Hermeneutics of Old Russian Literature Hermeneutics of Old Russian Literature 1607-6192 2713-2226 IWL RAS https://doi.org/10.22455/HORL.1607-6192-2026-25-473-501 Research Article Articles Female Agency in Epic: a Cultural-status Typology in Old Russian Tradition and the Armenian Sasna C’rer Ani Petrs-Bartsumia old-rus@imli.ru 2026 25 473 501 Copyright © 2026, IWL RAS 2026 The article analyzes female figures in Old Russian sources (byliny, The Primary Chronicle, The Tale of Igor’s Campaign, and The Tale of Peter and Fevronia) and in the Armenian epic Sasna C’rer. These figures are viewed as part of the mechanisms that shape cultural memory and national character. Instead of functional classifications that reduce women to “helpers” or “rewards” for the male hero, the study proposes a cultural-status typology with three categories: normative, liminal, and transgressive. 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