Old Russian Cultural Mark and a Missionary Topic in Grigory Novitsky Book A Brief Description of the Ostyak People (1715)

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Category: Hermeneutics of Old Russian Literature: Issue 25
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The study was completed with the support of the Russian Science Foundation No. 24-18-00856, https://rscf.ru/project/24-18-00856/, IRL RAS.
Abstract:

The work of Grigory Ilyich Novitsky A Brief Description of the Ostyak People of 1715 is known as the first ethnographic work in Russia. It describes the history, mythology and life of the Finno-Ugric peoples of Western Siberia. Despite the purely scientific status of the book, as it has been considered so far, A Brief Description of the Ostyak People contains many structural and figurative elements of a literary text: poetic inclusions, expressive style, an outstanding figure of the narrator, etc. These features allow us to study Novitsky’s book not only as a historical source, as has been customary in science until now, but also as a literary work. In the article, some elements of the apostolic-missionary theme reflected in A Brief Description of the Ostyak People are described, which allows us to identify the connection of the book with the Old Russian literary tradition. First of all, it is a frequent reference to the plots of the Life of Stephen of Perm, which means that the author strives to show his own status continuity in relation to the Zyryan apostle as the baptizer of the Finno-Ugric pagans. In addition, the analysis conducted allowed us to identify the author’s appeal to the literary tradition associated with the names of Saints Cyril and Methodius. Finally, numerous biblical quotations and allusions in the book indicate Novitsky’s orientation toward the figure of the Apostle Paul as a prototype of a Christian missionary.
Keywords: A Brief Description of the Ostyak People, Grigory Ilyich Novitsky, Stephen of Perm, Saints Cyril and Methodius, Paul the Apostle
Author: Artem E. Trofimov
Information about the author:

Artem E. Trofimov, Leading Librarian, Department of Manuscripts, Library of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Birzhevaia liniia St., 1, 199034 St. Petersburg, Russia.

https://orcid.org/0009-0009-8684-3781

E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
For citation:

Trofimov, A.E. “Old Russian Cultural Mark and a Missionary Topic in Grigory Novitsky Book ‘A Brief Description of the Ostyak People’ (1715).” Germenevtika drevnerusskoi literatury [Hermeneutics of Old Russian Literature]. Issue 25. Ed.-in-chief O.A. Tufanova, sci. ed. M.V. Kaplun. Moscow, IWL RAS Publ., 2026, pp. 699–718. https://doi.org/10.22455/HORL.1607-6192-2026-25-699-718 (In Russian)
EDN:

https://elibrary.ru/EIDVZW
UDC: 821.161.1.0
Publication Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.22455/HORL.1607-6192-2026-25-699-718

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