Text, Context and Performance: Gagauz Folk Religion in Discourse and Practice

Text, Context and Performance

N urn en Book Series Studies in the History of Religions

Series Editors

Steven Engler (Mount Royal University, Calgary, Canada) Richard King (University of Glasgow, Scotland) Kocku von Stuckrad (University of Groningen, The Netherlands)

Gerard Wiegers

(University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands)

VOLUME 135

The titles published in this series are listed at brill.nl!nus

Text, Context and Performance Gagauz Folk Religion in Discourse and Practice

By

James Alexander Kapal6

BRILL

LEIDEN • BOSTON 2011

Cover illustration: Photograph by James Kapal6, 2006. This book is printed on acid-free paper. Library of Congress Cataloging-In-Publication Data Kapal6, James Alexander. Text, context, and performance : Gagauz folk religion In discourse and practice I by James Alexander Kapal6. p. em.- (Numen book series, ISSN 0169-8834; v. 135) Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index. ISBN 978-90-04-19799-2 (hardback: alk. paper) 1. Gagauz (Thrkic people)-MoldovaRellgion. 2. Moldova-Religious life and customs. 3. Folk religion-Moldova 4. Gagauz (Thrkic people)-Ukraine-Odesa-Rellgion. 5. Odesa (Ukraine)-Rellgiouslife and customs. 6. Folk rellgion-Ukraine-Odesa I. Title. II. Series. BR737.G34K37 2011 281.9089'9436-dc23 2011025496

ISSN 0169-8834 ISBN 978 90 04 19799 2 Copyright 2011 by Kon!nklijke Brill NY, Leid.en, The Netherlands. Kon!nklijke Brill NV Incorporates the imprints Brlll, Global Oriental, Hotei Publishing, IDC Publishers, Mart!nus Nijhoff Publishers and VSP. All rights reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored In a retrieval system, or transmitted In any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission from the publisher. Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted by Kon!nklijke Brill NV provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910, Danvers, MA 01923, USA. Fees are subject to change.

CONTENTS Note on Transliteration, Names and Toponyms Acknowledgements Glossary of Frequently Used Terms and Abbreviations in Gagauz and Russian List of Illustrations

ix xiii xv xvii

~~~~

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Introduction

1

Chapter One Folk Religion in Discourse and Practice The Discourse on Folk Religion in the Context of Eastern and Central Europe The Language and Practice of Folk Religion On Method and Methodology Human and Superhuman Agency in Language Text, Context, Performance Chapter Two

17 20 25 29 35 39

Historical Narrative and the Discourse on

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Migration and Dislocation The Discourse on Origins, Ethnogenesis and Race Historical Narratives and Discourses in the Construction of Gagauz National Consciousness Nationhood and Religion in the Post-l
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Firstly, my greatest thanks go to my mother for her selfless support and encouragement over the years. I am enormously grateful to my PhD supervisor, Professor Paul Gifford, for his patient encouragement, support and advice throughout this project. I also owe an immense debt of gratitude to Vilmos Tanczos and the late Andras Krist6 who each, in his own way, knowingly or unknowingly, inspired my work in this field. I would like to offer my thanks to the following individuals and institutions for their help and support during my fieldwork in Gagauziya. Firstly, to the late Maria V. Marunievich for the great enthusiasm with which she greeted me and introduced me to Gagauziya on my first visit there in 2004. My thanks also go to Dr. Ivanna D. Bankova for her endless patience in teaching me the Gagauz language. I am grateful to Dr. Stepan A. Varban, Dmitri A. Varban and family in Kazayak, the Trandafilov family in A vdarma, Aliona Ialama and family in To may for showing me great kindness and receiving me into their homes. I am indebted to Galina S. Zaharia, Oxana I. Trandafilova-Louka and Natalia V. Nacioglo for their assistance with the transcription and transliteration of Gagauz language materials and to Franck Bille for his advice regarding Russian language sources. Stepan S. Bulgar gave advice and guidance on Gagauz historical materials and Emanuala Timotin did so in relation to Romanian manuscript and print editions of Christian apocryphas. I am also grateful to staff and students at Komrat Devlet Oniversiteti, and to Liudmila D. Caracioban-Marin and the staff at the museum in Be~alma, the National Library and Academy of Sciences Library in Chi§inau and the Romanian Academy of Sciences in Bucharest for their help and assistance. I would also like to express my gratitude to the Blagochin of Gagauzia & Taraklia of the Bishopric of Comrat & Cahul, Mitrofor Protoierey Piotr Kelesh, and the parish priests of all the villages mentioned in this study. Very special thanks go to my dear friend Nikolas L. Luka for his tireless assistance and encouragement in the field and after. I also owe a large debt of gratitude to Karl Peter Kirk and again to Nikolas Luka, who both read draft chapters of this book and offered invaluable

xiv

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

comments and advice. Thanks also go to Lauren Winton for her help with the maps and illustrations. I would also like to acknowledge the financial support of the University of London Central Research Fund (2005), The Jordan Bequest (2005) and SOAS Postgraduate Fieldwork Award (2005), which enabled me to conduct my fieldwork in the Republic of Moldova, and the Publication Fund of the College of Arts, Celtic Studies and Social Science, University College Cork.

GLOSSARY OF FREQUENTLY USED TERMS AND ABBREVIATIONS IN GAGAUZ AND RUSSIAN Allah (Gag.)

bat~ka (Rus., Gag.) dua (Gag.) epistoliya (Gag.)

Gagauziya (Gag.)

ila~p

(Gag.) imdat (Gag.)

kliseci (Gag.) matu~ka (Rus., Gag.) molitva (Rus.) okumak (Gag.) okuyucu (Gag.) Panaiya (Gag.)

Panaiyanm du~u (Gag.) tetratka (Rus.) UTAG

God, the Lord. The Gagauz language recognises two alternative spellings: Allah and Allaa. In this study wherever the term occurs in transcriptions of oral material I use Allaa. If quoting from written sources I use the spelling found in the source text priest, father (colloquial) prayer Gagauz rendering of the Greek rntcr't'oA.ft (epistole) which refers to apocryphal texts, generally of an eschatological nature, in the Gagauz language Commonly used term to refer to UTAG but also sometimes used to designate the territory of ethnic Gagauz settlement in Moldova and Ukraine healer, pl. ila~plar is an archaism meaning help, aid assistance, deliverance or salvation Frequent church-goer, someone who fulfils an official function within the Church wife of the priest (colloquial) prayer charm or incantation, pl. okumaklar user of charms or incantations, pl okuyucular The Mother of God from the Greek llavayia, meaning 'All-Holy' The Dream of the Mother of God - apocryphal legend and prayer notebook, school exercise book Unitatea Teritoriald Autonomd Gdgduzia, the official name of the Gagauz Autonomous Region

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

1. Plaque honouring 'Mihail Mihailovich lH 6HTKHCH HqHHE. xeME. IOBaH THnoron-yH o nacpeTMecH AnnaxnaH, xepE. 6HpE> xpHCTHJIH TaHE>lCE>lH KHXaTa 6ennH TpeneTHHKyn xeM 6roKE. aHrhlCE>lH,lla recrepepE. xepE. 6HpE> H@liJaHHaphl He O/I}')KeK a,llaMa HH)[(JI ri!3JiepHHE. ,lllOnE.MecH, maKnaphlH xeME. KhlCa,llaH xencH .li}'$!MaKnap xeME. eKnepH a,llaMhJH rlO,lleCHH,liJI He BapM@liJ HazypanaH . EnHcronHa . EHSMM ca6H Hcyc XpHcroc aHH i!nna,llhl fi!KTJIHE. 24- BaMa XeME. CaeTH BacHnHH BJII..IaCE>l (qen - Hoy) xeME. KOpKyny BaMana phi aHH i!nny xaaa,~~a xeME. ,11opy cy,11y AnnaxhJH aHmnaphl rl!p,llro fpHropHA CaeTH BacHnHH ,llyaanaphlHHaH (qen - Hoy) aHrhlCE>l aHH OH,llaH copa Jiam!DKa ,liHnHHJI

306 1.3.2

APPENDIX ONE

Notebook ofTopchu Georgi Nikolaevich (dated 20 March 1997), viU.age ofTomay (Tomai) r.Mit...,.llq;. .fi>t741;JJI~-l>"« -1

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TEXT, CONTENT AND PERFORMANCE

1.3.3

307

Notebook ofTopchu Georgi Nikolaevich (dated 20March 1997). village ofTomay (Tomai)

6Hp rep.>KHKnHKnJIHJ> DIH.>KepJ> cecnepH MeTe,llepnap Ai!s li!KTeKH Annan.J xeMJ> osaMaH HWHTM cecJ> cecnJI ,11opy J.iBaH 6amH ecanan xeMJ> aHHa , xeMJ> 6aKDIH,lll>l,lla rl!p,liiO ri!KIO aqDIK xeMJ> .liYJIP.liDI CearHnH MHpJisHa Kanycy, CeBrHnH xpHCTMJIHHap cecnHHHJ> J.iBaH THnoryny aHrDICDI nacpem AnnaxnaH xeMJ> HH.>KJI HCTe,liH li!KTeKH 6o6a xenCHHH HDIWaHHapDI ,liiOHHJIHDIH 6HTKHCHHH Caem HaaH ,11ep1> nHH,liH .:ra22.12 6aApna pDIHa Hepe,~~ll J.icyc aRM li!cTep,liH KYBe,liHHH xeMJ> AnnaxnDIHDI KeH,liH yqeHHKnepHH i!HIOH,liJI XeMJ> HH.>KJI 6ynYHapKaH ennepHH nacpemM 6i!nJI Caa6H J.icysyM XpHCTOsyM JIKDIWDIKna 6eHH ceHHH qapaHa; xeMJ> cecnJI 6eHHM JlnBapMaMDI, ci!nJI 6aHa

308

APPENDIX ONE

1.4 Notebook of Stoykav Feodor Feodoravich, village ofTomay

3) 6y EnMcronMA HeKa,IIa HCnliXEil Bap xeM ,l!}'WMaHE>l Kecmpep 6y 6YKBanap AMHH . KMM nwep 6y EnMcronMA KBanaHMaKTaH enMH'IeK oncyH Hempmo ,11a Ki!CTeK MeTHHHA anna KOpyep KHM MHaHMaca 6anachlH 6Hp a'!a,IIa ypcyH mcpeKnliH reHll Ke3JieliMH'IeK KHMMH Bap KOAHYcyH,lla 6y EnHcronHll HH'Ill XpHCTOC .liYP.liY KOPYHMYW Mesap,lla, i!nll KOPYHMYW onyqeK o,11a sepll Ann ax KopyA'IeK OHY xep 6HpH ,l!}'WMaH,llaH li!plOHliH XeM ri!plOHMeliH xeM oHap,llaH aHrhlCE>l 'leKe,~~Hpca cpeHa HeTnliH OHYH eBH rocTIOHll HH'Ill Kapwhl KOliMa,llhlnap XpHcrosa i!nll KapWE>l KOliME>lA'IeKnap ORa KHM,llll Bap xeM Tawep liHE>lH,lla 6y EnHcronHA

APPENDIX TWO

GAGAUZ OKUMAK AND EXORCISM TEXTS 2.1

Kuru Domnika lvanovna, born 1941, village ofGaydar, recorded 09.06.04

Maavi gozliidan nazarlandtysaydt, Maavi gozliidan nazarlandtysaydt, Nazar s;atlasm. E§il gozliidan nazarlandtysaydt, Nazar s;atlasm. Kum1z1 gozliidan nazarlandtysaydt, Nazar s;atlasm. Sar1 gozliidan nazarlandtysaydt, Nazar s;atlasm. Adamdan nazarlandtysaydt, Aytp eri s;atlasm. Kartdan nazarlandtysaydt, Memesi s;atlasm. - Bu en biiiik betvas1! 2.2

(:akir Elena, born 1941, village ofBe§alma, recorded 08.06.04

Bobamn hem Oolun hem Ayoz Duhun adma. Ku§