Folkloristics from field to theory. Development of N.V. Emelyanov’s research approach to olonkho

The relevance of turning to N. V. Emelyanov’s monographic works on the Yakut olonkho epic (1980, 1983, 1990, 2000) is determined by the need to substantiate the stages of the formation and evolution of his research approach to the epic genre, which determined the purpose and objectives of this article. The article employs the same typological method of analyzing variants and texts of oral tradition that is characteristic of N. V. Emelyanov’s works. At the same time, the historiographical focus of the article is also determined by a diachronic approach and a historical-scientific research method.

The initial objectives of N. V. Emelyanov’s research (1980) were related to the general systematization of the surviving “diversity” of plot variants of the Yakut olonkho (approximately 150 plots). However, already with his second monograph (1983), the research objectives began to expand, focusing on understanding the causes of the emergence of each particular epic narrative variety, divided into three main groups (I, II, III). In his final work (2000) – in the olonkho “about the defenders of the tribe” (III) – the scholar closely approaches a comprehensive formulation of the problem of the “poetic uniformity” of the olonkho (the Nurgun Bootur cycle), leading to a solution to the question of the holistic poetics of the Yakut epic.

The novelty of this article lies in its first specific examination of the stages in the development of N.V. Emelyanov’s scholarly understanding of the olonkho epic. The results of the study demonstrate that, throughout all stages of his study of the Yakut epic, the evolution of his own research approach and his methodology for analyzing epic material (variants) can be clearly traced. This article presents the evolution of the author’s research approaches, based on a shift from fieldwork on the epic in the late 1950s to the formulation of a set of theoretical questions on the principles of epic narrative structure using this material in the 1990s. Ultimately, it must be acknowledged that N.V. Emelyanov’s works not only fit into the general context of typological studies of 20th-century epic poetry but also represent a significant scientific milestone, defining the methodology and prospects of contemporary research on the olonkho epic.

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