Finno-Ugric World

Galina E. Shkalina,
Doctor of Cultural Studies, Professor, Head of the Department of Culture and Arts,
Mari State University
(Yoshkar-Ola, Russia), galina_shkalina@mail.ru

Introduction. There is a special holiday in the traditional festive culture of the Mari people. It appeared in 1920 as a result of a new proletarian culture based on the archaic Mari rites: Agavayrem and Lyshtash Payrem / Semyk and it was called Peledysh Payrem (“Flower Festival). The purpose of this article is to analyze the unique national Soviet holiday, which was established at the crossroads of the spiritual traditions of the Mari people. In XXI century, it became the interregional public holiday. The research considers festive culture as a dialogue between the past and the present in the ethnocultural tradition, as its dynamics in the conditions of “Sovietness” and post-Soviet times, as a reflection of the transformations of the Mari ethnic identity. The author proposes a culturological discourse for analyzing the Peledysh Payrem holiday as representation of the cultural memory of the Mari people in the XX–XXI centuries.
Materials and Methods. The sources that made it possible to consider the modern Mari holiday Peledysh Payrem in its semantic dynamics, determined by transformations in the political, economic, social and cultural spheres, and became the material for studying the stated problem. The author formulates the answers to the research questions posed as a result of the application of a cultural analysis of the sources on this topic, the use of historical-comparative, hermeneutic methods, and a semiotic approach.
Results and Discussion. In any national culture, there are holidays as its most ancient and constantly reproduced element. In certain periods of history, they may experience decline or revival, depending on the dynamics of the value system. While the value / idea is alive, it can be represented in festive rites. With the decline of faith, the need for a holiday disappears. A new idea appears and a new holiday appears. In the history of the culture of the Mari people, this happened with the holiday Peledysh Payrem, the peer of the Mari autonomy. Initially it was called Yoshkar Peledysh Payrem (“Red Flower Festival” or “Red Flower Festival”). The semantics of the red color clearly indicated the red color background of the October Revolution, the triumph of the new social system in the new Russia. From the very beginning, the new holiday personified the transformation of the old festive tradition, very significant for the Mari people, and acquired a new symbolic and semantic meaning, new symbolism and semiotics.
Conclusion. An analysis of the transformation of the archaic Mari holidays Agavayrem and Lyshtash Payrem / Semyk into the Soviet and post-Soviet Peledysh Payrem indicates that tradition forms the collective memory of the people, ensures its self-identity and continuity in development. Tradition as a socio-natural mentality serves as a basic value that predetermines the balanced stability of the cultural model. This, in turn, contributes to the formation of modern culture-generating spaces in society.

Key words: Peledysh Payrem; Agavayrem; Lyshtash Payrem / Semyk; Flower Festival; the Mari people; culture; tradition.

For citation: Shkalina GE. Mari holiday of Peledysh Payrem: crossroads of spiritual traditions. Finno-ugorskii mir = Finno-Ugric World. 2020; 12; 4: 457–467. (In Russian)

Olga G. Belomoeva,
Doctor of Cultural Studies, Professor of the Department of Theater Arts and Folk Art,
National Research Mordovia State University
(Saransk, Russia), o_belomoeva@mail.ru

Yurii A. Kondratenko,
Doctor of Arts, Head of the Department of Theater Arts and Folk Art,
National Research Mordovia State University
(Saransk, Russia), yurkondr@gmail.com

Introduction. The phenomenon of “tradition” is a key link in understanding the specifics of the current cultural processes. The problem of preserving and developing the ethnocultural tradition has acquired a new impetus for comprehension against the background of the emergence at the turn of the XX–XXI centuries of the so-called ethnic revival, the increased attention of peoples, including the Finno-Ugric ones to their own cultural and historical roots. This is facilitated by the strengthening of the integration of cultures within the Finno-Ugric community in the context of the formation of a new socio-cultural paradigm.
Materials and Methods. The theoretical material of the study was the work of scholars in the field of studying the modern socio-cultural process, in particular on the example of the cultural heritage of the Finno-Ugric peoples. The reliability and research validity of the results is provided by the sociocultural approach, as well as by comparative and typological research methods.
Results and Discussion. In the process of being an ethnocultural tradition in modern society, the process of festivization of the cultural process plays an important role, among other circumstances. It is characterized by the use of the phenomenon of ethnoculture as an external attribute, the functioning of which is reduced only to entertainment, creating the effect of festivity of the action, which leads to the devaluation of its value. However, the analysis of the new picture of the world that took shape at the turn of the XX–XXI centuries allows us to conclude that the idea of the integrity of the world, the understanding of space and time that underlie it, as well as the ecological and adaptive potential of the ethnocultural tradition remain consonant with the modern world, and this gives grounds for their preservation and development in the modern era. These conclusions fully apply to the cultural practice of the Finno-Ugric peoples at the present stage.
Conclusion. On the basis of the studied material, a conclusion was made about the change in the functioning of the Finno-Ugric ethnocultural tradition in accordance with the objective conditions of its existence.

Key words: ethnoculture; tradition; picture of the world; Finno-Ugric cultures; integration of cultures; festival of the cultural process; functioning of ethnoculture.

For citation: Belomoeva OG, Kondratenko YuA. Ethnocultural tradition in the modern world: functional aspect. Finno-ugorskii mir = Finno-Ugric World. 2020; 12; 4: 447–456. (In Russian)

Marina N. Kazakova,
Candidate Sc. {Political Science}, Associate Professor,
Department of General History, Political Science and Regional Studies,
National Research Mordovia State University
(Saransk, Russia), mnkazakova@mail.ru

Irina G. Napalkova,
Candidate Sc. {History}, Associate Professor,
Department of General History, Political Science and Regional Studies,
National Research Mordovia State University
(Saransk, Russia), zamisi@yandex.ru

Anzhelika N. Pavlova,
Doctor of History, Head of Department of History and Psychology,
Volga State University of Technology
(Yoshkar-Ola, Russia), angpan@rambler.ru

Introduction. Burial rites, which are a traditional object of research in archeology and ethnography, are one of most stable elements of ethnic culture. The costume and its individual elements took an important place in the funeral and memorial rites. The study of these rituals can reveal new aspects of the spiritual culture of the Mari people.
Materials and Methods. The work is based on the comparison of archaeological and ethnographic materials, culturogical approach, methods of semantic, cultural and anthropological research.
Results and Discussion. The reference of funeral and memorial rites to the passage rites determined the use of the elements of a wedding dress, including fur clothes and jewelry. The belt that served as a storage was an important part of the burial costume, as well as the sacrificial and ritual complexes of the ancient Mari tribes.
Conclusion. Application of a culturological approach to the research of the funeral rituals of the Mari people allowed to conclude that the costume substituted the deceased, served as the embodiment of a generic body that went back to the totem. The funeral costume, like the wedding one, assumed the use of ancient symbolic codes. The belt that completed the symbolic human body was an important burial costume. The belt served as a defense in the ancient Mari sacrificial ritual complexes, enhancing their association with the world tree.

Key words: traditional culture; funeral rituals; religious and mythological ideas; Mari costume; belt; totemism.

For citation: Pavlova an. Costume in the funeral rituals of the Mari people. Finno-ugorskii mir = Finno-Ugric World. 2020; 12; 4: 423–429. (In Russian)

Elena N. Kasarkina,
Candidate Sc. {Sociology}, Associate Professor,
Department of Social Work,
National Research Mordovia State University
(Saransk, Russia), eienovik@mail.ru

Alyona A. Antipova,
Candidate Sc. {Sociology}, Associate Professor,
Department of Social Work,
National Research Mordovia State University
(Saransk, Russia), aljona.ntpv@mail.ru

Introduction. The article is based on the results of a sociological study. The relevance of the research is based on the fact that building interpersonal relationships in the field of premarital behavior is one of the priorities for young people. The result of these relationships is the formation of their own vision, opinion and position in relation to the creation of a family and marriage. Marriage attitudes are formed in young people under the influence of socio-cultural factors that have to be faced both by an individual and by young people of a particular society. The purpose of the article is to study the opinions and needs of young people regarding the of legal marriage, to analyze the socio-cultural factors, which are the most important for the formation of marriage trends.
Materials and Methods. The theoretical and methodological basis of the work is represented by a set of concepts and theoretical approaches in accordance with the subject and the problem of the article. It required reference to the methodological tools of family sociology, psychology, pedagogy, cultural studies, youth sociology, and demography. General research methods of analysis, synthesis, comparison, generalization, interpretation, system method, and secondary analysis of empirical data were used. The authors’ empirical research was conducted using the questionnaire method.
Results and Discussion. The authors conducted a survey of young people in Saransk. A total of 300 people were interviewed. The object of the study is young people aged 18 to 35 y.o., the subject is socio-cultural factors that influence the development of their marriage tendencies. The article empirically substantiates the main issues hindering youth from a legal marriage, analyzes the factors important for the life of the youth in Saransk in terms of their positive or negative impact on legal marriage. It also reveals the influence of national factors on trends in marriages among young people.
Conclusion. The article empirically proves that the key socio-cultural factors that determine the marriage trends among the modern youth in Mordovia are both internal (the presence/absence of a suitable candidate for the role of a spouse, mutual love) and external (the absence/availability of separate housing, education, work, nationality) factors. In general, modern young people are very consistent in their position regarding marriage. The influence of the national factor is most significantly traced in issues related to the socio-cultural and moral aspects of premarital behavior. The novelty of the article is based on conceptual and empirical analysis of the influence of socio-cultural factors, including the national factor, opinions of young people in relation to legal marriage.

Key words: social culture; marriage setup; the youth of Mordovia.

For citation: Kasarkina EN, Antipova AA. Influence of socio-cultural attitudes on marriage of modern youth in Mordovia (on the example of Saransk). Finno-ugorskii mir = Finno-Ugric World. 2020; 12; 4: 411–422. (In Russian)

Fedosia M. Lelkhova,
Сandidate Sc. {Philology}, Leading Research Fellow,
Ob-Ugric Institute of Applied Research and Development
(Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia), lelhovafm@yandex.ru

Reflection of the linguistic picture of the world in Udmurt phraseology (on the material of the “Celestial sphere” theme group)

Natalia V. Kondratieva,
Doctor of Philology, Professor,
Department of General and Finno-Ugric Linguistics,
Udmurt State University
(Izhevsk, Russia), nataljakondratjeva@yandex.ru

Tatiana A. Krasnova,
Candidate Sc. {Philology}, Associate Professor,
Department of Linguistic Typology and Linguodidactics
Udmurt State University
(Izhevsk, Russia), tanja-krasnova@bk.ru

Ekaterina M. Deviatkina,
Сandidate Sc. {Philology}, Senior Research, Department of the Ural-Altaic Languages, Institute of Linguistics, Russian Academy of Sciences
(Moscow, Russia), devyatkinaem@gmail.com

Introduction. This paper considers some features of noun morphology in the translation of the “Gospel of Luke” (1821) into the Erzya language, namely the indicators of such grammatical categories of the noun as number, case and the categories of possessiveness and definiteness. Analysis of old manuscripts is necessary, as it provides important information in the reconstruction of the language.
Materials and Methods. The text of the translation of the “Gospel of Luke” (1821) into Erzya, materials of the Erzya dialects were collected by the author during the expeditions to Samara region in 2011–2012. The analysis of the books on the topic of dialect features of the Erzya dialects were also used for the research. When working with the material, the morphological paradigms in the published part of the concordance of the “Gospel of Luke” (lingvodoc.ispras.ru) and the material obtained by the method of continuous sampling were compared with the data of modern dialects of the Erzya language.
Results and Discussion. It is shown that the indicators of the category of number of nouns in the text of the manuscript correspond to the affixes of the Central dialect and are used according to the same rules. The case system is different from the case system of the literary language, namely the semantics of some cases is represented by other case formants, postpositions, and other syntactic constructions. The index declension is represented by the formant -s’t’, and the possessive declension shows the numerical difference between the possessors in 1 and 3 persons singular.
Conclusion. The analysis of the language material allows to conclude that the translated text belongs to the Central dialect, which has its own distinctive features. At the same time, the final solution of the dialectal affiliation of the manuscript should be based on a comprehensive account not only of the material considered in the paper, but also, at least, on the results of further detailed analysis of the features of phonetics, morphology and vocabulary.

Key words: Mordovian languages; Erzya; dialect; dialectology; manuscript; translation; noun; number; case.

For citation: Deviatkina EM. Translation of the “gospel of luke” (1821) into erzya: some features of noun morphology. Finno-ugorskii mir = Finno-Ugric World. 2020; 12; 4: 379–388. (In Russian)

Valentina P. Grishunina,
Candidate Sc. {Philology}, Associate Professor, Department of Mordovian Languages, National Research Mordovia State University
(Saransk, Russia), grishunina.64@mail.ru

Natalia I. Ershova,
Candidate Sc. {Philology}, Associate Professor, Russian Language Department,
National Research Mordovia State University
(Saransk, Russia), tascha80@mail.ru

Nikolai V. Belenov,
Candidate Sc. {Pedagogy}, Associate Professor, ICTO Department,
Samara State University of Social Sciences and Education
(Samara, Russia), belenov82@gmail.com

Introduction. The article presents the results of research of the geographical vocabulary of the Shilan dialect, one of the Erzya-Mordovian dialects of the Samara region, common among Erzya population of Shilan village in Krasnoyarsk region. The dialect belongs to rare Mordovian dialects of the Samara Volga region that were formed in the region since the middle of the XIX century, and therefore its research is of extra interest.
Materials and Methods. The research methods are determined by the purpose and objectives of the study. The analysis of the geographical vocabulary of the Shilan dialect is carried out with the involvement of relevant items made in other Mordovian dialects of Samara region, adjacent territories of neighboring regions, as well as other territories of settlement of the Mordovians. Data on geographical vocabulary of the dialect introduced into research for the first time. The main source materials for the article is based on field studies in Silane village during the field seasons in 2017 and 2020, as well as in other Erzya-Mordovian and Moksha-Mordovian villages of Samara region and adjacent territories in 2015 – 2020.
Results and Discussion. The study showed that the geographical vocabulary of the Shilan dialect of the Erzya-Mordovian language is significantly different from the corresponding lexical clusters in other dialects of the Mordovian region, which can be explained by natural geographical conditions surrounding Shilan village and the original composition of this lexical cluster of Erzya immigrants who founded this village.
Conclusion. The analysis of the geographical vocabulary of the Shilan dialect allowed, on the one hand, to identify specific features of this cluster that distinguish it from the corresponding materials of other Mordovian dialects of the region, and, on the other hand, to identify common isoglosses between it and a number of the Erzya-Mordovian dialects of the Samara Volga region.

Key words: geographical vocabulary; Mordovia; Erzya-Mordovian language; toponymy; Samara region.

For citation: Belenov NV. Geographical lexicon of the Shilan dialect of the Erzya-Mordovian language. Finno-ugorskii mir = Finno-Ugric World. 2020; 12; 4: 358–367. (In Russian)