Among typological problems, the historical perspective of folklore traditions in modern realities is particularly relevant, necessitating a return to the origins of these traditions and the mechanisms by which they evolve. This article explores the structural, semantic, and thematic features of the multi-stage epic text, closely linked to the relationship between myth and history, myth and epic. To date, Yakut folklore studies have not specifically explored the mechanism for structuring different types of plots within a single epic text, nor the nature of their interrelations that shape epic integrity. This constitutes the novelty of this work. The purpose of this article is to update the ideological and thematic focus, identify the structural and substantive essence, and then explicate the process of structuring the multi-stage epic formations of the olonkho text “Yolbet Bergen” (1886). Achieving this goal requires solving the following problems: analyzing the structural, semantic, and thematic levels of the narrative about the first-generation hero Ogo Tulaaiah; analyzing the structural, semantic, and thematic levels of the narrative about the second-generation hero Yolbet Bergen; identifying the features of the plot within the ideological and thematic spectrum of the Yolbet Bergen olonkho. The study utilizes systemic and stage-typological approaches, structural-semantic and functional analyses, and contextual analysis and generalization methods.

The analysis revealed that the underdeveloped introduction creates a “temporal” discrepancy with the main body of the olonkho, and this discrepancy in time (mythological and historical) contributes to the emergence of multiple themes. The multifaceted nature of the overall plot is established through the simultaneous, parallel and linear development of three types of plot lines, forming contaminations. The coherence of the olonkho’s compositional structure, which tells the story of three heroes (mother, father, and their son), is ensured by a single, overarching macrotheme of heroic matchmaking. The dynamics of epic genre formation are documented, from the earliest stage of folk epic evolution (the heroic tale), reflecting matriarchal-clan relations, to the stage of the formation of the epic tradition (the tale of the ancestor), demonstrating patriarchal-clan relations, and then to the period of the emerging heroic epic with a marked increase in the degree of heroization. The ancient topic of inhabiting the Middle World in olonkho is reduced. The unique plot-forming role of the abaahy’s image and actions in the interplay of multi-stage narratives is noted. The author concludes that the mechanism for the development of the heroic epic reflects the genetic inheritance of the traditions of the heroic tale, in which the narrative of the tribe’s defender builds on the thematic composition and structural organization established by the earlier narrative of the tribe’s founder. In future, we plan a systemic analysis of other earlier type olonkho pieces from narrator N. T. Abramov.