldwide. Conclusion: On the basis of the conducted analyses, the author comes to the conclusion that the issues described in particular facets, which constitute the ethnolinguistic narrative about plants largely coincide with the area of interest of ethnobotany. The commonalities between both disciplines include: the object of research, the relations between the plant world and the human world described in both disciplines, the appreciation of the role of language and the subjective view of the world. The reflections presented in this article indicate the possibility of future interdisciplinary research, bringing together linguists and botanists.
Possibly Oriental elements in Slavonic folklore. Kłobuk
2016
The paper discusses a mythical creature known in Polish folklore as kłobuk, how it got its name, the Slavonic background of the word, and its relation to Turkic kalbuk. Usually, the Slavonic word is derived from Turkic; phonetic problems are sometimes mentioned but they do not tend to be viewed as critical. The present paper approaches this established etymology with more reservation and concludes that both Slavistic and Turkological work is necessary in order to connect the two words with an acceptable degree of probability. Bu yazıda Polonya folkloründe kłobuk olarak bilinen mitolojik bir varlık tartşılmakta, bu ismin nasıl alındığı, sözcüğün Slav dillerindeki tabanı ve Türkçe kalbuk ile bağı değerlendirilmektedir. Esasen Slav dillerindeki sözcük Türkçeden kaynaklanmaktadır. Bazen fonetik sorunlardan bahsedilirse de bu eleştirel olarak görülme eğiliminde değildir. Mevcut makale varolan etimolojiye kuşku ile yaklaşır ve hem Slavistiğe hem de Türkolojiye ait çalışmaların kabul edilebilir derecede bir olasılıkla iki kelimenin ilişkilendirilmesi için gerekli olduğu sonucuna varır.
Slavic Mythology Lost in Fantasy
Narodna umjetnost
Slavic myths increasingly survive in people’s consciousness as supernatural elements or as literary characters rather than as real beliefs in their existence. Adult readers in Poland and Slovakia, for example, encounter Slavic supernatural beings in the fantasy literature book series such as Wiedźmin by Andrzej Sapkowski and Černokňažník by Juraj Červenák; however, literature cannot be expected to portray superstitions and demons in the same way as belief legends. Placing Sapkowski’s and Červenák’s works within the context of ethnographically recorded beliefs illuminates various aspects of intercultural and intertextual relationships within the literary setting. This article shows that there are several types of literary adaptation of Slavic myths: adaptation in accordance with folk beliefs, denial of superstitions, incorporating a folk myth in order to create an illusion, and using the name of a demon while also adding characteristics from other sources – especially from popular cu...
Slovak mythological vocabulary on the Common Slavic background: Ethno-linguistic aspect
New researches on the religion and mythology of the Pagan Slavs, 2019
In the all-Slavic ethnolinguistic studies, the Slovak tradition is still not sufficiently covered, first of all, the mythological vocabulary has not been compiled and analyzed in various aspects. This article, based on the earlier work of 2013, is an attempt to analyze Slovak demonological vocabulary among and against the background of other Slavic vocabularies: to determine the amount of common Slavic mythonyms in it (for example, čarovnica, divá žena); to examine its correspondence with other West Slavic (Moravian, Czech and Polish) terminological systems (the terms rarášek, škriatok, permoník); to analyze the Slovak-East Slavic (rusalka) and Slovak-South Slavic (víla, moria noha) parallels; to reveal the own Slovak vocabulary of demons (such as futkač, molek, grgalica etc.). Particular attention is paid to the analysis of the Carpathian features in Slovak demonological beliefs (beliefs about the «double-souled» men, flying dragons) and their vocabulary (striga, bosorka, šarkan, etc.).