Andrei M. Ranchin, DSc in Philology, Leading Researcher, Institute of Scientific Information for Social Sciences of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Nakhimovsky Avenue, 51/21, 117418, Moscow, Russia. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0414-5106
The article examines the attribution of the so-called chronicle, or non-biblical, paroemia readings to Boris and Gleb – a unique monument of Old Russian literature – to the renowned scribe Kirill of Turov. This authorship hypothesis was recently advanced by historian S. Yu. Temchin. The attribution is based primarily on the presence of the rare phrase “headless beast” in the paroemia readings and in Kirill of Turov’s sermon on the feast day of the Fathers of the Council of Nicaea. (In the paroemia readings, this metaphor is applied to Svyatopolk the Accursed, and in the sermon of the Bishop of Turov, to the heresiarch Arius.) S. Yu. Temchin believes the epithet “headless” is derived from a dialectal lexeme recorded in the vicinity of Turov and unknown in other East Slavic areas. In the paroemia readings, the researcher finds a connection to Turov – a reference to Kirill’s biography, a recollection of Svyatopolk’s reign in Turov – and suggests that the origin of the paroemias can be explained by the veneration of Boris and Gleb in that city. It is impossible to accept the hypothesis that Kirill of Turov is the author of the paroemia readings. An attribution based on the coincidence of a single expression cannot be valid; the lexeme “headless” is quite common in translated Old Russian literature, and no trace of “Turov” is actually found in the paroemia readings. S. Yu. Temchin’s dating of the paroemia readings to the second half of the 12th century – the period when Kirill was active – is not based on historical facts.
“chronicle” paroemias to Boris and Gleb; Kirill of Turov; attribution; rare vocabulary; dating
15.11.2025
20.12.2025
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