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DOI: 10.46698/VNC.2021.12.5.003
«MYSTERY» OF THE ANCIENT DRINK
Tuallagov, Alan A.
Kavkaz Forum. 2021. Issue 5.
Abstract:
The article is devoted to the definition of the recipe and production technology
of the Alanian strong alcoholic beverage ‘rong’. By the time of recording
information about the drink directly from the Ossetians, the drink itself had no
longer been produced by them for years. The information about it was preserved
only in the Ossetian folklore. The presence of the still existing Svanian rank,
which was regarded as identical not only by name, but also by the technology
of production to the Alanian rong, led to the conviction that the drink was made
only from honey. On this basis, «recipes» for home and commercial production of
the drink are being recommended nowadays. However, this situation contradicts
both to the characteristics of the drink and other information of folklore and
ethnographic nature, which determines the relevance of the problem.
Giving priority to the Ossetian folklore sources in comparison with the data
recorded by the first European travelers in Ossetia, who are being considered for the
first time, determines the scientific novelty of the study. Its purpose is to establish
the recipe and production technology of the Alanian rong as the cultural heritage
of the Ossetians, lost due to the irresistibility of certain historical circumstances.
The research used methods of textual and historical-ethnographic research of the
sources, inductive and logical analysis based on the principle of historicism and
consistency of presentation were used.
The research has found that the folklore of the Ossetian tradition preserved
relict ideas that rong was made on a single grain (millet) and honey basis with
the use of sourdough. The technology of its production did not imply boiling, as
well as the use of water. The information of the first European travelers allows us
to directly correlate the recipe and production technology of rong with a certain
type of strong alcoholic beverage of the Adyghe peoples, the reliability of which
was ensured by the direct understanding of the Ossetian and Kabardian sides on
this issue. The loss of the tradition of making rong in the Ossetian environment
was dictated by the loss of the grain base in the post-Mongolian period and
the development of other technologies for the production of a strong alcoholic
beverage.
Keywords: rong, folklore and ethnographic data, Alans, Ossetians
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