Iosif Brodski i Nikołaj Rubcow – o tożsamościowych kontekstach dwóch wierszy

The paper deals with two poems: “Ты поскачешь во мраке…” by Joseph Brodsky, and “Я буду скакать по следам задремавшей отчизны…” by Nikolay Rubtsov. Analyzing some features of these poems and comparing similarities in both poets’ biographies, the author states the significant difference between them. Rubtsov, in his opinion, has an identity typical for pre-modern subjectivity. It is conventional, stereotypical, and conservative, full of faith in idealized old Russian values. Brodsky’s self-defining is in this aspect close to late modernity. It is liquid, all the time in movement, never convinced about self-identity.

HOMEOSTASIS AND COMPENSATION AS LINGUISTIC PHENOMENA (COMPETITION OF ASPECT AND TENSE ON THE EXAMPLE OF SLAVIC LANGUAGES WITH SPECIAL REGARD TO POLISH)

The present paper deals with two universal linguistic phenomena, homeostasis and compensation. The author examines their function in relation to two categories, aspect and tense in the history of the Slavic languages. It is beyond doubt that one of the most important categories of the Slavic verb is aspect the origin of which may lie in the Proto-Indo-European language. The effects of its emergence as a verbal category were far-reaching and can be well traced in the history of the most Slavic languages. Taking a close look to the linguistic data, it seems quite obvious that the category of tense and aspect were closely related and did interact, creating different patterns in modern Slavic languages. A certain competition between the category of aspect and that of tense can already be observed in Old Slavic and also in Old Russian and Old Polish where tenses like the aorist and the imperfect were becoming increasingly obsolete. The perfect, on the contrary, has gained ground, while the pluperfect has almost completely fallen into disuse. In the further development, the aspectual opposition also extended to the future tenses thereby affecting the entire tense system. This scenario took place everywhere in the East and West Slavic languages with some nuanced differences. Consequently, in the aspect-tense system of the modern East and West Slavic languages the tendency of the category of aspect to prevail over the category of tense together with the gradual decline in the number of tenses seems to be quite clear. The South Slavic languages, however, have taken a slightly different path showing perhaps the most complex picture. Although the Serbian and Croatian languages have preserved the old tenses, their use is rather limited. In terms of their aspectual development, these languages are getting closer and closer to the Eastern and Western Slavic language groups. In contrast, in Bulgarian and Macedonian one can see an intricate interplay of the aspectual system and the developed tense system. In the case of the change of the different Slavic languages, the phenomenon of linguistic compensation can be observed in all cases on the example of aspect and tense categories as the main means of striving to maintain linguistic homeostasis. Keywords: linguistic homeostasis, compensation, aspect, tense, Old Slavic, Slavic languages, Polish

Traditions of the Old Believers and the Fate of the Russian World in the XXI Century: Cultural and Philosophical Aspect

Introduction. Questions of continuity and cultural conservatism of the Russian society of the Modern era are one of the problems of the research in this article. The author suggests that the Old Russian religious and moral heritage was not completely destroyed by the Nikon church reforms in the Moscow state. The purpose of the article is to consider the diversity of forms of Russian religiosity in the context of the development of traditions of Russian society. Materials and Methods. In modern conditions, interest in religion and Old Believers continues to grow, as a rich cultural heritage of Russian society. Therefore, the appeal to the texts of the past in the philosophical method of dialogicality, hermeneutics, and a comprehensive analysis of the works of the Old Believers allows us to identify all the features of the heritage of the past of Russia. Results. The positions of the ethical and aesthetic consciousness of the schism teachers worried many Russian philosophers of the “Silver Age” era. The dramatic nature of the situation was that there was no complete reconciliation between the parties to the split in Russian spiritual thought. Discussion and Conclusion. Many of the ideas of Protopop Avvakum, one of the leaders of the Old Believers in Russia, continue to be relevant to the present day. The questions of the moral and socio-cultural identity of the Russians as the “last Orthodox kingdom” are of an eschatological nature. Many aspects of ritualism and rite-believing are preserved among the Russian people and among many Russian and foreign communities of believers. The confessional culture of the Old Russian epoch remains a mystery for many modern researchers and is of an actual nature, since many aspects of this problem remain poorly studied. The subject of the analysis of the influence of Old-Belief traditions on the fate of the spirituality of the Russian people is important.

Questions of legal assessment of the entry and situation of Ukrainian lands within the Grand Duchy of Lithuania

The article considers the problem of formation and development of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the legal assessment of the situation of the Ukrainian lands conquered by Lithuanians. In the context of this problem, the authors analyze in detail the main stages of the Lithuanian state during the reign of Mindaugas, the creation of a centralized system of power and the establishment of the ruling Gediminas dynasty, active expansionist foreign policy during the reign of Prince Olgerd. It is clear that the authors are particularly interested in the process of conquest of Ukrainian lands by Lithuanians through the so-called “quiet expansion” and its main consequences that occurred in the socio-political life of the Ukrainian and Lithuanian peoples. In this context, the authors thoroughly analyze the process of assimilation of Lithuanians by Ukrainians, who were in the state-building and cultural relations much higher than their conquerors. Lithuanians borrow from the Ukrainians the Orthodox faith, the Old Russian language, “Russian Truth”, becomes the main source of law before the adoption of the Lithuanian Statutes. As a result of assimilation processes, Lithuanians who lived on Ukrainian lands forgot who they were – Lithuanians or Ukrainians. Along with the positive phenomena, the article analyzes the negative innovations introduced in Ukraine at this time: the removal from power in Kiev of the princes of the Rurik dynasty and the arrival of representatives of the Lithuanian Gedeminovich dynasty and the creation, unlike Kievan Rus, a strong centralized Lithuanian state. The article analyzes the process of changing the legal status of the Ukrainian lands-principalities, which became part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, at the initial stage of its formation and development (broad autonomy with elements of federalism) and during the period of enhanced centralization of grand ducal power and their transformation into governorates of the Lithuanian state in the second half of the XV century. According to the authors of the article, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, despite its different names (Lithuanian-Russian, Russian-Lithuanian states, etc.), was not a Ukrainian state.

Reliquary Cross with Niello from the Upper Dzulat Hillfort in North Ossetia

The present paper deals with the results of the study of manufacturing technique and metal chemical composition carried out for encolpia nielloed cross dated to the end of the 12th – early 13th from the North Caucasus. Analytical results were obtained with a scanning electron microscope equipped with micro ED-XRF in low-vacuum conditions. An eightpointed cross filled with niello was depicted on the survive valve of encolpia. The Christ letter monograms encrusted with niello were made on the cross rounded terminals. Reliquary cross could have been cast in piece-mould made by the impression of previously made encolpia valve. High-tin gunmetal (Sn –17,5%) was used for encolpia production. Recessions for niello were made by casting and left without further treatment. Niello composition comprises copper, tin, and lead sulfides. Sulfur content obtained for several samples exceed 30%. The copper-based niello was more available and cheaper than silver-based composition. It has been widely used for production of the Old Russian pectoral crosses cast of bronze or brass. Manufacturing technique, metal composition, and peculiar niello recipe put encolpia cross from the Upper Dzulat hillfort on a par with widespread Old Russian reliquary crosses dated to the 12th – 13th centuries. There were prestigious but serial items made of cheap copper alloys decorated with cheap niello made without silver. The Old Russian origin of encolpia from the North Caucasus proves by the long list of analogies from the territories of Ukraine, Crimea, Bryansk, Suzdal and Ryazan Lands.

Exhibitions of Soviet fine art in 1930 in the reviews of the foreign press

The article examines the reviews of the German, Austrian and Swedish periodicals about some exhibitions of Soviet fine art held in 1930. On the basis of archival materials, the attitude of the foreign press to the Soviet exhibition projects in Berlin, Vienna and Stockholm is analyzed. The influence of the political orientation of periodicals on the assessment of the plots of the works of Soviet artists is emphasized. When characterizing the painting technique and compositional structure of the works, critics pointed to their continuity from the Western European tradition. Soviet graphics and sculpture made a positive impression. Critics associated the artistic successes mainly with the masters of the old Russian school.

Mathematical Methods for the Study of Toponims with Lost Semantics

The article discusses methods for restoring the lost meaning of old toponyms. This task can be solved using a systematic approach. The study used methods of permutation and transformation of consonants in the backbone of a toponym, methods of di- and trichotomy of a word, formation of a table of all possible transformants, a method for finding associates for all transformants of a word using the vector model of the Russian language, a method for clustering the found associates, a method for determining the frequency of repetition of associates in the corpus of the Russian language, which allows you to calculate the probabilities of the appearance of various clusters, a method of lexical analysis of Old Church Slavonic languages, including Old Russian and Sanskrit. The use of a set of methods made it possible to restore the lost meaning of the toponym Moscow. It turned out that with a probability of more than 80 % the name of our capital goes back to the name of the commander and spiritual leader of the first half of the 15th century, who had the nicknames Mosokh, Meshekh, Moses Khan (Prince). The army of medieval Russia (Tatar-Mongolia) created by this man defeated Byzantium and subjugated Western Europe. During the Romanov dynasty, Western European scholars-Russophobes deleted the name of the commander from the history of Russia. As a result, the toponym Moscow has lost its original meaning. The article also restored the lost meaning of the two most important toponyms of Eastern Siberia - Lake Baikal and the Angara River. It turned out that the lake got its name from the old Russian exclamation Bai-ka-al = ay, how divine! The name of the Angara River in Old Russian means the mountains of Christ.

The PhytoLex plant name database: results and perspectives

Russian plant names are a semantic group poorly represented in historical dictionaries. During the project “Russian phytonyms in diachronic aspect (11th–17th c.)” (2017–2020), the PhytoLex database was created, which contains plant names recorded in Russian texts of the 11th–17th centuries. The population of the database was accompanied by research work devoted to various issues relating to the representation of plant names in the Russian language in general, and in particular in relation to some specific genres: herbals, documents of the Apothecary Chancery, business documents, church literature and lexicons. Some earlier unknown plant names were identified. These database materials will be the basis for the dictionary of Old Russian plant names, draft word entries for which have been compiled. Technical solutions will be used during the creation of a further database representing plant names recorded in later periods of the Russian language.

SYMBOLIC CONCEPTUALIZATION OF THE ORIGINAL CONCEPT SIGN

В статье исследуются аспекты вторичной символической концептуализации исходного смысла индоевропейского корня в сознании носителей языка. Основным инструментом вторичной (символической) концептуализации является метафора. В качестве иллюстрации рассматривается пример символической интерпретации первопризнака концепта земля. The article explores aspects of the secondary symbolic conceptualization of the original meaning of the Indo-European root in the consciousness of native speakers. The main instrument of secondary (symbolic) conceptualization is metaphor. As an example of a symbolic interpretation of the original concept sign, we analyze the concept earth. Based on the primary meaning of the Old Russian word «bearing on itself», the macroconcept earth was transformed into symbols of fertility, the birth-giving mother, the goddess, weaving the canvas of life.

"The “Nestorian Chronicle” in the Prague “Lectures...” of Alfred Bem

During the interwar period, Prague was truly an academic capital of emigration. A unique scientific environment that formed therein a century ago was favorable for the study of Russian literature, including the ancient period. Among the philologists, who emigrated to Czechoslovakia, was Alfred Bem, known to modern science as a talented researcher of the works of Pushkin, Dostoevsky, Blok, Gumilyov and Mayakovsky. However, hardly anyone remembers Bem as Medievalist. The article analyzes the “Lectures” on the history of Old Russian literature (up to the mid XVII century) read to the students of Russian Pedagogical Institute named after Jan Amos Komenský in Prague in the winter semester of 1923 that have been nearly forgotten by now. These are the sheer bibliographic rarity. The circulation of this unique publication is small, just a few copies taken by duplicating machine from the typewritten original, which contains typos and corrections made by the author. “Lectures...” – a full textbook on the history of Russian literature of the XI – first half of the XVII centuries. A significant part of is dedicated to the “Tale of Bygone Years”. A. L. Bem’s view of the "Nestorian Chronicle” reflected in the Prague “Lectures...” is analyzed within the framework of studying the extensive historiographical topic of the “Research of Old Russian Literature in Czechoslovakia in the 1920s – 1930s”. This defines the novelty of this article. The conclusion is made that Alfred Bem made a considerable contribution to the study of the major Russian chronicle, provided in-depth and accurate characteristics to the “Tale of Bygone Years”, determining its historical and literary role. His contemplations on the genre and stylistic uniqueness of the “Tale” have subsequently found reflection in the works of Russian and foreign Medievalists. He also paid special attention to the history of the Corpus, thereby touching upon the question that is yet to be resolved.