Archetype of Uruzmag image in the Nartic epic of Ossetians

Abstract

The article considers the archetype of the image of Uruzmag in epic stories of Ossetians about Nart. The archetype of Uruzmag's image, which belongs to the older generation of Narts heroes, goes back to the image of a mythological king/leader. The relevance of this study lies in the sacrality of the image under consideration, which acts as the central figure of the Nartic stories of Ossetians, the identification of the archetype of which gives an opportunity to present a holistic picture of the mythological structure of the epic. The scientific novelty of this article is that for the first time it is proposed to study the image of Uruzmag in an inextricable connection with the mythological system of the Nartic epic. The aim and purpose of the study is to identify the archetype of Uruzmag's image and to determine its role in epic stories. The study is carried out within the framework of a typological and comparative-historical method with elements of structural analysis. The archetype of Uruzmag's image goes back to that of a mythological king/leader. Many of the stories with the main character Uruzmag reflect the initiation motives in which he acts as the initiator. Special attention is paid to the semiotic analysis of the so-called marriage of the primaries through incest. The results of the study showed that the archetype of Uruzmag's image clearly demonstrates the three-part structure of the world model and contributes to the discovery of the mythological system of the Nartic epic of Ossetians. The author concludes that the initiation myths, in which Uruzmag himself is the initiator, demonstrate that he has acquired the status of senior/chief/king, he is in fact the king of the whole Nartic society. Uruzmag always shows his best qualities as a wise man and warrior, thus confirming his status as a leader, and in some stories acts as a cultural hero. Overcoming, unlike the rest of the narts, various trials, he comes out the winner every time, as a result of which the narts are forced to recognize his dominant role. Thus, the image of Nartic Uruzmag reflects the archetype of the mythological king/leader/elder. The author concludes that the study of the archetype of Uruzmag's image requires further, more in-depth and wide-ranging research not only on the basis of the Nartic epic of Ossetians, but also on the basis of epic stories of the Caucasus peoples about narts, which will allow to reveal both the national specificity of the image under consideration and its general typological features.

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