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DOI: 10.46698/VNC.2024.25.18.004

US-BIRÆG AND THE WITCH HUNT, OR WHAT IS COMMON BETWEEN THE OSSETIAN LEGEND AND THE PHENOMENON OF THE EUROPEAN RENAISSANCE

Legoeva, Ruslana R.
Kavkaz Forum. 2024. Issue 18.
Abstract:
The article is devoted to the study of Ossetian folklore about us-biræg
(witches associated with she-wolves) and its connection with witch hunts as a
phenomenon of the European Renaissance. The reasons for the emergence and
development of the phenomenon of “witch hunts” are analysed through medieval
historical sources, processes and psychology. The phenomenon of auto-da-fé is
examined through medieval literature and the Bible, as well as cases of the use of
similar methods of execution before the inquisition processes. Based on the case
of burning of us-biræg in the territory of North and South Ossetia, first recorded
by D.V. Sokayeva, our own field research was carried out and a new case of the
murder of a female wolf was identified in the village Cora-Ursdon using a firearm.
The image of the wolf in various religious traditions (Zoroastrianism, Christianity,
Scandinavian paganism) was analysed, and it was suggested that Alan culture
was synthesized in the course of historical interaction with representatives of
these religions in different regions of Europe. Suggestions have been made about
a Zoroastrian trace in the plot of the legend about a girl-sorceress (recorded by
J. Shanaev in 1869), who was tried to be burned using thorns. During the study,
it turns out that the Alans became acquainted with the image of the wolf, which
existed in the culture of the Germanic tribes, during the era of the Great Migration
of Peoples. The idea is introduced into scientific circulation that the Alans learned
about the Inquisition through the Yases, who lived in Hungary during the reign of
the Habsburgs, which saw a high level of activity in anti-witchcraft processes. The
undertaken research helps to reveal new aspects of the interaction of Alans with
Western European culture.
Keywords: us-biræg, witch hunt, “Hammer of the Witches”, Renaissance, Alans.
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For citation: Legoeva, R.R. Us-biræg and the Witch Hunt, or what is Common Between the Ossetian Legend and the Phenomenon of the European Renaissance. KAVKAZ-FORUM. 2024, iss. 18(25). pp. 66-77. (In Russian). DOI 10.46698/VNC.2024.25.18.004
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