The epic mythological tradition in folklore of the Turkish Circassians


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Pashtova M., Unarokova R., Hakunova E.

ВЕСТНИК АДЫГЕЙСКОГО ГОСУДАРСТВЕННОГО УНИВЕРСИТЕТА. СЕРИЯ 2: ФИЛОЛОГИЯ И ИСКУССТВОВЕДЕНИЕ, vol.4, no.187, pp.219-225, 2016 (Peer-Reviewed Journal)

Abstract

The authors of the paper analyze the forms of epic mythological texts in the folklore of the Circassian diaspora of Turkey using their field recordings. The epic mythological (Nart) tradition (cosmogony, lays and legends of heroes) is represented in the folklore of Anatolia Circassians with comparatively small range of oral texts. However, their special value is destitution of the influence of bookish and media culture. The first aim of the paper is to objectivize the original folklore monuments which were not conserved alive around the historical area. The second one is to outcrop the special features of their being and their social and pragmatic functions conditioned by living outside the historical territory. The epic mythological genres of the Circassian folklore are under view in the said aspects for the first time. The field methods are as follows: the affiliated surveying and informal conversation or interview; audio and video recording and journal notes. The methods of processing the materials include typological comparison, structural, functional and pragmatic analyses.

Keywords: CIRCASSIANS, NARTS, EPOS, MYTHOLOGY, DIASPORA FOLKLORE, TEXT, VERSION, VARIANT