Mary Holderness. Notes relating to the Manners and Customs of the Crim Tatars. Written during the four years` residence among that people

Abstract

This translation is based on the work “Notes Relating to the Manners and Customs of the Crim Tartars…” by the English traveler Mary Holderness. This work was published in London in 1821. It contains detailed information about the way of life of the Crimean Tatars, among whom Mary Holderness lived for four years in the village of Karagoz (Karagoss, at present the village of Pervomayskoye, Kirovsky district of the Crimea) since 1816 to 1820. The work is based on the author’s personal testimonies about the conduct of marriage, funeral and many other ceremonies of the Crimean Tatars: their customs, traditions, methods of housekeeping and education, especially intra-family relations. In her notes, Mary Holderness describes the development of women’s handicrafts and leather production. The author notes that all the Crimean footwear production was made in Bakhchisarai and Karasubazar, and subsequently sent to other Crimean cities. The author provides information on the development of sheep breeding among the Crimean Tatars. Lamb skins, after appropriate processing, were highly valued and exported to Moscow. Jewelry production was also well developed. Various jewelry decorations were made by them: jewelry made of silver, glass, brass, lead, as well as gold with colored stones. The significance of work lies in the fact that it provided the modern reader with the opportunity to get acquainted with the way of life and customs of the Crimean Tatars of the period described. An abundance of background information: food prices, Russian equivalents of British measures, indication of the distance between settlements make it possible to assess the standard of living of the Crimean Tatar people in the period under review.