Abstract: Philip II of Macedon had an unprecedented number of interethnic marriages and seven children born in these unions. His matrimonial activity met the requirements of politics. However, the works of ancient authors contain a large amount of contradictory information concerning the family of Philip II. Attempts by ancient historians to retrospectively explain the situation of the royal children and wives often make it difficult to recreate the true picture of what happened. The ancient authors were representatives of a different culture, a different era, different from the time of Philip's reign. Therefore, modern researchers still do not have a single opinion regarding the marital relations of the Macedonian king and his family, which confirms the relevance of this topic. The purpose of this article is to clarify the role of members of the royal family at the court of Philip, and the factors that influenced their participation in political affairs. The theoretical basis of the research is the works of Athenaeus, Plutarch, Pompey Trog and Diodorus Siculus, as well as the works of modern authors. The methods of analysis and synthesis, the method of systematization of materials, as well as the comparative historical method and the method of studying cultural memory were used in the work.    For the first time, the article attempts to consider the history of the family of Philip of Macedon, systematizing all available references in the sources. In addition, the authors analyze the material in the context of the ancient perception of the world. As a result of the study, the authors came to the conclusion that all ancient historians were not only influenced by Greek customs and customs and the traditional dichotomy of "Hellenes-barbarians", but also wrote their works under the impression of contemporary political events. These circumstances influenced the desire of historians to rationalize and explain the events that took place in the family of the Macedonian king. The culturological approach allowed the ancient authors to focus only on important events from their point of view, which did not always correspond to reality.

Abstract: The object of this research is to study the organization of the educational process using active and interactive methods. The relevance of the topic is determined by the insufficient number of theoretical developments, research on the organization of interaction of these methods in a remote format. The purpose of this article was to clarify the features of the use of active and interactive methods in the conditions of distance learning and to present their own teaching methodology, the essence of which is the continuity and variability of the use of active and interactive teaching methods throughout the educational process by different teachers. The research methods are general philosophical methods of analysis and synthesis, as well as the method of systematization of materials, since the authors used various forms of classes, analyzed their effectiveness in terms of assimilation of the material and selected the most valuable options. In addition, the observation method and the survey method were used to obtain student reflection on the classes conducted. The novelty of the work lies in the development and implementation of the author's methodology for teaching Oriental disciplines in a classical university based on the continuity of courses and interdisciplinary interaction, which can be used both in full-time and in distance format.
The cooperation of teachers of Oriental disciplines of IMOMI N.I. Lobachevsky State University is aimed at developing and achieving common goals, creating didactic and psychological conditions in which a student can show not only intellectual and cognitive activity, but also a personal social position, his individuality, express himself as a subject of learning. At the same time, teachers of Oriental disciplines carry out the continuity of courses not only from the point of view of the content of the material, but also from the point of view of the choice of teaching methods. The presented experience may be useful to teachers of other universities.

Abstract: As part of their policy aimed at creating a strong Hellenistic Egypt, the Ptolemies created and maintained the syncretic cult of Sarapis. Ancient sources have preserved several beautiful stories and legends about the appearance of this god and his cult in Egypt. The purpose of this work is to clarify the political role of this cult in Egypt, the peculiarities of its perception by different segments of the population, which ultimately influenced the change in the Ptolemaic policy towards the local population. The main research methods are both general philosophical methods – analysis and synthesis, and special – comparative-historical and comparative-genetic methods.   In the modern world, there are a large number of countries (including Russia) in which different peoples live, having different traditions and beliefs. The study of the Egyptian version of the policy of "merging peoples" and the cult of Sarapis, as one of its components, helps to understand what factors should be avoided in an attempt to smooth out contradictions and create a strong interethnic association, which determines the relevance and novelty of the study. According to the creators, the cult of Sarapis should have been understandable and close to both Greeks and Egyptians. Therefore, the image of God, traditions and rituals included Greek and Egyptian elements, which was supposed to bring the population closer together on the basis of worship of this god and contribute to strengthening the central government. But in reality it turned out that in Egypt itself the cult of Sarapis did not become popular with either the Hellenes or the local population. The policy of uniting different ethnic groups on the basis of the religious factor without carrying out the same policy of rapprochement in other spheres (military, administrative, etc.) was doomed to failure.

Abstract: One of the famous women of ancient history – Olympias, the mother of Alexander the Great – is represented in the sources as a cruel, vindictive and domineering woman. Traditionally, it is believed that the formation of such an image was influenced by the peculiarities of the sources: the non-Greek origin of the authors, the writing of works in later times, misunderstanding of Macedonian customs and mores. The purpose of this work is to consider some well-known facts from the life of the Olympiad in a mythological context. Highlighting the characteristic features that influenced the image of this famous queen that has developed in historiography will allow us to change modern ideas about her. The study used traditional methods and approaches for ancient history. The principle of historicism is necessary for understanding cause-and-effect relationships, the principle of consistency is important for systematization of preserved data about this queen. The general philosophical methods of analysis and synthesis are supplemented by special ones: comparative historical, the method of retrospection. The novelty of this research lies in the author's attempt to show the influence of mythological images and symbols on Hellenistic historiography and highlight the rationalistic constructions of ancient authors. As a result of the research, the author concludes that the image of the Olympiad, which has become entrenched in historiography, was influenced not only by the negative attitude of ancient historians towards it, but also by their attempts to rationally explain events based on knowledge of the consequences. However, the mythological consciousness also left its mark on their work. The life of Alexander the Great was overgrown with myths, and all the people close to him also fell into the sphere of mythological representations. Therefore, in the sources, the image of the queen is not just greatly distorted, but is endowed with symbolic characteristics characteristic of myths.

Abstract: The persona of the Macedonian King Philip II continues to stir controversy among researchers. The goal of this article is lies in examination of the problems and contradictions associated with the circumstances of accession to the throne of Philip II of Macedon (360/359-336 BC). Separate attention is given to the discussions on his captivity in Thebes and Illyria, as well as their impact upon Philip's future policy. The author considers the problem of regency and interrelated system of Macedonian succession to the throne. The scientific novelty lies in comprehensive analysis of the sources that describe the initial period of the reign of Philip II of Macedon. The conclusion is made that in his youth years, Philip was being held in captive not only in Thebes, but in Illyria as well. The authors believe that the beginning of the reign of Philip II of Macedon, which is traditionally considered in historiography as 359 BC, should be replaced with 360 BC. Moreover, the complicated international situation alongside domestic instability should have influenced the proclamation of Philip II as king without a regency period.