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{{Secondary Version
{{Secondary Version
|Has Description=The Russian translation of the ''Seven Sages'' is usually titled  Повесть о Семи Мудрецах (Povestʹ o Semi Mudrecach, A Story about Seven Sages).  
|Has Description=The Russian translation of the ''Seven Sages'', usually titled  Повесть о Семи Мудрецах (Povestʹ o Semi Mudrecach, A Story about Seven Sages), survives in more than 80 manuscripts, dating from the 17th century onwards.


All Russian versions seem to originate from one Polish translation, as shown by similar misunderstandings of the original Polish text present in all versions ([[Gudzij (1966)]], p. 450). Early scholarship on the Russian texts suggested that the source was [[Polish Version H|Jan z Koszyczek's translation of the Latin text into Polish (dated c. 1540)]] (see [[Murko (1890)|Murko, 1890)]]. However, newer research suggests the Russian text was either a translation of a later editions of the 1540s text (as suggested by e.g. [[Nikolaev (2008)]], p. 125) or a translation of the second Polish text that was a separate translation from Latin made no later than 16<sup>th</sup> century ([[Gudzij (1966)]]). According to [[Orlov (1934)]], this second Polish text appears to be missing.  
The Russian versions of the text seem to originate from one Polish translation of the ''[[H (Historia Septem Sapientum)|Historia]]'', as shown by similar misunderstandings of the original Polish text present in all existing versions ([[Gudzij (1966)]], p. 450). Early scholarship on the Russian texts suggested that the source was [[Polish Version H|Jan z Koszyczek's translation of the Latin text into Polish (dated c. 1540)]] (see [[Murko (1890)|Murko, 1890)]]. However, newer research suggests the Russian text was either a translation of a later editions of the 1540s text (as suggested by e.g. [[Nikolaev (2008)]], p. 125) or a translation of the second Polish text that was a separate translation from Latin made no later than 16<sup>th</sup> century ([[Gudzij (1966)]]). According to [[Orlov (1934)]], this second Polish text appears to be missing.  


According to [[Gudzij (1966)]], research suggests that the earliest transmission of the narrative into Russian may have dated to the end of the sixteenth century; however, this remains hypothesis (p. 450). The earliest surviving Russian versions date from the 1610s and 1620s, according to the latest manuscript lists ([[Azvolinskaja (1981)]], pp. 255-58). Originally the Russian version seems to come from Belarus, as shown by the dialect-specific adaptations, and may have arrived at Moscow though Novgorod (and then moved further up north-east), though it is also a hypothesis (based largely on [[Murko (1890)|Murko's (1890)]] analysis of some of the later manuscript transmission, not the earliest texts). Though all of the versions seem to originate from one translation, they differ significantly from each other, with varying story details, stylistic choices, dialects and story titles almost never identical (see [[Murko (1890)]], pp. 87-138). The structure and the main overarching story however remain similar ([[Małek (2016)]], p. 47).


According to [[Gudzij (1966)]], research suggests that the earliest transmission of the narrative into Russian may have dated to the end of the sixteenth century; however, this remains hypothesis (p. 450). The earliest surviving Russian versions date from the 1610s and 1620s '''for versions B and C, earliest versions A date to 1640s''', according to the latest manuscript lists ([[Azvolinskaja (1981)]], pp. 255-58). Originally the Russian version seems to come from Belarus, as shown by the dialect-specific adaptations, and may have arrived at Moscow though Novgorod (and then moved further up north-east), though it is also a hypothesis (based largely on [[Murko (1890)|Murko's (1890)]] analysis of some of the later manuscript transmission, not the earliest texts). Though all of the versions seem to originate from one translation, they differ significantly from each other, with varying story details, stylistic choices, dialects and story titles almost never identical (see Murko (1890), pp. 87-138). The structure and the main overarching story however remain similar ([[Małek (2016)]], p. 47).
The ''Seven Sages'' was also circulated in the Ukraine. The Ukrainian version appears to be a separate, shorter version of the text, appearing in the 1660s (Azvolinskaja (1981), p. 255-58). This makes its emergence later than the first Russian texts, contrary to some early research ideas that suggested it was an intermediate version between the Polish and Russian versions (see e.g. [[Peretc (1926)]], pp. 104, 128-33). It is, however, unclear whether the Ukrainian version was a late direct translation from Polish, or originated from one of the earlier Russian texts, as proposed by, for example, [[Lur’e (1970)]], p. 543.


The ''Seven Sages'' Ukrainian version appears to be a separate shorter version that appeared later than the first Russian ones in 1660s[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftn12|[12]]], contrary to some early research ideas that suggested it was an intermediate version between the Polish and Russian versions.[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftn13|[13]]] It is, however, unclear whether the Ukrainian version was a late direct translation from Polish, or originated from one of the earlier Russian texts, like proposed by, for example, Lur’e.[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftn14|[14]]]
From the end of 17<sup>th</sup> century onwards, some of the individual embedded stories began to circulate as self-contained narratives (such as [[Vaticinium and Amici|Vaticinium and Amici,]] which is also known for its’ separate shorter and full version – Повесть об Александре и Лодвике - Povestʹ ob Aleksandre i Lodvike) ([[Lur’e (1970)|Lur'e (1970)]]). This process continued through the 18th century, with stories from the ''Seven Sages'' tradition either (1) becoming attached to other similar story series all together, but without the frame narrative, or (2) were separated and included as self-sufficient stories in other thematic story collections – both with heavy modifications ([[Małek (2016)]], pp. 47-48). The more traditionally structured versions of ''Seven Sages'' remained in circulation as well, however.


From the end of 17<sup>th</sup> century onwards, some of the stories became more self-contained (such as Vaticinium, which is also known for its’ separate shorter and full version – Повесть об Александре и Лодвике - Povestʹ ob Aleksandre i Lodvike).[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftn15|[15]]] Start of the 18<sup>th</sup> century marks an even stronger turn for this removal of the original story: stories from the Seven Sages either (1) become attached to other similar story series all together, but without the overarching plot, or (2) are separated and included as self-sufficient stories in the thematic collections within books – both with heavy modifications[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftn16|[16]]], though the more traditionally structured versions of Seven Sages remain.<div>
The existing Russian manuscripts have traditionally been separated into three distinct redactions, categorizations established by [[Murko (1890)]], and followed largely more recent scholarship, such as e.g. [[Azvolinskaja (1981)]], [[Orlov (1934)]], and others. These redactions are:
----<div>
 
[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftnref1|<span lang="EN-US">[1]</span>]] <span lang="DE">Gudzij, N. K. Istorija drevnej russkoj literatury. 7th ed., Moscow, 1966, p. 450.</span>
- Redaction A: The shortest version, appearing c. 1640, which evidences the most obvious Polish influences (in both narrative and language).  
</div><div>
 
[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftnref2|<span lang="EN-US">[2]</span>]] <span lang="DE">Murko M. Die Geschichte von den sieben Weisen bei den Slaven // Sitzungsberichte der philosophisch-historischen Classe der kaiserlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften. Wien, 1890. Bd 122. Abhandlung X. S. 87–138.</span>
- Redaction B: A more complete version, appearing c. 1610-1620, with fewer polonisms than Redaction A. B and A are still assumed to be closerly related, but according to Murko, developed in parallel rather than one evolving into the other.
</div><div>
 
[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftnref3|<span lang="EN-US">[3]</span>]] <span lang="DE">Nikolaev, S. I. Pol’sko-russkie literaturnye svjazi XVI–XVIII vv.: Bibliografičeskie materialy. Sankt-Peterburg: Nestor-Istorija, 2008, p. 125</span>
- Redaction C: The most clearly reworked adaptation of the text, also appearing c. 1610-1620, written in Church-Slavonic Russian. Redaction C demonstrates variations in the opening frame story relative to the presumed source texts, and to the A and B redactions. According to Murko, there were several different independent evolutions that resulted in the various manuscripts of Redaction C, rather than a single adaptation that all further manuscripts then copied.  
</div><div>
 
[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftnref4|<span lang="EN-US">[4]</span>]] <span lang="DE">Gudzij, N. K. Istorija drevnej russkoj literatury.</span> <span lang="EN-US">7th ed., Moscow, 1966, p. 450.</span>
[By Timofei Redko, ed. by Jane Bonsall]
</div><div>
|Has Parent Version=H (Historia Septem Sapientum)
[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftnref5|<span lang="EN-US">[5]</span>]] <span lang="EN-US">Orlov, A. S. Perevodnye povesti feodal’noj Rusi i Moskovskogo gosudarstva XII–XVII vekov. Leningrad, 1934, pp. 120–128.</span>
|Has Title=Повесть о Семи Мудрецах (Povestʹ o Semi Mudrecach, A Story about Seven Sages)
</div><div>
|Has Branch Of Tradition=Seven Sages of Rome
[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftnref6|<span lang="EN-US">[6]</span>]] <span lang="EN-US">Azvolinskaja (Kazovskaja), I. D. “‘Povest’ o semi mudrecakh’: (datirovka drevnejšikh russkikh spiskov XVII v.).” Trudy Otdela drevnerusskoj literatury, Leningrad, 1981, vol. 36, pp. 255–258.</span>
|Has Language Of Version=Russian
</div><div>
|Has Start Date Of Composition=1575
[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftnref7|<span lang="EN-US">[7]</span>]] <span lang="EN-US">Gudzij, N. K. Istorija drevnej russkoj literatury.</span> <span lang="DE">7th ed., Moscow, 1966, p. 450.</span>
|Has End Date Of Composition=1610
</div><div>
|Is Date Uncertain=Yes
[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftnref8|<span lang="EN-US">[8]</span>]] <span lang="DE">Murko M. Die Geschichte von den sieben Weisen bei den Slaven // Sitzungsberichte der philosophisch-historischen Classe der kaiserlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften.</span> <span lang="EN-US">Wien, 1890. Bd 122. Abhandlung X. S. 87–138.</span>
|Has Modern Research Literature=Gudzij (1966); Nikolaev (2008); Orlov (1934); Murko (1890); Azvolinskaja (1981); Peretc (1926); Małek (2016); Małek (2015); Lur’e (1970)
</div><div>
|Is Adapted From=Polish Version H
[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftnref9|<span lang="EN-US">[9]</span>]] <span lang="EN-US">''[this is just my note here: some later research seems to simply follow Murko’s analysis that was suggesting there is Belorussian dialect in the earliest translations, but Murko (in 1890) was analyzing much later manuscripts (later than 1630s) than the ones found by Azvolinskaja in 1981 (1610s-1620s). And I don’t think there is research specifically focusing on these earliest versions from 1610s trying to determine the translator, so I would really emphasize the “hypothesis” part.]''</span>
</div><div>
[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftnref10|<span lang="EN-US">[10]</span>]] <span lang="DE">Murko M. Die Geschichte von den sieben Weisen bei den Slaven // Sitzungsberichte der philosophisch-historischen Classe der kaiserlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften. Wien, 1890. Bd 122. Abhandlung X. S. 87–138.</span>
</div><div>
[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftnref11|<span lang="EN-US">[11]</span>]] <span lang="DE">Małek, E. "Žanrovye i kompozicionnye modifikacii perevodnoj belletristiki (nazidatelʹnye novelly iz" Povesti o semi mudrecach" i facecii)." Trudy otdela drevnerusskoj literatury 64, 2016, p. 47.</span>
</div><div>
[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftnref12|<span lang="EN-US">[12]</span>]] <span lang="DE">Azvolinskaja (Kazovskaja), I. D. “‘Povest’ o semi mudrecakh’: (datirovka drevnejšikh russkikh spiskov XVII v.).”</span> <span lang="EN-US">Trudy Otdela drevnerusskoj literatury, Leningrad, 1981, vol. 36, pp. 255–258.</span>
</div><div>
[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftnref13|<span lang="EN-US">[13]</span>]] <span lang="EN-US">Peretc, V. N. “K istorii ukrainskoj povesti XVII v.” Trudy Otdela drevnerusskoj literatury, vol. 51, no. 2, 1926, pp. 104, 128-133.</span>
</div><div>
[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftnref14|<span lang="EN-US">[14]</span>]] <span lang="DE">Lur’e, Ja. S., otv. red. Istoki russkoj belletristiki: Vozniknovenie žanrov siužetnogo povestvovanija v drevnerusskoj literature. Akademija Nauk SSSR, IRLI, Nauka, 1970, p. 543</span>
</div><div>
[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftnref15|<span lang="EN-US">[15]</span>]] <span lang="DE">Lur’e, Ja. S., otv. red. Istoki russkoj belletristiki: Vozniknovenie žanrov siužetnogo povestvovanija v drevnerusskoj literature. Akademija Nauk SSSR, IRLI, Nauka, 1970, p. 543</span>
</div><div>
[[Special:FormEdit/Secondary Version/Russian Version H# ftnref16|<span lang="EN-US">[16]</span>]] <span lang="DE">Małek, E. "Žanrovye i kompozicionnye modifikacii perevodnoj belletristiki (nazidatelʹnye novelly iz" Povesti o semi mudrecach" i facecii)." Trudy otdela drevnerusskoj literatury 64 (2016): 47-48.</span>
</div></div>
|Is Date Uncertain=No
|Has Modern Research Literature=Gudzij (1966); Nikolaev (2008); Orlov (1934); Murko (1890); Azvolinskaja (1981); Małek (2016)
}}
}}

Latest revision as of 16:15, 26 March 2026

The Russian translation of the Seven Sages, usually titled Повесть о Семи Мудрецах (Povestʹ o Semi Mudrecach, A Story about Seven Sages), survives in more than 80 manuscripts, dating from the 17th century onwards.

The Russian versions of the text seem to originate from one Polish translation of the Historia, as shown by similar misunderstandings of the original Polish text present in all existing versions (Gudzij (1966), p. 450). Early scholarship on the Russian texts suggested that the source was Jan z Koszyczek's translation of the Latin text into Polish (dated c. 1540) (see Murko, 1890). However, newer research suggests the Russian text was either a translation of a later editions of the 1540s text (as suggested by e.g. Nikolaev (2008), p. 125) or a translation of the second Polish text that was a separate translation from Latin made no later than 16th century (Gudzij (1966)). According to Orlov (1934), this second Polish text appears to be missing.

According to Gudzij (1966), research suggests that the earliest transmission of the narrative into Russian may have dated to the end of the sixteenth century; however, this remains hypothesis (p. 450). The earliest surviving Russian versions date from the 1610s and 1620s, according to the latest manuscript lists (Azvolinskaja (1981), pp. 255-58). Originally the Russian version seems to come from Belarus, as shown by the dialect-specific adaptations, and may have arrived at Moscow though Novgorod (and then moved further up north-east), though it is also a hypothesis (based largely on Murko's (1890) analysis of some of the later manuscript transmission, not the earliest texts). Though all of the versions seem to originate from one translation, they differ significantly from each other, with varying story details, stylistic choices, dialects and story titles almost never identical (see Murko (1890), pp. 87-138). The structure and the main overarching story however remain similar (Małek (2016), p. 47).

The Seven Sages was also circulated in the Ukraine. The Ukrainian version appears to be a separate, shorter version of the text, appearing in the 1660s (Azvolinskaja (1981), p. 255-58). This makes its emergence later than the first Russian texts, contrary to some early research ideas that suggested it was an intermediate version between the Polish and Russian versions (see e.g. Peretc (1926), pp. 104, 128-33). It is, however, unclear whether the Ukrainian version was a late direct translation from Polish, or originated from one of the earlier Russian texts, as proposed by, for example, Lur’e (1970), p. 543.

From the end of 17th century onwards, some of the individual embedded stories began to circulate as self-contained narratives (such as Vaticinium and Amici, which is also known for its’ separate shorter and full version – Повесть об Александре и Лодвике - Povestʹ ob Aleksandre i Lodvike) (Lur'e (1970)). This process continued through the 18th century, with stories from the Seven Sages tradition either (1) becoming attached to other similar story series all together, but without the frame narrative, or (2) were separated and included as self-sufficient stories in other thematic story collections – both with heavy modifications (Małek (2016), pp. 47-48). The more traditionally structured versions of Seven Sages remained in circulation as well, however.

The existing Russian manuscripts have traditionally been separated into three distinct redactions, categorizations established by Murko (1890), and followed largely more recent scholarship, such as e.g. Azvolinskaja (1981), Orlov (1934), and others. These redactions are:

- Redaction A: The shortest version, appearing c. 1640, which evidences the most obvious Polish influences (in both narrative and language).

- Redaction B: A more complete version, appearing c. 1610-1620, with fewer polonisms than Redaction A. B and A are still assumed to be closerly related, but according to Murko, developed in parallel rather than one evolving into the other.

- Redaction C: The most clearly reworked adaptation of the text, also appearing c. 1610-1620, written in Church-Slavonic Russian. Redaction C demonstrates variations in the opening frame story relative to the presumed source texts, and to the A and B redactions. According to Murko, there were several different independent evolutions that resulted in the various manuscripts of Redaction C, rather than a single adaptation that all further manuscripts then copied.

[By Timofei Redko, ed. by Jane Bonsall]

General Information

Language & Composition

Language of version


Date of Composition
1575 - 1610

Literature & Editions

Recorded Branch of This Secondary Version