Lithuanian Studies

Information war waged by Russia against Europe exceeds classical terms of information war. In a classical sense, Lithuania is not losing an information war to Russia. On the contrary, Russia is the one losing. In the classical sense, the aim of any information war is to weaken the society of one’s adversary and prepare it for non-resistance in case of real aggression. That definitely is not the case in Lithuania, where society is now consolidated against the threat of potential Russian aggression as never before. But this is only one part of the picture. Thinking in Western terms when it comes to Russia could be misleading. And information war is a Western term, which is not always applicable to Kremlin actions. Instead of a focus on classical information war, we should pay more attention to the well-known tool of the KGB of the Soviet era called “active measures.”

У чарговай публікацыі палявых фальклорна-этнаграфічных матэрыялаў, сабраных у 2007 г. у мястэчку Лаварышкі, вёсках Масцішкі, Няверышкі і Дзеканішкі (Віленскі раён, Літва) , прадстаўлены разнастайныя звесткі па рэгіянальнай ідэнтычнасці, вуснай гісторыі, этнічных стэрэатыпах, міфалагічных уяўленнях і павер’ях, каляндарнай і сямейнай абраднасці, земляробчых і жывёлагадоўчых звычаях і абрадах, традыцыях харчавання, народнай медыцыне, песенным фальклоры гістарычнай Віленшчыны. У час экспедыцыі ў якасці інфармантаў выступілі не толькі карэнныя жыхары, але і мігранты з памежнай тэрыторыі Беларусі, якія ў савецкія часы актыўна перасяляліся ў суседнія раёны Літвы. Запісаныя ад іх дыскурсіўныя і наратыўныя выказванні, звязаныя з разнастайнымі аспектамі ідэнтыфікацыі і самаразумення мясцовага насельніцтва, адлюстроўваюць суб’ектыўную і сітуацыйную прыроду этнічнасці (напрыклад, глядзіце тыповы для беларуска-літоўскага памежжа расказ пра змену міжпакаленнай прыпісной ідэнтычнасці, калі пасля вайны ў “польскіх бацькоў” нараджаліся “беларускія дзеці”). Апрача таго, запісы ад перасяленцаў добра паказваюць якім чынам лакальныя культурныя адрозненні і характарыстыкі, прынесеныя з суседніх тэрыторый Беларусі, у новым сацыяльным асяроддзі могуць уключаюцца ў агульны рэгіянальны кантэкст памежжа або набываць этнічна маркіраваную афарбоўку.

Recent years have seen the flourishing of research on Lithuanian Kabbalists in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, to the point that some scholars speak of a defined and delineated stream of Kabbalah, a school unto itself dubbed "Lithuanian Kabbalah." Such scholars include within this stream all those who saw the Vilna Gaon as their teacher in Kabbalah (parallel to the position of the Baal Shem Tov in Hasidism) and they ascribe to it such fixed categories as its "Articles of Faith." In their conception, this stream was part and parcel of the broader and well-known nationalist-messianic current that had its source, supposedly, in the Vilna Gaon himself; this current reached its full fruition in the twentieth century, and so too has the smaller stream within it, now a clearly defined "school," developed in various ways until the present. As if this were not enough, scholars have joined the later ideological trend which seeks to revise the history of Jewish settlement in the Land of Israel in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries in a decidedly messianic way, presenting it in a continuous line from the Vilna Gaon to the emergence of Zionism and then to the founding of the State of Israel. Again, the Vilna Gaon is not merely presented as a "herald" of Zionism but as one who encoded within his Torah the secret of redemption, the beginning of which, apparently, we are witnessing today. The article conducts a critical analysis of the concept of "Lithuanian Kabbalah," and uses as its case study the life and teachings of Rabbi Shimon Tsvi Horowitz.


בשנים האחרונות צומח ועולה מחקר סביב למקובלים בני ליטא במאות התשע עשרה והעשרים, עד שיש כאלו המדברים על זרם מוגדר ומובחן, אסכולה בפני עצמה, המכונה 'קבלה ליטאית'. בתוך זרם זה כוללים את כל אלו שראו בגר"א את מורם בקבלה, כמעין בעש"ט לחסידות, ומונים קטגוריות מקובעות של 'עיקרי אמונה' של אותו זרם הרוכב על מהלך משיחי ולאומי ידוע שמקורו כביכול בגר"א עצמו והגיע לגמר בישולו במאה העשרים. עד שנוצר בעיני כמה חוקרים מעין 'חוג' ברור ומוגדר שמתגלגל באופנים שונים עד לימינו. אם לא די בכך, הרי שהמדברים על אותו זרם קבלי רוכבים למעשה על קו אידיאולוגי מאוחר שבא לפרש מחדש את ההיסטוריה של היישוב היהודי בארץ ישראל במאה התשע עשרה ברוח משיחית וליצור מעין המשכיות מימי הגר"א עד להופעתה של הציונות ולמאורעות שהתרחשו עם הקמת מדינת ישראל. שוב אין הגר"א מצטייר רק כ'מבשר' הציונות אלא כמי שצפן בתורתו את סוד הגאולה שאנו עומדים לכאורה בפתחה. המאמר עוסק בניתוח ביקורתי של המשוג "קבלת ליטאית" וכמקרה מבחן יש כאן דיון בדרכו של ר' שמעון צבי הורביץ

The author of this article explores the symbolic manifestations of the
temporary capital of Kaunas in the third part of Vincas Mykolaitis-Putinas’s Altorių šešėly (In the Shadow of the Altars, 1933). The author borrows the methodological framework of Vladimir Toporov’s studies of cities, which focus largely on the spatial structure of the text and the resulting semantic polarization of the artistic text as a whole.
Drawing on the city’s landscape-architectural substratum, Putinas
establishes a field of symbolic images of interwar Kaunas. In the third part of the novel, Kaunas – with its unique, low, three-story architecture;
a narrow piece of land squeezed into a river valley, hugged by a confluence – appears as a spiritually parched space, one lacking a sacral, mythical vertical axis. The opposition low vs. high acquires axiological meanings in the text and structures its artistic, creative space. The low space is inhabited by the petty bourgeoisie, with its base instincts, envy, gossip, hypocrisies, and conventional morality. The individual is also brought down by contemporary urban civilization, which loosens moral norms and eliminates spirituality.
In the meantime, the subject of the novel escapes from the ruinous pit
of his surroundings by establishing himself in a higher sphere – in the world of the spirit, of creativity, and art.

Бойко-Гагарин А.С. Фальшивые монеты в денежном обращении южных земель ВКЛ во время правления князя Витовта Кейстутовича и технологии их производства // Numizmatikos rinkiniai: istorines Lietuvos ir su ja susijusiu saliu paveldas. Vilnius: Lietuvos nacionalinis muziejus, 2015.  – р. 219-231.

В данной статье нами комплексно рассмотрены фальшивые монеты, обращав-
шиеся на денежном рынке южных земель Великого княжества Литовского (да-
лее – ВКЛ) в период правления великого князя Витовта Кейстутовича (1392–1430).
Типы исследуемых фальшивых монет определены в качестве подделок наиболее
часто встречающихся монетных прототипов на денежном рынке южнолитовских
земель в конце XIV – середине XV в.


Forged Coins in the Monetary Circulation of the Southern Lands of the Grand
Duchy of Lithuania Under Vytautas’s Rule and Their Production Techniques.
The author of the presentation analyses coins forged by private individuals, which were in circulation
in the southern lands of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (GDL) in the period of Vytautas’s
rule.

В этом сообщении мы описываем те ранее не изученные разновидности монет Великого княжества Литовского, которые нам удалось обнаружить в процессе изучения нумизматики и знакомства с частными коллекциями и материалами интернет ресурсов в Украине и Беларуси, в Литве и Польше.

This article tells about the new unpublished types of the coins of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania which we have founded during the learn of the private collections and the Internet resources in Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania and Poland.

The paper deals with the origin and development of the scientific discourse about the Belarusian language in Russia in the first half of the 19th century. The following topics are discussed:
1. The identification of Belarusian after the acquaintance of Russian scholars with Belarusian and Ukrainian literary monuments. M. Kachenovsky, V. Sopikov, E. Bolkhovitinov, S. -B. Linde,  K. Kalajdovich, N. Grech, N. Bakhtin. The language of some Belarusian and Ukrainian monuments was called Belarusian in the Moscow state even back in the 17th century; employees of the Posolsky prikaz in Moscow widely used the term “Belarusian writing”. The use of the term ‘the Belarusian language’ in the early 19th century as a common name for the language used in medieval Belarusian and Ukrainian monuments had serious consequences. On the one hand, the attention of Russian scholars was drawn to the old nature of Belarusian. On the other hand, the written Belarusian was qualified as based on linguistically varied sources at that time. In the first quarter of the 19th century indications on “mixed” character of Belarusian were a part of philological reflection about layers of borrowings in Belarusian rather than had estimating nature.
2. The oral Belarusian language learning. K. Kalajdovich, Z. Dalenha-Chadakoŭski (Dolega-Chodakowski).
3. Attempts to refuse the term ‘Belarusian’. P. Keppen, J. Lelewel, M. Kachenovsky, E. Bolkhovitinov. Reasons of disapproval of the term ‘Belarusian’. The prevalence of terms like ‘Lithuanian-Ruthenian’, ‘Polish-Ruthenian’.
4. The use of glottonyms: руский, руський (руськой), język ruski, белорусский (белорусской), кривичский, руско-кривицкий, литовско-руский, польско-руский, польско-славянский, литовский, rusko-litewski, rusko-polski etc.
5. The fixing of the term ‘русский язык’ meaning. F. Bulgarin (Bułharyn).
6. Glorification tendencies of Belarusian. K. Kalajdovich, O. Senkovsky, D. Yazykov, P. Špileŭski (Shpilevsky). The qualification of Belarusian as some stage in the development of proto-Slavic language or some previous stage in the development of Russian. The corresponding mythology was based on poor knowledge of that time in the area of comparative and historic linguistics and the written heritage of the Eastern Slavs. It was also due to the awareness that the standard Russian was formed comparatively late.
7. The understanding of the Belarusian language as a “mixed” one. N. Polevoj, F. Bulgarin (Bułharyn), N. Grech, O. Bodyansky. The indications on the “mixed” nature of the Old Belarusian language were shifted gradually from the level of historic and linguistic reflections to the level of sociolinguistic generalizations and later turned into the general scornful evaluation of Belarusian.

Studijoje analizuojami XVI amžiaus pabaigoje ir XVII amžiaus pradžioje atlikti LDK žemėlapio sudarymo ir leidybos darbai. Išskiriami LDK kartografavimo darbų pagrindiniai etapai. Tai -
1. lauko kartografavimo darbai ir LDK žemėlapio autorinio originialo braižymas; apie 1590 - 1600m.;
2. LDK žemėlapio leidybinio originalo braižymas ir žemėlapio spausdinimas; apie 1600 - 1603 m.; šioje studijoje žemėlapis sąlyginiai įvardintas kaip LDK 1603m. žemėlapis;
3. LDK 1603 m. žemėlapio tobulinimo darbai, atlikti po 1603m.; išbraižytas būsimo LDK 1613m. žemėlapio autorinis originalas;
4. LDK 1613m. žemėlapio spausdinimas Amsterdame, V. J. Blau leidykloje.
Apie pirmąjį ir antrąjį darbų etapus rašoma pirmoje studijos dalyje, o apie trečiąjį ir ketvirtąjį - antroje studijos dalyje. Trečioje studijos dalyje aprašomi XVIII a. ir XIX a. bibliografiniai leidiniai, kuriuose įrašyti žemėlapiai. Taip pat analizuojamos LDK 1613 m. žemėlapio studijos, atliktos XX a. ir XXI a. pradžioje.

ISBN 978-609-8192-14-8

Aleh Dziarnovič. Gudas as a Historical Name of Belarusians in the Lithuanian Language: ‘Goths’ or ‘Barbarians’? [in] Belarus and its Neighbors: Historical Perceptions and Political Constructs. International Conference Papers. Editors: Aleś Łahviniec, Taciana Čulickaja. Warsaw: Uczelnia Łazarskiego, 2013. P. 56—68.

У гэтым артыкуле даследуецца развіццё беларускага нацыянальнага руху падчас нямецкай акупацыі паміж 1915 і 1919 гадамі і, у прыватнасці, палітычнае жыццё на акупаваных заходнебеларускіх землях. Заходняя Беларусь, рэарганізаваная ў так званы край Ober Ost, перажыла працяглы перыяд нямецкага панавання – ад 1915 года і да паразы Цэнтральных дзяржаў.

Да чаго прывялі выбух вайны і масавае перасяленне насельніцтва, што пачалося ў 1915 годзе? Якой была нямецкая палітыка на акупаваных беларускіх землях і ці паспрыяла яна нацыянальнай мабілізацыі? Якімі былі мэты і памкненні нацыянальных дзеячоў, і чаму яны, у адрозненне ад літоўцаў, не змаглі стварыць жыццяздольную дзяржаву ў 1918 годзе? Усім гэтым пытанням і прысвечанае дадзенае даследаванне.

The myth or tale of the theft of the thunder-instrument from the thunder-god by his adversary (ATU 1148b) is encountered almost exclusively in the Circum-Baltic.  It is found in Germanic, Sámic, Finnic and Baltic cultures.  It is otherwise only encountered in one early Greek source of questionable cultural provenance.  This paper reviews the evidence of the tradition in different cultures, with a critical reassessment of the Germanic traditions, which have often been given priority.  ATU 1148b will be addressed as a Circum-Baltic phenomenon.  The paper approaches the distinct forms of ATU 1148b in each culture’s traditions in relation as reflecting socio-historical processes.  Emphasis is given to patterns of social use and how these are conditioned by relationships to other traditions and conceptions in each cultural milieu.  The evolution of the tradition into its various forms is considered the result of a long and dynamic process of interaction between cultures.  This development makes it unreasonable to attribute the Circum-Baltic traditions and forms exclusively to either Finno-Ugric or Indo-European traditions.  It is proposed that ATU 1148b is best approached as a Circum-Baltic phenomenon and representative of a Circum-Baltic mythology which is dependent on historical processes of linguistic-cultural interaction and exchange.  It is proposed that the concentration of ATU 1148b across diverse cultures in the Circum-Baltic is at least partially attributable to the maintenance of corresponding mythic narratives in adjacent cultures.  This explanation would find parallels in the persistence and form of genres (e.g. oral epic in Northern Europe) and stylistic priorities (e.g. alliteration in Northern Europe), which also appear to exhibit isoglosses related to cultural contact.

Do rąk Państwa trafi a pierwsza część diariusza prowadzonego przez Aleksandra Szklennika w Wilnie w czasie I wojny światowej. Jest to jedyny, tak obszerny i precyzyjny zapis życia codziennego miasta nad Wilią w okresie okupacji niemieckiej Ober-Ost. Relacja obejmuje różne aspekty życia, poczynając od warunków codziennej egzystencji mieszkańców, opisu działań władz niemieckich oraz reakcji
na nie społeczności lokalnych (samorządowych, społecznych i narodowych), poprzez kronikę wydarzeń lokalnych, aż po wiele informacji z zakresu życia politycznego zarówno w wymiarze miejscowym, jak i ogólnopolskim, a nawet ogólnoeuropejskim i ogólnoświatowym. Umieszczenie w publikacji zebranych przez Szklennika i wklejonych między zapiski odręczne rozmaitych materiałów zewnętrznych – wycinków prasowych, druków ulotnych, ogłoszeń etc. nie tylko wzbogaca przekaz o rzeczywistości relacjonowanej przez autora, ale stanowi kapitalne źródło, służące rekonstrukcji zasobu informacji (także pogłosek i plotek funkcjonujących w obiegu publicznym), jakimi dysponowali uczestnicy ówczesnych wydarzeń.
Dziewięć zeszytów bieżących notatek Aleksandra Szklennika z okresu od maja 1915 do listopada 1918 r, opatrzono wspólnym tytułem: Wspomnienia o wydarzeniach w Wilnie i w kraju. Autor rozpoczął swe zapiski w Wilnie, w momencie przygotowań Rosjan do ewakuacji i oczekiwania mieszkańców na nowego okupanta.
W tekst pierwszego zeszytu wpleciona jest niezwykle ciekawa relacja, opisująca obserwacje autora powracającego do Wilna przez Kraków, Jędrzejów i Kielce pełne legionistów. (Wybuch wojny zaskoczył autora w trakcie kuracji w Truskawcu.) Tom pierwszy tej edycji kończy zapis z marca 1917 r., z ostatniego dnia zanim do Wilna dotarły pierwsze konkretne informacje o wydarzeniach w Petersburgu. Tom drugi obejmować będzie wydarzenia od rewolucji lutowej do końca zapisów, tzn. do 31 października 1918 r.

Рахно К.Ю. Арфа Сырдона: западноевропейские параллели //  Коста и мировой историко-культурный процесс. Сборник материалов Международной конференции,  посвященной 155-летию со дня рождения  К.Л. Хетагурова. – Владикавказ: ИПЦ СОИГСИ ВНЦ РАН и РСО-А, 2014. – С. 268–292.

The article “The Woman Defeated: Theme of Sexual
Violence of Wartime” is devoted to the Lithuanian literature
written in the second half of the 20th, and the 21st century
with the purpose to recognize the moral systems on the
basis of theoretical models of anthropologist Cristoph von
Fürer-Haimendorf, and ideas on changes in the civilization
processes of culture sociologist Vytautas Kavolis. The article
starts with reviews of the immense amount of material
related to representations of violence against women in
literature and cinema, problems concerning (un) reliability
of memoirs, reminding of relevance of the mentioned topic
nowadays.
Analysis of the Lithuania literature at the beginning
focuses on the work of Lithuanian writers in exile, in
relation to which two tendencies may be highlighted:
1) attitude of a kind of indifference to anything that is
not own experience; 2) solidarity with the victims of
violence, particularly when that violence is extremely
cruel and a victim is of impeccable morals. Analyzing the
Soviet period literature, the moral system of individual
conscience, and self-conscious choice to take or not the
personal responsibility is described; from the seventies to
the present day remains important the other subject – that
of the female sacrifice, and fictional representation using
the hagiographical code. The article more comprehensively
deals with the third paradigm of the Lithuanian literature,
which reflects rejecting of the common morals, and
presents split mode of individual routes for search of
harmony.
Focusing on the most recent Lithuanian literature,
subjects, which are recognized, include attempts of
emancipation from the inherited patriarchal traditions,
and efforts to further control the theme of violence, and set
limits to its representation, which may still be recognized
in the current discussions on relations between art and
morality. Thus, configurations revealing approaches to
violence against women become clearer, and it helps to
better understand processes of the culture modernization
and internal stagnation

Alieh Dziarnovič (Aleh Dziarnovich). Lithuanian Language in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania: between Function and Status [in] Belarusian Political Science Review, Volume 2, 2012–2013, pp. 46—76.

Conclusions
To sum up, in the multiethnic and multicultural society of the Grand Duchy
of Lithuania of the 15th–17th centuries, there was a language situation of “numerous
diglossias” when every language had its clearly defi ned public functions.
Unlike bilingualism, diglossia as a sociolinguistic phenomenon involves
the speakers’ assessment of their idioms according to the “solemn-daily” scale.
Two language systems (offi cial and popular) were not used simultaneously in
the same public sphere.
Ethnic Lithuanians among the GDL pett y nobility and merchants, who in
everyday and family life could speak Lithuanian language, used the offi cial language
of the chancellery – Old Belarusian (Ruthenian) – in the public sphere.
Latin remained the language of the liturgy, but in many cases sermons were
preached in Lithuanian. Beyond religious sphere Latin was the language of diplomacy
and the most important internal acts. Monuments of Lithuanian literature
of the 16th century remained exclusively religious (Dubasova, 2005: 28), and
fulfi lled secondary, auxiliary functions. Thus, the majority of the GDL elite did
not know the Lithuanian language in the 16th century, since a considerable part
of the Lithuanian nobility descended from the Ruthenian boyars, and middle
nobility (including central government offi cials) of the Lithuanian origin gradually
lost knowledge of the Baltic dialects. However, pett y nobility still retained
communication skills in dialects of their peasants in areas where the Baltic dialects
existed. Also, a part of the Catholic city residents of Kaunas and partly
Vilnius could still speak the Lithuanian language in the 16th century. The emergence
of Lithuanian publishing primarily in Prussia, and then in the GDL gave
rise to the codifi cation process of the Lithuanian language, which probably led
to the stabilization of knowledge of language code among city residents and
pett y nobility on the ethnically Lithuanian territories. Possibly, the process of
slavicization (initially belarusianization, and later polonization) of these estates
slowed down, but this hypothesis requires verifi cation through further research.
On the territory of modern Belarus, where the processes of the Balto-Slavic
mutual infl uence in daily life still went on, Slavic speaking population used its
own dialects. Writt en Old Belarusian language functioned as offi cial and was
rich in legal terms, which required certain education. “Slavic” (Old Church
Slavonic) remained the language of the Orthodox Church, but local linguistic
realities gradually penetrated to it and turned it into a local version of Old
Church Slavonic language.
Language of the chancellery (Ruthenian) underwent signifi cant changes
over the 15th–16th centuries. Having the Old Rus’ writt en language as the basis
from the very beginning of its development, this language increasingly altered
lexically, as well as orthographically and grammatically, acquiring the traits
that allow Belarusian linguists and historians to call it Old Belarusian (taking
into account all the conservatism of graphical tools of this language and, of
course, referring to its writt en literary norm). Offi cial chancellery language is
a function of literary writt en language. However, it remains a matt er of debate
to what extent the spoken language infl uenced the literary and chancellery
norm, and to what extent the language of the chancellery aff ected the development
of the Belarusian spoken language. The evolution of the Old Belarusian
writing throughout the 16th century demonstrated a desire to get closer to the
live speech and overcome the infl uence of the book tradition. Naturally, the
preliminary description of diglossia situation concerns the period before the
expansion of the Polish language in the Grand Duchy, which occurred in a
form of non-violent polonization of the GDL elite.
Apparently, in the 16th century gaps in the chain of the Lithuanian language
transmission appeared among the elite. Probably, authors and propagandists
of ethnogenetic concept of the “Roman origin” of the Lithuanian nobility no
longer spoke the Lithuanian language freely, since they announced it a version
of Latin. From the point of view of Indo-European studies, these languages
(Latin and Lithuanian) are indeed close, but are by no means the same for a
person who knows at least one of them. Augustinus Rotundus failed to implement
a linguistic program of maximum introduction of Latin, that is “a more
pure” Lithuanian language, which he proposed in the preface to the Latin
translation of the GDL Statute of 1566. Yet here we also see an interesting attempt
of linguistic experiment of public establishment of Latin as a literary
writt en form of the Lithuanian language, understood in a broad social and
cultural context. In fact, Rotundus proposed to build an “internal diglossia”.
Both achievements in Lithuanian language publishing in the middle of the
16th – 18th centuries, and the limited functioning of the Lithuanian language in
the public sphere of the 15th–17th centuries (the situation of diglossia), as well as
discrimination of the 19th century along with other factors infl uenced the formation of the concept of modern Lithuanian nation, for which the preservation
and protection of native language became the nation building factor.

From the end of the First World War Kaunas, second biggest city of Lithuania, developed thanks to urban enlargements during Interwar, soviet and post- soviet period.
The modern part of Kaunas, outside the historical centre, was built mainly during the 1920s and the 1930s, when it was proclaimed new temporary capital of Lithuania after the polish occupation of Vilnius. In this period, following international artistic waves born in Western Europe and America, like Modernism, Functionalism and Art Deco, the most symbolic buildings of Kaunas were realised, still considered heritage of national importance and promoted by the municipality.
After the Second World War, Lithuania became a soviet republic and Kaunas was transformed in industrial centre; by the way, soviet regime could never impose itself totally in the field of architecture, since the bond with pre- war culture was too strong. So, together with examples of "pure socialist architecture", even soviet buildings influenced by interwar period and western- origin artistic movements were created.
The post- soviet period, from 1991, has been characterised by a return to Interwar architecture; many contemporary buildings are inspired to Interwar ones, while soviet heritage is under process of demolition or transformation, raising debates between schools of thought about preserving or erasing it.
The previous century and the beginning of the 21st century have left interesting architectural heritage rich in symbology and transmission of values; sometimes it is appreciated, sometimes hated and deleted, sometimes criticized but conserved. Kaunas, city of a democratic republic not oppressed anymore after the fall of the Soviet Union, is trying to rebuild its past, overcoming its "trauma" and showing its history to the international scenario.

Only Polish words from Marcin Paszkowski’s “Dictionary” have been published up to now while their Turkish equivalents have never been edited although two scholars (Ananiasz Zajączkowski 1938 and Stanisław Stachowski 1989) intended to do so. In this article the reasons for this situation are discussed and explained, as well as a solution is suggested as to how the source can be useful.

Алег Дзярновіч. “Гуды” як гістарычны назоў беларусаў па-літоўску: “готы” ці “варвары”? [in] Беларусь і беларусы сярод суседзяў: гістарычныя стэрэатыпы і палітычныя канструкты. Матэрыялы міжнароднай канферэнцыі. Рэдактары: Алесь Лагвінец, Таццяна Чуліцкая. Варшава: Uczelnia Łazarskiego, 2013. С. 53—65.

Summary: The article analyzes the contemporary Lithuanian wedding customs. The article is based on previous sources and field investigation materials gathered by the author in 2006 – 2007 at Vytautas Magnus University. The methods of the research are comparative analysis and the field research methods. The chief goal of our investigation is to analyze the phenomena of wedding transformation and preservation of national identity. PAGRINDINIAI ŽODŽIAI: Lietuvių šeimos papročiai, tautinio tapatumo išsaugojimas, transformacija. KEY WORDS: Lithuanian family customs, preservation of national identity, transformation. Šiuolaikiniai lietuvių šeimos papročiai: transformacija ir tautinio tapatumo išsaugojimas Įvadas Per pastaruosius dešimtmečius visos Europos Sąjungos šalys neišvengiamai susiduria su esminiais pasikeitimais šeimoje, kylančiais dėl demografinių ir socialinių pokyčių. Daugelyje ES šalių mažėja santuokų skaičius ir gimstamumas, sparčiai auga skyrybų skaičius ir gyvenimas kartu nesusituokus (arba kohabitacija), didėja alternatyvių partnerystės ir tėvystės formų neįregistravus santuokos socialinis pripažinimas. Minėti reiškiniai pastebimi ir Lietuvoje. Šio straipsnio t i k s l a s – aptarti lietuvių vestuvių papročių tautinio tapatumo išsaugojimo bei transformacijos reiškinius. T y r i m o o b j e k t a s – šiuolaikiniai lietuvių vestuvių papročiai didžiuosiuose Lietuvos miestuose, miesteliuose ir kaimuose. D a r b o u ž d a v i n i a i: 1) pagal autorės sudarytą tyrimų programą atlikti šiuolaikinių lietuvių vestuvių tyrimus; 2) palyginti atlikto tyrimo duomenis su ankstesnių autorių tyrimais; 3) atskleisti vestuvių papročių tautinio tapatumo bei transformacijos išraišką šiuolaikinėje visuomenėje. D a r b o m e t o d a i: lyginamasis. Lauko tyrimų metodai: pokalbis, struktūruotas interviu, anketavimas. Tyrinėjimų apžvalga. Šiuolaikiniai lietuvių vestuvių papročiai menkai tyrinėti etnologų darbuose. Vienas svarbesnių darbų šia tema-2005 m. publikuotas Akvilės Motuzaitės straipsnis ,,Šiuolaikinės lietuvių vestuvės Vilniaus mieste " 1 , kuriame aptariamos XX – XXI a. sandūros vilniečių vestuvės. Vestuvių papročiai nagrinėjami pagal Arnoldo van Gennepo perėjimo ritualų teoriją. Autorė išskiria keturis dabartinių vilniečių vestuvių tipus: 1) minimalistines, 2) ,,tradicines " , 3) vestuves su senaisiais liaudies papročiais ir 4) novatoriškas originalias vestuves. Miestiečių vestuvėms autorė priskiria tokius esminius bruožus: svarbų estetinį aspektą, etninių bei ,,skolintų " vakarietiškų reiškinių sandūrą. Kitas lokalinis darbas apie šiuolaikines vestuves – Irmos Šidiškienės straipsnis ,,Santuoka ir vestuviniai simboliai Merkinės apylinkėse XX a. antrojoje pusėje " 2 , kuriame autorė nagrinėja vestuvinius simbolius bei simbolinius veiksmus dzūkų vestuvėse. Dar viename autorės straipsnyje aptariami lietuvės nuotakos simboliai XIX – XX a. Europos šalių kontekste. I. Šidiškienė pastebi, kad ,,XX a. Lietuvoje kartu su madomis ypač sparčiai plinta nauji dalykai: baltos suknelės ir nuotakų šydai, vainikėlio dėjimo vyriausiajai pamergei ir jo deginimo apeigos. Vienos iš jų prigyja ir tampa tradiciniais elementais (apranga), kiti nyksta ir vietoje jų grįžta senų papročių fragmentai (vainikėlių ir kitų vestuvinių atributų laikymas) " 3. Nijolės Vasiliauskaitės magistro darbas ,,Šiuolaikiniai lietuvių miestiečių vestuvių papročiai " 4 – tai dar vienas veikalas minėta tema. Pagrindinis šio darbo šaltinis – 2005-2006 m. autorės surinkta empirinė medžiaga iš VDU studentų (nuo 18 iki 25 metų) bei Kauno ir Vilniaus vestuves organizuojančių firmų atstovų. Autorė darbe išskiria pagrindinius šiuolaikinių miestiečių vestuvių struktūros elementus, lygina juos su vestuvinių firmų bei pačių jaunavedžių organizuotomis vestuvėmis, analizuoja skirtingus vestuvių tipus. Minėtas darbas praturtina naujausius miestiečių vestuvių papročių tyrinėjimus. Kanados antropologas Gediminas Lankauskas ,,Ethos " žurnale 2002 m. anglų kalba publikuoja straipsnį apie naujųjų Lietuvos krikščionių bendruomenių nacionalinio identiteto vertybes post-sovietinėje Lietuvoje. 5 Neokriščioniškų bendruomenių vestuvėse autorius gilinasi į šiuolaikinės visuomenės vartotojiškas nuostatas, kurios ypač patrauklios jaunajai kartai. Anot G. Lankausko, šiuo pereinamuoju laikotarpiu jaunoji karta PAGE 8

This book explores the history of art and architecture in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth from the 18th century to the uprising against the Russian occupation in  1863-64. It serves to introduce the English-language reader to
research produced by East European scholars. The geographical area under discussion consists of the modern nation states of Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, and Ukraine, which from 1772 were incorporated into the empires of Russia, Austria, and Prussia. One of the major questions raised is, what became of the old Commonwealth’s artistic and
cultural traditions under the rule of these alien powers? The book strives to do justice to the history of all the national groups involved, even though the region was heavily Polonised from the 16th century onwards. The art, architecture, and culture introduced from western Europe are analysed in their effects not only on Polish culture, but also on that of the Orthodox and Uniate Ruthenians and Belarusians, on the Jewish settlement and on those of the Karaite and Islamic Tatars. An additional concern is the history, art and architecture of the Baltic Germans in the Latvian region. The book
suggests a critical approach involving alternative models to those of nationalistic schools of art. It is geography that dictates the writing of history, rather than national identity.

This article discusses a few aspects of the conception of one image found in the Lithuanian folklore and religious sculpture of the turn of 19th and 20th century. The author points out possible influences of the official Catholic Church liturgy, teaching, official religious art, devotional literature, sermons, chants on folklore and folk religious art. This article explores direct influences and the syncretism of these ideas in the peasant culture