Differences in Style in the Plots of the Song Poetry of the Volga Turks
Chuvash and Tatars are two Turkic-speaking peoples formed in the Volga region. The commonality of their folklore traditions has deep historical and genetic roots. This concerns, in particular, the typology of the song plot, described through the concept of short-plot as a kind of Eastern poetic aphoristics. The main difference between the Chuvash and Tatar plots lies in the poetic style. In the Chuvash, it is communal, due to the content of the rites. The archaic ritual culture of the Volga Tatars underwent cardinal transformations under the influence of Islam. This explains the emphasized personal, sometimes intimate-exquisite style of their song plot. A comparison of Chuvash and Tatar subjects shows that their differences lie outside the common cultural and genetic “heritage” of the ancestors of the two neighboring peoples. Ritualism, introduced by Islamic preachers, for centuries in the culture of the Volga Tatars replaced the primordial local carnival style. As a result, the genre nature and style of folk song poetry have changed.
