The Duck in the Mythological Views of the Buryats

Studying the symbolic complex of wild fauna as part of the general worldview of the peoples of Russia is one of the critical tasks of Russian ethnography. In order to solve this problem, fundamental studies of the material of individual ethnic groups (Russians, Veps) have been carried out. In this regard, it remains relevant to conduct further research on this topic, including the culture of other peoples. One of the central ornithomorphic images in the traditional worldview of many peoples of Eurasia is the image of the duck, which is due to its extensive habitat and the utilitarian value it has as an object of meat hunting. This image is ambiguous and characterized by an ambivalent meaning. This topic has not yet been explored in Buryat ethnography. This article is dedicated to the image of the duck in the mythological imagination of the Buryats. The work is based on folkloristic, linguistic, and ethnographic sources. The main method used in the work is the structural-semiotic method, which makes it possible to determine the symbolism reflecting the ideas about the duck. This waterfowl did not belong to the category of sacred, totemic animals, and the Buryats did not avoid its meat. It is pointed out that of the two Buryat duck names – hono and nugahan – the latter is the bird’s generic name and has a common Mongolian origin. It is emphasized that the image of the duck in Buryat mythology is polysemantic and ambiguous. According to traditional Buryat belief, the duck symbolizes the female principle. This water bird was associated with two spheres of life – the sky and the water - and served as a mediator between them. Its image was inscribed in the Buryats’ cosmogonic ideas about the world’s creation. In mythology and folklore, the duck was ascribed to a therapeutic function. The idea of a person turning into a duck is associated with a duck (turpan). The motif of the transformation of the soul of the deceased into a duck has also been passed down. In the folk symbolism of the Buryats, the duck has a negative connotation.

Buryats, traditional worldview, wild fauna, duck image, folklore