Fossilized ploughmen: mytho-ritual semantics of one Belarusian legend about boulders
This text e... more Fossilized ploughmen: mytho-ritual semantics of one Belarusian legend about boulders
This text examines the semantics of one of the extended in Belarus legends about sacred boulders: a peasant turns into a stone for work on the Easter holiday. A hypothesis is proposed about the connection with cosmogonic ideas and the rite of the spring new year.
The paper is about the tradition of worshiping the cult stone Volas near the village of Kryzhovka... more The paper is about the tradition of worshiping the cult stone Volas near the village of Kryzhovka, Minsk region. All known published and unpublished information about the cult stone is analyzed. Based on the author’s observations and polls, the modern cult of this boulder is characterized. The worship of the Volas stone is not associated with pre-сhristian times. The cult arose in the end of the 19th – early 20th century. The case of the Volas stone is interesting and peculiar because of combining various rather rare and archaic elements of traditional cult practices. Such an atypical combination may call into question the reliability of known information about the Volas stone. However, as it was shown in the article, the name, topography, motive of the legend, the function of treating animals, donations (towels, wool, horns, tails) and skulls hung on the trees around boulder, find their correspondences both in the Belarusian tradition and among other peoples. It is assumed that ori...
Journal of the Belarusian State University. History, 2021
Carved wooden calendars were known to many peoples from the Middle Ages to the beginning of the 2... more Carved wooden calendars were known to many peoples from the Middle Ages to the beginning of the 20th century. For example, the Scandinavian ones are well enough studied, but about the existence of such calendars among Belarusians wasn’t known for a long time. The Russian Museum of Ethnography has a carved calendar from the Sluck County. Today it is the only such Belarusian artifact. The article presents a description of a carved wooden calendar from the Čudzin Village, Sluck County. A brief overview of other calendars of a similar type is shown. The prerequisites for the formation and distribution of such artifacts on the territory of Belarus were studied. The article discusses the sign system used to designate holidays and working periods, which correlate with the calendar tradition of the region. Based on the data obtained, the authors draw conclusion about the local origin of the calendar.
Pre-Christian cult sculpture from the territory of Belarus is described in this paper. The author... more Pre-Christian cult sculpture from the territory of Belarus is described in this paper. The author identifies the main art features, clarifies the classification of idols found in Belarus. Particular attention is paid to the issue of the relationship between stone christian crosses and pagan idols. Anthropomorphic cruciform sculpture should be differentiated as a separate type of idols. This type could have arisen under the influence of christianization and testifies to the interpenetration and adaptation of traditions. The author discusses about the possibility of the existence of art canons of cult pagan sculpture in Belarus and their features
Скварчэўскі, Д. В. Культавая дахрысціянская скульптура на тэрыторыі Беларусі: да пытання існавання выяўленчых канонаў //Счастье не в награде за доблесть, а в самой доблести = Beatitudo nоn est virtutis praemium sed ipsa virtus : материалы междунар. науч. круглого стола, посвящ. 70-летнему юбилею проф. В. А. Федосика, Минск, 9 февр. 2021 г. / Белорус. гос. ун-т ; редкол.: И. О. Евтухов (гл. ред.), О. И. Малюгин, А. А. Прохоров. – Минск : БГУ, 2021. – С. 239-247.
Dzmitry Skvarcheuski
‘Valačobnaje’ and ‘kalada’ in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania: evolution from ... more Dzmitry Skvarcheuski
‘Valačobnaje’ and ‘kalada’ in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania: evolution from donation to duty
The article is devoted to duties ‘valačobnaje’ (easter gift) and ‘kalada’ (christmas gift) that peasants and burghers paid to the clergy and landowners. The origins and main characteristics of these duties are revealed by comparing information from written and ethnographic sources. The author concluded that medieval duties are associated with archaic ritual practices, which have survived in a modified form in Belarus to the present day.
Carved wooden calendars were known to many peoples from the Middle Ages to the beginning of the 2... more Carved wooden calendars were known to many peoples from the Middle Ages to the beginning of the 20th century. For exam ple, the Scandinavian ones are well enough studied, but about the existence of such calendars among Belarusians wasn’t known for a long time. The Russian Museum of Ethnography has a carved calendar from the Sluck County. Today it is the only such Belarusian artifact. The article presents a description of a carved wooden calendar from the Čudzin Village, Sluck County. A brief overview of other calendars of a similar type is shown. The prerequisites for the formation and distribu-tion of such artifacts on the territory of Belarus were studied. The article discusses the sign system used to designate holidays and working periods, which correlate with the calendar tradition of the region. Based on the data obtained, the authors draw conclusion about the local origin of the calendar. Keywords: carved wooden calendar; folk calendar; feast days; graphic sign system.Acknowledgements. The authors are grateful to doctor of science (history) deputy director for scientific and innovative work of the Center for the Belarusian Culture, Language and Literature Researches of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus S. P. Vitsiaz for his help in organising a visit to study the calendar at the Russian Museum of Ethnography and to re-searcher of the highest category at the department of ethnography of Russian people of the Russian Museum of Ethnography O. G. Baranova for providing the opportunity to explore the artifact and for the consultations.
Скварчэўскі, Д.В. Асноўныя падходы да выкарыстання адметных праяў светапогляду і міфалогіі як эле... more Скварчэўскі, Д.В. Асноўныя падходы да выкарыстання адметных праяў светапогляду і міфалогіі як элементаў культурна-пазнавальнага турызму / Д.В. Скварчэўскі // Актуальныя аспекты аховы нематэрыяльных гісторыка-культурных каштоўнасцей : зб. арт. / уклад.: А. Т. Каліноўская, А. В. Гумінская, пад агул. рэд. І. Б. Лапцёнак ; Мін-ва культуры Рэсп. Беларусь ; Беларус. дзярж. ун-т культуры і мастацтваў, Ін-т павыш. кваліф. і перападр. кадраў. – Мінск : БДУКМ, 2020. – С. 41–44.
The article discusses ideas about the edge of the earth in the Belarusians’ traditio... more The article discusses ideas about the edge of the earth in the Belarusians’ traditional worldview. The author considers the semantics of this concept and its role in the traditional worldview. In folk beliefs, the edge of the earth is shown as the border between «this» and «other» world. This term is understood both as a place in the surrounding natural space and as a symbolic place with the characteristics of the other world. The edge of the earth embodies the original unity of heaven and earth, which is characteristic of cosmogony times and the Golden Age.
Статья посвящена представлениям о «крае земли» в мифопоэтической картине мира белорусов. Автор рассматривает семантику данного понятия и его роль в традиционном мировоззрении. В народном сознании край земли является границей между «этим» и «иным» миром, а сам термин понимается и как место в окружающем природном пространстве, и как символический локус, обладающий характеристиками потустороннего мира. Край земли воплощает первоначальное единство неба и земли, что характерно для космогонических времён и Золотого века.
This article is about the development of Christian cosmology in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in t... more This article is about the development of Christian cosmology in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the XIV-XVII centuries. The leading cosmological concepts, which were approved by the church (Cosmas Indicopleustes's cosmological model and geocentric (Ptolemaic)), were considered in the paper. The development of astronomy in the Grand Duchy is also characterized in the paper. The church's attitude to astronomy and astrology, which was varied throughout the period, is analyzed. As a result, reasons for changes in cosmological ideas in church circles were identified. It was proved that the development of Christian cosmology is directly depended on the level of development of astronomical knowledge in society. The conclusions in the article describe the process of spread and development of astronomical knowledge in the Grand Duchy.
The article talks about the astronomical phenomena that are described in the Chronicle of Mahilio... more The article talks about the astronomical phenomena that are described in the Chronicle of Mahilioŭ (in Belarusian).
Скварчэўскі, Д.В. Апісанні астранамічных з’яў у Магілёўскай хроніцы Сурты і Трубніцкіх / Д.В. Скварчэўскі // Гісторыя Магілёва: мінулае і сучаснасць : зборнік навуковых прац удзельнікаў VIII Міжнароднай навукова-практычнай канферэнцыі, 26―27 чэрвеня 2013 г., г. Магілёў / укладальнікі: А. М. Бацюкоў, І. А. Пушкін. - Магілёў : УА “МДУХ”, 2013. – С. 335 – 338.
Dzmitry Skvarcheuski
Mythologic images of Belarusian-Lithuanian borderzone: Siorba, Siarbai, Ser... more Dzmitry Skvarcheuski
Mythologic images of Belarusian-Lithuanian borderzone: Siorba, Siarbai, Serbojus
SUMMARY
The article discusses a local mythologic character from Belarusian-Lithuanian borderzone, known as Siorba, Siarbai and Serbojus. The author considers the issues of the mythonym's etymology, the image's origin, the character's attributes and functions. The most probable etymology of the mythonym arises to stem *ser-bh-, actualized in Lithuanian verb "surbti" and Belarusian verb "siorbac" (eat or drink loudly). That mythologic figure act both as a season spirit and as an embodyment of famine and poverty. The character's description does not allow to univocally designate him to daemonic creatures, he has much in common with spirits of nature and vegetation than with devilry.
The paper is about the image of the Baltic paganism in the annals and chronicles of the Grand Duc... more The paper is about the image of the Baltic paganism in the annals and chronicles of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania
Natural phenomena, unusual events and mythological ideas in Belarusian memoir literature of the X... more Natural phenomena, unusual events and mythological ideas in Belarusian memoir literature of the XVI – XVII centuries
Traditional Belarusian tombstones with solar symbols
The paper is about traditional belarusian... more Traditional Belarusian tombstones with solar symbols
The paper is about traditional belarusian tombstones with solar symbols of the XV - XX centuries. The motives of using solar symbols on tombstones are explored. An attempt to decipher the semantics of these signs on tombstones in the context of the funeral tradition and mythological ideas of Belarusians was made.
Skvarcheuski D. V. The astronomical terminology in the literature of the Great Duchy of Lithuania... more Skvarcheuski D. V. The astronomical terminology in the literature of the Great Duchy of Lithuania in the XV–XVII centuries. J. Belarus. State Univ. Hist. 2017. No. 2. P. 42–47 (in Belarus.).
The article is about to the development of astronomical terminology in the literature of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the XV–XVII centuries. Astronomical terminology was presented as an original or borrowed terms from Western European, Byzantine and Jewish literature. The tendency to replace archaic terms for a new one, borrowed from the Western European tradition, became prevalent from the XVI century. The development of science and the establishment of the Catholic education system influenced to the unification of terminology, due to the use of Latin and Greek terms and the creation of astronomical literature in Latin.
DZMITRY SKVARCHEUSKI
STONES WITH THE IMAGE OF A POLE WITH A SEMICIRCLE:
THE PROBLEMS OF ORIGIN, A... more DZMITRY SKVARCHEUSKI STONES WITH THE IMAGE OF A POLE WITH A SEMICIRCLE: THE PROBLEMS OF ORIGIN, AREA, CLASSIFICATION AND DATING
This article is about stones with images containing the symbol of a pole with a semicircle. This symbol had a cosmological meaning and represented world axis and heavenly sphere. The author considers the problem of attribution of the sign: area, chronology, meaning, and typology. According to the information received, the tradition of using tombstones with symbol of a pole with a semicircle existed from the 15th/16th centuries to the 1940-ies. It was the regional tradition. Area of the tombstones with this sign may be associated with the medieval burial tradition of stone tombs («zhalniki») in the Duchy of Polotsk. The tradition of using tombstones with symbol of a pole with a semicircle may be associated with funeral rites of Krivichy and their descendants. Perhaps this symbol is a sign of particular ethnic and cultural development in the Balto-Slavic contact zone. The symbol of a pole with a semicircle reflects the mythological and religious ideas of the population of a defined region. This sign had roots in the pagan ideas and it is a result of interaction between the pagan and christian beliefs.
Keywords: gravestones, sacred stones, funerary symbolism, funeral rite, culture of stone tombs, the Principality of Polack.
Fossilized ploughmen: mytho-ritual semantics of one Belarusian legend about boulders
This text e... more Fossilized ploughmen: mytho-ritual semantics of one Belarusian legend about boulders
This text examines the semantics of one of the extended in Belarus legends about sacred boulders: a peasant turns into a stone for work on the Easter holiday. A hypothesis is proposed about the connection with cosmogonic ideas and the rite of the spring new year.
The paper is about the tradition of worshiping the cult stone Volas near the village of Kryzhovka... more The paper is about the tradition of worshiping the cult stone Volas near the village of Kryzhovka, Minsk region. All known published and unpublished information about the cult stone is analyzed. Based on the author’s observations and polls, the modern cult of this boulder is characterized. The worship of the Volas stone is not associated with pre-сhristian times. The cult arose in the end of the 19th – early 20th century. The case of the Volas stone is interesting and peculiar because of combining various rather rare and archaic elements of traditional cult practices. Such an atypical combination may call into question the reliability of known information about the Volas stone. However, as it was shown in the article, the name, topography, motive of the legend, the function of treating animals, donations (towels, wool, horns, tails) and skulls hung on the trees around boulder, find their correspondences both in the Belarusian tradition and among other peoples. It is assumed that ori...
Journal of the Belarusian State University. History, 2021
Carved wooden calendars were known to many peoples from the Middle Ages to the beginning of the 2... more Carved wooden calendars were known to many peoples from the Middle Ages to the beginning of the 20th century. For example, the Scandinavian ones are well enough studied, but about the existence of such calendars among Belarusians wasn’t known for a long time. The Russian Museum of Ethnography has a carved calendar from the Sluck County. Today it is the only such Belarusian artifact. The article presents a description of a carved wooden calendar from the Čudzin Village, Sluck County. A brief overview of other calendars of a similar type is shown. The prerequisites for the formation and distribution of such artifacts on the territory of Belarus were studied. The article discusses the sign system used to designate holidays and working periods, which correlate with the calendar tradition of the region. Based on the data obtained, the authors draw conclusion about the local origin of the calendar.
Pre-Christian cult sculpture from the territory of Belarus is described in this paper. The author... more Pre-Christian cult sculpture from the territory of Belarus is described in this paper. The author identifies the main art features, clarifies the classification of idols found in Belarus. Particular attention is paid to the issue of the relationship between stone christian crosses and pagan idols. Anthropomorphic cruciform sculpture should be differentiated as a separate type of idols. This type could have arisen under the influence of christianization and testifies to the interpenetration and adaptation of traditions. The author discusses about the possibility of the existence of art canons of cult pagan sculpture in Belarus and their features
Скварчэўскі, Д. В. Культавая дахрысціянская скульптура на тэрыторыі Беларусі: да пытання існавання выяўленчых канонаў //Счастье не в награде за доблесть, а в самой доблести = Beatitudo nоn est virtutis praemium sed ipsa virtus : материалы междунар. науч. круглого стола, посвящ. 70-летнему юбилею проф. В. А. Федосика, Минск, 9 февр. 2021 г. / Белорус. гос. ун-т ; редкол.: И. О. Евтухов (гл. ред.), О. И. Малюгин, А. А. Прохоров. – Минск : БГУ, 2021. – С. 239-247.
Dzmitry Skvarcheuski
‘Valačobnaje’ and ‘kalada’ in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania: evolution from ... more Dzmitry Skvarcheuski
‘Valačobnaje’ and ‘kalada’ in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania: evolution from donation to duty
The article is devoted to duties ‘valačobnaje’ (easter gift) and ‘kalada’ (christmas gift) that peasants and burghers paid to the clergy and landowners. The origins and main characteristics of these duties are revealed by comparing information from written and ethnographic sources. The author concluded that medieval duties are associated with archaic ritual practices, which have survived in a modified form in Belarus to the present day.
Carved wooden calendars were known to many peoples from the Middle Ages to the beginning of the 2... more Carved wooden calendars were known to many peoples from the Middle Ages to the beginning of the 20th century. For exam ple, the Scandinavian ones are well enough studied, but about the existence of such calendars among Belarusians wasn’t known for a long time. The Russian Museum of Ethnography has a carved calendar from the Sluck County. Today it is the only such Belarusian artifact. The article presents a description of a carved wooden calendar from the Čudzin Village, Sluck County. A brief overview of other calendars of a similar type is shown. The prerequisites for the formation and distribu-tion of such artifacts on the territory of Belarus were studied. The article discusses the sign system used to designate holidays and working periods, which correlate with the calendar tradition of the region. Based on the data obtained, the authors draw conclusion about the local origin of the calendar. Keywords: carved wooden calendar; folk calendar; feast days; graphic sign system.Acknowledgements. The authors are grateful to doctor of science (history) deputy director for scientific and innovative work of the Center for the Belarusian Culture, Language and Literature Researches of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus S. P. Vitsiaz for his help in organising a visit to study the calendar at the Russian Museum of Ethnography and to re-searcher of the highest category at the department of ethnography of Russian people of the Russian Museum of Ethnography O. G. Baranova for providing the opportunity to explore the artifact and for the consultations.
Скварчэўскі, Д.В. Асноўныя падходы да выкарыстання адметных праяў светапогляду і міфалогіі як эле... more Скварчэўскі, Д.В. Асноўныя падходы да выкарыстання адметных праяў светапогляду і міфалогіі як элементаў культурна-пазнавальнага турызму / Д.В. Скварчэўскі // Актуальныя аспекты аховы нематэрыяльных гісторыка-культурных каштоўнасцей : зб. арт. / уклад.: А. Т. Каліноўская, А. В. Гумінская, пад агул. рэд. І. Б. Лапцёнак ; Мін-ва культуры Рэсп. Беларусь ; Беларус. дзярж. ун-т культуры і мастацтваў, Ін-т павыш. кваліф. і перападр. кадраў. – Мінск : БДУКМ, 2020. – С. 41–44.
The article discusses ideas about the edge of the earth in the Belarusians’ traditio... more The article discusses ideas about the edge of the earth in the Belarusians’ traditional worldview. The author considers the semantics of this concept and its role in the traditional worldview. In folk beliefs, the edge of the earth is shown as the border between «this» and «other» world. This term is understood both as a place in the surrounding natural space and as a symbolic place with the characteristics of the other world. The edge of the earth embodies the original unity of heaven and earth, which is characteristic of cosmogony times and the Golden Age.
Статья посвящена представлениям о «крае земли» в мифопоэтической картине мира белорусов. Автор рассматривает семантику данного понятия и его роль в традиционном мировоззрении. В народном сознании край земли является границей между «этим» и «иным» миром, а сам термин понимается и как место в окружающем природном пространстве, и как символический локус, обладающий характеристиками потустороннего мира. Край земли воплощает первоначальное единство неба и земли, что характерно для космогонических времён и Золотого века.
This article is about the development of Christian cosmology in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in t... more This article is about the development of Christian cosmology in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the XIV-XVII centuries. The leading cosmological concepts, which were approved by the church (Cosmas Indicopleustes's cosmological model and geocentric (Ptolemaic)), were considered in the paper. The development of astronomy in the Grand Duchy is also characterized in the paper. The church's attitude to astronomy and astrology, which was varied throughout the period, is analyzed. As a result, reasons for changes in cosmological ideas in church circles were identified. It was proved that the development of Christian cosmology is directly depended on the level of development of astronomical knowledge in society. The conclusions in the article describe the process of spread and development of astronomical knowledge in the Grand Duchy.
The article talks about the astronomical phenomena that are described in the Chronicle of Mahilio... more The article talks about the astronomical phenomena that are described in the Chronicle of Mahilioŭ (in Belarusian).
Скварчэўскі, Д.В. Апісанні астранамічных з’яў у Магілёўскай хроніцы Сурты і Трубніцкіх / Д.В. Скварчэўскі // Гісторыя Магілёва: мінулае і сучаснасць : зборнік навуковых прац удзельнікаў VIII Міжнароднай навукова-практычнай канферэнцыі, 26―27 чэрвеня 2013 г., г. Магілёў / укладальнікі: А. М. Бацюкоў, І. А. Пушкін. - Магілёў : УА “МДУХ”, 2013. – С. 335 – 338.
Dzmitry Skvarcheuski
Mythologic images of Belarusian-Lithuanian borderzone: Siorba, Siarbai, Ser... more Dzmitry Skvarcheuski
Mythologic images of Belarusian-Lithuanian borderzone: Siorba, Siarbai, Serbojus
SUMMARY
The article discusses a local mythologic character from Belarusian-Lithuanian borderzone, known as Siorba, Siarbai and Serbojus. The author considers the issues of the mythonym's etymology, the image's origin, the character's attributes and functions. The most probable etymology of the mythonym arises to stem *ser-bh-, actualized in Lithuanian verb "surbti" and Belarusian verb "siorbac" (eat or drink loudly). That mythologic figure act both as a season spirit and as an embodyment of famine and poverty. The character's description does not allow to univocally designate him to daemonic creatures, he has much in common with spirits of nature and vegetation than with devilry.
The paper is about the image of the Baltic paganism in the annals and chronicles of the Grand Duc... more The paper is about the image of the Baltic paganism in the annals and chronicles of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania
Natural phenomena, unusual events and mythological ideas in Belarusian memoir literature of the X... more Natural phenomena, unusual events and mythological ideas in Belarusian memoir literature of the XVI – XVII centuries
Traditional Belarusian tombstones with solar symbols
The paper is about traditional belarusian... more Traditional Belarusian tombstones with solar symbols
The paper is about traditional belarusian tombstones with solar symbols of the XV - XX centuries. The motives of using solar symbols on tombstones are explored. An attempt to decipher the semantics of these signs on tombstones in the context of the funeral tradition and mythological ideas of Belarusians was made.
Skvarcheuski D. V. The astronomical terminology in the literature of the Great Duchy of Lithuania... more Skvarcheuski D. V. The astronomical terminology in the literature of the Great Duchy of Lithuania in the XV–XVII centuries. J. Belarus. State Univ. Hist. 2017. No. 2. P. 42–47 (in Belarus.).
The article is about to the development of astronomical terminology in the literature of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the XV–XVII centuries. Astronomical terminology was presented as an original or borrowed terms from Western European, Byzantine and Jewish literature. The tendency to replace archaic terms for a new one, borrowed from the Western European tradition, became prevalent from the XVI century. The development of science and the establishment of the Catholic education system influenced to the unification of terminology, due to the use of Latin and Greek terms and the creation of astronomical literature in Latin.
DZMITRY SKVARCHEUSKI
STONES WITH THE IMAGE OF A POLE WITH A SEMICIRCLE:
THE PROBLEMS OF ORIGIN, A... more DZMITRY SKVARCHEUSKI STONES WITH THE IMAGE OF A POLE WITH A SEMICIRCLE: THE PROBLEMS OF ORIGIN, AREA, CLASSIFICATION AND DATING
This article is about stones with images containing the symbol of a pole with a semicircle. This symbol had a cosmological meaning and represented world axis and heavenly sphere. The author considers the problem of attribution of the sign: area, chronology, meaning, and typology. According to the information received, the tradition of using tombstones with symbol of a pole with a semicircle existed from the 15th/16th centuries to the 1940-ies. It was the regional tradition. Area of the tombstones with this sign may be associated with the medieval burial tradition of stone tombs («zhalniki») in the Duchy of Polotsk. The tradition of using tombstones with symbol of a pole with a semicircle may be associated with funeral rites of Krivichy and their descendants. Perhaps this symbol is a sign of particular ethnic and cultural development in the Balto-Slavic contact zone. The symbol of a pole with a semicircle reflects the mythological and religious ideas of the population of a defined region. This sign had roots in the pagan ideas and it is a result of interaction between the pagan and christian beliefs.
Keywords: gravestones, sacred stones, funerary symbolism, funeral rite, culture of stone tombs, the Principality of Polack.
“БАЧЫШ ГЭТЫ КАМЕНЬ І ВЕРЫШ: ТУТ САПРАЎДЫ ЦМОК МОГ ЖЫЦЬ!”, 2022
Здаўна на землях Беларусі было раскідана шмат валуноў. Сюды іх прынёс ледавік, які ішоў са Сканды... more Здаўна на землях Беларусі было раскідана шмат валуноў. Сюды іх прынёс ледавік, які ішоў са Скандынавіі. Пакланяцца камяням людзі пачалі яшчэ ў першабытнасці: з тых часоў да нас дайшлі павер'і, што камяні могуць расці, шыць адзенне і абутак, лячыць хваробы. А за грахі чалавек і сам можа скамянець. Беларускі фальклор багаты на такія паданні, а навуковае вывучэнне камянёў пачалося ў нас толькі ў канцы XIX стагоддзя. Знакавай падзеяй стала адкрыццё ў 1985 годзе ў Мінску Музея валуноў, для ўнікальнай калекцыі якога ў сталічны раён "Уручча-2" былі звезены больш за дзве тысячы валуноў з ўсёй краіны. Мы прагуляліся па парку ў кампаніі гісторыка і экскурсавода Змітра Скварчэўскага, які расказаў пра самыя незвычайныя экспанаты музея.
Скварчэўскі, Зміцер. Па слядах багоў: нарысы беларускай міфалогіі / Зміцер Скварчэўскі ; ілюстра... more Скварчэўскі, Зміцер. Па слядах багоў: нарысы беларускай міфалогіі / Зміцер Скварчэўскі ; ілюстрацыі Ганны Шчуко. — Мінск : Медысонт, 2019. — 160 с.
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Papers by Dzmitry Skvarcheuski
This text examines the semantics of one of the extended in Belarus legends about sacred boulders: a peasant turns into a stone for work on the Easter holiday. A hypothesis is proposed about the connection with cosmogonic ideas and the rite of the spring new year.
Скварчэўскі, Д. В. Культавая дахрысціянская скульптура на тэрыторыі Беларусі: да пытання існавання выяўленчых канонаў //Счастье не в награде за доблесть, а в самой доблести = Beatitudo nоn est virtutis praemium sed ipsa virtus : материалы междунар. науч. круглого стола, посвящ. 70-летнему юбилею проф. В. А. Федосика, Минск, 9 февр. 2021 г. / Белорус. гос. ун-т ; редкол.: И. О. Евтухов (гл. ред.), О. И. Малюгин, А. А. Прохоров. – Минск : БГУ, 2021. – С. 239-247.
‘Valačobnaje’ and ‘kalada’ in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania: evolution from donation to duty
The article is devoted to duties ‘valačobnaje’ (easter gift) and ‘kalada’ (christmas gift) that peasants and burghers paid to the clergy and landowners. The origins and main characteristics of these duties are revealed by comparing information from written and ethnographic sources. The author concluded that medieval duties are associated with archaic ritual practices, which have survived in a modified form in Belarus to the present day.
Статья посвящена представлениям о «крае земли» в мифопоэтической картине мира белорусов. Автор рассматривает семантику данного понятия и его роль в традиционном мировоззрении. В народном сознании край земли является границей между «этим» и «иным» миром, а сам термин понимается и как место в окружающем природном пространстве, и как символический локус, обладающий характеристиками потустороннего мира. Край земли воплощает первоначальное единство неба и земли, что характерно для космогонических времён и Золотого века.
Скварчэўскі, Д.В. Апісанні астранамічных з’яў у Магілёўскай хроніцы Сурты і Трубніцкіх / Д.В. Скварчэўскі // Гісторыя Магілёва: мінулае і сучаснасць : зборнік навуковых прац удзельнікаў VIII Міжнароднай навукова-практычнай канферэнцыі, 26―27 чэрвеня 2013 г., г. Магілёў / укладальнікі: А. М. Бацюкоў, І. А. Пушкін. - Магілёў : УА “МДУХ”, 2013. – С. 335 – 338.
Mythologic images of Belarusian-Lithuanian borderzone: Siorba, Siarbai, Serbojus
SUMMARY
The article discusses a local mythologic character from Belarusian-Lithuanian borderzone, known as Siorba, Siarbai and Serbojus. The author considers the issues of the mythonym's etymology, the image's origin, the character's attributes and functions. The most probable etymology of the mythonym arises to stem *ser-bh-, actualized in Lithuanian verb "surbti" and Belarusian verb "siorbac" (eat or drink loudly). That mythologic figure act both as a season spirit and as an embodyment of famine and poverty. The character's description does not allow to univocally designate him to daemonic creatures, he has much in common with spirits of nature and vegetation than with devilry.
Key words: Lithuanian folklore, Belarusian folklore, Belarusian-Lithuanian borderzone, Balto-Slavic mythology.
The paper is about traditional belarusian tombstones with solar symbols of the XV - XX centuries. The motives of using solar symbols on tombstones are explored. An attempt to decipher the semantics of these signs on tombstones in the context of the funeral tradition and mythological ideas of Belarusians was made.
The article is about to the development of astronomical terminology in the literature of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the XV–XVII centuries. Astronomical terminology was presented as an original or borrowed terms from Western European, Byzantine and Jewish literature. The tendency to replace archaic terms for a new one, borrowed from the Western European tradition, became prevalent from the XVI century. The development of science and the establishment of the Catholic education system influenced to the unification of terminology, due to the use of Latin and Greek terms and the creation of astronomical literature in Latin.
STONES WITH THE IMAGE OF A POLE WITH A SEMICIRCLE:
THE PROBLEMS OF ORIGIN, AREA, CLASSIFICATION AND DATING
This article is about stones with images containing the symbol of a pole with a semicircle. This symbol had a cosmological meaning and represented world axis and heavenly sphere. The author considers the problem of attribution of the sign: area, chronology, meaning, and typology. According to the information received, the tradition of using tombstones with symbol of a pole with a semicircle existed from the 15th/16th centuries to the 1940-ies. It was the regional tradition. Area of the tombstones with this sign may be associated with the medieval burial tradition of stone tombs («zhalniki») in the Duchy of Polotsk. The tradition of using tombstones with symbol of a pole with a semicircle
may be associated with funeral rites of Krivichy and their descendants. Perhaps this symbol is a sign of particular ethnic and cultural development in the Balto-Slavic contact zone. The symbol of a pole
with a semicircle reflects the mythological and religious ideas of the population of a defined region. This sign had roots in the pagan ideas and it is a result of interaction between the pagan and christian beliefs.
Keywords: gravestones, sacred stones, funerary symbolism, funeral rite, culture of stone tombs, the Principality of Polack.
This text examines the semantics of one of the extended in Belarus legends about sacred boulders: a peasant turns into a stone for work on the Easter holiday. A hypothesis is proposed about the connection with cosmogonic ideas and the rite of the spring new year.
Скварчэўскі, Д. В. Культавая дахрысціянская скульптура на тэрыторыі Беларусі: да пытання існавання выяўленчых канонаў //Счастье не в награде за доблесть, а в самой доблести = Beatitudo nоn est virtutis praemium sed ipsa virtus : материалы междунар. науч. круглого стола, посвящ. 70-летнему юбилею проф. В. А. Федосика, Минск, 9 февр. 2021 г. / Белорус. гос. ун-т ; редкол.: И. О. Евтухов (гл. ред.), О. И. Малюгин, А. А. Прохоров. – Минск : БГУ, 2021. – С. 239-247.
‘Valačobnaje’ and ‘kalada’ in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania: evolution from donation to duty
The article is devoted to duties ‘valačobnaje’ (easter gift) and ‘kalada’ (christmas gift) that peasants and burghers paid to the clergy and landowners. The origins and main characteristics of these duties are revealed by comparing information from written and ethnographic sources. The author concluded that medieval duties are associated with archaic ritual practices, which have survived in a modified form in Belarus to the present day.
Статья посвящена представлениям о «крае земли» в мифопоэтической картине мира белорусов. Автор рассматривает семантику данного понятия и его роль в традиционном мировоззрении. В народном сознании край земли является границей между «этим» и «иным» миром, а сам термин понимается и как место в окружающем природном пространстве, и как символический локус, обладающий характеристиками потустороннего мира. Край земли воплощает первоначальное единство неба и земли, что характерно для космогонических времён и Золотого века.
Скварчэўскі, Д.В. Апісанні астранамічных з’яў у Магілёўскай хроніцы Сурты і Трубніцкіх / Д.В. Скварчэўскі // Гісторыя Магілёва: мінулае і сучаснасць : зборнік навуковых прац удзельнікаў VIII Міжнароднай навукова-практычнай канферэнцыі, 26―27 чэрвеня 2013 г., г. Магілёў / укладальнікі: А. М. Бацюкоў, І. А. Пушкін. - Магілёў : УА “МДУХ”, 2013. – С. 335 – 338.
Mythologic images of Belarusian-Lithuanian borderzone: Siorba, Siarbai, Serbojus
SUMMARY
The article discusses a local mythologic character from Belarusian-Lithuanian borderzone, known as Siorba, Siarbai and Serbojus. The author considers the issues of the mythonym's etymology, the image's origin, the character's attributes and functions. The most probable etymology of the mythonym arises to stem *ser-bh-, actualized in Lithuanian verb "surbti" and Belarusian verb "siorbac" (eat or drink loudly). That mythologic figure act both as a season spirit and as an embodyment of famine and poverty. The character's description does not allow to univocally designate him to daemonic creatures, he has much in common with spirits of nature and vegetation than with devilry.
Key words: Lithuanian folklore, Belarusian folklore, Belarusian-Lithuanian borderzone, Balto-Slavic mythology.
The paper is about traditional belarusian tombstones with solar symbols of the XV - XX centuries. The motives of using solar symbols on tombstones are explored. An attempt to decipher the semantics of these signs on tombstones in the context of the funeral tradition and mythological ideas of Belarusians was made.
The article is about to the development of astronomical terminology in the literature of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the XV–XVII centuries. Astronomical terminology was presented as an original or borrowed terms from Western European, Byzantine and Jewish literature. The tendency to replace archaic terms for a new one, borrowed from the Western European tradition, became prevalent from the XVI century. The development of science and the establishment of the Catholic education system influenced to the unification of terminology, due to the use of Latin and Greek terms and the creation of astronomical literature in Latin.
STONES WITH THE IMAGE OF A POLE WITH A SEMICIRCLE:
THE PROBLEMS OF ORIGIN, AREA, CLASSIFICATION AND DATING
This article is about stones with images containing the symbol of a pole with a semicircle. This symbol had a cosmological meaning and represented world axis and heavenly sphere. The author considers the problem of attribution of the sign: area, chronology, meaning, and typology. According to the information received, the tradition of using tombstones with symbol of a pole with a semicircle existed from the 15th/16th centuries to the 1940-ies. It was the regional tradition. Area of the tombstones with this sign may be associated with the medieval burial tradition of stone tombs («zhalniki») in the Duchy of Polotsk. The tradition of using tombstones with symbol of a pole with a semicircle
may be associated with funeral rites of Krivichy and their descendants. Perhaps this symbol is a sign of particular ethnic and cultural development in the Balto-Slavic contact zone. The symbol of a pole
with a semicircle reflects the mythological and religious ideas of the population of a defined region. This sign had roots in the pagan ideas and it is a result of interaction between the pagan and christian beliefs.
Keywords: gravestones, sacred stones, funerary symbolism, funeral rite, culture of stone tombs, the Principality of Polack.
2019. — 160 с.