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Mythological Characters of the Domestic Space in Russian Folk Beliefs: Lexicographic and Ethnographic Aspects*

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Mythological Characters of the Domestic Space in Russian Folk Beliefs: Lexicographic and Ethnographic Aspects* ETHNOLOGY DOI: 10.17746/1563-0110.2016.44.3.130-138 O.K. Ansimova1 and O.V. Golubkova2 1Novosibirsk State Technical University, Pr. K. Marksa 20, Novosibirsk, 630073, Russia E-mail: [email protected] 2Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, Siberian Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, Pr. Akademika Lavrentieva 17, Novosibirsk, 630090, Russia E-mail: [email protected] Mythological Characters of the Domestic Space in Russian Folk Beliefs: Lexicographic and Ethnographic Aspects* Russian mythological characters relating to the domestic space are described on the basis of folkloric, ethnographic, and lexicographic sources. The integration of evidence has revealed transformations undergone by views of male and female spirits (the domovoy and kikimora, respectively), allowing us to compare local beliefs and stories featuring them in urban and rural areas of Russia, and to reconstruct common Russian ideas of home spirits with reference to the notion of linguistic and cultural literacy. The results demonstrate that the idea of domovoy is quite popular even among urban dwellers, generally matching traditional Russian beliefs. The domovoy is believed to be a home and family patron, either invisible or small and shaggy, an old man or a cat, supposed to be entertained with food and invited when moving to a new home. Unlike the image of the domovoy, that of the kikimora has undergone substantial changes. Modern urban residents view the kikimora mostly as an untidy, ugly woman, sometimes called kikimora bolotnaya, the second word being an adjective of boloto (‘bog’), thus turning her into a forest rather than a domestic spirit. The idea of the kikimora as a home spirit is still held by villagers, who view her either as an undead being or as a bewitched item (doll). Domestic mythical characters, then, have changed without losing their topicality. Keywords: Russian mythology, lexicography, cultural literacy, folk beliefs, domovoy, kikimora, traditional culture. Introduction spaces of the house and yard. These characters differed in their locations, functions, and attitudes toward people, In the worldview of the Russians, the house was not and included the domovoy (‘house dwellers’), kikimora, just a dwelling place for people, but also the place dvorovoy (‘yard dwellers’), ovinnik (‘barn dwellers’), where mythological characters resided. Ethnographic gumennik (‘barnyard dwellers’), and bannik (‘bathhouse and folkloric sources of the 19th–first half of the dwellers’). There were also female modifi cations of home 20th century mention characters associated with the characters: domovikha, susedka, ovinnitsa, bannitsa (obderikha), etc. Some of them (domovoy, kikimora, *Supported by the Russian Science Foundation (Project bannik) have remained the popular subjects of oral non- No. 14-50-00036). fairytale prose and ethnographic materials of the late Archaeology, Ethnology & Anthropology of Eurasia 44/3 (2016) 130–138 Email: [email protected] © 2016 Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences © 2016 Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences © 2016 O.K. Ansimova and O.V. Golubkova 130 O.K. Ansimova and O.V. Golubkova / Archaeology, Ethnology and Anthropology of Eurasia 44/3 (2016) 130–138 131 20th–early 21st century; others (ovinnik, gumennik) have house is not a house, but an empty space if there is no lost their relevance owing to the disappearance of their domovoy; without the keeper it is bad for the people to live “habitation areas”. in the house, and the cattle do not live” (FMA, Novgorod In this article, we will discuss two mythological Region, Novosibirsk Region, and Omsk Region). It was characters of the domestic space, the domovoy and customary to gain the favor of the home spirit giving him kikimora. This choice is justifi ed, fi rstly, by their wide food, so he would be kind to house dwellers and contribute popularity among the urban population and in oral non- to proliferation of wealth and offspring of cattle (for more fairytale prose; secondly, by the functional and attitudinal details on the domovoy in the traditional Russian beliefs, opposition of these characters. The study is based on the see (Dal, 2008: 166–197; Maksimov, 1903: 31–50; following sources: fi eld materials (hereafter—FMA)*, Pomerantseva, 1975: 93–117; Vlasova, 1998: 139–159; which are the results of a questionnaire survey**, as well Vinogradova, 2000: 271–288; Levkievskaya, 2000: as ordinary dictionaries and dictionaries of linguistic 276–317; Krinichnaya, 2004: 26–245)). culture. In the lexicographic description of domovoy The Russian folk tradition knew many types of home and kikimora, it would be advisable to consider: a) their spirits: domovoy, khozyain (‘keeper of the house’), defi nition as mythological characters, b) the description dedushka (‘old man’), susedko (‘neighbor’), kormilets of the image (external appearance, typical actions, and (‘provider’), bolshak, domovik, domozhil, domozhir, attitude toward people), and c) the use of this unit for dobrozhil, domosedushko, zhikhar, zhitel, izbnoy, describing a person. This sequence makes it possible to lizun, gnetok, sysoy, batanushko, etc. (Dal, 2008: 166; form a suffi ciently complete notion of the domovoy and Cherepanova, 1983: 25, 58; Vlasova, 1998: 134, 139, kikimora as mythological characters, and to trace the 306). According to our own data, the urban residents most development of their images in the diachronic aspect. often called him “domovoy” or “domashniy khozyain” The concept of linguistic and cultural literacy is based (‘home keeper’). The name susedko was common on the idea of E.D. Hirsch concerning accountability and among the Russians living in the Urals, in the Tyumen accessibility of cultural knowledge (1988). It may be Region, in the Altai, and in Eastern Siberia; in other formulated as follows: there exists a certain amount of regions of Western Siberia (Novosibirsk Region, Omsk linguo-cultural knowledge, available for the carriers of a Region) and in European Russia (Leningrad Region, certain linguistic culture, needed for communication, and Novgorod Region, and Pskov Region), he is usually thus for research by the representatives of other cultures called “khozyain” or “domovoy”. In rural areas, older and in some cases by those of their own linguistic culture. people often tried to avoid the word “domovoy” referring The interdisciplinary approach for the study makes it to the spirit in a fi gurative manner: on (‘he’), sam (‘he possible to identify a complete picture of the contemporary himself’), khozyain (‘keeper’), or dedushka (‘old man’). notions about home spirits among the inhabitants of “He lives with us behind the stove; he would jump out Russia, and to offer effective lexicographic interpretation of there. Small, shaggy, we could not really see him of these units in terms of communication. well; he jumped out and immediately ran back” (FMA, Omsk Region). The domovoy was believed to have an anthropomorphic Domovoy (small man, short shaggy man, gray-haired old man, or the double of the home owner) or zoomorphic (cat, mouse, According to the materials of ethnography and folklore, the snake, rooster, dog, weasel, or bear) form. He could domovoy is a home spirit, generic ancestor, who protects have rudimentary phytomorphic features (the veiled the house, people, and cattle from possible misfortunes, image of a tree: wood stump, broom, coniferous branch thieves, witchcraft, and evil spirits. It was believed that “matka/matoshnik” were understood as emanations of the “without the domovoy, there is no life in the house; the domovoy) or fi re features (red shirt or hat, “fi ery eyes”, his localization in the chimney behind the stove, blue light as an attribute of the domovoy) (Krinichnaya, 2004: *These materials were collected by O.V. Golubkova 119–139). However, most frequently, this home spirit in the Novosibirsk Region, Omsk Region, Tyumen Region remained invisible, and his presence in the house was (the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug–Yugra, the Yamalo- manifested by sounds. If for no apparent reason doors Nenets Autonomous Okrug), Leningrad Region, Pskov Region, would bang, dishes would clink, the wind would howl in Novgorod Region, Vologda Region, Kirov Region, and the Altai the chimney, or things would get lost and then suddenly Territory from 1999–2015. **A survey of the residents of Novosibirsk, Moscow, found, people said that the domovoy was up to mischief. St. Petersburg, Omsk, Tomsk, Barnaul, and other cities, Being hairy and bearded were the common features of the conducted in 2015 by O.K. Ansimova and O.V. Golubkova domovoy. Since hair in folk beliefs was conceptualized as for identifying beliefs concerning the mythological characters a concentration of life and magical power, the hairiness of among urban residents. the home spirit was considered to be a pledge of prosperity 132 O.K. Ansimova and O.V. Golubkova / Archaeology, Ethnology and Anthropology of Eurasia 44/3 (2016) 130–138 and wealth. The meaning of hairiness of the domovoy was Something rattled in the kitchen, pots fell, the root cellar clearly manifested in yuletide fortunetelling, which was collapsed” (FMA, Novosibirsk Region). “The domovoy widely practiced in various regions of Russia. is the main person in the house. You need to honor him In rural areas (both in Siberia and in European Russia), like your parents. When I prepare commemoration of the domovoy was considered a protector of the house my parents, I also put out food for the domovoy” (FMA, and yard together with people and domestic animals. He Pskov Region). might dwell in several locations: behind the stove, in the According to fi eld data and the results of the survey, chimney, or in the pechurka (small niche in the stove the most common zoomorphic outlook of the domovoy wall), under the golbets (low box near the Russian stove was the image of the cat: “The keeper turns into a cat and which contained the passageway to the basement), under walks around the house at night; I have seen this many the fl oor, in the attic, in the cattle shed, or in the woodshed.
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