The transformation of the genres of Tuvan folklore (studying the history of the kuzhugets and S.K. Shoigu’s essays)
Keywords:
Tuvan folklore; kuzhuget; Kuzhuget Sergeievich Shoigu’ Tuvan literature; Tuvan legendsAbstract
The article examines the transformation happening in the genre system of Tuvan folklore. On the one hand, this process should be viewed in the context of the evolutional development of folklore and folklore imagery in general, which proves the resilience of traditions and spiritual values of Tuvan culture. On the other, it shows how Tuvan myths and legends are modified to fit into contemporary literature. In this article, we analyze folklore legends of the Kuzhuget tribe which have found way into the essays by Tuvan writer, journalist and public figure Kuzhuget Sergeievich Shoigu (1921-2010). His heritage has never before been analyzed in the context of folklore studies.
K.S. Shoigu’s non-fiction reads as a confession of a true admirer of his region. His imagery, the people and circumstances he describes are all focused on the author’s idea of getting back to the roots and preserving Tuva’s heritage. Of special interest for us is his essay ‘Tannu-Tyva: The land of lakes and blue rivers’, and in particular a story of three generations of a Kuzhuget family: Kuzhuget Ak-ool, Kuzhuget Arapai and Kuzhuget Seren. The details of the story in the essay can be proved historically, while the legends which Shoigu retells provide a combination of fact and fiction. The plots found in Shoigu’s essay have been recorded in various versions from numerous informants, e.g. the story of a hunter who meets with a female tutelary spirit, which is well known all over Tuva. The plot involving the construction of ovaa (a mound of stones erected as an altar for a spirit of nature) to honor a female tutelary spirit brings back the memory of a real event which happened in 1910 and involved the consecration ceremony held by a Lama. The story corresponds to a relatively recent event in Tuvan history (via the genre of oral tale), with reality and the world of beliefs closely intertwined. The old Tuvan belief in the Mistress of the Sacred Mountain here comes bundled with a belief in the prophecy made by a high-level Buddhist cleric.
Preserving the continuity of historical memory through such genres of Tuvan folklore as legends, tales, as well as literary non-fiction (memoirs, essays, etc.) is as important as studying this issue.
References
Vainshtein, S. I. (2009) Zagadochnaia Tuva. Moscow, Domashniaia gazeta. 416 p. (In Russ.)
Kuzhuget Balgan Lenchaevich — Kara-Khөldүң mergen өgbezi [Kuzhuget Balgan Lenchaevich — mudryi znatok Kara-Kholia] (2013), ed. Ch. S. Chondan. Kyzyl, Tipografiia KTsO «Anyiak». (In Tuv.)
Lamazhaa, Ch. K. (2013) Arkhaizatsiia obshchestva : Tuvinskii fenomen. Moscow, Knizhnyi dom «Librokom». 272 p. (In Russ.)
Mizhit, E. B. (2014) Maksim Munzuk. Moscow, Slovo. 318 p. (In Russ.)
Mify, legendy, predaniia tuvintsev (2010), ed. N. A. Alekseev, D. S. Kuular, Z. B. Samdan and Zh. M. Iusha. Novosibirsk, Nauka. (Pamiatniki fol'klora narodov Sibiri i Dal'nego Vostoka, vol. 28). 426 p. (In Russ.)
Mollerov, N. M. (2014) Innokentii Saf'ianov. Moscow, Slovo. 320 p. (In Russ.)
Salchak Toka (2014), ed. N. M. Mollerov, A. K. Kanzai, G. Ch. Shirshin and all. Moscow, Slovo. 540 p. (In Russ.)
Samdan, Z. B. (2013) Khrabryi khoomeizhi. In: Khөөmei tyva tooldarda [Khoomei v tuvinskikh skazkakh] Kyzyl. 348 p. Pp. 298–302. (In Russ.)
Suzukei, V. Yu. (2014) Vladimir Oskal-ool. Moscow, Slovo. 320 p. (In Russ.)
Uriankhai. Tyva depter (2007–2009): antologiia : in 7 vols., ed. S. K. Shoigu. Moscow, Slovo / Slovo. (In Russ.)
Shoigu S. K. (2007) Predislovie. In: Uriankhai. Tyva depter: antologiia : in 7 vol., ed. S. K. Shoigu. Moscow, Slovo / Slovo. Vol. 2. Plemena Saiano-Altaia. Uriankhaitsy (IV v. — nach. XX v.). 664 p. Pp. 8–11. (In Russ.)
Shoigu, K. S. (2004) Tannu-Tyva. Strana ozer i golubykh rek. Moscow, Redaktsionno-izdatel'skii Tsentr Assamblei narodov Rossii ; Izdatel'stvo «Novosti Tuvy». 216 p. (In Russ.)
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
Author Biography
Zoya B. Samdan, Tuvan Institute for the Humanities and Applied Socioeconomic Studies
Candidate of Philology, Senior Research Fellow, Sector of Folklore; Member, Union of Writers of Russia.
Postal address: 4 Kochetov St., Kyzyl, Republic of Tyva, Russian Federation 667000.
Author(s) license holder(s) grant rights for their work to the journal (grantee of a license) under the simple non-exclusive open license in accordance with Art. 1286.1 «Open license for a research work, work of literature or fine arts», Civil Code of the Russian Federation.
New Research of Tuva publishes articles under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial license (CC BY-NC).
Since it is an open license, author(s) reserve the right to upload the article to their institutional repository, submit it to another journal (if it allows republications), or republish it on their own website (in full, or in part).
However, several conditions apply here:
a) The republished version must always contain the name(s) and affiliation(s) of the author(s), the original title and the hyperlink to the original version on the New Research of Tuva website;
b) It must be in open access, free of charge, and no category of readers must be in any way whatsoever advantaged over general readership.
c) should the contribution be submitted elsewhere by its author(s) without substantial modification (30% or more of original text unchanged), the body of the article should contain a disclaimer that the original version was published in New Research of Tuva (with a link to the respective page)
The CC-BY-NC is a non-revocable license which applies worldwide and lasts for the duration of the work’s copyright.
