Монголоведение (Dec 2022)
Expedition Materials of Ts.-D. Nominkhanov, 1924–1925: A Comparative Analysis of Wedding Rites Practiced by Dorbets of Western Mongolia and Those of Russia (Kalmykia)
Abstract
Introduction. The article discusses wedding traditions of Western Mongolian Dorbets — and Kalmyk Dorbets of Russia. The point is that before the 17th century those had been constituting a single Oirat ethnic community further divided across differing states with differing ethnic environments and lifestyles. Materials and methods. The paper analyzes 1924–1925 field data of Ts.-D. Nominkhanov pertaining to wedding rituals of Mongolia’s Dorbets, these be compared to descriptions of traditional wedding rites observed among Dorbets of Bolshederbetovsky Ulus (Stavropol Governorate) by I. Bentkovsky in 1869, and of those practiced by Dorbets of Maloderbetovsky Ulus (Astrakhan Governorate) and published by I. Zhitetsky in 1893. Special attention is also paid to publications of researchers to have examined wedding rites of Western Mongolian Dorbets, such as Ts. Ayuush, Ts. Baasandorj, A. Ochir, K. Vyatkina, and V. Darbakova. The study employs the descriptive and comparative research methods. Results. The conducted analysis asserts a structural similarity of wedding rites practiced by Dorbets of Western Mongolia and Kalmyk Dorbets of Russia. Despite the centuries-long isolation from related Oirat communities, the Kalmyks had retained the original set of wedding rites to the 19th century. The absence of references or descriptions of any particular rite gives no ground to assert the latter never existed, since the sources of information about wedding rites of Kalmyk Dorbets are somewhat fragmentary and scattered. The analysis of Ts.-D. Nominkhanov’s materials suggests those deal with the most significant wedding rites and rituals. In general, the following similarities can be traced in wedding rites of the Dorbets: allegory expressed via symbolism of certain ritual actions, use of white kerchiefs and khatags to formalize the establishment of family relations, importance of dairy products and their derivatives as ones with sacred meanings, preservation of ancestor and fire cults, vestiges of matrilocality traced in rites of the groom’s inauguration.
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