Finno-Ugric world

Introduction. The Middle Volga region was under the dominance of Turkic peoples for an extended period before becoming part of the Russian Empire in the 16^th century. These historical circumstances significantly influenced all aspects of Mordovian life, as evidenced by the substantial number of Turkic and Russian loanwords in the language, including borrowed names for currency units. However, this layer of vocabulary has not been the subject of detailed study by historical linguists. The aim of this research is to trace the origins of Mordovian coin names and classify them into three etymological layers: Russian, Turkic, and Mordovian. 

Materials and Methods. The article analyzes the etymology of 19 currency unit names, drawing on data from Mordvinic dictionaries from the 19^th to the 21^st century. The study employs the historical-comparative method, which has made it possible to distinguish three etymological layers.

Results and Discussion. The Mordovian people established early contacts with the Turkic populations of the region. Through trade relations, the term tengge entered the Mordovian language as a designation for currency. While it ceased to function as a monetary unit in the early 20^th century, its plural form persists in the Russian language as dengi (money). Among Russian currency names, ruble and kopeck are commonly used in Mordovian, though research indicates that the Mordovian people were also familiar with and to some extent used the names of coins such as groshe, reshet, and treshnik, among others. Lexicographic analysis further reveals that certain words of Mordovian origin have either functioned or previously functioned as currency names. Examples include ašo (white), kičkeŕe (crooked), śav (awn), and čapo (notch). Particular attention is given to the Erzya word ur, which originally meant “squirrel”. Since squirrel pelts were used as a means of payment before the advent of formal monetary circulation, the term eventually acquired the meaning of “money”. A similar linguistic development is observed in other Finno-Ugric languages.

Conclusion. Further research on this issue should encompass the study of the etymology of currency names in other Finno-Ugric languages of Russia. Such an approach would provide a comprehensive understanding of the development of this lexical layer, the mechanisms and chronology of lexical borrowings, as well as the underlying motivations behind the naming of currency units.

Introduction. Despite the fact that the image of Russia in foreign discourse has repeatedly been the subject of scholarly attention, the Finno-Ugric material, including the peculiarities of travel notes and their modern counterpart (internet travel blogs), remains insufficiently explored. The aim of this study is to identify the key dominant elements that shape the perception of Russia in internet travel blogs by analyzing collocations with terms representing the country in Finnish.

Materials and Methods. The study is based on a subcorpus of Finnic-language internet travelogues about Russia, manually compiled from the internet using a full-sampling method. The corpus includes 31 texts, comprising a total of 24,288 word occurrences. The research employed discourse analysis methods, with sentiment analysis conducted automatically and text tone evaluated through expert assessment.

Results and Discussion. The analysis of collocations related to the concept of “Russia” revealed their axiological significance. The frequent use of the word form Venäjä (Russia) contributes to the stereotyping of the country as a cultural space for tourism, while also highlighting the de-stereotyping process through the personal experiences of travelers. The term Neuvostoliitto (Soviet Union) emphasizes the historical era. Sentiment analysis demonstrated the neutrality of the collocations, which together form a multifaceted image of Russia in online travel blogs.

Conclusion. The results of this study refine and complement research in the field of the representation of the concept of “Russia” in Finnish linguistic culture. The data obtained through sentiment analysis of contexts and their expert evaluation may be used in the further development of algorithms for automatic text sentiment analysis.

Introduction. In recent decades, scholars in Karelia have been actively conducting research on the toponymy and anthroponymy of the region. The reconstruction of lost Karelian names (both calendrical and non-calendrical) preserved in toponyms holds significant value in the context of cultural heritage preservation, which underscores the
relevance of this study. The aim of the research is to analyze the Karelian non-calendrical onomasticon based on the toponymic material from the Syamozerye area, where the Karelian-Livvik population resides.

Materials and Methods. The primary source of material for this research was the data from the scientific toponymic database of the Institute of Language, Literature, and History of the Karelian Research Centre of the Russian Academy of Sciences. In analyzing the etymology of toponyms, dialectal dictionaries of the Karelian language were employed. The preparation of the article utilized both descriptive methods and the method of onomastic etymology, which involves deciphering the origin of a toponym, i.e., identifying the corresponding lexeme of the language that either currently exists or once existed in the studied area.

Results and Discussion. The article analyzes the anthroponymic toponyms of the Syamozerye region, which stem from non-calendar Karelia names. The list comprises approximately 50 anthroponyms, predominantly male names, of which nearly half are zoonymic lexemes. Several anthroponymic toponymic stems with obscure etymologies are presented. The article discusses toponyms reflecting personal names and nicknames that denote negative traits of their bearers, as well as those derived from the names of fauna representatives. In addition to the national anthroponymicon, non-calendar names of Russian origin are also included. The anthroponyms are grouped into several lexical-
semantic categories: reflecting external human characteristics; derived from lexemes indicating human qualities, including traits of character and behavior; originating from terms denoting human lifestyles; expressed through fauna-related lexicon. For each anthroponym, toponymic examples are provided along with etymological explanations.

Conclusion. The study of anthroponymy holds significant historical and cultural value. The analysis conducted and its findings will find application in Baltic-Finnish onomastics, including the compilation of toponymic dictionaries and lecture courses on the toponymy of Karelia. The etymology of many Sjamozersk-related anthroponymic toponyms and microtoponyms remains unclear and awaits further investigation in future studies.

Introduction. The religious policy of the Soviet atheist state underwent several transformations between the 1940s and the 1980s. The religious “thaw” of the early post-war years was replaced by renewed pressure on the Church in the late 1950s. In Karelia, these processes had distinct characteristics shaped by its borderland position, proximity to Finland, and the presence of Finnish Lutherans within the republic’s population. At the same time, Karelia was traditionally regarded as a region with a predominance of Orthodox believers, which led researchers to focus primarily on the Orthodox history of the area. This article aims to examine the impact of Karelia’s borderland status on the region’s religious landscape.

Materials and Methods. The article is based on newly introduced archival documents from the State Archive of the Russian Federation and the National Archive of the Republic of Karelia. Additionally, it draws on materials from documentary collections and local literature addressing issues of religious life in the republic during the second half of the 20^th century. These sources provide a well-substantiated perspective on state-church and interfaith relations in Karelia. The study’s methodological framework incorporates both general scientific methods (systems approach, the principle of historicism, analysis and synthesis, generalization) and specialized historical methods (historical-genetic, chronological, and historical-comparative approaches).

Results and Discussion. The interconnection between state-church relations and the republic’s border location was identified, which led to heightened vigilance by the authorities regarding the activities of various religious communities and a desire to use the church to shape a positive image of the USSR on the international stage. A distinctive feature of external relations with Finland was the involvement not only of Lutheran representatives but also of Orthodox clergy, which strengthened interfaith cooperation. The unified anti-religious orientation of policy during the 1940s to 1980s allowed different denominations to perceive each other more as allies than theological rivals, using their presence on the international stage as a means of exerting pressure on the domestic government.

Conclusion. The article explores the role of an external factor that significantly influenced the religious situation in a border region, offering a better understanding and evaluation of the outcomes of the state’s overall policy and its evolution during the 1940s to 1980s. The assessment of the impact of the growing influx of foreign tourists in the 1970s on the religious landscape appears to be especially relevant, as does the consideration of the topic within the context of the retrospective turn in Soviet culture (interest in church architecture, iconography, etc.). Further research into this issue could be pursued through a more in-depth study of the religious practices of the population and the internal dynamics of religious organizations, areas of increasing interest due to the upcoming 800^th anniversary of the Christianization of the Karelians in 2027.

Introduction. The late 1990s and early 2000s marked a new phase in the development of the Mari traditional religion and its clergy. At present, sacred grove prayers are held annually in the Republic of Mari El, with Mari kartas (priests) playing a pivotal role in sustaining this tradition. Analyzing the current ethno-religious landscape from an evolutionary perspective (tradition) or a revolutionary one (New Age) necessitates an examination of historical narratives. Scholarly works addressing the activities of the clergy within the Mari traditional religion in the 20^th century remain scarce, particularly concerning the several decades following the end of World War II. The aim of this study is to identify the distinctive features of the institutional development of the Mari traditional religious clergy in the 1950s–1960s.

Materials and Methods. The research object is the ritual component of Mari ethno-religion, while the subject is its institutional framework - the priesthood - encompassing the nomenclature of religious officiants, hierarchical structure, functional responsibilities, and the specific features of ceremonial attire. The study is based on materials from the scholarly manuscript collection of the Scientific Library of the V. M. Vasilyev Mari Research Institute of Language, History, and Literature. In the course of the research, the author adhered to the principle of historicism and employed source analysis of documentary materials. The study also utilized general scientific methods, including analysis, synthesis, and comparison.

Results and Discussion. The source material documents atypical designations for priests, instances of replacing traditional customs with civil holidays and their subsequent entrenchment in village life, as well as the incorporation of new celebrations into Mari culture, accompanied by transformations of older ritual practices. At the same time, while traditional religious rites were still preserved during the studied period, their execution began to undergo significant modifications. These included the absence of ceremonial vestments among priests, the performance of ritual sacrifices not by clergy but by lay participants, and the delegation of sacred functions to women. Despite the continued presence of ritual practices within the autochthonous Mari religion in the 1950s–1960s, a pronounced crisis within the traditional religious system emerged during this period and intensified in subsequent decades. This crisis manifested in the weakening of the institutional foundations of the clergy, including the degradation of mechanisms ensuring the transmission of sacred knowledge and the partial alteration of prayer rituals.

Conclusion.  The work clarified the data on the peculiarities of the development of the institute of ministers of cult of the traditional Mari religion; the processes that influenced the change of the ethno-religious situation in the Mari ASSR in 1950–1960s.

Introduction. For national researchers, the translation of media and literary texts holds significant scholarly interest; however, the study of translation techniques has not been a primary focus within Finno-Ugric studies. This article specifically examines the translation process as its central subject. The objective of the study is to explore scholars’ perspectives on the concept of “translation” and to analyze the dynamics of translational equivalence in Mordovia within the context of literature and printed media from the late 18^th to the 20^th century.

Materials and Methods. The study is based on the works of domestic researchers dedicated to examining the origins and development of Mordovian literature and the translation process. The practical section of the article focuses on analyzing publications related to translation activity, aiming to reconstruct a comprehensive picture of translation craftsmanship in the Mordovian region. The research employs traditional analytical methods, including retrospective, textological, and comparative-historical approaches, to identify transformations within the literary and translation processes.

Results and Discussion. The authors have conducted a pioneering comprehensive study of the Mordovian translation process within the context of literature and print media at the turn of the century. The research examines theoretical works on translation studies, identifies the stages of formation and development of the Mordovian translation process, and presents a comparative analysis of literary and journalistic texts from periodicals. The authors conclude that translation plays a crucial role in the dissemination and popularization of the language within the informational space.

Conclusion. The practical significance of this article lies in its potential application in the teaching of philological disciplines at the university level, as well as in the work of regional journalists. Future research prospects are associated with the study of the contemporary period and the analysis of methods for presenting translated information across various types of media.