Suchergebnisse

Jewish ethnology of modern post-Soviet Republic of Moldova is a young science. Over the past thirty years, it has had to catch up with world ethnological science, filling gaps in the study of Jewish history, including the Pogrom and the Holocaust, and in Jewish education, and in Jewish philosophy, and in archivism, etc. Field research practically remained outside of scientific interests and opportunities. And only in recent years this line of research has become more active, primarily in projects for mapping and studying Jewish cemeteries held by the authors. During the period 2019–2022, findings that significantly clarify the history of the Jews in Moldova were made in Chisinau, Soroca, Onițcani (Criuleni), Iagorlâc, Gherșunovka (both – the left bank of Dniester River), and others. Each of these finds, most of which are dated back to the 18th century – a period, much less studied from a Jewish point of view – opens a new page in the Jewish history of Moldova and gives impetus to new research, both historical and field, epigraphic.

It is well known that worsening of economic situation leads to pauperization of the population and deterioration in food quality, what in turn negatively affects the physical and mental health of people. In this regard, it is particularly relevant to study the problems of correlation between traditional nutrition together with the modern food practices and the standards of healthy nutrition. The aim of the study is to determine the role of traditional nutrition and modern food practices with regard to the health of the population of the Republic of Moldova. One of the main tasks is to define the scale of maintaining traditional nutrition by different ethnic communities of Moldova. The essence of the interdisciplinary approach is that, along with the approaches and methods customary for ethnology, it is planned to use some elements from the field of medicine, dietology and nutritiology in the future study. For example, the list of tasks includes identification of the new products and the new food practices in daily nutrition of the population, as well as calculation of calories consumed and their further comparison with the standards of healthy eating. This study will demonstrate the fact that the subject field of ethnology continues to expand and provides opportunities for new interdisciplinary research.

The article for the first time in Romanian examines the Jewish ethnological aspect of the history of law in the Russian Empire. The authors, using specific primary material of legislative acts, as well as other historical sources, investigate the history of the appearance of Jews within the borders of the Russian Empire, the history of the creation and functioning of the Jewish Pale of Settlement and the evolution of the official attitude towards them. The authors reveal three fundamental positions on which the entire policy of the Russian Empire regarding the Jews was built: Jews within the Russian Empire have the right to settle only in certain regions; they are attached to the kahals (later – Jewish societies), which are collectively responsible to the state; taxes from Jews are higher than from other citizens of the empire, regardless of their economic status. The particular study is devoted to the short period of liberalization in the first years of the reign of Alexander I, whose "Polojenie o evreiah" at the declarative level gave Jews almost equal rights with the rest of the citizens of the Empire and encouraged them to cultural and economic integration.. The research focuses as well on the regional aspect: history, population, territories of the modern Republic of Moldova and Romania. The chronological framework of this article is from the beginning of the reign of Catherine the Great (1762) to the creation of the Bessarabian region (1818). In the future the study will continue historically, until the collapse of the Russian Empire and the abolition of the Pale of Settlement

The noetic system of concepts based on the thesis that ethics is originally immanent to the mythological consciousness is centered on studying the spiritual and existential manifestations of man. The term "noetic" used here implies "spiritual" in the existential aspect, in the anthropological sense not in the theological one. The mythological consciousness is defined as everything existentially significant in the depths of the unconscious, including intuition, and everything in the verbalized part of consciousness, which is conditioned by it. The system is intended for revealing and comprehending the implicit content of the activity of the mythological consciousness, highlighting the harmonizing (ethicizing) aspect of this activity, its inclination to meaningfulness/ethics, or, on the contrary, its de-harmonizing aspect or confrontation with ethics. A special system of key concepts and their definitions complies with the noetic system. The following issues have been used for their development: hermeneutical phenomenological examination of intuitions of the mythological consciousness; ideas belonging to prominent thinkers; ethno-cultural specifics. The noetic system applied to ethnology can be regarded as: a sort of development of C. Geertz's ideas of noetic experience; an innovative way of sharing it; a tool for identifying the intrinsic meanings of ethnic experience and their verbalization. Examples of their identification in the upbringing of Moldovan Jews are provided.

The study focuses on the detailed analysis of the multidimensional achievements obtained by the promoters of the Emancipation and Reawakening Movement of Roma from Romania, which were covered in 15 issues of the newspaper "Glasul Romilor" (The Voice of the Roma) (1934–1941). Starting from 1933, the call for the unity of the Roma (gypsy) nation has been widely propagated by the "first emancipated and reawakened" Roma leaders; this "social and cultural outbreak" could be considered a crucial compartment in the History of the Roma in Romania. On November 15, 1934, in the first issue of the newspaper "Glasul Romilor", the 15 objectives of the Roma Emancipation and Reawakening Program, developed by the leaders of the Association "General Union of Roma from Romania" were presented "for the accessible understanding of all Roma". Based on the detailed analysis of 15 issues of the newspaper "Glasul Romilor" (1934–1941), 38 multidimensional achievements obtained by the members of the Association "General Union of Roma from Romania" in four areas of activity: cultural, economic, social and national, were highlighted. The two priority areas in which the protagonists of the Roma Emancipation and Reawakening Movement revealed their activity were: Cultural (14 achievements) and Social (10 achievements); (24/38 = 63%). The most essential result from the point of view of the strengthening of the Roma ethnic identity was the proliferation of the history of the Roma to reveal the unknown origin of this historical and cultural community. Accordingly, in the interwar period, the Roma leaders claimed through public request the promotion of a "non-minority" autochthonous status for the Roma community on the Romanian territory.

The article considers for the first time the ritual rounds of bringing dinner (носіння вечері) on the Holy Evening by the Ukrainians of the Republic of Moldova from an ethnolinguistic point of view in the semantic unity of verbal and non-verbal units, compositionally united (according to V. Konobrodskaya) by a common thematic and cultural origin. Relying on the field materials collected personally in 53 settlements of compact and dispersed residence of Ukrainians on the territory of the republic, literature and sources, the author analyzed the dictum content of the pagan-Christian by their origin rounds with the dinner (вечеря), their semantics and motives, including such unique ones as rounds with a ritual tree (деревце́ м/крачко́ м), decorated with anthropomorphic pastries in the form of a doll (ля́ лька). Investigated in the unity of the verbal, temporal, local, actional and substantive aspects, the rounds with the dinner, within the specified geographical coordinates, demonstrate: 1) their deep rootedness in Ukrainian traditional culture; 2) a high degree of their preservation and viability; 3) continuity of traditions; 4) the desire to preserve their linguistic, cultural identity, and Ukrainian identity on the borderland. The partially analyzed names of Proto-Slavic, Old Russian and Ukrainian origin with a noticeable layer of Romance borrowings reflect the original cultural heritage of Ukrainians in Moldova and centuries-old contacts with Eastern Romans.

This article has attempted, using the example of one Italian dynasty that settled in Bessarabia, to show the transformation of the ethnic consciousness of its descendants. In the second half of the 19th century, the emigration of Italians to Bessarabia was not as active as it was in Romania, for example, or in the Crimea. Nevertheless, Italian citizens who decided to emigrate to Bessarabia in search of a better life, and in our case, this is about the Basso family, stayed here forever, linking their lives with this region. Even if they were not deported, as, for example, the Italians of the Crimea, social upheavals, two world wars could not but affect their destinies, ethnic and religious identity. Many of Basso's descendants continue to keep in touch with their Italian relatives. Periodically, scholars, journalists, entrepreneurs come from Italy to meet with the Moldavian descendants of Basso within the framework of the ethno-cultural Italian community. Today, many of Basso's descendants have not retained their Italian citizenship, registering themselves as Romanians, Moldavians, Ukrainians, Russians. However, there are exceptions, when several descendants of Basso managed to regain Italian citizenship, move to the historical homeland of their ancestors and integrate into the modern Italian community

In this article, using the methodology of ethnological research of literary texts, the significance and specificity of artistic prose in the study of the axiological features of the institution of the Russian family in Soviet Moldova is substantiated. The artistic prose of Soviet Moldavia is presented for the first time as a source of ethnological discourse, reflecting the picture of the traditional system of values (both Russian and Moldavian), consistently formed on the basis of Christian morality by previous generations. The specifics of the historical and demographic features of the development of the family institution in the MSSR are analyzed, where the concepts of the Russian and Soviet families in this period converge and become interconnected; the concept of "Soviet family" is stipulated. Separate axiological features of the development of the institution of the Soviet family in the MSSR (family values and the nature of relations in the family) are considered on the basis of the novels of Russian writers L. Mishchenko "Wormwood – Widow's Grass", L. Latyeva "Divorce" and the story of the Moldavian prose writer A. Lupan "Valencha". An important aspect of the work highlights the world of family values in the women's prose of Soviet Moldova: through the confrontation of the social narrative and the author's intention.

The Church of the Nativity of the Mother of God in Brănești, Orhei district, built between 1911–1928, is located not far from the center of the village. There is a cemetery around it, where very old Moldovan families can be found, but also a place where Germans were buried after a bloody battle during the Second World War. The church is built of stone extracted from the limestone mines on the outskirts of the village. It represents a Russian architectural style, combined with traditional Moldovan motifs and ornaments. The axial-longitudinal plan of the church is composed of three parts: the square vestibule (narthex), the central rectangular nave and the faceted altar. A two-tiered belfry rises above the pronaus of the Church, which is the main compositional focus of the ecclesiastical complex. The sides of the belfry are enriched with arched openings, and the crowning part of the belfry is represented by a tetrahedral geometric element with a spacious dome. The laconic, even dry interpretation of the volume of the building is enriched with decorative elements, and attention is paid to the entrance to the Church yard. At the entrance to the Church, a profiled arch and a triangular pediment are carved in stone above the door.

This article is devoted to the mechanisms of influence used by the Soviet authorities in the early years of the Soviet occupation of Bessarabia for the depreciation and rejection of the ancestral cultural heritage and the establishment of new ways of life. In the 40-s. XXth the governing bodies of the CPSU and the PCM adopt numerous directives and provisions aimed at establishing new mechanisms of influence on all inhabitants of the Moldovan SSR, regardless of ethnic characteristics, language, customs, traditions, holidays. All secular history is forgotten. In order to compare the accuracy of historical documents and the statements of the Soviet press, a comparison is made with the situation that existed in our lands during the years 1918–1940 when Bessarabia was part of Romania. Under the new Soviet regime, traditional culture was considered a legacy of the past that could not be preserved in a new society. A vehement campaign is undertaken on the history, the Romanian language, the monuments of history and culture, the traditional way of life, imposing new ways of cultural expression that would glorify and support the Soviet system.

In Romanian folklore, the personified Plague has the image of an evil creature that devours people without mercy, eating them literally. The demonic face of the plague, with its skeletal appearance in iconographic art, comes to feed the phobias of people, frightened by the fatal weapons of the plague: sword, scythe or sickle. Two diametrically opposed perceptions of the impact of the Plague on people's lives persist in folklore sources. According to the first, the plague is relentless and devastating, killing people despite their attempts to corrupt it through generous gifts. The second perception, however, offers a ray of hope to people by applying remedies of magical medicine and by facing the plague based on ingenious actions, undertaken by simple and extremely resourceful people. And if in the case of the first perception a state of mind marked by fatalism and despair predominates, then in the case of the second, the prospects of facing the Plague are optimistic and life-giving. The dialogues of the central heroes with the Plague from which both phobias and multiple prejudices and superstitions of people emerge are quasi important in folklore sources. However, the plague is fooled by a shepherd who knows some effective health measures to eradicate the disease. The method of the heroine from the legend of "The Sun and the Swallow" proves to be just as effective when the Plague literally cracked the enormous amount of milk she drank.

The Soviet power sought to liquidate the old traditions and to invent revolutionary ones, as well as to transform some Christian traditions into communist ones in order to constitute a new culture – of Soviet type. Following the analysis of winter traditions in the MSSR that involved children, we conclude that the transformation of the tradition took place only in the official calendar, due to which it could not decisively influence the formation of the ethnocultural identity of the young generation. Despite all the efforts of the political factor, the traditional calendar could not be changed. Regardless of the hostile political and ideological environment, the attachment of the population to traditions, customs, and the Christian Orthodox faith has not been liquidated. The sustainability of the traditions in the consciousness of the society prevented their displacement; they were partially filled with some elements with ideological content. The influence of the environment – partly of the atheist propaganda on behalf of the school and children's organizations and the religious propaganda on behalf of the family – formed a duplicitous attitude towards religion, forcing children to secretly follow religious cultures. The children found themselves caught between two contradictory worlds: the official Soviet world and the traditional environment from which they originated (family, village, relatives). Authentic values ultimately prevailed spiritually.

In the presented article, an attempt was made to fill in the information about a well-known person in our republic, a dancer, choreographer, writer and leader of the Roma social movement, this is Pavel Andreichenko. New facts and testimonies found on the pages of the republican press testify to the versatility of the talent of this outstanding representative of the Roma people. Many years ago we wrote about P. Andreichenko as the author of one book – "Ten notebooks in the squares", which told about the difficult fate of the entire gypsy people, who experienced humiliation and deprivation for many centuries, and in the XXth century experienced a real genocide. Pavel Andreichenko entered the history of the Roma people living in the Republic of Moldova by the fact that he was one of the first to appeal to the local authorities for help in creating a gypsy theater, opening gypsy schools, and an interest club for children and youth. In addition, Pavel Andreichenko was one of the first to speak in an interview about the mass execution of gypsies in Chisinau (near the districte "Old Post Office"). It was here, on this spot, he wanted to erect a monument to Roma children and adults, the victims who fell during the Second World War. It seems to us that the experience of social activity of the "Space Gypsy Pasha", as Emil Loteanu once called him, can serve as an example for his followers, young activists and leaders of the Roma social movement, who have taken on the noble mission of making the dreams and aspirations of Pavel Andreichenko come true.

In the article an attempt was made to analyze the symbolic meaning of the traditional home of the Gagauz people, which has reached us in a transformed form. Fragments of the realization of the symbolic image of separate parts of the house (walls, roof, oven, doors, threshold, windows, chimney were presented in the image of the Gagauz world. The semiotics of these significant parts of the home is related to their boundary function. According to popular beliefs, the boundary of the house is designed for isolation and protecting its inhabitants from the outside world. Being at the boundary between the external world ("foreign") and internal ("his"), doors, thresholds and windows become carriers of protective functions, representing the boundary between worlds, the connection and separation of spaces, as well as the connection between them. The symbolic meaning of the house and its parts are revealed in the daily life of the Gagauz people, in calendar and family customs and rituals. The article is written in the ethnolinguistic key, the semiotic analysis of the elements of the house was carried out on the basis of family and calendrical customs and rituals, popular beliefs, folklore and mythological texts, recorded by the author and available in the Gagauz ethnographic literature, as well as based on cultural terminology on this topic.

The family traditions of the Old Believers are inextricably linked with church customs, which contributes to the preservation of morality, spiritual health and the viability of the community. In the pre-wedding period, young men and girls, naturally, sought to communicate, to get to know each other better, to pick up a mate, and for this there were various pretexts and methods (parties "vecherinki", entertainment for the Easter holidays, when they hung a swing, etc.). In urban areas, they also met in the church. The article presents the traditional features of matchmaking (there were no special matchmakers, if the bride agreed, she gave a pledge – an embroidered scarf, etc.) and wedding (putting a "kichka" on the bride and breaking the glass from which the bride and groom drank, etc.) among the Old Believers of Moldova. A lot has changed and simplified over the past few decades. Some of the traditions have been preserved, but often in a different form. The departure from wedding rituals "in the old way" accelerated starting from the 70s and 80s. The article highlights the difficulties associated with the existence of a ban on creating a family with relatives "by blood" or "by cross" up to the seventh generation. As a result, marriages with people of a different nationality have ceased to be rare (however, they must accept the Old Believer faith).