Danilova N.K. —
“Home – woman’s world”: sacred female images and feminine symbology in the life of Sakha people
// Man and Culture. – 2019. – ¹ 3.
– P. 13 - 27.
DOI: 10.25136/2409-8744.2019.3.29870
URL: https://en.e-notabene.ru/ca/article_29870.html
Read the article
Abstract: The object of this research is the “sacred woman’s world” in the traditional culture of Yakut people. The author examines such aspects of the topic as the determination of the role and place of a woman in organization of life space; consideration of mythological female images involved in domestication of the living space and symbolic representations of “thing world” of a dwelling associated with the female theme. Particular attention is turned to the comprehensive analysis of the scared figure of a potter woman, clay as a creational raw material, and pottery as a replica of cosmogonic technology. Methodological foundation contains the historical-anthropological approach, focusing on studying behavioral motives and strategies, as well as mentality of people of the past. The priority research methods became the semiotic and structural-functional analysis for interpreting the phenomena of woman’s world and sacred meanings of feminine images. The conclusion is made that if the expansion of domesticated space is a result of actions of a man (through the development of landscape), than the organization of living space belongs to a woman, as her image is endued with the creational functions. The author detects the sympathetic connections between the cult of a goddess-mother, female shamanism, and sacred figure of a potter woman; as well as analyzes the femininely saturated loci and things in a living space, possessing a marginal characteristic and allowing to reveal the boundaries between the world of nature and the world of people.