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The article considers the linguistic and communicative nature of an apology (a request for forgiveness) as a corrective action that is aimed at preventing or mitigating conflict. By analyzing speech situations from Russian and Austrian culture and their illustrations in literary sources, it is established that apology occupies an intermediate position between performative and non-performative utterance. There have been recorded the situations, where even serious damage can be removed by an apology or an apology in combination with compensation. There are three categories of apologies: metacommunicative, conventional and substantive apologies. The latter two are described in the article. The hypothesis of the study is substantiated by the thesis that the apology depends not only on the severity of the damage, but also on the traditions of culture and peculiarities of the communicative situation. This issue is one of the insufficiently studied questions of linguistics. The article allocates the cultural universals of apologetic speech actions and culturally specific features of apology situations in Russian and Austrian cultures. It is shown that in the sphere of politics, even decades after the infliction of serious harm, a sincere apology for an insult or violation of the norms of behavior, uttered by the responsible person or his descendant, can be the basis for improving inter-state relations.

Copyright of Two Homelands / Dve Domovini is the property of Scientific Research Centre of Slovenian Academy of Sciences & Arts and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The article is an attempt to answer the question whether there is a cultural specificity of humour not in form and content, but in the context of pragmatics. Discussing humour from the point of view of its orientation to the addressee, we can distinguish three main options described by the Russian philosopher V. S. Solovyov in connection with humour, these are relations to the highest, to the equal, and to the lowest. Considering that such a simplified scheme exhausts all possible vectors of constructing a message according to the method of interpretation of the addressee (as higher, as lower, as equal), such a seemingly simple classification, however, determines not only the narrative position, but also the content and form of the message, as well as sets other restrictions. The scheme of relations (vectors) rooted in culture and reproduced by it determines not only how a humorous message is constructed, but also in many respects the readiness of the addressee for an adequate reaction in the form of laughter, and whether the author of the humorous message expects this reaction. Thus, one of the tasks of the article is an attempt to explain the specifics of the (unsuccessful) humorous interaction between the carriers of subjects and objects of power. Russian culture is the focus of the article, which is based on Russian sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modern contemporary criticism undertakes new methods to create attractive and widely readable texts. The author of the hereby article attempts to identify innovative trends in Russian literary criticism texts published in prestigious magazines. Russian literary magazines are commonly regarded as the highest intellectual indicator of Russian culture. Nevertheless, recent texts published in literary magazines imply aggression, invectives and various linguistic elements typical for unprofessional critical discourse. Therefore, there appeared the need to analyse new ideas altering traditional literary criticism in literary magazines.

The article describes the creation of a Slavic research group at the University of Ottawa and its activities. The main task of the group when it was created was to unite a number of scholars in order to master and better understand the world of Slavic literature and culture. One of the tasks of the Slavic research group was the study of Russian and Polish languages, which are taught to students of the University of Ottawa. The article describes the composition of the group, its gradually expanding activities, including it’s today cooperation with a number of leading scientific organizations of the world, active publishing and search work aimed at clarifying data on Russian and Polish literature, archival research, lectures, conferences, exhibitions and festivals.

The article deals with the problem of the formation of the professional (linguistic and cultural) competence of Italian students-culturologists, specializing in the study of Russian culture in its synchronic and diachronic examination. The authors offer a description and analysis of the program implemented by the Pushkin State Russian Language Institute together with the Milan State University. The program includes courses: “History of Russian Culture”, “Modern Russian Literature”, “Language and Culture”. The article focuses on the original course “Language and Culture”, which is part of the program, based on an analysis of the peculiarities of the connection between the Russian language and culture in different historical periods, which fundamentally distinguishes it from traditional language and culture courses. The article describes the features of the structure and content of the course “Language and Culture” for students-culturologists, its goals, tasks and methodological apparatus. The course includes five thematic sections: “The Language and Culture of Ancient Russia”, “The Russian Language and Culture of the 18th Century”, “The Russian Language and Culture of the 19th Century”, “The Russian Language and Culture of the 20th Century”. The main goal of the course is to deepen students’ knowledge of the relationship between the Russian language and culture (in the interaction of diachronic and synchronous components), the development of their communicative competence, mainly in the socio-cultural sphere of communication associated with the future professional activities of the culturologist. An important component of the training in this course is the Multimedia language and culture Dictionary “Russia”, which is publicly available on the Pushkin State Russian Language Institute portal. The dictionary materials (articles, media library, interactive tasks) form the main content of the course.

This paper explores Russian culture beginning in the mid nineteenth-century as the leading group of composers and musicians known as the moguchaya kuchka, or The Mighty Five, sought to influence Russian culture and develop a "pure" school of Russian music amid rampant westernization. Comprised of César Cui, Alexander Borodin, Mily Balakirev, Modest Mussorgsky, and Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov, this group of inspired musicians opposed westernization and supported Official Nationalism by the incorporation of folklore, local village traditions, and promotion of their Tsar as a supreme political leader. In particular, the works of Balakirev, Cui, and Mussorgsky established cultural pride and contributed to Russian nationalism. Through studying the works and cultural context of these three influential composers, one can gain both a better understanding of the essence of Russian Official Nationalism in the nineteenth century and an enriched appreciation for the prevalent Russian musical styles and compositional techniques that were employed to achieve a unique "Russian" sound.

Archetypes express themselves in various forms and sources, but many of them can be traced in folk tales. This article describes the most significant symbols and images that reveal the deepest meaning and significance of the Mother archetype in Russian folk culture.

Background. During the last decade, life calling has become an areas of dynamically developing research in psychology, management, and counseling. However, it has not been empirically investigated in Russia, despite Russia’s rich intellectual and spiritual tradition, and abundant research on related constructs, such as personal meaning. Objective. The aim of the present study is an initial qualitative exploration of the concept of calling in Russian culture. Design. We employed qualitative document analysis to examine openended responses from 104 college students regarding their definition of calling, and the actions they undertook to discern and implement that calling. Results. We found that the students saw a calling as something more than a mere job; were intrinsically motivated to find and dedicate themselves to it; associated a calling with the use of their abilities; and at the same time expected it to make them more energized and successful without considerable effort. While some participants felt called to a specific domain, the majority indicated abstract other or self-oriented callings. Regarding the implementation of their calling, the participants fell into two groups: those who did something specific, such as study and practice, and those who did something vague, such as “everything” or “nothing”. Conclusion. These results are largely in line with similar findings in other cultures. The results can be used in career guidance in educational institutions, as well as in private counseling. Specific recommendations for practice, as well as directions for future research, are explored.

Introduction. The aim of the article is to show medicine as a multifaceted science influenced by social and cultural aspects that determine its structure and national features.Materials and methods. Historical, fiction and intellectual proses are chosen instruments of historical and literary discourses which determine its social and cultural aspects. The pathographic features of a medical discourse are taken from numerous examples of medical practices described in the fiction and scientific literature.Results. By focusing on the doctrine of double effect this study aims to show the historical path of Russian state medicine formation since the XVI century and understand it by modern approaches of the contemporary science, biomedical ethics.Discussion. One of the tasks is to show why modern medicine has such distinctive aspects and why Russian people demonstrate a specific attitude towards medicine and doctors. The special attention dedicated to one of the most popular Russian historical figures, Peter the Great, who had many skills and professions. The article shows him not only as a monarch, but also as a person with a keen interest in practical and experimental medicine, so he can be called an anatomist, surgeon, physician, dentist and intelligent collector.Conclusion. The work analyzes social and cultural aspects which influenced the state medicine formation according to Peter I vision.

The article studies cognitive strategies used by the authors of textbooks in Russian as a foreign language published abroad to present the image of Russia (its history, material and intellectual culture). Six strategies of Russia’s image presentation are singled out: strategy of denial of cultural component and its replacement by pure grammar; strategy of distribution of stereotypes of the Russian culture disregard of contemporary sociocultural context; strategy of separation the language and culture with the emphasis on the native culture of students; strategy of well-balanced presentation of the Russian culture and the native culture of the students learning Russian as a foreign language; strategy of introduction of phenomena of Russian culture into the world cultural heritage; strategy of combination of traditional and latest information in description of the current situation. The article describes the essence of such cognitive strategies that meet the requirements of social and pragmatic tendency in teaching a foreign language (strategy of well-balanced combination of foreign culture and the native culture of the students learning the language; strategy of combination of traditional and latest information in description of the current situation), and the principles of readiness for intercultural dialogue and consideration of the factors of polycultural environment in learning a foreign language (strategy of introduction of Russian culture into the world cultural heritage). It is underlined that pragmatic approach to the choice of teaching aids helps reduce the negative effect of stereotypization that often appears when learning the history and culture of the foreign language, as well as to get rid of confrontational strategies that penetrate into the teaching aids form international political and mass media.

Scholars in various fields have started to embrace the digital humanities, but there has been a delay in involving undergraduates. Challenges such as unfamiliarity with applications, lack of understanding about the overall purpose of projects, and insufficient resources all contribute to creating a barrier between the digital humanities and students. However, collaboration between scholars and library staff can create new learning opportunities for students that allow them to see the value in digital approaches to pedagogy and view the humanities through new perspectives. This article outlines a collaborative effort between the University of Virginia's Slavic Department and Library's Scholars' Lab to implement a digital humanities project in a pre-existing semester-long undergraduate culture course. In this project, students were asked to print and present to one another 3D objects representing Russia and then curate an exhibition of these objects. At the semester's end, the students reflected on the appropriateness of their objects as symbols of Russia, given their increased knowledge of Russian culture. We draw on research in cultural pedagogy and digital scholarship to offer a new way of interpreting and teaching cultural understanding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The correlational study is aimed at validating the Authenticity Scale in Russian culture. Authenticity is considered a trait responsible for a person’s ability to be oneself. It helps people resist environment pressure and prevent self-alienation, which contributes to maintaining psychological wellbeing. The original Authenticity Scale includes three subscales: Authentic Living, Accepting External Influence, and Self-Alienation. In total, 2,188 respondents (Mage = 26.30, SDage = 13.81; 78.1% female) participated in the survey. The dimensionality of the Authenticity Scale and its measurement invariance across sex, age, and depression rate subgroups was examined with exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses; the original tripartite structure was kept. Convergent validity was tested through correlation analyses with the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale, the International Positive and Negative Affect Schedule Short-Form, the Centre of Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and the Satisfaction with Life Scale. According to the CFA results, the structure of the Russian version differs from the original one slightly (item 1 was moved from the subscale Authentic Living to the subscale Accepting External Influence and item 4 was excluded); however, the modified factor model showed the best absolute and comparative fit statistics [CFI = 0.961, TLI = 0.949, RMSEA = 0.050 (90% CI [0.40; 0.60]) and SRMR = 0.037]. The reliability (McDonald’s Omega) of the Authenticity Scale subscales was satisfactory and ranged from 0.78 to 0.84. It was revealed that youth are more likely to have high scores on Accepting External Influence and Self-Alienation than adults. Men and women did not significantly differ on the sub-scores of Authenticity Scale. Multigroup CFA also showed that Authenticity Scale scores may be biased in people with high levels of clinical depression, in terms of the item intercepts. Authentic Living is positively connected with mental wellbeing, self-esteem, positive affect, satisfaction with life, and negatively with depressive symptoms and negative affect; reverse trends were found for Accepting External Influence and Self-Alienation subscales. The Russian version of the Authenticity Scale is a valid, reliable tool that may be recommended for use in various areas of non-clinical practice.

Nicolas Berdyaev’s spiritual autobiography was, unfortunately, the least well-known of his publications. Therefore, we will try to shed light on it, emphasising its philosophical and political value. We will describe the manner in which the author speaks in order to deepen our understanding of it. We will also consider the genesis of some of his works, noting the influence his spiritual experiences had on them. We will emphasise some of the main political aspects his spiritual autobiography contains, showing its usefulness in areas like political theology. Therefore, we will present the interdisciplinary value of this autobiography, together with its potential for building bridges between spirituality and different areas of science (theology, psychology, philosophy, politics, history, philology and possibly sociology) in an analysis dedicated to providing a holistic understanding of his work. We will observe how his spiritual experiences informed his way of thinking, allowing him to critique topics like modernity, a system based on freedom, love and human dignity and a profound understanding of eschatology as the accomplishment of the world and its mission. Contribution: The research investigates Berdyaev’s memorial work showing why it can be considered a spiritual autobiography and it emphasises also its relevance for the philosophical area.

As an alternative to V.L. Tsymbursky’s historic-philosophical and geopolitical concept of “Russia as an Island”, the author suggests her own cultural metaphor that is more adequate to Russian history and civilization. While in leading national geopolitical schools, Russia is associated with Land, the author puts forward a new concept comparing Russia to Sea, thus deconstructing a number of opposing geopolitical ideas. The proposed metaphor underlines both the specificity, “singularity”, and uniqueness of Russian culture and its association with the «ocean of world civilization». This metaphor helps formulate a “Russian idea” in the light of new global challenges that threaten the Russian state and Russian culture today. It also helps to get a better insight into the geographical losses on the Post-Soviet territory.

This article attempts to reveal intercultural connections at the Kyiv Theological Academy at the beginning of the 20th century by reconstructing the spiritual biographies of two theological academy professors: Archimandrite (later, Archbishop of Berlin and Germany) Tykhon (Tymofii Liashchenko) and Petro Kudriavtsev. The article demonstrates how different cultural traditions intersected and combined in the spiritual experience of these figures. The author of the article argues that, as a result of revolutionary events in 1917–1919, both Kyiv Theological Academy professors experienced transformations in personal cultural identity, and their spiritual biographies reveal a transition from Russian to Western European and a combination of both (Tykhon (Liashchenko) identities), and from Russian to Ukrainian ideological cultural orientation (Petro Kudriavtsev).

In this article, I identify and analyse the linguistic features of the generation and perception of compliments by people of different age identities from English, American and Russian cultures. Language is not the same across different age groups, which necessitates a thorough examination of age-related parameters in language and the identification of semiotic markers of age identity. The promising area of linguistic research — social semiotics — lends an urgency to such a study. To achieve the goal of the research, I employ the methods of contextual analysis and semantic and pragmatic interpretation. The qualitative calculations ensure the relevance of the study, which takes into account the intentional and stylistic features of compliments and reactions to compliments. The need to study these aspects is explained by the orientation of compliments towards effective communication. A typology of intentions and reactions shows that cultural differences between representatives of the English, American, and Russian national identities are clearly manifested in language. As to intentions, people with a mature English identity gravitate towards politeness, those with mature American identity towards praise, and those with mature Russian identity towards praise and flattery. An analysis of linguistic material demonstrates that compliments made by people with a mature age identity differ from those made by younger persons. Younger people are more prone to make compliments in informal communication than persons with mature age identity are. Compliments made by members of each age group have certain specific features. The findings of the study can be employed in the Stylistics and Pragmalinguistics courses, which is the practical outcome of the research.

This article sets out an analysis of the issue of the interrelationship between ethics and ideology in Russian culture in the 18th and 19th centuries, using historical materials to explore the fate of theoretical ethics in Russia, the diversity of the theoretical forms of the study of ethics in the culture of this period, the formation of an objective originality in ethical thinking, and the principal issues defining the distinctive pattern of moral introspection in Russian culture.

The article introduces the results of a study dedicated to the most spectacular textile in the royal household in the XVII century Russia – the heyday of Russian pearl works. This is the context for the study of the Moscow Kremlin pearl works kept in those days in the Royal Treasury and the Sacristy. Today these masterpieces are in the collection of the Armory Chamber. The analysis involves ceremonial wraps and various pearl covers. The research refines the series of secular and cult-ritual ceremonial textile of the XVII century, which was adorned with the pearl threading technique. The author identifies a range of such items located in the national museum collections. Much attention is paid to the specifics of ancient Russian pearl work. The emphasis is on one of the most valuable items made in this technique. It is the so-called «Blanket with Kingdoms» from the Royal Stables Treasury; the item was made at the beginning of the second quarter of the XVII century. According to the results of the analysis, the textiles with pearl works can be regarded as a significant material source on the history of the ceremonial culture of the late Russian Middle Ages.

The correlational study is aimed at validating the Authenticity Scale in Russian culture. Authenticity is considered a trait responsible for a person's ability to be oneself. It helps people resist environment pressure and prevent self-alienation, which contributes to maintaining psychological wellbeing. The original Authenticity Scale includes three subscales: Authentic Living, Accepting External Influence , and Self-Alienation. In total, 2,188 respondents (M age = 26.30, SD age = 13.81; 78.1% female) participated in the survey. The dimensionality of the Authenticity Scale and its measurement invariance across sex, age, and depression rate subgroups was examined with exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses; the original tripartite structure was kept. Convergent validity was tested through correlation analyses with the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale , the International Positive and Negative Affect Schedule Short-Form , the Centre of Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale , the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale , and the Satisfaction with Life Scale. According to the CFA results, the structure of the Russian version differs from the original one slightly (item 1 was moved from the subscale Authentic Living to the subscale Accepting External Influence and item 4 was excluded); however, the modified factor model showed the best absolute and comparative fit statistics [CFI = 0.961, TLI = 0.949, RMSEA = 0.050 (90% CI [0.40; 0.60]) and SRMR = 0.037]. The reliability (McDonald's Omega) of the Authenticity Scale subscales was satisfactory and ranged from 0.78 to 0.84. It was revealed that youth are more likely to have high scores on Accepting External Influence and Self-Alienation than adults. Men and women did not significantly differ on the sub-scores of Authenticity Scale. Multigroup CFA also showed that Authenticity Scale scores may be biased in people with high levels of clinical depression, in terms of the item intercepts. Authentic Living is positively connected with mental wellbeing, self-esteem, positive affect, satisfaction with life, and negatively with depressive symptoms and negative affect; reverse trends were found for Accepting External Influence and Self-Alienation subscales. The Russian version of the Authenticity Scale is a valid, reliable tool that may be recommended for use in various areas of non-clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Every society has its own naming beliefs and traditions. As an ancient nation, Russians also have strong traditions that have their roots in the pre-Christian pagan period. The tradition of naming to person is one of them. In this study, the science of onomastics and accordingly, one of its most important sub-branches, anthroponomy are examined in the context of Russian language and culture. In addition, by considering the anthroponomy in the context of theological, mythological and language-identity-culture, its effects on the society it belongs to are shown. On the other hand, naming traditions in Russians are divided into four groups, taking into account the historical process and the characteristics of the period. With this examination, it is seen that with the acceptance of Orthodox Christianity, the tendency of giving names to the Russians and Slavic traditions combined with religious belonging and this continues today. Gaining a political tendency in 19th century, the naming traditions in Russian culture have developed a functional structure with the names of western origin due to the effects of globalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Kaunas History Chronicle is the property of Vytautas Magnus University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Doxa / Doksa is the property of I. I. Mechnikov Odessa National University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The author of The Firebird and the Fox: Russian Culture under Tsars and Bolsheviks (Cambridge University Press, 2019) responds to comments of Michael David-Fox, Muireann Maguire, Kevin Platt, William Mills Todd, and Olga Velikanova. He expresses appreciation for the reflections provided and elaborates on several points raised by the commentators individually and collectively: the theoretical framing of the work and the importance of agency; continuity of culture over episodes of political disjuncture; the applicability of the term "cultural ecosystem;" an alternative treatment of the topic that would have accorded greater emphasis to political power and the life cycle of revolutions; and the relationship of the work to analysis of institutional history and cultural theory. He finds the five commentaries to be valuable companion pieces for readers of The Firebird and the Fox and stimulants to further scholarship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Jeffrey Brooks' new book, The Firebird and the Fox , draws on an unsurpassed knowledge of Russian literature and culture of all levels, from the folk and popular to the canonical and avant-garde. It divides the "age of genius" (1855–1953) into three periods: the emancipation of the arts (1850–1889), politics and the arts (1890–1916), the Bolshevik Revolution and the arts (1917–1950), each with its own configurations of popular and high culture and construction of creative artists, media, and readers. But three core themes overarch the periods and the exceptionally broad range of phenomena the book discusses: freedom and order, boundaries, art and reality. Throughout Brooks analyzes crossovers and intersections between cultural institutions, between genres and media, and – especially for the Soviet period – between the lines. His categories are at times sociological, historical, and literary. The book implies a theory of cultural production that gives unusual weight to the agency of creative artists. In conclusion readings of three works Brooks does not analyze (Dostoevsky's Demons , Bely's Petersburg , and Eisenstein's Alexander Nevsky) illustrate the productivity of Brooks' broad and humane approach to Russian artistic culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Jeffrey Brooks' book The Firebird and the Fox presents a synthetic account of Russian cultural history from the middle of the nineteenth century to the middle of the twentieth. Brooks describes culture as an "ecosystem," persistent across seeming moments of historical rupture such as the revolutions of 1917, animated by certain overarching thematic concerns, and uniting readers and writers across a broad spectrum of levels of social life, from the newly literate popular masses to the educated elites, and forms of media, from prestigious belles lettres to popular illustrated weeklies, satirical journals and children's literature. Drawing on the theoretical description of historiographical writing offered by Hayden White, this essay examines Brooks' book in terms of its formal patterning as a comedic narrative and its poetic basis in the trope of synecdoche, which undergird its analytical efforts to integrate material across seeming historical and social divides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay responds to Jeffrey Brooks' 2020 monograph The Firebird and the Fox , drawing attention to Brooks' emphasis on a set of cultural symbols persistent during the historical period he surveys, and on the social activism which he identifies with leading Russian cultural figures such as Tolstoi and Chekhov. In support of Brooks' argument, I present the example of Aleksandr Chaianov (1888–1937), a specialist in agronomy and amateur writer whose reputation as a driver of early Soviet agricultural policy was overshadowed by his arrest in 1930 and subsequent exile and execution. Chaianov's social activism, as expressed in his short fiction and historical essays, took the form of reminding his readers about the cultural continuities between Russia's past, present, and future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The topic under research is highly relevant as patriotism is a historical phenomenon, and a central role in patriotic education belongs to learning the historical past of our "big" and "small" Motherlands. Front and foremost for this paper is the determination to ensure the historical succession of generations and promote respectful attitude to the historical and cultural heritage of the peoples of Russia and Dagestan. In connection therewith, the intent of this paper is to instill patriotism in the student youth at the border of two cultures, the Russian and the Dagestanian, and on this foundation to foster their patriotic consciousness, strengthen their sense of inclusion and raise their awareness of the historical and cultural community among the peoples of Russia and Dagestan. The leading approach to examining this topic was a theoretical cognition method allowing for a comprehensive review of the problem under research. This paper reveals the essence and content of the notions patriotism and culture; overviews distinct characteristics of the Russian culture in the late 19th - early 20th centuries; describes ethno-social conditions and unique features of the Republic of Dagestan; examines the ties and the relationships between Russia and Dagestan; shows the impact the Russian culture has had on the culture of the peoples of Dagestan within a new cultural space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ethno-cultural stereotypes are the result of comparing one's own culture, customs, traditions with that of strangers, identifying and fixing differences between the cultures of ethnic groups. Stereotypical images of different peoples exist even in the minds of those people who had no experience in communication with representatives of these ethnic groups. However, the results of the study of ethnic stereotypes of people who are in direct contact with this ethnic group and see it up close in comparison to people who evaluate it from a distance, often raises more questions than gives clear answers. The solution of these questions raises before the researcher a whole complex of methodological problems. The article will introduce a new methodological approach to reveal ethno-cultural stereotypes in the text culture and in our contemporaries' common sense perception. To distinguish between people's individual perception of a particular ethnos and collective stereotypes, the following qualitative and quantitative criteria are suggested: 1) bipolar orthonormal core axes of parameter distribution; 2) the significance of the axis; 3) the degree of consistency of parameters distributed on the axis; 4) the weighting coefficient of testee's reaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we advance a set of correspondences of Russian realia words (i.e. culture-specific items) in Romanian. These historical words will be part of a dictionary, together with about 200 realia units, arranged by categories: ethnographic realia, sociopolitical and administrative realia, geographical realia, and onomastic realia, addressed to young translators from Russian to Romanian, as well as to those interested in Russian culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article deals with the most crucial philosophical and theological issue of correlation of freedom, freedom of will, and Divine predestination, which arose in shaping the Christian doctrine and remains emergent for contemporary Russian culture and society. This problem permeated all the centuries of Christianity’s formation, beginning with the period of apologetics, but it reached its climax in the classical Patristics epoch during the Byzantine Trinity and Christological theological disputes between the Western and Eastern Church Fathers. In theological discussions, they formed subtle differences, characterizing the discrepancy between Eastern and Western Patristics representatives’ views. We analyze the creative heritage of Greek-Byzantine (Eastern) Patristics, influencing the relationship between human freedom and Divine predestination, also conducting some comparative analysis with Western Patristics. The attention is also focused on the subtleties mostly of the Greek Church Fathers’ comprehension of connections between free will and freedom of choice, which correlates with human rationality, high morality, and choice of deification as a movement towards God. Philosophical reflection of described ideas of Eastern Patristics is also carried in conjunction with Christian soteriology, that is, the doctrine of spiritual salvation and eternal life. A prominent place in the article is given to some ideas of deification, the moral perfection of personality, and the Absolute spiritual ascent. The article stands on the original teachings of prominent Saints of Eastern Christianity—Maximus the Confessor, Athanasius of Alexandria, Gregory of Nyssa, John of Damascus, and Justin Martyr as a predecessor for both the Eastern and Western Patristics. This article also examines the refraction of the ideas of Church Fathers in contemporary Russian culture and philosophical studies of Patristics and Byzantine philosophy. Adhering to the Russian academic tradition of Byzantology, we present some implementations of Greek Church Fathers’ ideas, particularly on free will and Divine predestination, in the works of gifted Russian Byzantologist scholars. We try to attract the reader’s attention to the valuable Byzantine heritage in order to continue the tradition of studying the Church Father’s legacy in our country.

The article deals with the semantic gap between generations in the era of changing eco-nomic-political course of the country. The necessity of state intervention and the creation of proactive strategies in working with young people to strengthen the continuity of social and cul-tural code of the Russian nation and strengthening the strategic development of the country

The author carried out the contrastive analysis of the word спикер borrowed into Russian from English and the English word speaker. The findings of the analysis include confirm (1) different derivational abilities and functions of the borrowed word and the native word; (2) distinctive features in the definitions, i.e. semantic structures, registered in monolingual non-abridged dictionaries; (3) heterogeneous parameters of frequencies recorded in the National Corpus of the Russian language and the British National Corpus; (4) absence of bilingual equivalent collocations with words спикер and speaker. The collocations with words studied revealed new lexical and connotative senses in the meaning of the word. Relevance of the study conducted is justified by the new facts revealed about the semantic adaptation of the borrowed word in the system of the Russian language and its paradigmatic and syntagmatic connections in the system of the recipient language.

The paper analyses humour about scientists and humour produced by scientists in Russia. The aim of the study is to track back the evolution of scholarly humour and analyse social factors that stand behind professional humour in the academia. The analysis centres around three categories of humour: “intellectual” humour, which requires knowledge in a specific branch of science, “professor vs. student” humour, which is based on our understanding of social relations between two social groups involved in academic communication. Finally, there is profession-specific humour based entirely on professional experience and is best understood by those involved in research. While “intellectual” and “professor vs. student” jokes are not unique to the Russian culture, profession-specific in-group humour reflects social problems characteristic of science in Russia. This category of scholarly humour has grown from the ongoing debates about criteria of academic excellence and the discussions about importance of science for society in general. Profession-specific humour mirrors social tension caused by the attempts to introduce quantitative measures of academic excellence and to reform science in Russia (the recent attempts at turning around the Russian Academy of Sciences being a good example of such a reform).

There is increased attention to Russia and, in particular, to the Russian literature and culture in the recent years in Brazil due to closer contacts and cooperation between the two countries. This interest is manifested in various aspects: first, Russian literature and culture attracts more attention in the university academic environment (both the number of students who choose to study Russian, history, literature and culture, and the number of scientific studies are increasing; Universities in Brazil are organizing more and more academic events focusing on different aspects of Russian history and culture), and second, there is an increased attention of the wide audience. The purpose of this article is to define the contemporary perception of Brazilian literature by Brazilians and to trace the evolution of this perception. Brazilian readers are familiar with Russian writers since the end of the XIX century (when translations of the Russian classics novels by F. Dostoyevsky and L. Tolstoy entered the country), but until the middle of the 20th century the list of Russian authors and works known to the Brazilian public was pretty limited. Limitations were related partly to the quality of translations - right up to the middle of the 20th century, the translation of Russian authors works was made not directly from the Russian language, but through intermediary languages, which led to even more semantic and stylistic distortions in the re-translated text. The School of Russian Studies originated in Brazil in the 1960s at the University of Sao Paulo and is associated with the name of the translator B. Shnaiderman, who introduced the first translations of literary texts directly from the Russian language to Brazilian readers. In the past two decades a new round of interest in Russian literature has been observed and the number of translations of Russian authors from different eras into Portuguese is increasing. Along with the number of translations made, the growth of translation quality is being reported. In this article, we will briefly review the history of interaction of two cultures through the lens of the Brazilian school of Russian studies and translation development.