А. А. Петров. История изучения тунгусо-маньчжурских языков в России (очерки и исследования)

Abstract

This publication is a review of a new book by A. A. Petrov devoted to the history of the study of the Tungus-Manchu languages in Russia from the 18th century till the beginning of the 21st century. Reference books of this type on the Tungus-Manchu languages and other languages of the peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East of Russia have not been published for over 70 years, and they are especially relevant due to the increase in the volume of publications on these languages, a significant part of which are regional publications of universities and Siberian scientific centers. The main part of the book is the literature on the Tungus-Manchu languages dating back to the 20th century. It is divided into three periods: the pre-revolutionary period (1900—1917), the Soviet period (1917—1991), and the Russian post-Soviet period (1992—2000). There is a certain logic in this: the biographies of most researchers of the older generation fit into one period, and each period reflects certain trends in views on the subject and asks of the study. The book includes a number of supplements for reference. These applications make the book by A. A. Petrov a convenient textbook for students of specialized universities, a guide for refresher courses for teachers of the Tungus-Manchu languages and independent work of teachers, and a guide for foreign researchers who may have difficulties with the Russian bibliography on the subject. A. A. Petrov’s book is unambiguously useful as an everyday reference book of literature on the Tungus-Manchu languages, although, of course, researchers of biographies of scientists as well as researchers of some special problems of studying Tungus-Manchu languages will turn to other sources that provide special requests.