TYPES OF SPACE IN MARI VERBAL CHARMS
Natalia Glukhova1*, Elina Guseva2
1Prof. Dr., Mari State University, The Russian Federation, gluhnatalia@mail.ru
2Assist. Prof. Dr., Mari State University, The Russian Federation, elina_guseva@rambler.ru
*Corresponding author
Abstract
The main aim of this paper which constitutes a part of a separate research into images, symbols and values of Mari esoteric texts is to reveal and describe space types lying on the base of the system of spatial images and symbols in Mari verbal charms. 428 texts are the object of the investigation; the subject of study is their lexical level. The research results are based on the material from several field expeditions to the territories of compact Mari settlements in the Republic of Mari El as well as on the collections of texts published by local ethnographers and foreign scholars.
Mari verbal charms being ancient unique texts constitute a significant part of Mari ethnic culture. They also contain multilateral information on people’s life, folk medicine, and ideas on supernatural. The first recording of Mari esoteric texts were carried out at the end of the 19th - the beginning of the 20th centuries. In the 20th century native ethnographers wrote down texts of charms accompanying the collection by the description of the ritual. Nevertheless there were no separate works dedicated to the study of different aspects of these texts. Particular interest to the collection, publication and research into text characteristics of Mari verbal formulas appears since the 1990s of the 20th century.
However, the analysis of scientific literature of the beginning of the 21st century shows that conducted research of charms is clearly not enough to present a complete picture of the complexity and versatility of this type of folklore genre. Therefore addressing the issue of esoteric texts and practices at the beginning of the 21st century is explained by a number of lacunae in the study of religious and ritual texts, which demonstrate the indisputable need for comprehensive studies of an interdisciplinary nature. One of these gaps in the Mari folklore studies is the lack of investigation of vital data for the ethnic group about the spatial characteristics present in the texts of Mari verbal charms.
The space has geographical and climatic characteristics. Staying in one kind of space for a long period of time forms the character of the individual, and long-term living in the same landscape conditions can form ethnic space perception. The space perceived subjectively differs from the three-dimensional "physical" space, since it is much smaller. The volume of the perceived space, being an integral parameter, can be one of the important psychological factors in its perception. In this paper the stress is laid on the space types used in Mari verbal charms which create ethnic images and symbols of space. They are revealed with the help of the theory of system analysis (text is a systemic, hierarchically structured unit, consisting of a number of elements), which is supplemented by the use of factor (types of space) and statistical types of analysis. The algorithm of the research includes the eight steps the most important of which are four: a definition of space types; a calculation of the probability of space type (factor) usage (the preparation of the table); ranking of factors in descending order of probability(the preparation of the diagram); summaries and conclusion.
Keywords: Mari verbal charms, space types, ethnic space perception, factor and statistical types of analysis
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