“Shchyogol” and “Shchap” in Russian Folklore

The article describes denominations denoting dandies in Russian folklore. The research is based on texts of Onega epics, historical songs and non-ritual lyrics recorded in different regions of Russia in the 19th century. We complied and analyzed lists of words denominating dandies and fashionistas in different folklore genres based on the lexicographic materials. The article demonstrates that the corpus of the lyrical songs in comparison with the other sources contains the greatest variety of lexemes under analysis, in which the noun shchyogol takes the central place. This word is the head of the expanded word-formation socket, comprising dialectal and specific folklore words. It is illustrated that in the Onega epics a fashionably dressed person is often called Shchap, and dandyism is characteristic of two epic heroes – Churila and Dyuk, who compete with each other. A similar plot connection is typical of historical songs, where lexemes denominating a fashionable person are found exclusively in the 17th century texts about Stenka Razin’s son. The article notes the usage features of the analyzed type of words and identifies the most frequent constructions. The author concludes about the existence of the general genre, intergenre and specific genre features in the usage of vocabulary that names and characterizes dandies in oral folklore art, and outlines prospects for further research.

words denominating dandies, folklore language, bylina, historical song, lyric song, genre specifics