Linguistics

The text transmission of the Slavonic translation of Hippolytus’ De Christo et Antichristo presents a stable and well-testified tradition. It gives a base for possible reconstruction of the Greek original from which this translation was made. The article demonstrates some omissions, additions, and reconstructions on the Greek text compared to the Slavonic one. Also, the paper addresses significant problems that occur in the scholars’ work on bilingual dictionaries discussing possible approaches and solutions. Still, some questions remain, and it is not easy to suggest a definite answer to them. The author underlines the importance of the fragmentary copy of the Greek text, presented in the manuscript of Meteora 573, bearing in mind its significant correspondence to the Slavonic tradition. Unfortunately, this manuscript preserves only trifling fragments of the whole work by Hippolytus of Rome.

Subject: Philology Linguistics palaeoslavic studies

Keywords: HIPPOLYTUS OF ROME text-critical editions SLAVONIC TRANSLATION GREEK TRADITION dictionaries Greek-Slavonic Slavonic-Greek

The article focuses on Old Slavonic versions of Euthalian chapter-lists to Acts and Epistles considering meta-communicative terms, such as παραίνεσις or προοίμιον. The author aims to evaluate the level of accuracy of Slavonic translations and their exegetical potential, which makes the content of the main text of Acts and Epistles clear. The analysis reveals two tendencies prevailing in Slavonic sources from the 12th–16th centuries: first, there are phenomena of lexical variability, as results of applying various translation strategies, more or less successful in terms of the accuracy and clarity of the resulting text (calques, periphrastic constructions, and text expansion). Second, there is a tendency towards unification, suggesting a universal Slavonic term for several Greek correlates. Authoritative dictionaries, including academic ones, do not record some lexemes. There is no dependence of the chapter-lists lexicon on the main text vocabulary.

Subject: Philology Linguistics palaeoslavic studies

Keywords: Old Slavic Apostolos Euthalian apparatus chapter-lists meta-terms TRANSLATION

The focus of this report is the still-unexplored Interpretation of Orthodox liturgy, attested in two copies: first in manuscript No. 88 from the collection of Obolensky (201), State Archive of Russian Federation (Moscow), the second in manuscript No 52 of 1567, from the Archive of Baltazar Bogisić in Cavtat. The two manuscripts contain proven original works of Constantine of Kostenets (1380–1431). The author analyzes the structure and content of the interpretation and comments on it as a source for the history of Liturgy – from the point of view of the data concerning the liturgical features described in it. It can be concluded that the basis of texts in MS No 88 and MS Bogishić 52 is a late composition of Byzantine mystagogy, which, in turn, means that the time of implementation of the South Slavic translation should be dated no earlier than the end of the 12th century. This is one of the many short epitomes created during the Second Bulgarian Kingdom as a result of the secondary reduction of the original extensive commentary. A detailed investigation and the text-critical edition will be forthcoming.

Subject: Philology Linguistics palaeoslavic studies

Keywords: Interpretation of Liturgy Byzantine mistagogy short epitomes South Slavic translation Constantine of Kostenets

Christian hagiographic literature chooses as its heroes’ people whose feeble flesh is in stark contrast to the greatness of the spirit. The saint is endowed with supernatural knowledge, works miracles, foretells, protects and heals people. The author discusses the healing practices in the Slavic translation of the Vita of St. Gregory of Agrigentum, as presented in a 15th-century copy of a Reading Menaion composed according to the Jerusalem typikon (Tărnovo type orthography, Moldavian provenance, kept in the Dragomirna monastery (Drag 706/1795), Romania). St. Gregory of Agrigentum is a senior clergyman and the goal of his healing skills is to show God’s grace and the power of Christian teaching from one side and the authority of his position as bishop from the other.

Subject: Philology Linguistics palaeoslavic studies

Keywords: St. Gregory of Agrigentum healer Slavic translation of the Vita Tărnovo orthography

The only copy of the Russian Chronograph kept in Bulgaria – NBKM 774 – is of Russian origin and has a special composition. The text bears the date 1627, but the miscellany is composed later, end of 17th – the beginning of 18th c. The only marginal note indicates that in 1787 MS was kept in Vidin. There is information, although rather scarce, that there might have been another copy of the Chronograph in possession of Dimitǎr Jocov from Vratsa which had been lost and with assumed characteristics indicating that it had been a copy of NBKM 774. The assumed characteristics of the two copies may be interpreted as evidence of the existence of a weak tradition related to this manuscript in the Bulgarian historical literature as opposed to the Serbian one.

Subject: History History of books Philology Linguistics palaeoslavic studies

Keywords: Russian chronograph chronicle Bulgarian-Russian literary relations

The study of the Euchologia (singular: Euchologion), the prayer books to be used by the clergy, has long been neglected by medieval historians. This is beginning to change, as more and more scholars discover the potential of the Euchologia as a source for social history. Indeed, Euchologia contain besides Eucharistic and sacramental liturgies also prayers for various occasions of the daily life of women, men and children from various strata of society and every geographical region of the Byzantine world. Thus, the Euchologia offer a different perspective than most Byzantine written sources, which concentrate on urban, male, often ordained elites. In 2015 a new research project dedicated to the study of Euchologia was initiated at the Division of Byzantine Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences. The project seeks to study Greek-language Euchologia copied up to the year 1650 and the prayers they contain.

Subject: Language and Literature Studies Applied Linguistics Studies of Literature Philology Translation Studies Byzantine Euchologion History of the society Daily life Linguistics Tradition of the text