Graphophonic Features of Khan Ayuka’s Name: A Case Study of 17th–18th Century Kalmyk Official Letters
https://doi.org/10.22162/2619-0990-2021-58-6-1303-1312
Abstract
Introduction. This article discusses the graphemic and phonemic features, as well as the origin of the name of the famous Kalmyk Ayuka Khan (1642–1724). Archival documents, namely, numerous official letters in the Kalmyk language indicate that in the 17th–18th centuries personal names of Sanskrit and Tibetan origin were popular among the Kalmyks of Russia. A large layer of anthroponyms associated with the names of deities, sacred symbols, philosophical concepts, ritual objects, etc. were borrowed by them via Sanskrit and Tibetan written sources, with the spread among them of Buddhist teachings; and most of these items that belong to the spiritual sphere of the people are still in active use. While the anthroponymy of the written Kalmyk language of the period in question has been little discussed, the study of a particular borrowed anthroponym, in my opinion, is of much relevance. This article aims to analyze the name ‘Ayuka’ in terms of its graphemic and phonemic composition, as well as its origin. The study’s database comprises Ayuka Khan’s official letters sent to Peter I, as well as to the officials of the Russian government in the period between 1685 and 1724; the documents are part of the collections of the Russian State Archive of Ancient Acts (Moscow) and the National Archives of the Republic of Kalmykia (Elista). Conclusions. The study shows that the Khan’s name is of Sanskrit origin; in the documents, it was transliterated using the symbols of the Galik script and was pronounced in the Kalmyk environment in its Tibetan version.
Keywords
Ayuka Khan,
epistolary documents,
Kalmyk script,
Sanskrit script,
Tibetan script,
Galik script,
visarga,
diacritical mark
Supporting agencies: The reported study was funded by government subsidy, project no. АААА-А19-119011490036-1 ‘Oral and Written Heritage of Mongolic Peoples of Russia, Mongolia and China: Cross-Border Traditions and Interactions’.
About the Author
Daria B. Gedeeva
Kalmyk Scientific Center of the RAS (8, Ilishkin St., 358000 Elista, Russian Federation)
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Cand. Sc. (Philology), Leading Research Associate
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Review
For citations:
Gedeeva D.B. Graphophonic Features of Khan Ayuka’s Name: A Case Study of 17th–18th Century Kalmyk Official Letters. Oriental Studies. 2021;14(6):1303-1312. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.22162/2619-0990-2021-58-6-1303-1312
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