Article

Name: Motives of Good Wishes in the Rites of the Children’s Cycle of Tuvans of China, Russia and Mongolia

Authors: Zh. M. Yusha

Institute of Philology SB RAS Novosibirsk, Russian Federation

In the section The Plot in Literature and Folklore

Abstract: In the ritual folklore of the Tuvans of China, Russia and Mongolia, the main verbal component of the rituals of the children’s cycle is good wishes, which functions from the beginning to the end of each rite. The article identifies twelve motives of good wishes uttered in the structure of the rituals of the children’s cycle. These motives of good wishes contain traditional moral and ethical values, in which cultural symbols, mythological representations and the main priorities of Tuvan culture are presented in a short and concise form. Each motive of good wishes is analyzed in detail from the point of view of semantics, structure and pragmatics of the ritual practice of Chinese, Russian and Mongolian Tuvans. It is established that these motives of good wishes depend on a range of factors: the specific ritual situation, the purpose and meaning of the ritual, the gender and age characteristics of the recipient of the ritual. Nine of them (longevity, fate, respect, human vitality, physical qualities of the child, well- being, education, service to the Motherland, gaining skills) are characteristic only in the rites of the child’s cycle, because in these rituals the future life of the child, the recipient of good wishes, “forms” with the help of verbal elements. The other three motives (blissful state, strengthening the strength of the spirit and the presence of numerous relatives), except for the rituals of the children’s cycle, are used as good wishes in the wedding ceremony. The analysis shows that the ritual texts of the Tuvans of China, Russia and Mongolia in the structure of the rituals of the children’s cycle have largely preserved the ancient layer of common Tuvan folklore, which still has an authentic performance. In the texts of good wishes, mythological ideas about the well-being and fate of the child, the invocation of a prosperous life for him, as well as modeling the life path of the child are common. Enclave traditions to a greater extent have a single fund of good wishes, common features compared to the mother field are observed in them. According to the compositional structure in the good wishes of Chinese Tuvans, in comparison with other ethnolocal Tuvan groups, the stable formula “let it be a blessing” applies. The obtained results can be applied for further comparative research in the field of Tuvan folklore.

Keywords: Tuvan folklore, motives of good wishes, rites of the children’s cycle, enclave traditions, mother’s field

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