Archive
«The Ethnology Notebooks» 2019 year, issue 6 read »
«Narodoznavchi Zoshyty» 2018 year, issue 1 read »
«Narodoznavchi Zoshyty» 2014 year, issue 5 read »
«The Ethnology Notebooks» 2018 year, issue 5 read »

« 2020. № 5 (155)

The Ethnology Notebooks. 2020. № 5 (155), 1015—1021

UDK 39(477+450):001.891(091)”18/19″

DOI https://doi.org/10.15407/nz2020.05.1015

«TRANSPARENT» FRONTIERS OF SCIENCE: ETHNOGRAPHIC PRACTICES OF THE 19TH — EARLY 20TH CENTURY IN UKRAINE AND ITALY

MYKHAYLYAK Tamara

  • OCRID ID: http://orcid.org/0000000228879307
  • PhD in Sociology and Social Research,
  • Department of Social Sciences,
  • University of Naples Federico II
  • Vico Monte della Pietа, 1
  • 80138 — Napoli, Italy,
  • Contacts: е-mail: my.tamara@hotmail.it

Abstract. In this article we will try to compare the scientific practices of ethnographic investigations in Ukraine and Italy. For today’s scholars, particular interest is represented by those researches that see the European scenario and Ukrainian science as protagonists. Usually these issues are highlighted through comparative studies carried out in the Ukrainian-Polish or Ukrainian-Russian contexts, whereas European countries such as Germany, France, England are rarely seen as subjects of study.

The aim of this article is to identify and compare the similarities of ethnographic practices in Ukraine and Italy. The focus of the survey is on the systematic studies of rural dwellings and their sanitary conditions during the mid. of 19th century and the first decades of the 20th century. While it is true that Ukraine and Italy differ from each other in terms of landscape, climate and even more so in their rural housing, our study reveals that, in both countries, the application of ethnography to this specific field, shares some similarities.

The topicality of the article lies in the implementation of a comparative method, which has allowed to draw some parallels, namely the interest of scholars for the same topics, such as the correlation between the state of health of farmers and the precarious conditions of their dwellings. Furthermore, the article shows some visual sources to compare and underline the peculiarities of peasant villages in Ukraine and Italy. More precisely, the photographs of Ukrainian ethnographers like S.M. Dudin (Marcinkevyи) and M.M. Mohyljans’kyj were confronted to other shots taken by P. Scheuermeier, the Swiss scholar who had conducted his research in Italy for many years.

The results of the survey reveal that the scholars from both countries not only showed interest in the same topics, but also used the same research methods and tools especially the camera that becomes their real and powerful medium of documentation.

Keywords: Italy, Ukraine, photography, visual anthropology, peasants, rural dwellings, sanitary conditions.

Received 30.09.2020

REFERENCES

  • Horlenko, V.F. (2005). History of Ukrainian ethnography (Vol. I, XII — mid. of the XIX century). Kyiv: Polihraf Konsaltinh [in Ukrainian].
  • Kolessa, F.M. (2005). History of Ukrainian ethnography. Kyiv: IMFE im. M.T. Rylskoho AN Ukrainy [in Ukrainian].
  • Totska, Zh. (2013). Contribution of «Commission for describing of the provinces of the Kyiv educational district» to the development of historical local lore in Chernihiv region. Severyansky chronicle, 3, 91—99 [in Ukrainian].
  • Horlenko, V.F. (1965). Commission for describing of the provinces of the Kiev educational district. In Essays on the history of Russian ethnography, folklore and anthropology (Issue III, vol. 91, pp. 18—38). Moscow: AN SRSR [in Russian].
  • Markevych, M.A. (1855). Population of Poltava province. In Survery of the commission, the highest established at the Imperial University of St. Volodymyr to describe the provinces of the Kyiv educational district. Kyiv [in Ukrainian].
  • De la Flise, P.D. (1996—1998). Ethnographic descriptions of the peasants of the Kyiv province (1854). Kyiv [in Ukrainian].
  • Nobili-Vitelleschi, F., & Fascicolo I. (1883). Provinces of Rome and Grosseto. Acts of the Board for the Agricultural Inquiry on the conditions of the agricultural class (Vol. XI). Rome: Forzani [in Italian].
  • Mazzacane, L. (Ed). (1978). The «bassi» in Naples, Naples: Guida [in Italian].
  • Prishchepova, V.K. (2013). To the 150th anniversary of the birth of S.M. Dudin — artist, ethnographer. In Anthropological Forum, 15, 608—649 [in Russian].
  • Holovchenko, V. (2010). Mohylyanskyi Mykola Mychaylovych. In Encyclopedia of the History of Ukraine (Vol. 7, pp. 18). Kyiv: Naukova dumka [in Ukrainian].
  • Frasa, M., Grassi, L., & Lurа, F. (Ed). (2008). Words in image. Paul Scheuermeier’s research in Italian Switzerland 1920—1927. Bellinzona: Centro di dialettologia e di etnografia [in Italian].
  • Peter the Great Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography (the Kunstkamera). Collections online. URL: http://collection.kunstkamera.ru/ (Last accessed: 20.08.2019) [in Russian].
  • Archive of Ethnography and Social History of the Lombardy Region (AESS). URL: http://www.aess.regione.lombardia.it/ (Last accessed: 20.08.2019) [in Italian].

Read»

Our authors
Ulana Movna. Senior Research Fellow, Ph.D. in History. read »
Oksana Sapeliak. Senior Research Fellow, Ph.D. in... read »
Boliuk Oleh - kandidate of sciences in arts, Doctoral... read »
Yaroslav Taras. Head of Department, Professor, Doctor... read »
On bessarabian and moldavian ukrainians in the studies of historical ethnography
The article has thrown some light upon a sum of scientific findings got during XIX to XXI cc. in historio-ethnographic studies of Bessarabia and Moldavian Ukrainians. In the pre­sent paper has been given author’s answer to the problem of lacking progress as for the numerous themes concerning Ukrainians. State and achievements of the research-works in Ukrainians’ material and spiritual culture by the scientists of Moldavia and Ukraine through the years of independence has been exposed.
Read »

Wax candle as ukrainian Christmas and epiphany ritualistic text
For the first time in native ethnology the article has brought some results of special study in sign functionality of a wax candle under the context of Ukrainian Christmas and Epiphany ritualistic text (ritualism of Christmas Eve, New Year, Epiphany Eve and Feast of Epiphany). The study has stated extremely high semiotic position of a wax candle as projection of Sun, mediator between the spheres of sacral and prophane elements, symbolic analogue of human existence, apotropy, cultural symbol re-establishing borders of acculturated space.
Read »

Daily bread baking of ukrainians in the south-western ethnographical region at the late XIX to early XXI cc.
The paper has dealt with analytic study in prescriptions, signs, customs, methods, ways of selection, procurement and some peculiarities in usage of subsidiary means — water, firewood and leaves in bread baking. The final aim of the mentioned actions had been (and still is) selection of the means and ingredients fit, by their characteristics, for the backing of bread. The paper has demonstrated dependence of bread backing subsi­diary means criteria from the folk nutritional standards and world outlook stereotypes as well as from regional social and economic, natural and geographical factors and peculiarities of material culture.
Read »

On field exploration of russian and belarusian ethnologists and etnolinguists in Ukrainian Polisia 1945—1980s
In the study based on a wide range of literary materials have been comprehensively characterised field research in Polisia of Ukraine, performed by Russian and Belarusian ethnologists during 1945—1980s as well as Moscow ethnolinguists and other researchers from ethnologic centres of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus in the course of realization of Ethnolinguistic Atlas of Polisia program. Particular attention has been paid to geography, methods, themes and research results of scientific projects.
Read »