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THE ETHNIC PERSONALITY OF OSSETIANS IN THE HISTORICAL VARIABILITY OF MALE AND FEMALE SUBCULTURES
Khadikova, Alina Kh.
Kavkaz Forum. 2025. Issue 24.
Abstract:
This article aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the socio-historical nature of the modern ethnic personality among Ossetians, specifically the qualities of the male and female hypostases of the ethnophor against the backdrop of historically formed traditional gender subcultures and their ongoing transformations. Within the framework of the historical-retrospective approach employed in this study, personality traits are examined in relation to the archaic and traditional stages of the ethnic history of the Ossetian ethnos. The author clarifies that she appeals not to the classification characteristics of social types, but to the consistent succession of different periods in the historical destiny of the people. By archaic is meant the reality of Scythian-Sarmatian-Alanian ethnic and cultural-ideological unity, while by traditional is meant the patriarchal social and family structure of mountain Ossetian societies from the time of the appearance of written sources until the early XXth century, when the power of custom was still strong. The study draws on written sources, including mythological texts, as well as data from a survey conducted by the author in 2022-2023 to identify the personal characteristics of modern ethnophores. It was found that within the male subculture, the ethnographic distinctiveness of the aforementioned historical stages was organically combined into traits that continue to shape the image of the «authentic» contemporary Ossetian. In the female subculture, these traits collided, and their analysis is presented in the article. An analysis of the empirical data indicates that past personal patterns are more closely associated with the male subculture and, accordingly, with the image/ideal of a man. Components of the ethnic concept of the «real» man, «Lægdzinad,» are present in contemporary processes of projecting the ethnic thesis «we,» which allows them to be considered a significant factor in the intangible part of the Ossetian ethnocultural heritage, endowed with a significant ethno-identifying resource.
Keywords: Ossetian ethnic group, ethnic personality, traditional male and female subcultures, ethnic moral and behavioral stereotypes, cultural transformations, ethno-identification potential, modern ethnophor.
Language: Russian
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 For citation: Khadikova, A.Kh. The ethnic personality of Ossetians in the historical variability of male and female subcultures. KAVKAZ-FORUM. 2025, iss. 24 (31), pp. 227-238 (In Russian). ← Contents of issue |
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