Shakhnovitch M. M., Kolivatov E. B. Chapel of the Nativity of the Lovozersky Sami Churchyard

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Original article
doi: 10.15507/2076-2577.016.2024.03.361-372

Chapel of the Nativity of the Lovozersky Sami Churchyard

Mark M. Shakhnovitch
Barents Centre of the Humanities, Kola Science Centre of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Apatity, Russia
Evgeniy B. Kolivatov
Independent Researcher, Murmansk, Russia

Introduction. The article considers the discovery of a unique object in the Lovozero tundra – the chapel of the Lyavozersky churchyard on Lake Chesynyavr. Monuments of Orthodox Sami culture in the Murmansk region have rarely been studied by specialists The purpose of the study is to introduce into the research circulation the information about existing documents on the history of the chapel, the results of expeditionary work on its survey, and to continue the discussion about the time of construction and the stages of history.

Materials and Methods. The research was based on archival documents and expedition materials. The research is based on the principle of historicism using the comparative historical method.

Results and Discussion. The chapel was found in 2002. Expeditions to study it took place in 2016 and 2019. The first documentary report specifically about this monument dates back to 1828. After the change of the site of the winter churchyard of the Semiostrovsky Sami, the chapel was not moved along with the dwellings and remained “in the forest”. With the formation of the Lovozersky churchyard, it reappears in official documents, already being called the Chapel of the Nativity. In 1895, it was expanded and renovated. It was abandoned in the 1930s.

Conclusions. When analyzing archival documents, it is suggested that the chapel was built in 1681. Its history can be traced back to the 1930s. According to the authors, the thesis of the “dual faith” of the Sami, which has been formed in the regional literature, requires revision. The fact of the existence of an Orthodox chapel in the Lovozersk tundra speaks about the stable Christian worldview of the indigenous population of this part of the Kola Peninsula.

Keywords: Russian Lapland, Lovozero tundra, Semiostrovsky churchyard, Orthodox chapel, Sami

Funding: The research was carried out within the framework of the state task on the topic of research FMEZ-2024-002 “Dynamics of the socio-cultural appearance of the Kola North in the context of the history of the development of the Arctic frontier of Russia”.

Acknowledgments: We express our sincere gratitude for the help to Y. Kozhevnikova, M. Kuchinsky, D. Ermolaev.

Conflict of interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

For citation: Shakhnovitch М.М., Kolivatov E.B. Chapel of the Nativity of the Lovozersky Sami Churchyard. Finno-Ugric World. 2024;16(3):361–372. https://doi.org/10.15507/2076-2577.016.2024.03.361-372