Culture and customs of the Circassians. Essay on the proud Circassian people

The guest occupied the most honorable place at the table. His treat constituted a whole ritual. Tables with food were passed from more respected persons to less honorable persons and, finally, were taken outside the kunatskaya, where they were placed at the disposal of women and children. If a whole ram was served, the meat was distributed according to the position of those participating in the feast. The head and shoulder blade, as the best parts, were offered to the guest. The owner was obliged not only to feed the guest during his entire stay in the house, but also to provide him with everything necessary for the journey. Kunak was usually received not in the living room, but in the residential house of the family owner. Unwritten etiquette required that each family have a kunak of a different nationality, who was considered a family friend and was subject to marriage prohibitions. Kunatskaya served as the place of residence for the entire male part of the family. Unmarried male youth spent the night in the kunatskaya if there were no guests there. Circassians usually revered the threshold and hearth in the house.

The responsibilities of the kunak were much broader than just the owner, since the kunakship required establishing special relationship type of twinning. This union was sealed by drinking together from a cup into which silver coins were thrown or silver shavings were whittled from the handle of a dagger. This was often followed by an exchange of weapons. Such an alliance was concluded for life.

Adoption was considered admission into a clan with the assumption of all responsibilities and rights both in relation to the clan as a whole and to the family that adopted him. The adoption ritual consisted in the fact that the adopted person had to publicly touch the naked breast of his named mother three times with his lips. Touching a woman's breast with her lips served as sufficient grounds for adoption in other cases. Bloodlines often resorted to this. If the killer touched the breast of the mother of the murdered man in any way - by force or cunning - then he became her son, a member of the clan of the murdered man and was not subject to blood feud.

Although formally the right of revenge extended to the entire clan, it was carried out by the closest relatives of the murdered person. In most cases, it was replaced by payment in livestock and weapons. The size of the payment was determined by the class of the murdered person. Reconciliation could also be achieved by the killer raising a child from the family of the murdered one.

The Circassian wedding ceremony was very peculiar, which consisted of a number of customs that stretched in the past for more than one year. There was a custom of bride kidnapping. Even if it was done with her consent - out of a desire to reduce the size of the bridewealth (bride price), to avoid expenses for the wedding, or because of the disagreement of the parents - even then it inevitably caused quarrels, fights between the girl’s relatives and the kidnappers and often led to injuries and murders. Once the young man made his choice, he negotiated the price for the girl with her father. The ransom most often consisted of chain mail, sabers, guns, horses and several bulls. After the agreement was concluded, the groom and his friend took the girl to the home of one of his friends or relatives, where she was accommodated in a room intended for spouses. Here she stayed while the groom's relatives completed preparations for the wedding. The marriage ceremony also took place here. From the day the bride arrived, the groom went to the house of another friend of his and visited the bride only in the evenings.

The day after the bride was taken away, her parents went to the groom's parents and, feigning anger, demanded to know the reason for the secret abduction. Custom required not to show that the marriage agreement had been reached earlier. The next day the wedding began, to which all relatives and friends gathered. Some accompanied the groom to kidnap the bride again, while others prevented them from doing so. All participants in the wedding procession depicted a battle, during which the bride appeared at the door of the house, supported by two friends. The groom rushed forward and carried her away in his arms. Young girls started a victory song, and all those who “fought” united and accompanied the bride and groom. The wedding lasted five to six days, but the groom was not present.

The transportation of the bride to the groom's house was accompanied by various rituals, horse riding and horse racing. Men and girls selected from among the villagers and relatives of the groom went to fetch the bride. The girls stayed with the bride and looked after her until the end of the wedding. The bride was usually brought on a wedding cart. The bride was led into a special room, where she was placed on an ottoman, and a girl was chosen to remove the scarf from her head. On the day of transport of the bride, a treat was arranged for everyone present at the wedding. At the same time, the older men were in one room, and the younger ones were in another.

The groom stayed with his friend until the end of the wedding, and only after its completion did they organize the ceremony of returning the young husband to his home. Upon returning, the newlywed had to perform a ritual of “reconciliation” with his relatives: at night he came to his home and received refreshments from his father and the older men of the village. After two or three days, a dinner was held for him, at which his mother and other women were present.

The room for the newlyweds was a sacred part of the home among the Circassians. It was not allowed to talk loudly or do chores around her. A week after the young wife’s stay in this room, the ceremony of introducing her into the big house was performed. The newlywed, covered with a veil, was given a mixture of butter and honey and sprinkled with nuts and sweets. After the wedding, she went to her parents. After some time (sometimes only after the birth of a child), the wife returned to her husband’s house and began to take part in all the economic work of the new family. During their married life, the husband visited his wife in their common room only at night. During the day he was in the men's quarters or in the kunatskaya.

In turn, the wife was the sovereign mistress of the female half of the house. The husband did not interfere with the household at all. The wife even had her own property - cattle, which she received as a wedding gift. Nevertheless, a number of prohibitions were imposed on her in relation to her mother-in-law and her husband’s male relatives. For example, she did not have the right to sit with men, eat with her husband, or go to bed until he returned. She called her husband “he,” “himself,” “our,” and the husband, in turn, called his wife “living in my house” or “our family.” The husband had the right to divorce without giving a reason. A wife could formally demand a divorce for some reasons (her husband’s infidelity, inability to cohabitate), but this happened very rarely. After the death of her husband, the widow, according to custom, sometimes married his brother. In case of divorce or marriage to a stranger, her children remained in her husband's family.

The Circassian maternity ritual included a number of measures aimed at protecting the pregnant woman from evil spirits. The expectant mother had to observe numerous prohibitions, including not fanning the fire and not going to the cemetery. When a man was informed that he would be a father, he left the house and appeared there for several days only at night. Two weeks after birth, the ritual of placing the child in the cradle was performed, which usually coincided with the naming of the newborn.

Clear echoes of traditional ancient beliefs were the images on grave monuments items that the deceased may need in the other world. A person killed by lightning was considered the chosen one of God and was buried in a special way. Even animals killed by lightning received an honorable funeral. These funerals were accompanied by dancing and singing, and chips from a tree struck by lightning were considered healing.

Many religious ceremonies were closely associated with agriculture. These included, first of all, rituals of causing rain during drought. sacrifices marked the beginning and end of agricultural work.

The concept of “khabze”, both in its narrow social, class aspect - “uerk khabze”, and in the broader national one - “Adyghe khabze”, is extremely rich and all-encompassing. This implies not only etiquette phenomena, but also rituals, traditions, public institutions, customary law, spiritual, ethical and moral values of the Circassians. Various aspects of this topic were touched upon in the works of B. Kh. Bgazhnokov, S. Kh. Mafedzev, A. I. Musukaev, A. M. Gutov and other authors. In this article, Uerk Khabze is considered as a feudal, knightly code from the point of view of its social, estate and class content.

The Circassian nobility, whose motto was “Khebzere zauere” - “Honor and War,” developed its own knightly moral code, the so-called uerk khabze (uerk - knight, nobleman; khabze - code of customary legal, etiquette standards). Many of its provisions undoubtedly stem from the military lifestyle and the associated norms of behavior. As an example of an analogy to such a cultural model associated with war, one can cite the medieval Japanese samurai code of honor “Bushi-do” (“Way of the Warrior”), with which Uerk habze has some parallels.

The life of a Circassian knight (nobleman) was regulated from birth to death by the unwritten code of Uerk Khabze. This code was based on the concept of “uerk nape” (knightly honor). There were no moral or material values that could prevail over this concept. Life itself had value only if it was dedicated to serving the principles of uerq nape. The Circassians have many proverbs dedicated to this, for example: “Pser shchei, naper keschehu” - “Sell your life, buy honor.” Even such natural feelings as love or hatred had to recede into the background before the need to observe the law of honor as the Circassian nobles understood it.

The basis of the noble code of honor Uerq Khabze was the national code of etiquette, moral principles, called Adyghe khabze (Circassian etiquette).

The concept of “Adyghe khabze” included not only etiquette and moral values, but also all the norms of customary law that regulated the life of the Circassian from birth to death. The nobles were supposed to be the standard in observing the Adyghe khabze - what was forgiven to the commoner was not forgiven to the nobleman in the sense of violating the norms of the Adyghe khabze. The noble class itself was not closed and was replenished from among the peasantry at the expense of those who showed personal courage during the war and were fluent in Adyghe khabze.

At the same time, any Wark in case of violation of the norms of Circassian etiquette, according to custom, could be deprived of the title of nobility. Thus, the title of nobleman imposed many responsibilities on a person and did not in itself give him any privileges.

A nobleman could be a person who leads an appropriate lifestyle and observes the norms of behavior inherent in this rank. As soon as he ceased to correspond to the place he occupied in society and to comply with the norms associated with this status, he was immediately deprived of his noble title. In the history of the Circassians there were many cases when they were even deprived of their princely title.

The princes who headed the nobility were considered guardians and guarantors of observance of Circassian customs. Therefore, from childhood, when raising them great attention was paid not only to military training, but also in non- to a lesser extent studying and assimilating by them the norms of the Adyghe Khabze. The princes had the exclusive right to levy fines for insult to dignity, which they could impose on any subject, including a nobleman. At the same time, an insult to princely dignity was understood as any violation of etiquette rules committed by someone in the presence of the prince. So, for example, paragraph 16 of the records of the customary law of Kabardians, made by Ya. M. Shardanov, read: “If two people, no matter whose they are, in the person of the prince, fight on the street, in the yard, in the house, then the instigator of the fight pays a fine to the prince one servant for failure to observe decency towards the prince for daring to fight in front of him"

The reason for the fine could be any manifestation of disrespect for Circassian etiquette, for example, an indecent word or expression, especially in the company of women.

By the way, the princess had the same right to punish women, including noblewomen, by imposing a fine. Fines usually consisted of a certain number of bulls, which were immediately confiscated from the household of the offending person in favor of the prince. To perform these police functions, the princes constantly had so-called beigoli. The Beigol class was replenished at the expense of serfs, since not only for nobles, but also for free peasants, performing such functions was considered reprehensible. Adyghe etiquette - Adyghe khabze, as already noted, lay at the foundation, was the foundation of the so-called uerk khabze - noble etiquette. Uerk khabze was distinguished by a more strict organization and demands on its speakers. In addition, it reflected the norms of relationships within the ruling class, in particular, the norms governing the relationship between overlord and vassal. In the XVIII– 19th centuries The Circassians were divided according to the principle of political structure into two categories: “aristocratic” and “democratic”. The first included the Kabardians, Besleneevtsy, Temirgoyevtsy, Bzhedugs and some other ethnic divisions, whose feudal hierarchy was headed by princes. The Shapsugs and Abadzekhs did not have princes, but only nobles, who, as a result of the so-called “democratic coup,” lost their political privileges. Nevertheless, in terms of observing those numerous and scrupulous relationships that distinguished Circassian etiquette, the Shapsugs and Abadzekhs were the same “aristocrats” as the Kabardians, Besleneyevites, Temirgoyevites and others. The customs, manners, costume, weapons and horse harness of the Circassians became a role model for their closest neighbors. They were so strongly subject to the knightly and aristocratic influence of the Circassians that the ruling strata of neighboring peoples sent their children to them to be raised so that they could learn Circassian manners and way of life

The Kabardians, whom some researchers called the “French of the Caucasus,” were especially successful in improving and punctually observing uerk khabze. “The noble type of a Kabardian, the elegance of his manners, the art of carrying weapons, the peculiar ability to behave in society are truly amazing, and one can distinguish a Kabardian just by his appearance,” wrote V. A. Potto.

K. F. Stahl noted in his work: “Greater Kabarda had a huge influence not only on all Circassian peoples, but also on the neighboring Ossetians and Chechens. The Kabardian princes and nobility were famous for their equestrianism, courage, panache in attire, politeness in manner and were for other Circassian peoples a role model and competition."

The chivalric code of Uerq Khabze can be divided into several key guidelines, including the following concepts:

1. Loyalty. This concept implied, first of all, loyalty to one’s overlord, as well as to one’s class group. The nobles served the princes from generation to generation.

The change of overlord cast a shadow on the reputation of both sides and was considered a great disgrace.

The nobles remained faithful to their prince, even if the latter was defeated in an internecine struggle and moved to other nations. In this case, they accompanied the prince and left their homeland with him. True, the latter circumstance caused discontent among the people and they tried to keep the nobles from relocating. During the battle, the nobles each fought next to their prince, and if the prince died, they had to carry his body from the battlefield or die.

The concept of "loyalty" also included devotion to one's relatives and respect for parents. The father's word was law for all family members, just like younger brother obeyed the elder unquestioningly. The nobleman was obliged to maintain family honor and take revenge on anyone who would encroach on the life and honor of members of his family.

2. Politeness. This concept included several provisions:

– Respect for superiors in the social hierarchy. According to the Circassians, respect, regardless of the difference in position in the social hierarchy, must be mutual. The nobles served their prince and showed him certain signs of respect. The lowest categories of nobility, the so-called pshicheu, being the prince's bodyguards and squires, served him daily in domestic life. At the same time, according to N. Dubrovin, “for the most part, refined politeness and mutual respect were observed on both sides.”

– Respect for elders. Each older person had to show signs of attention according to Circassian etiquette: stand up when he appears and not sit down without his permission, do not speak, but only respectfully answer questions, fulfill his requests, serve at the table during meals, etc. Moreover, all these and other signs of attention were provided regardless of social origin. In this regard, F. Tornau reported the following: “The highlanders have a higher rank in the dormitory. A young man of the highest origin is obliged to stand in front of every old man without asking his name, give way to him, not sit down without his permission, remain silent in front of him, briefly and respectfully answer his questions. Every service rendered to the gray haired man is valued young man in honor of. Even an old slave is not entirely excluded from this rule. Although a nobleman and every free Circassian do not have the habit of standing in front of a slave, I often happened to see how they seated with them at the table a gray-bearded slave who came to Kunatskaya."

- Respect for a woman. This position meant, first of all, respect for the mother, as well as respect for the female sex in general. Each knight considered it an honor to fulfill the request of a girl or woman, which was reflected in the untranslatable Circassian proverb: “TSIyhubz psherykh khushchane.” This expression has several semantic shades, one of which means that it is impossible for a man not to respect a woman’s request. It was considered a great shame to draw a weapon in the presence of a woman or, conversely, not to sheathe it immediately upon her appearance.

If a nobleman, in the presence of a woman, accidentally allowed himself an indecent word, then, according to custom, he had to make amends by presenting her with some valuable gift.

Among the Circassians, a woman could neither be the object nor the perpetrator of blood feud. Encroachments on a woman’s life were unknown to the Circassians (inf. Kh. Kh. Yakhtanigov).

It was considered a great shame for a man, including a husband, to raise his hand against a woman.

“Among the Circassians,” reports Khan-Girey, “the treatment of a husband with his wife is also based on strict rules of decency. When a husband hits or showers his wife with abusive words, he becomes an object of ridicule...”.

An attempt on the honor of a mother, wife or sister, in the concept of the Circassians, was the strongest insult that could be inflicted on a man. If murder cases could be settled by paying the price of blood, then such attacks on a woman’s honor usually ended in bloodshed.

– The concept of “politeness” included respect for any person, including strangers. The nature of this respect was apparently generated, as in all nations that have created etiquette, from two main factors: first, he who showed respect and attention to another person had the right to demand the same treatment on his part; secondly, every person, being constantly armed, had the right to use weapons to defend his honor. Many authors and travelers who visited the Caucasus rightly believed that the politeness and respect that were characteristic of the everyday relationships of the Circassians were, to a certain extent, generated by the “pacifying” role played by the universal armament of the people.

It should be noted that for the Circassians and the etiquette they created, social servility was absolutely alien - their entire etiquette was based on a highly developed sense of personal dignity. This circumstance was noted by J. A. Longworth, who wrote: “However, this humility, as I soon discovered, was combined in them with complete independence of character and was based, like all ceremonial nations, on self-respect when others carefully measure the degree of respect that they demand for themselves."

Even the princes who stood at the head of the feudal hierarchy could not demand from their subordinates excessive displays of attention, associated, on the one hand, with personal self-abasement, and on the other, with ascension and veneration of princely dignity.

In the history of the Circassians, there were cases when the excessive pride and vanity of individual princes turned against them not only other princes, but also the entire people. Usually this led to the expulsion, destruction or deprivation of princely dignity of such people.

This happened, for example, with the Kabardian princes Tokhtamyshev, who at a national meeting were deprived of their princely title and transferred to the estate of nobles of the 1st degree (dyzhynynygue).

The Kabardians had the following custom: if a prince was driving along the road, then the person who met him had to turn around and accompany him until he let him go *.

So, the Tokhtamyshev princes, in their arrogance and vanity, went so far as to force the heavily loaded carts of the peasants to turn and follow them for several miles.

__________

* However, this rule had to be observed in relation to every older person. In relation to princes, it was observed regardless of age.

At the end of the 17th or beginning of the 18th century, according to J. Pototsky, the destruction of the princely family of Chegenukho took place in Kabarda. “Genealogy says only that the family was destroyed because of its pride: but here is what has been preserved in legends about this: The heads of this family did not allow other princes to sit down before them. They did not allow the horses of other princes to be watered with the water of the same rivers or, at least, upstream from the place where their own horses were drinking. When they wanted to wash their hands, they ordered the young prince to hold a basin before them. They considered it above their dignity to attend the "poki", or meetings of princes. And this is what All this happened. At one of these general meetings they were condemned to destruction.

The judges took on the role of executors of the sentence they themselves passed."

In the “Brief Historical and Ethnographic Description of the Kabardian People,” compiled in 1784, the same event was reported: “This generation was especially respected in Kabarda. The eldest of them formed the clan of the autocratic owner, but at the end of the last century, out of hatred for him other princes, not tolerating his pride, hatched a conspiracy, and they destroyed this tribe even down to the baby."

A feature of the Circassian mentality was respect for personal dignity and personal freedom and the pronounced individualism associated with them. This, apparently, was one of the reasons that democracy was in highest degree characteristic of their political structure and there were few prerequisites for the establishment of tyranny or dictatorship. This democracy was manifested even in the military sphere. In particular, F.F. Tornau wrote about this: “According to Circassian concepts... a man must think over and discuss each enterprise in a mature manner, and if he has comrades, then subordinate them to his opinion not by force, but by word and conviction, since everyone has his own free will ".

Despite the existence of a developed class hierarchy, veneration for rank was extremely abhorrent to the free spirit of the Circassians. One of the heroes of the story by A.-G. Kesheva expressed his rejection of this, figuratively speaking, “padishahism,” as follows: “Dignity and good origin everywhere they are held in high esteem - there is no argument against that, but in no case should one worship them or endure any kind of insult from them. Noble custom shows each Circassian his proper place, lets him know what he can do and what he cannot do. There is no place among the Circassians who wants to become higher than everyone else, who wants to make his will a law for others. Everyone will notice such a person, everyone will strive, as it were, to clip his wings. And even if he has a strength equal to thunder, if he has a hundred heads on his shoulders, sooner or later, he will break his neck."

The concept of “politeness” included such Uerk Khabze norms as the prohibition of swearing, swearing, assault and other forms of hostility that, in the opinion of the Workers, were worthy only of plebeians.

This rule is reflected in folk proverb: “Hye dzhafe banerkym, uerk huanerkkym” - “The hound does not bark, the nobleman does not swear.” S. Bronevsky reports: “Circassians do not tolerate rude and abusive words; otherwise, the princes and uzdeni challenge their peers to a duel, and an unnoble person of lower rank or a commoner is killed on the spot. Kabardians always observe politeness in their treatment among themselves, commensurate with veneration of rank; – and no matter how ardent they are in their passions, they try to moderate them in conversation..."

Moreover, according to Khan-Girey, “it is worthy of note that all these rituals of politeness are observed even when princes and nobles hate each other, even when they are obvious enemies, but if they happen to meet in such a place, where the laws of decency keep their weapons inactive, for example in the house of a prince or nobleman, in the presence of women, at congresses of the nobility, etc. similar cases, where decency forbids drawing weapons, and the enemies themselves remain within the boundaries of politeness and even often provide each other with various helpfulness, which is called noble (that is, noble) hostility or enmity, but then these enemies are the most ferocious bloodsuckers where they can freely draw their weapons, and even more so their politeness does them honor, and the people have great respect for them for that."

Not only was swearing or swearing considered indecent, but even speaking in a raised voice, giving in to emotions, was impermissible for representatives of the upper classes. “The Circassian nobleman flaunted his politeness,” wrote N. Dubrovin, “and it was only necessary for the heated bridle, who had forgotten decency and politeness, to ask: are you a nobleman or a serf? - in order, recalling his origin, to force him to change his tone from rude to softer and more delicate ".

Talkativeness was also considered indecent, especially for a prince. Therefore, when receiving guests, “one of the nobles always had to engage the guests in conversation, because the decorum did not allow the prince himself to talk much.”

The Temirgoy princes even introduced the following custom: “... in general, during important negotiations with neighboring peoples or during internecine strife, they themselves do not enter into verbal disputes, and their nobles, to whom affairs are entrusted, explain themselves in the presence of the princes.” Khan-Girey calls this custom wonderful, “for it, keeping litigants, so to speak, from the frenzy into which they often fall during strong debates, maintains silence at congresses.”

The concept of “politeness” can also include such a quality as modesty. N. Dubrovin wrote: “Brave by nature, accustomed from childhood to fighting danger, the Circassians highly disdained self-praise. The Circassians never spoke about their military exploits, never glorified them, considering such an act indecent. The bravest horsemen (knights) were distinguished extraordinary modesty; they spoke quietly, did not boast of their exploits, were ready to give way to everyone and remain silent in an argument; but to a real insult they responded with weapons with the speed of lightning, but without threat, without shouting and swearing."

Indeed, the Circassians have many proverbs and sayings glorifying modesty and condemning boasting: “Shkhyeshchytkhure kerabgere zeblagyesh” - “The braggart and the coward are relatives”, “LIy khahuer utykum schoshberi, liy shaber utykum shokIy” - “A brave husband stands on people soft ( behaves modestly), the cowardly becomes loud in public."

“Uerk ischIe iIuetezhyrym” - “A nobleman does not boast of his exploits.” According to Circassian etiquette, it was considered especially indecent to boast about one’s exploits in the presence of women, which is reflected in the proverb: “Liym i lIyger leggunem shiIuaterkym” - “A man does not talk about his deeds in the company of women.” According to the Circassians, people should talk about a person’s courage, but not he himself: “UIme, ui shkhye uschymytkhyu, ufIme, zhyler kypschytykhunsch,” “If you are a man, don’t boast, if you are good, people will praise you.”

The right to perpetuate and glorify the hero’s exploits belonged exclusively to folk singers - jegaco. As a rule, this was done after the death of the hero by composing a great song in his honor. When a nobleman was asked to talk about some event, he, as usual, tried to omit in his narration those places in which his actions in a given situation were reported or, in extreme cases, he spoke about himself in the third person, so as not to suspected of immodesty. Here is what Zaramuk Kardangushev, an expert in Adyghe folklore, reports about this: “In the old days, the Circassians considered it a disgrace when a person said about something accomplished: “happened to me,” “I did it.” This was impermissible. “I hit,” “I killed,” etc. .d. - a real man will never talk about himself. In extreme cases, if he has to talk about some incident, he will say: “The gun in his hand fired - the man fell.” That’s how he will talk, as if his affairs “No, it all happened by itself.”

In April 1825, the tsarist troops destroyed the village of the fugitive Kabardian prince Ali Karamurzin. When Prince Atazhukin Magomed (Khyet1ohushchokue Myhyemet 1eshe) was asked to tell how he took revenge on one of the culprits in the death of the village, the traitor Shogurov, he answered briefly: “Erzhybyzhyr guuegguasch, Shouguryzhyr guegasch” - “Erejib* the old thundered, the vile Shogurov dawned.” led"

3. Courage. The concept of “courage” included such provisions as:

- Bravery. This quality was mandatory for a worker; it was inextricably linked with his status.

Cowardice, in turn, is incompatible with the position free man, and especially a nobleman. If a peasant showed cowardice, then he would certainly be condemned for this, but he could not be lowered below the place he occupied in the social hierarchy. In contrast, a Wark who showed cowardice was deprived of his noble title. A knight caught in cowardice was subjected to civil death, which, as Khasan Yakhtanigov told us, the Adygs denoted by the term “une demykhye, hyede imykh” (lit.: to whom they do not enter the house, in whose funeral they do not participate). Friends stopped communicating with such a person, not a single girl would marry him, he could not take part in public meetings and in general in the political life of his people and community.

For a general demonstration of popular contempt in the old days, according to Sh.

According to other sources, this cap was worn by the mother of the guilty person until he atoned for his guilt by some feat. It's your-

__________

*Erejib - erzhyb - a brand of flintlock Caucasian gun, named after the master.

The local "coward's cap" was called pIyne. Folklore also mentions a special dress - kerabge jane (coward's shirt), which performed a similar function.

A warrior who showed cowardice could atone for his guilt before society only by accomplishing a feat or by dying. Until this time, his entire family was in mourning. Those around the wife of the disgraced warrior expressed sympathy, as a sign of which they expressed good wishes: “Ui lIym i naper t’em khuzh ischIyzh” - “May God restore the honor of your husband.”

- Firmness and composure. This provision implied that the worker in any situation had to maintain composure, be calm, and never succumb to panic and fear. Folklore evidence has been preserved of how the Karmov workers were demoted in the class hierarchy by transferring from the primary nobles (dyzhynynygue) to the class of secondary nobles (beslen uerk). Here is what folklore says about this: “Karmekhe zhyndum kyigashteri, lIakuelIeshim kykhadzyzhasch” - “Karm’s owl scared him, for this he was expelled from the tlekotleshes.”

Although the folklore version is more of an anecdotal nature and most likely is not historically accurate, nevertheless, such a production is curious in itself. Indeed, according to historical evidence and some folklore data, the Karmovs were nobles of the 1st degree, but not Tlecotleshas, but dezhenugos, and were indeed transferred to the class of minor nobles. The reason was that they refused to kill the Crimean soldiers who were stationed with them and helped them escape during their general massacre. The Karmovs did not do this not out of cowardice, but because of the kinship relationship they had with the Crimean khans. One of their daughters, according to legend, was married in the Crimean Khanate. After the defeat and destruction of the Crimean Tatar army at a people's meeting, the Kabardians apparently made this decision.

– Patience and endurance. These qualities were brought up in a nobleman with early childhood. A true wark knight had to be stronger than his natural human weaknesses. Complaints about fatigue, malaise, cold, heat, hunger, and even any mention of tasty and healthy food were considered a shame and condemned.

The Circassians have many legends that describe and praise perseverance and patience. So, they say, Andemyrkan, who began his equestrian life at the age of 15, had the following custom: when he had the chance to be on guard or guard horses, even in winter, in the most severe frost, he spent the whole night standing in one place and without closing his eyes. For this he was given the nickname Cheshchane - Tower...

REMOTIVATION OF COMMUNICATIVE ACTIONS AND MOVEMENTS

The remotivation of customs and rituals is perhaps one of the most significant ethnic universals. V. Wundt drew attention to this at one time: “...Custom... in its development undergoes such changes that give it a different meaning, he wrote. As a result of this change, mainly two transformations occur. The first transformation consists in the disappearance of the original mythical motive, which is no longer replaced by another motive: the custom continues to exist only by virtue of an associative exercise, and at the same time it loses the character of compulsion, and the external forms of its manifestation become less stable. During the second transformation, the place of the original mythical-religious ideas is taken by moral and social goals. But both types of transformations can be closely combined in the same case, and even if some custom does not directly serve one or another social purpose, such as, for example, some rules of decency, politeness, rules of how to dress, there are, etc. etc., then he indirectly creates such a goal for himself, since the existence of some norms that are generally binding for members of society supports common life and thereby promotes joint spiritual development” (Wundt, 1897, 358).

W. Wundt's judgments in this case are somewhat contradictory (for example, while postulating the possibility of the existence of unmotivated customs, he immediately denies it). This is the result of the inconsistency of his general psychological views. But, in general, the trend in the development of custom is certainly captured correctly. Particularly noteworthy is the remark about the creation of new and indirect goals for actions and movements that fall under the category of rules of decency and politeness. It is in this plane that, it seems to us, we should consider remotivation of the entire sphere of ritualized communicative actions and movements.

Among the Circassians, as well as among other peoples, it covers greetings and farewells, toasts and wishes, ritual communication, the practice of secondary, metaphorical names of people by word, to one degree or another, the entire sphere of traditional everyday culture of communication. Magical and semi-magical acts are thus transformed into symbols of friendship and unity, decorum and tact, respect and veneration, and in this secularized form are enshrined in etiquette. But at the same time, as was said, they retain their external form (technique of execution) in whole or in part. And she, as you know, is quite complex and intricate in herself. Take, for example, the technique of designating relatives by property. For a daughter-in-law, it is determined by a whole system of prescriptions for the secondary name of mother-in-law, father-in-law, brothers-in-law, sister-in-law, husband, children. This type of prescription also exists for the mother-in-law, the husband, and other persons within the kinship group.

This custom is motivated in all cases by the need for mutual respect and veneration. Meanwhile, it is magical in origin. Losing their original motivation, turning into symbols of decency, communicative actions and movements appear in the perception of the members of the ethnos themselves, but especially in the perception of outside observers, even more intricate, in other words, redundant (in terms of the pragmatics of communication). If we now consider all this in reverse order - emphasized redundancy, motivated by decency, respect, veneration, then we get courtly communication as the norm, as a rule of interaction and, therefore, courtly etiquette.

Of course, the courteous communication of the Circassians is not based on secularized actions and movements alone. A number of other factors operate in this direction: the taboo on boasting, veneration of the female sex, etc. But the remotivation of communicative actions played, as we will see, a special role in the formation of Adyghe etiquette and, above all, in terms of supplying it with courtly content, which extends its influence both to psychology , and on communication techniques.

And the last thing that needs to be said here. In contrast to the principles discussed above, the principle of remotivation of communicative actions is latent, that is, it is almost not recognized as such by the bulk of the population. Its presence and influence on etiquette is revealed as a result of a special analysis of communication standards in terms of their genesis. Nowadays, no one perceives the formula for expressing gratitude Theraze kyphukhu as a prayer, as an appeal to God (Their arezy kyphukhu - may God be favorable to you), this connection is lost, repressed from consciousness, just as in the Russian environment the connection between the word “thank you” is lost ” and the prayer phrase “God bless.”

HOSPITALITY OF THE ADIGES

There are a lot of incompatible phenomena of social life, and among them is chivalry and stinginess. The knights of medieval France, Germany, Spain, Japan, just like the knights of feudal Circassia, subjected them to ridicule and expelled from their society anyone who was barely suspected of stinginess. Generosity is one of the most important points of any knightly etiquette.

The exceptional generosity of the Circassians has always attracted the attention of researchers, as can be judged by the statements of a number of Circassian and foreign authors of the 19th century: “If a worker sees a good dress, hat or other thing on the owner and wishes to have this thing, then the owner has no right to refuse it.” (Nogmov, 195B, 87). “...Circassians are not at all embarrassed to ask for what they like, and it would be funny to refuse them, since anyone has every right to ask for what they have” (Marigny, p. 309). “You just have to praise a chekmen, a horse or another thing, the Circassian immediately gives it to you” (Steel, 1900, 133). “Generosity and courage are the best means for the Circassians to gain fame...” (Khan-Girey, 1974, 298). It should be noted that to this day this quality is held in high esteem among the Circassians. There are also frequent cases when a person who has praised a hat, tie, book, etc. immediately receives these things as a gift from the owner. On a bus, taxi, restaurant, every man is in a hurry to pay for his friends and acquaintances. If someone is asked to borrow a small amount of money, he gives it back readily and considers it indecent to accept it back...

The generosity of the Circassians and other Caucasian and non-Caucasian peoples finds its highest embodiment in the custom of hospitality, in this, as L. Morgan puts it, “a wonderful decoration of humanity in an era of barbarism” (Morgan, 1934, 34).

The hospitality of the Circassians is widely known and described in both pre-revolutionary and post-revolutionary literature (See: Interiano, pp. 50-51, Motre, 130-132; Lopatinsky, 1862, 80-82; Dubrovin, 1927; Gardanov, 1964; Kodzhesau, 1968; Mambetov, 1968, etc.). It, as L. Ya. Lullier first noted, should not be confused with the kunachism, the right of patronage and protection. It consists “of receiving and treating visitors and passers-by who stop to rest or spend the night in the house of a friend or even a complete stranger” (Lullier, 1859, 33; See also: Naloeva, 1971).

Because detailed characteristics of this social institution already exists (especially in the indicated works of V.K. Gardanov and G.Kh. Mambetov), we will touch here only on some aspects of the phenomenon of hospitality, mainly those that are related to the general focus of the book.

Hospitality, as you know, is a custom that dates back to ancient times. It was and remains, to one degree or another, a custom of all peoples globe. However, the question of the genetic roots of this ethnic universal remains open: some scientists interpret it incorrectly, others (by the way, the majority of them) completely bypass it.

Let us note from the very beginning that explanations such as “the general penchant for knightly wanderings naturally produced a universal respect for hospitality” (Bronevsky, 1823, 130), “it is based on universal human morality” (Shanaev, 1890) are not suitable for this case. Hospitality, presumably, arose in clan society, before the penchant for knightly wanderings, and it was not based on universal morality in the spirit of Feuerbach. Nevertheless, some scientists cannot abandon such views (See, for example, Taylor, 1882, 404; Chursin, 1913, 64; Magomedov, 1974, 288-289).

There is also a concept that declares hospitality to be a product of magic and religion. If desired, some reasons for this can be found. Among the ancient Indians, for example, hospitality is represented in the form of one of the varieties of sacrifice, cf. “Teaching sacrifice to Brahma, tarpana sacrifice to ancestors, homa to the gods, offering pain to spirits, hospitality sacrifice to people” (Laws of Manu, 1960, 59). The essence of the last sacrifice is in instructions like: “The arriving guest should be given a place to sit, water, and also food as much as possible, seasoned [it] properly. A guest who comes after sunset should not be kicked out by the owner, whether he arrived on time or at the wrong time, let him not remain in his house unfed" (Laws of Manu, 1960, 61-62).

L. Lévy-Bruhl, touching on the issue of hospitality and the custom of giving gifts to a guest, is essentially inclined to this point of view. Following a number of scientists who observed the life and culture of peoples at a low level social development, he believes that the owner’s cordiality and kindness are explained “first of all by the fear of opening up the field of action for bad influence... Refusal causes anger in the person asking. This causes bad intentions, a hostile mood (close to envy), which, once awakened, already has own strength and gives rise to evil. But this should be absolutely avoided” (Lévy-Bruhl, 1937, 74).

It is easy to notice that the named sacred and semi-sacred motives of hospitality are close to those that now guide representatives of all peoples of the world, even the most civilized ones. In this regard, Lévy-Bruhl is, of course, right, but it is difficult to agree that they (these motives) were original and not derived from any other. We mean a motive that should have developed on the basis of collective ownership practiced in the era of primitive communism. The consciousness that everything that society has is at the same time yours could not exist without the consciousness that “mine is at the same time social.”

This is where the extraordinary generosity and hospitality of some peoples comes from. Hence the striking similarity in the general contours of hospitality. We find the hospitality of the Circassians and other Caucasian peoples in almost the same form in which it was recorded among the ancient Jews, Germans, Spaniards, and Indians. The following description of hospitality among the Indians can also be applied to the Circassians: “If someone entered the house of an Indian in any Indian village, be it a fellow villager, a fellow tribesman or a stranger, the women of the house were obliged to offer him food. Neglecting this would be impolite, moreover, an insult. If the guest was hungry, he ate; if he was full, politeness required that he taste the food and thank the hosts. The same picture was repeated in any house he entered at any time of the day. This custom was observed extremely strictly, and the same hospitality extended to strangers, belonging to their own tribes and to others” (Morgan, 1934, 31).

Judging by biblical legends reflecting the period of the XV-XVII centuries. BC e., the ancient Jews were no less hospitable than the Indians. They invited unknown strangers into the house, let them wash, set the table with food, and as a sign of respect for the guests, they did not sit with them, “but stood nearby, pushing food and drink towards them” (See Kosidovsky, 1965, 51). Just like the inhabitants of feudal Circassia, they considered it necessary to protect the honor and dignity of the guest by all possible means. Those who violated the rules of hospitality were punished in the most cruel way. (See The Legend of the Crime of the Sons of Benjamin).

L. Morgan is one of the first scientists to show that hospitality is a product of socio-economic relations of the early tribal system. “Explanations for the law of hospitality,” he writes, must be sought in collective land ownership, in the distribution of agricultural products, among households consisting of a certain number of families, and in the communist system of domestic life...” (Morgan, 1934, 41). Having accepted this point of view, we must, therefore, admit that the hospitality of the Circassians and the neighboring Caucasian peoples rested on the remnants of economic life characteristic of tribal society.

Once arose, the custom of hospitality was gradually, to one degree or another, sanctified, specified, and justified by religion. “The Indians,” writes J. Heckevelder, believe that the “great spirit” created the earth and everything on it for the common good of people. He gave them a country rich in game, and he did it not for the benefit of a few, but for the benefit of all. All things were given to the sons of men for a common possession. Everything that lives on the earth, everything that grows on it, everything that lives in the rivers and waters flowing on the earth, all this was given to everyone together, and each person has the right to his share. This is the source of Indian hospitality, which is not a virtue, but a strict duty” (Quoted in Morgan, 1934, 33-34). Among the Circassians, as far as one can judge from the epic, hospitality was encouraged by the pagan gods. They themselves set an example of hospitality, inviting prominent people to their feasts. Receiving and treating a guest is one of the forms of acquiring psape. The latter must be understood not simply as goodness or virtue (See Shaov, 1975, 252), but as a special reaction of god (gods) to the actions of the owner, namely the reaction of favor and remission of sins. Psape is the antithesis of what the Circassians call guenykh - sin. Therefore, it is a sin to violate the principle of hospitality. It is not for nothing that Khan-Girey writes: “Circassians in general, when receiving guests, are confident that they are doing what is pleasing to the creator” (1836, 326).

Moreover, compliance with the principle of hospitality was strictly controlled by public opinion. Those who violated it were subjected to “trial and punishment” (Nogmov, 1958, 79), they “become the subject of popular contempt, honest people lose respect for them and are abhorred by their community, offensive reproaches meet them at every step...” (Khan-Girey, 1836, 325). And currently, the leading role in maintaining hospitality is played by the opinion of the public: neighbors, acquaintances, relatives, and the guests themselves.

The explicit model of Adyghe hospitality is unique and extremely complex; in the era of chivalry, it was redesigned and supplemented with completely new elements that were unusual for the hospitality of the tribal society. The studies available to date do not provide a complete picture of this. Therefore, it would be necessary to consistently, step by step, identify all the diversity of standards and attributes of communicative behavior related to a given social institution, which, as was said, is not typical for traditional ethnographic work. However, the list of points of Adyghe hospitality given below also does not pretend to be complete. It presents only the basic content of the rituals provided for by hospitality, but with an emphasis on thoroughness and detail in the description. For the same purpose, the list includes the corresponding proverbs; they, as is known, best reflect the external pattern and internal meaning of the traditional everyday culture of an ethnic group.

So, the main points of Adyghe hospitality are the following:
1. The guest is a sacred, inviolable person. He brings with him happiness and prosperity. Adygem heshch1e and sh1asesch - The Adygs have a favorite guest.
2. The custom of hospitality applies to all Circassians, regardless of their condition. “The poorest classes are just as hospitable as the higher ones, and a poor person, even a peasant, will treat him with whatever he can and feed the horses, and what he does not have himself, he will borrow from others.” (Steel, 1900, 135).
3. It is the duty of every Adyghe to invite to his home those who may need food and lodging. “Any stranger walking through the village, having met the first village resident, hears the traditional “eblag'e” welcome. He sincerely invites you into his home and treats you” (Kodjesau, 1968, 282).
4. The right of hospitality is enjoyed by old and young, rich and poor, man and woman, enemy and friend: Khyeshch1e sh1ale shchy1ekkym - A guest is never young; Khyesh1e lei shpekyim - There is no such thing as too many guests; Hyeshch1eu kyphuek1uame, ui zhaguegyuri nybzhyegushch - If you came as a guest, then your enemy is your friend.
5. A guest from distant lands enjoys the greatest honor. This explains the magnificent meetings and farewells of foreign travelers, who then spoke enthusiastically about the Adyghe hospitality.
6. At some distance from the residential building, each family builds a special guest house*** - heshch1eshch

* This and a significant part of all other proverbs used in the book are given from a two-volume edition of Adyghe proverbs: Kardangushev et al., 1965; Gukemukh et al., 1967.
** Bysym is the host of the guest, the owner of the house. Goes back to the ancient Iranian f "sumant, possessing livestock, cattle owner (Abaev, 1949, 74).
*** Previously, the wealthiest families even had two guest houses: kheshch1eshch - kunatskaya and kheshch1eshch zhyant1e - honorary kunatskaya. See about this: Lulye, 1859, 33. (Kunatskaya) and a hitching post nearby. In the kunatskaya there are always: tripod tables for treating guests, a bed, a carpet, a copper jug (kubgan) and a copper or wooden bowl for washing, a towel, and often musical instruments (shyk1e pshyné - violin, bzhyami - pipe). Weapons are usually hung on the walls of the kunatskaya. “Outside the courtyard, at a distance of fifty to one hundred steps, there is a hut for guests, in which they do not live and which is intended for guests. Even a poor Circassian never forgets to build a hut for guests in his yard” (Lapinsky, 1862, 62). “We dismounted from Indar-Ogly, who, together with his son Nogai, came out to meet us at the gates of his courtyard and took us to the guest room, where the walls were decorated with sabers, daggers, bows, arrows, pistols, guns, helmets and a large number of chain mails” ( Marigny, p. 307).
7. The doors of the kunatskaya are open at any time of the day or night. Any passerby can enter and sit there without asking the owners. “A guest who arrived at night could enter the guest house unnoticed by anyone, so the owner of the house was obliged to look into the guest house before going to bed. A horse tied to a hitching post could also indicate the arrival of a guest” (Mambetov, 1968, 231).
8. In case guests arrive, you must always have supplies of food.
9. Having seen the guest, the owner is obliged to go out to meet him and greet him with the formula f1ehjus apshchy, eblag'e - Come well, welcome. Other greeting formulas are not suitable for this case.
10. The rider is helped to dismount, holding the horse by the bridle and taking care of food for the latter.
11. The guests enter the kunatskaya first, everyone else follows them. Nowadays, due to the absence of a special guest house, the eldest man from among the hosts goes ahead to indicate the room that is intended for guests.
12. Having escorted the guest to the kunatskaya, you should help him take off his outer clothing, weapons and seat him in the place of honor.
13. Hosts do not sit down at the same time as the guest. Only after the latter’s urgent requests does the one who, in terms of age and status, is closest to the guest, sit down. If there are none, then no one sits down, everyone stands.
14. The guest is asked about his health, and, after some time, about the news.
15. It is forbidden to ask a guest for three days about who he is, where he is going, where he came from, for what purpose, for what time, where he is heading next, etc. “... the guest, if he wished, could maintain complete incognito" (Dubrovin, 1927, 8).
16. After three days, that is, after the guest had been given all the honors required by etiquette, the owner could ask what business he was busy with and how he could be useful to him. Bysym considered it his sacred duty to contribute to the achievement of the goals that the guest was pursuing.
17. It is unacceptable to leave a guest alone in the room. Neighbors, sons and daughters of the owner alternately come to him and greet him, but, as a rule, they do not sit down, but soon leave or stand, listening to the conversation of the elders, carrying out their instructions. “Between arrival and dinner, neighbors appear with greetings; it would be inconsiderate to leave a guest alone in the living room. The owner’s daughter also comes to visit and they always bring her a dish of fresh or dry vegetables, depending on the time of year; the guest invites her to sit down and after a short conversation she leaves” (Lhulier, 1859.34).
18. The table should be set as quickly as possible with the best of what is in the house. While the main meal is being prepared, the guest is offered fruit, cheese and pasta (hard-cooked millet porridge), etc. Then meat dishes usually follow in this order: fried meat (ly gezhya), chicken in sauce (dzed lybzhye), boiled lamb or beef ( hyeshch1enysh). The meal ends with meat broth, which is drunk from wooden bowls without spoons. As for alcoholic drinks, they serve makhsyme, a type of mash made from millet. Each dish is served on small tripod tables. “...Soon dinner was served on fifteen small tables, which replaced each other as we tried the dishes on them” (Marigny, p. 307); “...Following the washing, a row of low round tables filled with food was brought” (Tornau, 1864, 418).
19. Before eating, the guest is asked to wash his hands. At the same time, the wife, son or daughter of the owner brings a bowl to the guest, pours water on his hands from the kubgan and holds a clean towel ready. All this is done right there in the kunatskaya, so the guest does not even have to get up from his seat.
20. When other needs are satisfied, the guest is accompanied by one of the family members, shows him the guest restroom and returns with him. There is always a cup with water in the guest restroom, and often a towel and mirror hang there too.
21. At the table, the hosts make sure that the guest eats as much as possible and is satisfied.
22. It is considered tactless to eat your portion before the guest, since in this case the guest will also be forced to tear himself away from food. Hence the remark of T. de Marigny: “for a Circassian it is shameful to eat faster than a foreigner” (p. 296).
23. After the meal, the guest is served water again so that he can wash his hands.
24. Avoid arguing with the guest, if, of course, he behaves within the bounds of decency provided for by etiquette.
25. Decency requires that hosts not talk to each other in the presence of a guest.
25. To entertain the guest of honor, they invite neighbors and relatives appropriate to his age and rank, organize dances, games, sing songs, etc. “The best singers and musicians of the village were present at the reception of the guest. Dances were organized for the young guest, and for the noble traveler, horse racing, horse riding, target shooting, national wrestling, and sometimes hunting were organized. Everything was done that could glorify the village of the owner with whom the guest was staying” (Mambetov, 1968, 236-237).
27. Even a hint that the guest has stayed too long and it’s time for him to leave the house is completely excluded: Khyesh1e kashe shchy1eshchi, hyesch1e ishyzh shchy1ekym There is an invitation to the guest, but there is no sending the guest away.
28. While the guest is in the house, his outer clothing, if required, is cleaned and put in order. If a guest stays overnight, in the morning he finds his clothes washed and ironed.
29. Before going to bed, they help the guest take off his shoes and wash his feet (this was usually done by the owner’s daughter). This custom, most characteristic of the Abkhazians, disappeared among the Circassians already in the 19th century.
30. The sacred duty of the host is to protect the peace and protect the honor of the guest. If necessary, he fulfills this duty with weapons in his hands: Adyge and hyeshch1e bydap1e isch - Adyge is a guest in the fortress.
31. A guest who is about to leave is persistently asked to sit still, to stay overnight, for several days.
32. It is customary to give gifts to the most honored guests.
33. A guest leaving the house is helped to dress and mount a horse, holding the horse by the bridle and holding the left stirrup.
34. A guest sitting in the saddle is sometimes given a bowl of makhsym, the so-called stirrup shesyzhybzhye.
35. It is necessary to escort the guest to the edge of the village, at least beyond the gates of the estate... Guests arriving from afar, and especially foreigners, are escorted to their next destination or accompanied throughout the entire trip around the country.
36. Parting with the guest, he wishes him a happy journey, all the best and urgently asks him to come again.
37. After saying goodbye, the owner waits for the guest to move some distance away. It is indecent to turn around and immediately return to the house. This, so to speak, is the charter that determines the host’s behavior towards the guest. But there are also rules regarding the behavior of a guest in someone else's home. Some of them are designed to alleviate, to some extent, the inconvenience caused to the hosts, the other part records ways of demonstrating gratitude for a warm welcome;
38. The guest is the first to greet the host with the exclamation: Selam alaikum, daue fyschythe - Selam alaikum, how are you.
39. He surrenders entirely to the power of the owner, who strives to comply with all points of hospitality: ui unafesh - If you are visiting, what will they tell you the law for you; Khyesh1er melym nekh're nekh 1eseshch - A guest is humbler than a sheep.
40. People condemn a guest who, for one reason or another, without accepting traditional honors from one owner, goes to another, for example, to a neighbor - Zi bysym zykhyuezhy chyts1ykhyu huauk1 - To the one who changes the owner, a kid [skinny] is slaughtered.
41. When visiting, you should not eat or drink a lot, so as not to be branded a glutton and a drunkard. “If a guy or an old man in a family goes to a wedding, then they feed him to his fill, saying “1enem utefisch1yhyu umyk1ue” - Don’t go to clear the table [on a visit] (AF, 1963, 214).
42. The guest is prohibited from the slightest interference in family affairs. It is considered tactless to get up from your seat unnecessarily, go out of the kunatskaya into the courtyard, or look into the kitchen where food is being prepared. “...during the entire stay in someone else’s house, the guest, according to the custom of the old days, remained as if chained to his place: getting up and walking around the room would not only be a departure from decency, but many of his compatriots would even consider it a crime” (Dubrovin , 1927, 8).
43. The guest should be well versed in how long he should stay in the kunatskaya, so as not to offend the owner for leaving quickly and not to become a burden to him for a long stay. “It is considered discourteous to stay with one owner for more than two nights, although the owner will not show anyone the door” (Lapinsky, 1862, 84). Hyeshch1ap1eryner emyk1ushch - It is indecent to linger at a party. Having finished the meal, the guest thanks the hosts in expressions like: Fi eryskyr ubague - May your food multiply.
44. It is considered desecration of the house to sort things out at a party, settle old scores, quarrel, abuse, etc. “... In cases of enmity and bloodshed, persons having enmity do not show each other feigned attention and politeness, but, on the contrary, show that They don’t notice each other and stay away from each other. All this is done naturally, without pretense or affectation” (Steel, 1900, 121).
45. It is absolutely unacceptable to insult the dignity of the members of the family you are staying with, for example, flirting with the host’s wife or daughter. In this regard, L. Ya. Lhuillier writes: “Often in such cases I looked closely at the external behavior of the mountaineers and found them decent and alien to any impudence” (1859, 34).
46. The guest does not demand services or gifts, and when they are offered to him, out of decency he refuses for a while.
47. The guest must refrain from praising certain things in the host’s house: this can be perceived as a request that, according to custom, cannot be refused, i.e., ultimately, as extortion.
48. When leaving the house, the guest is obliged to thank for the welcome and say goodbye to the older members of the family.
49. Before mounting the horse, the guest turns his head towards the house, which symbolizes his good mood and gratitude to the owners. “If the guests were dissatisfied with the owner, they mounted their horses with their backs to the owner’s yard, and if they were happy, then they turned the heads of their horses towards the owner’s yard...” (Kirzhinov, 1974, 172).
50. The guest (especially if he is young) refuses to be helped onto his horse or escorted beyond the gate. He does this even when he definitely knows that the owners will insist on their own.

The listed points of hospitality, of course, do not exhaust the entire content of this public institution. But as preliminary material for analysis (including comparative, typological analysis), they are quite suitable. We can, in particular, point out the following features of Adyghe hospitality.

In its general pattern, it coincides with the hospitality of peoples at the lower and middle stages of barbarism (Australian aborigines, Indians, etc.). This can only be explained by the identity of the forms of historical development of culture of all peoples of the globe. Among the Circassians, as well as among all other peoples, hospitality goes back to the “communist system of home life” characteristic of clan society (Morgan).

Having retained the general features of ancient, primitive hospitality, the hospitality of the Circassians of the era of feudalism acquired a completely different quality: it became an integral part, a constructive principle of chivalry in general and knightly etiquette in particular. “There are three qualities,” writes J. Longworth, which in these parts give a man the right to fame: courage, eloquence and hospitality; or...a sharp sword, a sweet tongue and forty tables” (Longworth, p. 516). Knightly etiquette made its own amendments to hospitality, supplemented it with completely new points, and, in essence, completely subordinated it to its principles. At the same time, for obvious reasons, it would be naive to believe that chivalry gave rise to hospitality.

Hospitality has always occupied an important place in the life of the Circassians. In the era of feudalism, it also became fertile ground for the formation and development of original knightly etiquette. And it’s not just the statute of hospitality itself. The place of this public institution in the traditional everyday culture of the Circassians and other Caucasian peoples was determined primarily by its social functions. Being a kind of epicenter of national and interethnic contacts, hospitality played a huge role in intensifying and optimizing communication within an ethnic group and beyond. It stimulated and facilitated the transmission of culture from one generation to another, thereby performing the function of integration and social control. Finally, hospitality contributed to the transmission and adoption cultural values other, especially neighboring, peoples. We can therefore agree that the kunatskaya is a kind of public institution that originally belonged to the entire community (Magomedov, 1974, 295). “Here for the first time... new heroic songs were performed, news was shared, young people learned songs, dances, politics, wisdom, history, knightly etiquette - everything that a young aristocrat, and in modern times a young Adyghe in general, needed. Kunatskaya was both a restaurant and concert hall, and an office where political problems were solved, and a university for the younger generation" (Naloev, 1976).

Currently, having ceded its functions to other social institutions and institutions, hospitality has lost its former social significance. At the same time, it became less refined and magnificent, more flexible and generalized. And yet, despite this, the main points of Adyghe hospitality firmly hold their positions in the system of elements of the traditional everyday culture of the ethnic group.

REVERENCE FOR WOMEN

Shchyhubz psherykh khushchane - The loot (gift) is left to the woman. In the past, this proverb was very common among the eastern Circassians. It probably arose as a reflection (and the need to maintain) a custom according to which a man returning from a hunt or a military campaign or raid was supposed to give part of the spoils to a woman he met along the way. Then, as often happens, the meaning of the proverb expanded. It has become a concentrated expression of a chivalrous attitude towards a woman, realized in a number of communication standards fixed in etiquette. Help a woman in trouble, fulfill her every request if possible, protect her duty of honor to every man. People who know life, culture well, national psychology Circassians have observed this principle in action more than once. The one who violated it was condemned and severely punished, saying at the same time: And guegu myguem ezhen, ts1yhubz psherykh khushchane zhyhua1er psch1erke - Let you go on an unhappy journey, don’t you know what “Shchyhubz psherykh khushchane” is?

The question arises how this is consistent with the statements of some scientists about the almost complete lack of rights and humiliation of Adyghe women in the past. Of course, you can’t give a definite answer to this. One thing is clear: judgments of this kind, although not unfounded, are still, apparently, not sufficiently substantiated.

First of all, it should be noted that the traditions of matriarchy among the Circassians turned out to be very stable. The people still have images of the wise Satanei, the leader of the Narts, their adviser in all difficult matters, the intelligent and courteous Malechipkh, the female hero Lashin, and the bright-armed Adiyukh. The idea of honoring women runs through the entire Nart epic as a red line.

Judging by the statements of authors of the 7th-19th centuries, Adyghe women had great freedom in dealing with men. “They were sociable and kind... writes Olearius. Some even invited us to come into their homes.” (Olearius, p. 84). Ya. Ya. Streis (pp. 215-216) and P. G. Brus speak in the same spirit. “Their good humor and pleasant ease in conversation,” writes the latter, make them very desirable; despite all this, they are reputed to be very chaste...” (Bruce, p. 149).

The early 19th century author Thébout de Marigny summed up his observations of the situation of women in Circassia as follows: “The fair sex is here, although it is destined for the most working life, is far from condemned, as, for example, among the Turks, to eternal seclusion. Girls especially are admitted to all the festivities, which they enliven with their playfulness, and their company is one of the best ways of relaxation for men, with whom the girls communicate with the greatest ease” (Marigny, p. 296).

In the late Middle Ages among European and partly Asian countries It was widely believed that the women of feudal Circassia were the most beautiful in the world. This further increased the interest of scientists and travelers in their morals and social status, but at the same time gave rise to very contradictory judgments on this matter. In some sources they are presented as chaste and bashful, in others, on the contrary, immodest and wayward, and sometimes chaste and immodest at the same time. Messages of the second and third types are especially characteristic of authors of the 17th-18th centuries. (except for those mentioned above, see: Pallas, p. 221) and to a much lesser extent for the authors of the 19th century, which suggests a gradual change in relations between the sexes in a class society and the emergence of all more rules requiring a woman to be more restrained in her behavior.

Nevertheless, among the Circassians to this day there are memories of the distant past, when women had great freedom in relations with men. True, facts of this kind in themselves cannot serve as evidence of veneration of the female sex; this was just the sanctioning of certain relationships (inherited from matriarchy), probably going beyond the scope of proper etiquette behavior. Etiquette establishes other standards of interaction that most directly indicate a respectful, polite and modest attitude towards a woman. They will be discussed later.

According to the customs of the Circassians, a man had to protect the woman in every possible way and help her. For example, if a woman was chopping wood, then every man passing by was obliged to offer his services. The same applies to all other cases when a woman does hard, “male” work. A woman’s request for help was usually fulfilled by a man unquestioningly (See: Khan-Girey, 1836, 315).

A quarrel or swearing in her presence was considered the greatest disgrace. A woman could stop any actions of men, she had only to say: Shch'el'asch1em khyetyr i1ek'e - on myg'ue - A woman's headscarf (woman) doesn't deserve respect (condescension) to even touch right hand to the scarf on your head. 80-year-old P. Albotov from the village. Kakhun told us that in this way the wife of Prince Tausultanov forced her sons to abandon their firm intention to kill the man, who, as it later turned out, was falsely accused of the murder of their elder brother. A woman could resort to the same technique in many other situations of this type, for example, when it was necessary to shame men who behaved too familiarly.

As a result of our observations and inquiries, it was found that three forms of this standard of communication were practiced, which differed in intensity and force of influence on the addressee: 1) pronouncing the above formula, 2) pronouncing the formula while simultaneously touching the scarf, 3) throwing off the scarf. The most irreconcilable enemies would stop fighting if a woman tore off her scarf and threw it between them.

Circassian women appeared in society with an open face, shook hands with men freely and without coercion, and in some cases spoke at meetings and even went on raids together with horsemen. The same applies to Ossetian and especially Abkhaz women. They also had great rights in the family and outside it (See Kaloev, 1967, 186-189; Machivariani, 1884) and tirelessly defended them. K. Machivariani writes in this regard: “For a long time, the protection of family interests among the Abkhazians rested with the woman, who in all her affairs in this case walked hand in hand with women belonging to neighboring tribes: Circassians, Ubykhs and Dzhigets. The attempt to destroy various time-honored rights of women caused a series of unrest here, which always ended in the victory of female influence” (1884, 10).

It is known that the Circassians usually did not have more than one wife. Etiquette dictated being polite and courteous with her; It was considered a matter of honor for every man to create conditions under which his wife could dress decently and with taste. “When a husband hits or showers abusive words on his wife, writes Khan-Girey, he becomes an object of ridicule, just as if he, having the means, does not dress her according to his condition” (1836, 316) [Hence proverbs like Fyzym euer l1ymykhushchi , huer zymyder l1y delash - a man who beats his wife is a worthless man who doesn’t understand jokes, a fool; L1ykhur fyzdeubzeshi, l1ybzyr fyzdeueishch - A real husband is affectionate with his wife, a husband-woman beats his wife.].

The wife managed the household affairs and enjoyed great authority in the family. “Among the Shapsugs,” writes M. O. Kosven, the senior woman of patronymy was called “the bald gouache - the princess of the house,” all women of patronymy turned to her for advice, she was the main mistress of the patronymic family during weddings, funerals, funerals and etc., she was an obligatory adviser when choosing a bride or groom, etc.” (Kosven, 1963, 201).

If a husband oppressed his wife, she collected her things, went to her parents and returned only after assurances from her husband and his relatives that this would not happen again. Usually, “the husband’s treatment of his wife is modest and delicate,” testifies K. F. Stahl (1900, 128). It is impossible, however, to agree with his statement and at the same time Kucherov’s statement that Circassian girls do not have any opportunity to talk and explain with their suitors (See: Leontovich, pp. 172 and 117).

There were at least three possible explanations: 1) at festivities, during ballroom dancing; 2) during the sh1opshchak1ue ritual; 3) the groom’s visit to the girl’s house and a conversation in a separate room in the presence of third parties (usually the girl’s sisters or girlfriends, friends of the groom). This visit is known among the Circassians under the names hydzhebzaplee, pselyyhu. “When a girl reaches marriageable age, write E. L. Kodzhesau and M. A. Meretukov, a special room is allocated for her, and parents consider it indecent to enter there. Young people can visit her there. A young man can even go to an unfamiliar girl and, if he likes her, ask for her hand in marriage” (1964, 137).

Guys also have a special room (or house) - legyune (room for friends). “Almost every evening young people gather in the lagoon and have fun dancing, singing, playing the violin or harmonica. Any young man who wants to have fun can go there, but girls come to the lagoon only by invitation” (Kodjesau and Meretukov, 1964, 143).

Under these conditions, some knightly elements of Adyghe etiquette were formed. A special place among them was occupied by various kinds of signs of attention to female representatives, as evidenced by Khan-Girey, A. Keshev and other Adyghe authors, who probably knew the life of the Circassians better than others and had a deeper understanding of their psychology. The first of them, in the ethnographic essay “Faith, Morals, Customs and Way of Life of the Circassians,” writes: “Young Circassians, having free relations with girls, have the opportunity to please each other and make their feelings clear” (Khan-Girey, 1974, 184). The second in the story “Scarecrow” brought out the image of the beautiful Adyghe girl Nazika and showed examples of chivalrous attitude towards the female sex, typical of the Adyghe people. Worshiping the beauty and kindness of Nazika, the young men give her various gifts and are ready to fulfill all her whims: “In the whole village there would not be a horseman who would not throw himself into fire and water at one word from her, and one of them would be considered unworthy of the name of a man.” “who would dare not to fulfill her sacred will” (A. Keshev, 1977, III). During the festivities, at which Nazika was invariably present, “there was no empty space left in the village from the visiting horsemen,” shots in her honor were constantly heard around the area, so that “the very sky was hidden behind the gunpowder smoke,” men “often grabbed their weapons, challenging each other for the honor of making two or three circles with her,” and the Geguakos praised the princess in the manner of the troubadours of Provence: “You are the beauty and pride of the Adyghe land... Your eyes are more beautiful than the brilliant stars on blue sky. Your body is more flexible than the reeds that grow on the banks of the Belaya River. Happy is the young man who calls you his own. May Allah send happiness on earth to your parents, and when they die, may He open the gates of heaven for them. Don’t think, beauty, that I’m flattering you. My mother gave birth to me not to flatter, but to tell people the truth, and with my meager words to glorify the deeds of brave young men and the beauty of our girls. Well, dance, well done! Praise my Nazika with me to all corners of the world. Let Circassian girls imitate her in everything, and let the young men yearn for her” (Keshev, 1977, 112-113).

So as not to create the impression that this is a fiction peculiar to works of art, let us refer to the testimony of F. Tornau, an officer of the Russian troops, who, as was said, was in captivity among the Kabardians for about two years and learned their language: “The Circassians do not hide girls; they do not wear veils, are in male company, dance with young people and walk freely among guests; therefore, everyone could see her (meaning Aiteka Kanukova’s sister B.B.) and, having seen her, glorify her beauty” (Tornau, 1864, 38).

J. Longworth speaks in the same spirit. He considers it necessary to point out the “weak, in his opinion, touch of chivalry” that is found in the attitude of men towards women and in support of this he cites the following facts: “At festivals, young people have a custom, raising a cup with a buza with a toast in honor of the chosen one of their hearts, to defuse shotgun or pistol in the air. The challenge is immediately accepted by those who have a charge of gunpowder... to assert in the same manner the superiority of their own passions. Another custom that exists here is to take part in a race for a prize, which is in the hands of a beautiful mademoiselle and is a decorated pistol holster, the work of her delicate fingers” (Longworth, p. 574). Similarly, at races held during funerals, young men “challenge the prizes in order to present their prize to the lady as a tribute to her beauty” (Bess, p. 345).

Among the examples of chivalry is the above-mentioned custom of standing up at the sight of a woman. It should be noted that even now it is strictly observed in Adyghe villages. Respectable old men of eighty, ninety, or even a hundred years old rise decorously when women who are not even thirty pass along the street.

Finally, until very recently, a custom observed back in the 19th century was preserved. J. de Bessom (p. 346), according to which a horseman, having met a woman on the way (in the field), dismounted and accompanied her to her destination, leaving his business for a while, no matter how important they were. At the same time, he held the reins in his left hand, and the woman walked on the right side of honor.

I think that the examples given are enough to shake the idea of the complete lack of rights and humiliation of Adyghe women in the past.

Of course, the thesis about their dependent position cannot be denied entirely. Indeed, in the family, as a rule, the husband dictated his terms, although he was not the undivided master. But in most cases this is only an appearance: the wife shows her husband external signs of respect and submission; this is the custom, but in fact, the woman managed the affairs of the family, and in this regard, her position resembles that of a Japanese woman (See Ovchinnikov, 1975, 63). Observation of modern Kabardian families, in which the best traditions of the Adyghe Khabze are maintained, indicate the same. We see that very often the wife’s opinion turns out to be decisive when the question is about building a house, marrying a son, enrolling him in an educational institution, etc. As for other smaller problems, the husband does not interfere in them at all, he decides everything wife. The same is observed among the Adyghe people (Kodzhesau and Meretukov, 1964, 122).

We are also not inclined to deny that women did the hard work around the house, while men were less burdened with chores and had more free time [This applies especially to men belonging to the upper class. Compare: “The Circassian nobleman spends his life on horseback in thieves’ raids, in dealings with the enemy, or traveling to visit guests. At home, he spends the whole day, lying in the kunatsky, open to every passerby, cleaning weapons, straightening his horse harness, and most often doing nothing.” Tornau, 1864, 60.]. Indeed, this was the case in the 19th century. “The duty of a Circassian wife is difficult,” wrote Khan-Girey, she sews all her husband’s clothes, from head to toe; Moreover, the whole burden of household management lies with her” (1836.60).

Is it possible, however, following some scientists, to consider this as unconditional evidence of the humiliation of women? Clearly not. Let us remember what F. Engels wrote about this: “The division of labor between both sexes is determined not by the position of women in society, but by completely different reasons. Peoples whose women have to work much more than we think they should, often have much more genuine respect for women than our Europeans. The lady of the era of civilization, surrounded by seeming respect and alien to any real work, occupies an infinitely lower social status than a woman of the barbarian era doing hard work...” (F. Engels, 1961, 53). In this regard, we can refer to a number of other scientists, for example, M. M. Kovalevsky (1939, 89-90), the modern Polish scientist M. Fritzhand (1976, 114).

It remains to be said that when considering the position of women in the pre-revolutionary past, this past is sometimes unjustifiably abstract. The pre-revolutionary past is measured in centuries, millennia, therefore each phenomenon within these limits must be considered specifically historically. The situation of Adyghe women in the 17th-18th centuries. is very different from its situation in the pre-revolutionary period of history. Since the first quarter of the 19th century. and for a whole century, women's social position steadily declined. In addition to socio-economic reasons (the development of feudalism, the beginnings of capitalist social relations), this was facilitated by the increasing influence of the Muslim faith, promoted by Turkey and the entire Muslim East. With the adoption of Islam, a woman lost some of her rights. This was one of the reasons for the ambivalent, contradictory attitude towards her, about which A. Keshev wrote: “Our highlander values a woman, although at the same time he oppresses her. Circassian enslaved her, reduced her to the level of a toy, following the example of the depraved East, but at the same time made her the subject of enthusiastic praise and songs1” (1977, 113). J. Bell concretized this idea: “ Current situation and the manners of Circassian women arose from a mixture of Turkish and Circassian customs, only the former seem to predominate for married women, and the latter for unmarried women” (Bell, p. 503). Dubois de Montpere (1937, 47-48), N. Albov (1893, 138-139) and others write about the same thing.

One cannot ignore the fact that girls were freed from hard work in order to preserve their beauty and be more profitable to marry. “It should be noted,” writes T. Lapinsky, that while women are tortured by work, girls, both rich and poor, are very protected. They are freed from all household and field work [However, all women were freed from field work; they came here occasionally to help the men] work, they do only sewing...” (Lapinsky, 1862, 79).

And one more circumstance must be taken into account when considering the position of the Circassian woman in the past - her class affiliation. Women of the upper class, as a number of pre-revolutionary and especially post-revolutionary authors rightly noted, had much greater freedom in communication. This is quite natural and does not seem to require much explanation.

REVERENCE OF ELDERS

In the family and outside it, it greatly affects the communicative behavior of the younger ones. “Not only the son in front of his father, but also the younger brother does not dare to sit in front of the elder and does not enter into conversation in the presence of strangers. Equally in conversations where there are oldest in years“, young people do not dare speak loudly or laugh, but are obliged to answer modestly the questions asked of them” (Bronevsky, 1823, 123). These models, described by the famous Russian historian of the first half of the 19th century, were preserved among the Circassians almost unchanged and to this day act as instructions for behavior during a conversation. In general, older people, regardless of status and gender, are in a special position here, thanks to which old age finds protection from loneliness and ridicule. The German scientist of the last century, K. Koch, wrote in this regard: “While in our country, unfortunately, the state very rarely takes the elderly under protection, and they are completely dependent on the younger generation, among the Circassians the elderly are universally respected. The one who insulted the old man or an elderly woman, is subjected not only to general contempt, but his act is discussed by the people’s assembly, and he bears punishment for it depending on the magnitude of the offense” (Koch, p. 591).

Young people are required to show modesty in the presence of elders; bragging, boasting and generally any lengthy speeches about one’s person are considered a gross violation of etiquette. A young man with all his appearance must express attention, respect for the elder, and readiness to carry out any of his instructions. This attitude eliminates the possibility of keeping your hands in your pockets, standing half-bent, sitting lounging, fidgeting in a chair, turning your back to others, scratching the back of your head, nose, smoking, chewing, resting your cheek or forehead with your hand; there are special polite and modest formulas for addressing elders, to express gratitude to them, special rules the placement of seniors and juniors in space is subject to this, etc., etc. And one more detail: a senior surrounded by juniors can speak with almost complete confidence that his words will be listened to with attention and respect, even when they go against the actual state of affairs or the plans and expectations of the younger ones. In short, in the regulation of communicative acts and movements, age-related roles occupy no less a place than social roles in the sense in which they are represented in American social psychology. (See Berlo 1960, 136). It is not for nothing that Russian army officer F. Tornau, who was held captive by the Kabardians for two years (1836-1838), wrote: “The highlanders place summers in the hostel above rank. A young man of the highest birth is obliged to stand before every old man without asking his name, to give him his seat, not to sit down without his permission, to remain silent before him, to answer his questions meekly and respectfully. Every service rendered to the gray haired man is given honor to the young man.

Even an old slave is not completely excluded from this rule” (Tornau, 1864, 419). It should be noted, however, that this is only a general rule. The class division of society introduced its own amendments to it. The old-timers sat down. Zayukovo (KBASSR) claim that before the revolution, at festivities, very often a beardless prince or nobleman was seated in a place of honor, and elders from the lower class did not even dare to stand next to them. Similarly, when meeting with the prince, peasants, regardless of their age, were obliged to dismount, “showing signs of respect for his dignity” (Khan-Gireyt 1836, 322). Referring to the custom of shudegaze following the horseman, the prince sometimes forced a whole convoy of carts encountered along the way to follow him. Thus, the ancient, democratic foundations of the principle of honoring elders were shaken. The nobility used it for their own purposes and interests.

This is especially true of the pre-revolutionary period of history, when the class division of society, following the example of the Russians, acquired significant proportions, up to the emergence of sharp antagonistic contradictions between the exploitative elite and the common people. In earlier times, that is, back in the first half of the 19th century, the power of princes and nobles was limited to the people's assembly. They say, for example, that one of the Kabardian princes was deprived of this title because, having abused his power, he allowed, and in fact, forced, a convoy of peasant carts to follow him.

Respect for elders sometimes appeared in exaggerated form. Sh. Mashkuashev (village of St. Cherek, KBASSR) claims that in the past a man walking alone along the street had to keep to the left side of the road, symbolically yielding the right, honorable side to the eldest in the clan (if there is one). For the same reason, he, being the eldest at the table, refused to perform the ritual of dividing shkh'el'enykue (a ram's head divided in two). The younger one was strictly forbidden to call out to the older one. To attract the attention of the elder, it was necessary to enter the field of view of the latter and then address him. Hence two proverbs, differently reflecting the same standard of communication: Nekhyzhym k1el'ydzherkym, - k1el'ok1ue - They don’t call out to the elder, they catch up with him; Koodzher nekhyizhsch - [The one] who calls out to you is older. In addition to this, before saying anything to the elders leading the conversation, the younger one was supposed to update a special polite-respectful formula for entering the conversation: Kyshuevgegyu, fe fi psh1ykh huediz akyyl si1ekkym se, aue khuit syfshch1ame, zy psalae nyfheslkhyenut - Sorry, I didn’t I have the wisdom [mind] of your dreams, but if you would allow me, I would say one word.

The principle of respect for elders determines the seating order at the table. In this case, a psychologically curious situation arises: everyone is afraid to take a place that does not correspond to their age and rank, and therefore they stand in indecision for some time, measuring their age with the age of those present. At the same time, local disputes and bickering often arise: everyone strives to give up the most honorable place to the other, proving that it rightfully belongs to him, and not to his insignificant person. It is not difficult to understand that these actions are manifestations of those properties of national character that were mentioned above. Anyone who violates the rules of honor (nemys) when seating, that is, takes a place that other, most honorable guests deserve, will to some extent discredit himself in the eyes of public opinion. That’s why the Circassians like to repeat: Zhyant1ak1ueu ushymyty, uzerschyt ukyalagunsch - Do not strive for a place of honor, [and without that] they will notice what you are, [what you deserve]. In this situation, it is considered most preferable to take the place offered by the elders at the table or the owners of the house. Hence another proverb, which has a deeper meaning: Zhyant1em ush1emyku, phuefascheme, kyiplysysynsch - Do not strive for a place of honor, if you deserve it, you will get it.

The desire to give up a more honorable, comfortable place to another appears, on the one hand, as a symptom of good manners, politeness, modesty, and on the other, as a deliberate demonstration of these properties. When the second takes precedence over the first, these actions become ostentatious, protracted, and are quite rightly condemned by the people. And this critical attitude towards etiquette, or more precisely, towards its perversions, found a corresponding expression in the proverb, which no, no, and even someone will screw up during the seating process: Adygem t1ysyn dymyukhyure k1uezhyg'uer koos - Adygs, before we have time to sit down, it’s time to leave.

There are many other speech and non-speech standards of communication, determined by the “older-younger” relationship. We will learn about some of them in subsequent sections of the book. Now let us note that the veneration of elders is a custom that originates in ancient times; it is to some extent a rudiment of the primitive gerontocracy of old power (See Zolotarev, 1932, 42), more or less successfully integrated into the etiquette of all peoples of the globe, and this must not be forgotten.

Respect for elders is introduced into the consciousness of the Circassians as the highest principle, following which one can achieve success in life and win the authority of the people. Hence a whole ensemble of proverbs and instructions such as: Nehyyzhyr g'el'ap1i ui shkh'er l'ap1e hunshch - Honor the Elder, you yourself will become revered; Zi nekhyyzh food1ue and 1uehu mek1uate - He who listens to the elder in business succeeds; Nekhyzhym zhyant1er eishch - The eldest has a place of honor.

We see the same thing among Indians, Chinese, and Japanese. In the ancient Indian code of conduct rules “The Laws of Manu” there are the following points:
"119. You should not sit on a box or on a seat used by a senior; the one who occupies a box or seat, standing up, let him greet him.
120. After all, the vital forces are about to leave the young man when the older one approaches; he restores them again by standing up and greeting.
121. He who has the habit of greeting, always honoring his elders, increases the four longevity, wisdom, glory and strength” (Laws of Manu, I960, 42).

Among the Xiao Chinese, the principle of honoring elders is an important part of the Li code of customary law. Also among the Japanese, “reverence for parents, and in a broader sense, submission to the will of elders... is the most important moral duty of a person” (Ovchinnikov, 1975, 67). Hence the use of emphatically low bows and special grammatical forms of politeness for names and verbs when dealing with elders.

The proud people of the North Caucasus, the Adygs (Adygeis, Circassians, Kabardians) are distinguished by rich traditions and customs.

Marriage occupies a huge place in the life of an Adyghe and this event is enriched with many customs and rituals. The entire marriage procedure consists of several stages, such as matchmaking, viewing a house, registering a marriage, traveling for ransom (kalym), the bride’s arrival at the groom’s house, identifying a young girl in a “someone else’s house,” introducing a young bride to a “big house” and other.

Wedding traditions of the Circassians

The ceremony of matchmaking among the Circassians could begin after the girl whom the guy was meeting gave some kind of symbolic gift to the young man or explicitly hinted that she was not against him sending matchmakers to her house. After this, the matchmakers went to the girl’s house, but did not enter the house, but modestly stood in the place where the wood was chopped. This meant that they had come to get married. But only on the third visit of the matchmakers did the girl’s parents voice their decision, and this was done by inviting them into the house and setting a modest table for the guests.

After the matchmaking, the girl’s clan sent its representatives(not necessarily relatives) inspect the groom’s house and draw appropriate conclusions about the wealth and well-being of the future groom’s family. Only after the representatives of the girl’s clan made sure of the well-being of the groom’s house could it be said that the wedding preparations would continue. Therefore, after some time, the groom’s relatives visited the girl’s parents with purely symbolic gifts.

Adyghe wedding

Marriage among the Circassians was concluded in writing according to Muslim custom, and this marriage document was kept in the house of the bride’s parents. When the marriage was concluded, effends, trusted girls and boys, as well as witnesses were present. Everyone had to wear a hat. Marriage registration or nechyhyyyth took place in the house of the bride's parents. After concluding the marriage contract, the parties agreed on the exact date when the girl’s side could come for the bride price. Kalym or wase consisted of one horse and cattle. This was followed by a solemn event, hosted by the thamada. An atmosphere of sincerity and sublimity reigned over the table. A young man was serving the table. It should be said that at weddings or other events the Circassians drank only from a large common bowl (fal'e), which went around the circle.

After the bride price was paid, the bride (nysashe) was brought in. This was accompanied by great celebrations; in fact, the Adyghe traditional wedding began with this. On the way to the bride's house, the groom's riders faced all sorts of difficulties and trials. And when they arrived at the bride’s house, the horsemen were greeted with stakes and clubs; everyone except the thamada got it. But as soon as one of the horsemen broke into the house of the bride’s parents, everyone calmed down and greeted those who arrived with hospitality. The guests were treated. Then the bride left the house; she did not have to look back, stumble, cross the threshold, and so on. The bride and the girl sat in the carriage, who came along with the riders to pick up the bride. The bride's side, as the purity, innocence and good manners of the girl, presented the thamada with a red banner or red material. But the young woman was not taken straight to the house of the groom’s parents. She was assigned to “someone else’s house” (teshe). This was usually the house of the groom's maternal uncle. In “someone else’s house,” the newlywed was not only entertained, but also given all sorts of tests. There, the groom came to her at sunset and left at dawn. After some time, the bride was given the ceremony of uneishe - bringing the newlywed into the big house, that is, into the groom's house.

The Adyghe people belong to the Adyghe peoples. Initially, the Adyghe tribes had many other names: Zikhs, Kaskas, Kasogs, Circassians, Kerkets and Meots. Also, historical data point to other ethnonyms of the Adyghe people - Dandria, Sinds, Doskhs, Agris and others. The Adyghe sign “settler” confirms that the people belong to the Cossack society.

That is why some call the Circassians Kasogs or Khazars, as a derivative of the word “braid”. Today, many Adyghe living in the Caucasus preserve ancient customs and grow long braids.

Culture and life of the Adyghe people

In ancient times, the Circassians lived in large family settlements with more than 100 inhabitants. At the same time, one could meet very small family communities of 10 people. From time immemorial, the head of the family was the father, and in his absence all responsibilities passed to the eldest son. Women never decided on important issues and did not even have the right to sit at the same table with representatives of the stronger sex in order to taste the prepared food. At that moment, while men hunted, fought, traded, women cleaned the house, raised children, and prepared food. Young girls with early age were trained in needlework, housekeeping and other women's duties. Boys were trained in military affairs from an early age.

The dwellings of the Circassians were built from tree branches. In such buildings, a foundation was not used so that the house could be quickly built and assembled just as quickly - in war times this was simply necessary. The Circassians built a fireplace on the floor of their houses, which provided them with warmth and food. If guests came to the house, a special room was allocated for them - kunatskaya, and in wealthy communities entire houses were erected for guests.

The national clothing of the Circassians was very colorful and picturesque. Women wore floor-length dresses and harem dresses. A beautiful belt was tied at the waist, and the dress itself was decorated with various embroidery. This silhouette and style of the dress emphasized the beauty of every woman.

But the men's suit was even more colorful. Men wore a beshmet, a cherkeska - a long caftan without sleeves and with a cutout on the chest, a bashlyk, a burka and a hat. The Circassian had sockets for cartridges sewn on it. Wealthy and powerful Circassians wore white Circassians, and ordinary men wore black ones.

The national and most favorite dish of the Circassians was lamb, and there was practically no bread in the houses. People ate their own products - cheese, butter, milk and fruit.

The Adyghe people were famous for their embroidery skills. They beautifully decorated their clothes with gold threads. Many made beautiful glasses from bull horns, decorating them with silver and gold. Military science was reflected in the skill of creating saddles for horses; they were very durable and light. Also, the Adyghe people are masters of making ceramic dishes - cups, jugs and plates.

Traditions and customs of the Adyghe people

The traditions of the Circassians are connected with their way of life and their very attitude towards it. It is impossible not to say about wedding customs of this people. Weddings were performed exclusively according to class equality. The young prince could not marry a simple girl- only the princess.

As a rule, there was one wife, but in some families polygamy was allowed. There was one rule in both the female and male lines - the eldest should tie the knot first. The groom's friend looked for the bride, after which the groom's family paid the bride's family a bride price. Most often, horses, sheep and other animals were used as bridewealth. If an Adyg entered into a marriage, then this marriage should be eternal. Bride theft, or rather kidnapping, was quite common among the Circassians. This custom took place in a rather humorous manner, and the whole family knew about the upcoming abduction.

Another interesting Adyghe custom is atalystvo. According to this custom, parents could give their minor child to be raised by another family, and he could return to his home only after reaching adulthood. The main goal of such a custom is not education, but a friendly union between families.

Circassians (Circassians/Adygs of Karachay-Cherkessia) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Republic of Karachay-Cherkessia.

The Circassians were united into independent rural communities that had their own bodies of self-government (mainly from wealthy community members). Their members were bound by mutual responsibility, enjoyed common land and pastures, and the right to vote at public assemblies. Patrilineal kinship groups (whose members sometimes formed special quarters in villages), customs of blood feud, hospitality, and kunakism were preserved. A large patriarchal family, including several generations and numbering up to 100 people, prevailed until the 18th century. Family communities partially began to revive at the end of the 19th century. The marriage was strictly exogamous. Marriage prohibitions applied to all relatives on both lines, to the descendants of people who were related by milk. There were levirate and sororate, atalism, and fictitious kinship. Marriages were concluded through the payment of bride price.
The emergence of most of the modern villages of Circassia dates back to the 2nd half of the 19th century. In the XIX - early XX centuries. 12 villages were founded, in the 20s of the XX century - 5. The estate was surrounded by a fence. Residential premises were usually built with a facade to the south. The dwelling had wicker walls on a post frame, coated with clay, a two- or four-slope roof made of wattle, covered with straw, and an adobe floor. It consisted of one or several rooms (according to the number of married couples in the family), adjacent to each other in a row, the doors of each room overlooked the courtyard. Kunatskaya served as one of the rooms or a separate building. An open fireplace with a wicker smoker was installed near the wall between the door and the window, inside which a crossbar was installed for hanging the boiler. Outbuildings were also made of wattle and were often round or oval in shape. Modern Circassians build square multi-room houses.

The main occupation is transhumance (sheep, goats, horses, cattle; before the adoption of Islam, pigs were also bred), gardening, and viticulture. Horse breeding occupied a special place. Circassian cloth was especially highly valued among neighboring peoples. Wood processing was developed in the south of Circassia. Blacksmithing and gunsmithing were widespread. The Circassians were united into independent rural communities “L'epk”, which had self-government bodies from people from clan groups (mainly from wealthy community members). Their members were bound by mutual responsibility, enjoyed common land and pastures, and the right to vote at public assemblies.

The traditional men's suit is the “Circassian” (tsei), a single-breasted caftan with an open chest, length just below the knees, with wide sleeves. Young men of warrior age wore Circassian short-sleeves so that they would not restrict their movements in battle. On both sides of the chest, gazyrs were sewn (Adyghe khazyr - ready) - narrow pockets stitched with braid for special sealed pencil cases, often made of bone. “Circassian” strictly differed among men according to class in color - white for princes (pshi), red for nobles (work), gray, brown and black for peasants (blue, green and other colors were usually not used). The beshmet (captlal) in cut resembled a Circassian coat, but had a closed chest and a stand-up collar, narrow sleeves, its length was just above the knee, it was usually sewn from a light and thinner material, often the beshmet was quilted on a cotton or wool base. Pants (guenshedzh, gyuenchedzh) tapered towards the bottom with a wide step. The papakha (papakha) was made of sheepskin, white, black or brown, the height varied. Also among the Circassians (Circassians), felt hats (uplkle dust) were widely used in everyday life. Burka (shklue, klaklue) - a long, felt cloak, black, rarely white. Stacked belt. Its buckle was used as a crosshair for cutting out fire. Shoes - chuvyaki (vak'e) were made of red morocco, usually worn by the upper class, peasants wore rawhide or felt. The obligatory items of a man's costume were a dagger and a saber. The dagger (kame) - the handle and scabbard were richly decorated with silver, usually blackened - so as not to unmask the owner, like the handle of a checker (seshkhue), but the scabbard of a checker was decorated with galloon and gold embroidery (this work was done by young girls of the highlanders) Now only a few have full set national costume and appear in it on holidays.

Women's clothing was very varied and richly decorated. Like men's clothing, it varied according to class variations. A woman’s costume included a dress, caftan, shirt, pants, a variety of hats and shoes. Dress - (bostey, bokhtsey, zegyal'e, sai) long, swinging with an open chest, sleeves narrow or wide to the wrist or short to the elbow. Festive dresses were made from expensive, purchased fabrics: silk, velvet, taffeta... Color range women's clothing was also restrained, blue, green and bright variegated tones were rarely used, preference was given to white, red, black, and brown shades. The edges of the dress and seams were closed and trimmed with galloon and braid made of gold and silver threads, the edges of the hem and sleeves were decorated with gold embroidery. Before the birth of their first child, young girls from noble families wore caps (dyshche pyle) on a hard leather base, decorated around the band with braid or embroidery with a round or cone-shaped top, the center of which was crowned with a silver ball, a crescent or the figure of a bird. A light silk shawl or braided decoration (schkhats pyshche) was thrown over the top of the cap, which was attached to the top of the cap with a thin cord and went down in the form of two long ribbons, behind each ribbon there were laces under which the braids were pulled, such braids were decorated with gold embroidery and bassonry. Shoes - (vakye), like men's, were made of leather or made of thin felt. Beads and bracelets were not very popular among Circassian women. A mandatory element of clothing for noble (aristocratic) Adyghe men there was a bladed weapon. The “Beshmet” was girded with the so-called saber girdle, that is, a leather belt decorated with copper and silver plaques, to which a dagger and a saber were attached.

In the summer, mainly dairy products and vegetable dishes are consumed; in winter and spring, flour and meat dishes predominate. The most popular is puff bread made from unleavened dough, which is consumed with Kalmyk tea (green with salt and cream). Yeast bread is also baked. Corn flour and grits are widely used. A national dish, libzha - chicken or turkey with sauce seasoned with crushed garlic and red pepper. Waterfowl meat is consumed only fried. Lamb and beef are served boiled, usually seasoned with sour milk, crushed garlic and salt (bzhynykh shchips). After boiled meat, broth is required, and after fried meat, sour milk is served. Makhsyma (national low-alcohol drink) is prepared from millet and corn flour with honey for weddings and major holidays. On holidays, they make halva (from toasted millet or wheat flour in syrup), bake pies and pies (lekume, delen, khyalyve).

According to the French agent of the Swedish king Charles XII (King of Sweden) Abri de la Motre, long before 1711 Circassia had the skills of mass smallpox vaccination. Abri de la Motre left a detailed description of the procedure for vaccination among the Circassians in the village of Degliad: “... they vaccinated a little girl of four or five years old... The girl was assigned to a little boy of three years old who was sick with this disease and whose pockmarks and pimples began to fester,” etc. Let us recall that only on May 14, 1796, the English pharmacist and surgeon Jenner inoculated 8-year-old James Phips with cowpox.

Currently, the main religion of the Circassians is Sunni Islam, the Hanafi madhhab.

Customs and folklore

The legal and ritual institutions of the Muslim religion were reflected in the culture of the Circassians, in their songs and folklore. Islamic ethics has become a component of self-awareness Circassian people, his religious self-identification.

In the ancient culture of the Circassians, the central place is occupied by the moral, ethical and philosophical code “Adyghe Khabze”, formed under the influence of the ancient value system of the Circassians and brought to perfection centuries-old history people. Following Adyghe Khabze is one of the instruments of self-identification of Circassians: the concept of “Adygag’e”, literally translated into Russian as “Circassianness”, is the main evaluative criterion of an individual’s behavior in Circassian society. “Adygage” means compliance of a person’s behavior with the criteria of Adyghe Khabze. "Ar adygag'ek1e mepseu" ("He acts in accordance with adygag'e") is one of the highest praises for a Circassian.

According to Circassian custom, each visitor could drive into any courtyard, dismount at the hitching post, enter the kunatskaya and spend as many days there as he considered necessary. The guest could be a man of any age, acquaintance or stranger, even a blood enemy. The owner had no right to be interested in his name, his rank, or the purpose of his visit. Refusal of hospitality was unthinkable, and even insufficient care on the part of the hosts who received the guest was considered a shame: in the old days such a person was tried and punished. The guest occupied the most honorable place at the table. His treat constituted a whole ritual. Tables with food were passed from more respected persons to less honorable persons and, finally, were taken outside the kunatskaya, where they were placed at the disposal of women and children. If a whole ram was served, the meat was distributed according to the position of those participating in the feast. The head and shoulder blade, as the best parts, were offered to the guest. The owner was obliged not only to feed the guest during his entire stay in the house, but also to provide him with everything necessary for the journey. Kunak was usually received not in the living room, but in the residential house of the family owner. Unwritten etiquette required that each family have a kunak of a different nationality, who was considered a family friend and was subject to marriage prohibitions. Kunatskaya served as the place of residence for the entire male part of the family. Unmarried male youth spent the night in the kunatskaya if there were no guests there. Circassians usually revered the threshold and hearth in the house.

The responsibilities of a kunak were much broader than just that of an owner, since being a kunak required the establishment of special relationships such as twinning. This union was sealed by drinking together from a cup into which silver coins were thrown or silver shavings were whittled from the handle of a dagger. This was often followed by an exchange of weapons. Such an alliance was concluded for life.

In turn, the wife was the sovereign mistress of the female half of the house. The husband did not interfere with the household at all.

Clear echoes of traditional ancient beliefs were the images on grave monuments of objects that the deceased might need in the other world. A person killed by lightning was considered the chosen one of God and was buried in a special way. Even animals killed by lightning received an honorable funeral. These funerals were accompanied by dancing and singing, and chips from a tree struck by lightning were considered healing.

Many religious practices were closely related to agriculture. These included, first of all, rituals of causing rain during drought. Sacrifices marked the beginning and end of agricultural work.

The Circassian community very solemnly, with the participation of the entire population of the village and with the invitation of respected people from other villages, celebrated the completion of plowing and sowing. Women prepared festive meat dishes, sweets and intoxicating drinks. All this was brought to the field on the day of the holiday.

In folklore, the central place is occupied by tales on common Adyghe subjects and the Nart epic. The art of storytellers and song performers (jeguaklue) has been developed. Songs of lamentation, labor and humor are common. Traditional musical instruments - shyklepshchyne (violin), bzh'emi (pipe), pkh'etslych (rattle), various tambourines, which were played with hands and sticks. At the end of the 18th century, the harmonica became widespread.

The art of storytellers and song performers (jeguaklue) has been developed. Songs of lamentation (gybze), labor and humorous songs are common. Traditional musical instruments - shyklepshchyne (violin), bzh'emi (pipe), pkh'etslych (rattle), various tambourines, which were played with hands and sticks. At the end of the 18th century, the harmonica became widespread.

Circassian sayings: “Shapsug does not like to burn gunpowder”, “the death of a rider in battle is a cry in his house, and the loss of a weapon is a cry among the whole people”, “a real well-mannered horseman must leave the feast so that he can immediately be present again for the same treat."

Circassians in the past did not have professional musicians. Songs were passed down from mouth to mouth. The singers performed before the audience not only as vocalists, but also as storytellers and musicians, for which they were highly respected. Circassians compose their songs and perform them with great skill during family and religious holidays. There are heroic, labor, everyday and historical versions of songs. Short ditties, often satirical, are usually sung at parties in the winter.

The most common among the Circassians are pair dances to the accordion and rattle or clapping, as well as a dance like the Lezginka - Islamey, which they practice from an early age. For a girl (married women do not dance), dancing is a show of her beauty, grace, and attire. The first dance outing is like a recognition of the girl’s coming of age. Dances are held on the occasion of weddings, during parties and on general holidays. Dance tunes are numerous and varied. Folk musical instruments: violin, various tambourines played with hands and sticks, as well as harmonica. It is played mainly by Circassian women, while all others national instruments- only men.

Sayings about Circassians

… The Circassian is agile
Wide steppe, through the mountains,
In a shaggy hat, in a black burka,
Leaning towards the bow, on the stirrups
Leaning on your slender leg,
Flew at the will of the horse,
Getting used to war in advance.
He admired the beauty
Swearing and simple clothes:
The Circassian is hung with weapons,
He is proud of him, comforted by him:
He is wearing armor, a arquebus, a quiver,
Kuban bow, dagger, lasso
And a checker, an eternal friend
His works, his leisure.
Nothing bothers him
Nothing will blurt out; on foot, horseback -
He's still the same; still the same look
Invincible, unyielding...

A. S. Pushkin “Prisoner of the Caucasus”

He raised his bright brow,
I looked and was internally proud!
That he is a CHERKESIAN, that he was born here!
Between the unshakable rocks alone,
He forgot the transience of life,
He, in the thoughts of the world, is the ruler,
I would like to appropriate them forever.

M. Yu. Lermontov. Historical sketch about Ishmael
Atazhukine, poem “Ishmael - Bey”. 1832.

She's cute - I'll say between us -
Storm of the court knights,
And maybe with the southern stars
Compare, especially in poetry,
Her Circassian eyes...

There are three qualities which in these parts give a man the right to fame - courage, eloquence and hospitality; or. a sharp sword, a sweet tongue and forty tables.