Chumack Folklore about the Plague (Based on the Records of the Ethnographic Commission at the VUAN

Abstract

The relevance of the article lies in the fact that for the first time the author analysed folk stories about the plague recorded during the expeditions of the Ethnographic Commission at the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences (UAAS). The author set out to comprehend the attitude of the Chumacks and their families to the dangerous disease; to analyse how the narratives constructed the social experience of the Chumack environment (building a picture of the plague, forming ideas about the “correct” behaviour when a person encounters the plague, transmitting knowledge about ways to prevent the disease, recording the emotions of those who encountered it). The article discusses the folk etymology of the word “chumack”.

A number of scientific methods were used to comprehensively analyse the folklore material. The descriptive method was used to record and systematize in detail the content of the analysed folk stories. The method of contextual analysis allowed us to interpret the stories in the cultural and historical context of the life of the Chumacks, their social practices, religious and mythological ideas, and historical realities. Elements of narrative analysis were used to study the peculiarities of narrative construction.

An analysis of folk tales about the plague revealed an ambivalent attitude toward the Chumacks because of their role in trade and the belief that they spread the disease, which is reflected in folk etymology. The personalized image of the plague (“blue girl”) embodied the folk horror of the disease, which was perceived as a ruthless external force. These perceptions inspired syncretic practices of counteracting the disease, combining archaic beliefs with Christian rites and magical actions.

The novelty of the article lies in the introduction of newly published folklore materials that represent the specifics of the oral tradition of the Zvenyhorod region. This allows us to expand the source base of folklore research and to identify certain aspects of ideas and ritual practices characteristic of the local tradition of a particular geographical region of Ukraine.

Folk stories about the plague are relevant material for further research. It is important to compare the stories recorded in the Zvenyhorod region with folk works about the plague from other regions of Ukraine. It would be interesting to compare folk stories about the plague with folklore texts about other diseases of the Chumacks or with narratives of other peoples to identify universal and specific features of the perception of dangerous diseases in traditional cultures.