Some words most of the contemporaries can only read from Gogol or hear in TV shows about the life of the Cossacks. Because of what, the understanding of the plot breaks down: a person hardly imagines the essence of what is happening, does not fully delve into the plot. However, the classic "stanitsa" is a designation for a large settlement, often found in the southern regions of Russia. How has the concept changed over the centuries, what meanings are invested in it? A detailed analysis will help answer any questions.
Where did the term come from?
According to Dahl, "village" is a derivative of the corresponding verb. An armed detachment has come to occupy a key position before the battle, and what does it do first? He immediately begins to set up, set up camp. For this reason, the basic definition of "stan" received such transcripts as:
- temporary location;
- one of the troops participating in the war;
- opponent grouping, political association.
The studied word, due to the suffix, indicates a formation that is smaller in size and significance, gradually entered into speechordinary people with completely different meanings.
What is the basic interpretation?
The perception of the term depends on the era and context. Most often they mean the traditional Cossack village. And then the speaker means:
- large village of Cossacks;
- the totality of its inhabitants.
It is the first option that is most in demand in works of art. Initially, they were pointed to any settlement of the 17th-18th centuries, from where they could convene the Cossack army. But already in the 19th century, it was used to designate a territorial administrative unit with many farms, as well as villages. All these villages retained their name after the revolution under the USSR.
What versions are there?
Sometimes misunderstandings arise when reading historical documents. Since there occasionally the concept is used in a different meaning:
- mounted reconnaissance and/or security detachment in the 15th-17th centuries;
- envoys of the Cossack army with gifts to the king in the XVI-XVIII centuries.
At the same time, two outdated versions are likely, which have long been out of circulation, but are also available in a number of sources:
- band of robbers, a group of daredevils;
- a large number of anyone, a crowd, a flock of birds or animals.
It's no wonder to get confused under the shaft of specific interpretations.
Which option to choose?
For a modern person, the choice is obvious: this is a village-settlement with all the inhabitants. Theoretically, it differsfrom villages to larger sizes, which makes it possible to equate it to an urban-type settlement or even to a city. But in the Cossack territories, such renaming rarely happens as part of the preservation of historical and cultural heritage.
