The Concept of "Altai-Kizhi/Altaian" as a Reflection of National Identity in the Altaian Literature

Abstract

Modern Altaian literature has a wide range of possibilities for representing ethnic and national mentality due to the fact that ethno-cultural elements are its organic part. The article examines the ethno-concept "Altai-Kizhi / Altaian", through the prism of which the specifics of the national identity of the indigenous people of the Altai Mountains are described. Based on the creative work of the Altai poets and writers (B. Bedyurov, B. Ukachin, P. Samyk, G. Kondakov), the authors have traced from which elements the ethnoconcept is formed and what meanings it represents in the Altai literature. The content of the ethnoconcept is a complex set of meanings, connected, on the one hand, with the universal semantics of the concept of "man", on the other hand, with the constant of the national character and mentality. In general, in the texts of the Altaian literature, "Altai-Kizhi / Altaian" represents the universal meaning of a person in general and at the same time acts as a constant of the national character and mentality.