Representations of the Dead in the Popular Culture of Pontic Greeks

Sera of inhabitants of the European part of Russia, collected in 2010-2013 were studied with the use of ELISA and neutralization test. Antibodies to West Nile virus were detected in 19.6% of cases in the Astrakhan region, 4.5% - in the Krasnodar region, 0.9% - in the Saratov region and 5.4% - in the Stavropol region. The coincidence of the results of the examination of sera in ELISA-IgG and neutralization test accounted of 80.7% in the Astrakhan region, 72.2% - in the Krasnodar region and 69.2% - in the Saratov region. The presented results correlate with the incidence and duration of known epidemiological activity of West Nile fever in the territories of these regions. Analysis of our data, as well as statistics of the morbidity rate of West Nile fever in the Volgograd and Rostov regions and Dagestan confirm endemic and expanding foci of this infection in the southern regions of Russia, currently including Astrakhan, Volgograd, Rostov, Saratov, Krasnodar and Stavropol regions and Dagestan. The most active and stable foci are located on the territory of Astrakhan, Volgograd and Rostov regions.

Key words: Pontic Greeks, Pontic Greek, Greeks of Russia, polyglossia, linguistic and cultural identity, Greek traditional culture The paper examines the topical issues of field research on the language and culture of the ethno-linguistic group of Greeks living in Russia, including their linguistic and cultural polyglossia and the mutual influence of languages and cultures of neighboring traditions, primarily Russian. The work is based on field data from 2022-2024, collected during expeditions to Greek villages in Russia (Sochi and other regions of the Northern Black Sea region, Caucasian Mineral Waters, Karachay-Cherkessia, North Ossetia-Alania, Dagestan etc.) and Georgia (Tsalka, Borjomi, Batumi regions).

This paper analyzes the cases wherein a previously unknown and unique mythological character (with his/her specific behavior, “personal” traits, appearance, origin, etc.) is generated by a cultural linguistic sign or a fragment of text. This research is based on the Russian cultural and linguistic tradition, mainly in its dialectal version (the language of Russian peasants). Its sources include data published in the late 19th–early 21st century in dictionaries of Russian dialects and, primarily, the unpublished field materials of the Ural Federal University Toponymic Expedition, covering data from the Russian North, the Urals, and the Volga region. According to their nature or origin, the names of characters studied in this paper derive from two types of linguistic signs: (1) Names based on usual forms of standard vocabulary that can be both proper and common nouns; the former may refer to various categories, such as toponyms (names of geographical objects), chrononyms (names of calendar dates), hagionyms (names of saints), names of icons, etc. (2) Names originating from a text, usually folkloric; these are word combinations or phrases that only act as a single unit within their “parent” text. Sometimes, but less often, these consist of one word that is of key importance in the source text. Such a phrase or word can migrate outside the “parent” text or genre, expanding their lexical combinability and changing their syntactic regime to become a name of a mythological character. It takes two sources of motivation for a new character to emerge—a linguistic (a word that seeks a new context) and a cultural one (a semiotically intense context, such as a situation associated with danger, prohibition, omens, aggression, or magical practices). The combination of these incentives is not uncommon, so the stock of mythology used for names is being constantly renewed.

This article draws upon the material of Russian cultural and linguistic tradition and analyses one particular phenomenon. In this phenomenon, a mythological character never existed in the folk belief system, but rather was generated by a linguistic sign or a text fragment. By their nature, the names of the characters studied in this paper derive from two types of verbal signs: 1) character names formed from regular lexical units — common nouns (роди́мчик, rodímchik ‘a seizure accompanied by convulsions and loss of consciousness’ > a character named Ро́дька, Ród’ka) or proper nouns (the forest Хéмерово, Khémerovo in the Arkhangelsk region > the forest spirit Хéмеровский, Khémerovskii); 2) character names that have a textual nature. The latter are constructions, or syntagms, that exist as an interconnected whole only within their “parent” text and then “migrate” outside it (Лель (Lel’), И́лия (Íliia) < song refrains алё-ле, ай люли (alio-le, ai liuli)). For a new character to appear, two stimuli are required: a linguistic stimulus proper (the existence of a name that “seeks” a content plane) and a cultural stimulus (a semiotically intense context: a situation associated with danger, prohibition, omen, aggression, magical practices). These stimuli are often combined, so the mythological nominative fund is almost guaranteed to renew constantly. The authors demonstrate that when “armchair” mythologists create characters based on linguistic stimuli, the same mechanisms are at work as those that function in “simple” folk tradition.

Viral diseases can seriously damage the vineyard productivity and the quality of grape and wine products. Therefore, the study of the species composition and range of grapevine viruses is important for the development and implementation of strategies and tactics to limit their spread and increase the economic benefits of viticulture. In 2014–2019, we carried out a large-scale phytosanitary monitoring of Russian commercial vineyards in the Krasnodar region, Stavropol region and Republic of Crimea. A total of 1857 samples were collected and tested for the presence of Grapevine rupestris stem pitting-associated virus (GRSPaV), Grapevine virus A (GVA), Grapevine leafroll-associated virus-1 (GLRaV-1), Grapevine leafroll-associated virus-2 (GLRaV-2), Grapevine leafroll-associated virus-3 (GLRaV-3), Grapevine fanleaf virus (GFLV), and Grapevine fleck virus (GFkV) using RT-PCR. Out of all samples tested, 54.5% were positive for at least one of the viruses (GRSPaV, GVA, GLRaV-1, GLRaV-2, GLRaV-3, GFLV, GFkV) in the Stavropol region, 49.8% in the Krasnodar region and 49.5% in the Republic of Crimea. Some plants were found to be infected with several viruses simultaneously. In the Republic of Crimea, for instance, a number of plants were infected with five viruses. In the Krasnodar region and the Republic of Crimea, 4.7% and 3.3% of the samples were predominantly infected with both GFkV and GRSPaV, whereas in the Stavropol region, 6% of the selected samples had both GLRaV-1 and GVA infections. We carried out a phylogenetic analysis of the coat protein genes of the detected viruses and identified the presence of GVA of groups I and IV, GRSPaV of groups BS and SG1, GLRaV-1 of group III, GLRaV-2 of groups PN and H4, GLRaV-3 of groups I and III. The results obtained make it possible to assess the viral load and the distribution of the main grapevine viruses on plantations in the viticultural zones of Russia, emphasizing the urgent need to develop and implement long-term strategies for the control of viral diseases of grapes.

Territorial differences in the level of socio-economic development in the regions of the North Caucasus Federal district are formed under the influence of different conditions, among which the important role is played by demographic factor. As a result of the study a significant differentiation among population growth rates in the regions of North Caucasus Federal district is revealed, and the degree of demographic well-being in them is determined by comparing the components of demographic natural and migration increase. Such kind of territorial differentiation is explained by different efficiency of the processes such as fertility, mortality and migration. According to the characteristics, the Republic of Ingushetia and the Stavropol region can be attributed to the type with absolutely prosperous situation, because the positive population growth is provided here by natural movement as well as migration. Dagestan and Chechen Republics can be also considered as prosperous due to the positive overall growth, but only concerning the natural increase through the negative net migration. In these regions, the demographic policy should be aimed at preserving the positive demographic situation and preventing the deterioration of population reproduction under the influence of falling real income in connection with negative economic phenomena. Other regions – Kabardino-Balkaria, Karachay-Cherkessia and North Ossetia-Alania – are demographically depressive, as the population is decreasing because of high migratory population decline, despite the positive natural growth. Disadvantaged regions need fast stabilization of migration processes and increase of migration policy effectiveness.

Conducting epizootological and epidemiological zoning of the territory ofNorth Caucasus -Federal Region (NCFR) by the degree of non-welfare by anthrax using Arc GIS10 program. 2 parameters were used during zoning ofthe territories of subjects of NCFR (Stavropol Region, Karachaevo-Cherkessia, Kabardino-Balkaria, Chechen, North Ossetia-Alania, Ingushetia, Dagestan Republics) by non-welfare by anthrax: integrated parameter of infection risk and epizootics risk. The parameters were input into the Arc GIS 10 program. Materials on infection of humans and animals with anthrax for the last 55 (1960 - 2014) years were used. The regions of the territories of NCFR subjects were distributed by non-welfare degree into 4 groups: group 1 - regions with a low degree of non-welfare, group 2 - regions with an average degree of non-welfare, group 3 - regions with a high degree of non-welfare, group 4 - regions with a very high degree-of non-welfare. Taking into account high parameters of spread and inten- sity of epizootological and epidemiological situation, regions of groups 3 and 4 could be classified as endemic territories for anthrax, whereas all the other regions could be attributed to the zone of sporadic infection manifestation.

The article is devoted to the snake-like mythological characters, found in the mythology of Chinese Shandong province in comparison with South Slavic word on the example of the Serbian tradition. The article presents an analysis of the names of mythological characters through the two languages on the basis of the ethnic tradition. The images of snake-like mythological characters, etiological legends, local rituals and folk customs in the Shandong province and the Serbian tradition are also considered. This study shows how the mythological perception of reality is reflected in the cultural code and in the language picture of the world. The characters can be divided according to the appearance into zoomorphic and anthropomorphic ones. The names of various snake-like characters, corresponding to the presentational carrier of the ethnic culture in Shandong province and Serbia, show typological and individual differences. In the analysis of cultural vocabulary common linguistic phenomena were found, such as taboo words, euphemisms, etc. In the mythology of Shandong province and Serbia, the images of snake-like characters have similarities and differences, reflecting the human perception and cognitive process. The study uses the methodology of the Moscow ethnolinguistics school, aimed at the reconstruction of spiritual culture.

Article is devoted to research problems of formation, development and improvement of system of taxes and fees of the Russian Federation and also standard legal support and fixing of tax legal relationship at this sphere, the analysis of problems of reforming of system of taxes and fees of the Russian Federation in the context of adoption of the Federal law of July 29, 2017 No. 214-FZ "About carrying out an experiment on development of resort infrastructure in the Republic of Crimea, Altai region, Krasnodar region and Stavropol region" is carried out. The purpose of the present article is the research and the analysis of the current state and also prospects and problems of reforming of system of taxes and fees of the Russian Federation in the context of establishment, introduction, collection and transfer of resort collecting as a payment for use of resort infrastructure, elaboration of specific proposals on improvements of standard and legal regulation of tax legal relationship in the specified sphere. For achievement of the designated research objective, the author carries out system statement of doctrinal approaches to such legal phenomena as "the tax system of the Russian Federation" and "the system of taxes and fees of the Russian Federation" on the basis of what existing are specified and own formulations of the specified legal categories are developed. At the same time, on the basis of the carried-out analysis of the existing tax law the place of resort collecting in the system of taxes and fees of the Russian Federation according to its three-level structure is defined. In this article, by means of a research of features of standard and legal regulation of system of regional and local taxes and fees of the foreign countries, next to the Russian Federation (on the example of Belarus, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Uzbekistan, Ukraine), the author carries out the analysis of various approaches of legislators to a problem of standard and legal regulation and fixing resort (hotel; tourist) collecting in the system of regional and local taxes and fees. During the conducted research the author comes to a conclusion about need of improvement of tax legal relationship for the sphere of establishment and introduction of resort collecting, first of all, definition and legislative fixing of the place of resort collecting in the system of taxes and fees of the Russian Federation and also develops the offers regarding introduction of amendments to the existing tax law of the Russian Federation.

Karelin's newt (Triturus karelinii) in Russia is known for sure in Republic of Crimea, Krasnodar region, Republic of Adygea, and Republic of Dagestan. No reports of this species distribution in other regions of the North Caucasus have yet been confirmed by collection materials. The paper presents data on few Karelin's newt findings in the Stavropol region and Karachay-Cherkessia Republic. In May 2018, five adult T. karelinii (two males and three females) were captured in the vicinity of the Novoekaterinovskaya village (Kochubeyevskiy district, Stavropol region). Another finding of this species (an adult female) was made in the vicinity of the Kubina village (Abazinskiy district, Karachay-Cherkessia Republic) in April 2021. The authors believe that Karelin's newt should be included in the faunal lists and Red Data Books of these regions.

Статья раскрывает проблему взаимного влияния конкурентоспособности региона на развитие туристского бизнеса. Услуга туристского бизнеса предполагает удовлетворение рекреационных и культурных потребностей, а привлекательность услуги (ее ценность для потребителя) обусловлена творческим характером ее исполнения, т. е. ее уникальностью, редкостью и неповторимостью. Уровень удовлетворенности потребителя от услуги определяется ее восприятием и уровнем запросов клиентов. Качество оказываемых туристской сферой услуг зависит от уровня развития инфраструктуры. Индустрия гостеприимства формируется как комплекс взаимосвязанных отраслей, занятых созданием туристического продукта, имеющих общие экономико-технологические связи. Проведено сравнение особенностей характеристик Ростовской области, Краснодарского края, Ставропольского края. На основе экспертных оценок проведен анализ туристского потенциала регионов Юга России. На основе выделенных ключевых факторов успеха дана оценка конкурентоспособности территорий Юга России в сфере туризма, сделаны выводы о более выгодном положении Краснодарского края. Для этой территории характерны высокий уровень инвестиционной привлекательности, высокая квалификация персонала, выгодные природно-климатические условия и развитая инфраструктура гостеприимства. Улучшить ситуацию в соседствующих менее конкурентоспособных территориях можно посредствам совершенствования внутренней среды (развитие инфраструктуры гостеприимства, эксклюзивных туристских услуг, предоставление информации о туроператорах и услугах (платформы), повышение квалификации персонала в сфере гостеприимства). Развитие указанных характеристик представляется тем направлением деятельности, которым должны озаботиться представители туристского бизнеса Ставропольского края и Ростовской области. Отсутствие привлекательных природно-климатических ресурсов этих территорий можно компенсировать, делая акцент на удовлетворении рекреационных и культурных нужд потребителей туристского продукта. The article describes a problem of the mutual influence of the region’s competitiveness on the development of the tourism business. The service of tourism business implies satisfaction of recreational and cultural needs, and the attractiveness of the service (its value to the consumer) is due to the creative nature of its performance, i. e. its uniqueness, rarity and originality. The level of customer satisfaction with a service is determined by its quality and by the level of customer expectations. The quality of the services provided by the tourism sector depends on available infrastructure. The competitiveness factors for Rostov region, Krasnodar region and Stavropol region are compared. In addition, an expert assessment is done for various dimensions of tourist potential for these regions. On the basis of the identified key success factors, an assessment of the tourist competitiveness of the regions of the South of Russia is given. Conclusions are made about the more favorable position of the Krasnodar region. This region is characterized by a high level of investment attractiveness, highly qualified personnel, favorable climate conditions, and a developed hospitality infrastructure. The situation in the less competitive regions could be improved by: developing hospitality infrastructure; providing information about tour operators and services via online platforms; developing exclusive tour services; increasing qualifications of personnel in the hospitality industry. Representatives of the tourism industry in the Stavropol region and the Rostov region should focus their efforts on developing these factors. The lack of attractive natural and climatic resources of these territories can be compensated by focusing on meeting the recreational and cultural needs of the consumers of the tourist product.

The present article is a part of the project "Linguistic structure of binomial botanical denominations". It explores the denominations of botanical genera that originate from the names of different mythological characters – deities, heroes as well as some gods’ attributes. The examined names are picked based on “Conspectus of the Bulgarian vascular flora”, Sofia, 2012. The names of the plants are arranged in alphabetical order. Beside each Latin name is indicated its English common name and the family that the particular genus belongs to. The article examines the etymology of each name, adding a short account of the myth based on which the name itself is created. An index of ancient authors at the end of the article includes the writers whose works have been used to clarify the etymology of botanical genera names.

This article is devoted to the study of  the pragmatic features of religious names in Rabguzi's Story «Adam ata-Haua ana». The use of theonyms in the work is based on examples of a religious, historical and mythological character. In addition, the article deals with the meaning and uses of religious and mythical antpoponyms. The authors of the article  emphasize the important role of religious and mythological characters, which make it possible to determine the main intention of Rabguzi in the transmission of information. They are explaining the meanings of terms that are similar in content: theonym, mythonym, agionim, saint, etc. Rabguzi used names of mythical characters to represent the religious and mystical interests. Theonyms reflect the history, ethnogenesis, realities of life and life, experience, customs, beliefs, economic culture and worldview of the ethnos of that period. Therefore, the description of the characters, the reflection of the picture of events and ideological content, the systematic study of theonyms allow us to reveal the nature and features of the genre of the work and the author's thoughts. The purpose of the study is to reveal information encoded in the cultural and linguistic semantics of theonyms, considering them as a complex mental unit expressing spiritual and moral values. Theonyms as a source of ethno-cultural information are reflected in the language as images-names of mythological and religious characters. Religious-theoretical conclusions will find its application in the field of theolinguistics. The results of the research contribute to the solution of theoretical problems, the definition of the principles of ethnolinguistics. Key words: Theonym, Mythonym, Agionim, Prophets, Saints.

Currently, the problem of identifying and comparing mythological characters from different folklore traditions remains relevant. Revealing common elements of mythological characters is necessary for compiling folklore indexes and mapping specific motives and plots associated with them. In this article, this problem will be examined using the example of the Polish zmora and other similar Slavic mythological characters. It attempts to compare the zmora from Polish folklore with mythological characters of this type from other Slavic traditions, relying on the similarities and differences of the motives, as well as functions and differential features associated with them. The article shows the features which are common for the Polish zmora and similar characters in Czech, Slovak, Moravian and Lusatian folk culture, Bulgarian, Croatian and Serbian traditions, as well as in Russian, Belarusian and Ukrainian folk culture. The author concludes that the West Slavic mora and the South Slavic mora are quite close to the Polish zmora in terms of the image and the plot-motive fund, and on this basis, the Western and South Slavs represent one ethnocultural area. Meanwhile, the Eastern Slavs do not have a corresponding character, so the motives and functions associated with such mythological characters among the Western and South Slavs are absent on the East Slavic territory or are passed to other characters.

В данной статье рассмотрены образы главных героев в текстах олонхо северо-восточной традиции. Образ главных героев изучен в сравнительно-сопоставительном плане с текстами эпосов родственных тюркских народов Средней Азии и Сибири. Главные герои данных эпосов представляли собой образ идеального человека. Богатыри-воины были предназначены стать защитниками не только племен, но и своих народов и родины. Главный герой якутского олонхо имел божественное происхождение, идеальные внешние данные, высокие моральные качества, большую силу и рост, обладал ловкостью, настойчивостью и упорством. Он был защитником племени айыы. Для выявления образа главного героя в текстах олонхо северо-восточной региональной традиции были проанализированы собственные имена, характеристика и описания богатырей айыы. Анализ имен главных героев олонхо северо-восточной традиции выявил тот факт, что имена главных героев 8 текстов олонхо (57%) северо-восточной традиции не имеют показателей богатырства. Автор считает, что большая половина главных героев не являются богатырями. Главные герои исследуемой традиции были защитниками своей семьи. Они наделены следующими качествами как гордость, настойчивость и упорство. В образе главного героя можно найти черты богатыря-охотника. Богатыри исследуемой традиции, в отличие от богатырей других традиций отличались меткостью и зоркостью, теми чертами, которыми владели именно охотники. Они обладали силой волшебных превращений. Магическая сила и перевоплощение главного героя также считается архаической чертой эпоса. Главные герои изучаемой традиции не наделены высокими нравственными качествами. Они владели такими качествами как вспыльчивость, грубость, жестокость, беспощадность, суровость. В 13 текстах (92,8 %) из 14 отсутствует полная портретная характеристика главного героя. Частичные описания портрета главных героев найдены только в 2 текстах олонхо. В 11 текстах полностью отсутствуют описания главных героев. Автор делает вывод, что в рассматриваемой традиции портретная характеристика главных героев еще не выработана. This article considers the images of protagonists in the texts of the Olonkho of the northeastern tradition. The image of the main characters was studied comparatively in comparative terms with texts of the epics of the related Turkic peoples of Central Asia and Siberia. The main characters of the epic of the Turkic peoples of Central Asia and Siberia were the image of an ideal person. The warriors-heroes were destined to become defenders of not only the tribes, but also their peoples and homeland. The protagonist of the Yakut Olonkho had a divine origin, ideal external properties, high moral qualities, great strength and growth, possessed dexterity, perseverance and perseverance. He was a defender of the Aiyy tribe. To identify the image of the protagonist in the texts of the Olonkho in the northeastern regional tradition, the author's names, characteristics and descriptions of Aiyy warriors were analyzed. The analysis of the names of the main characters of the Olonkho in the northeastern tradition revealed the fact that the names of the main characters of the eight Olonkho texts (57%) of the northeastern tradition do not have any indicators of heroism. The author believes that most of the main characters are not heroes. The main characters of the tradition in subject were the defenders of their families. They are endowed with the following qualities: pride, perseverance and perseverance. In the image of the protagonist you can find the features of a hero – a hunter. The heroes of the studied tradition, unlike the heroes of other traditions, were distinguished for their accuracy and vigilance, the features that the hunters possess. They possessed the power of magical transformations. The magical power and reincarnation of the protagonist is also considered an archaic feature of the epic. The main characters of the studied tradition are not endowed with high moral qualities. They possessed such qualities as quick temper, rudeness, cruelty, ruthlessness, severity. In 13 texts (92.8%) out of 14 there is no complete portrait characteristic of the main character. Partial descriptions of the portrait of the main characters were found only in two texts of the Olonkho. 11 texts lack descriptions of the main characters. The author concludes that in the considered tradition, the portrait characterization of the main characters has not yet been worked out.