Vladimir Dahl’s Concept of the Russian Folk Spirit

The article presents a comprehensive analysis of the concept of ‘folk spirit’, which is the system-forming principle of the entire creative heritage of Vladimir Ivanovich Dahl. The relevance of the study is determined by the growing interest in the issues of national identity in the era of globalization, as well as by the fact that, despite the extensive literature on Dahl’s legacy, his concept of ‘folk spirit’ as an integral philosophical and philological system has not yet received comprehensive coverage. The author aims to fill this gap by presenting Dahl’s understanding of ‘folk spirit’ as a unique synthesis of a scientific approach, artistic endeavor, and deep practical immersion in the life of the people. The research is based on a modern interdisciplinary approach that combines the philosophy of culture, literary criticism, linguistics, and ethnography. The article traces the genesis of the concept of ‘folk spirit’ in literary criticism: from the first attempts at its definition by P. A. Vyazemsky and A. S. Pushkin to the polemics between official ideology, the Slavophiles, and the “Natural School.” The philosophical and worldview foundations of Dahl’s understanding of the ‘folk spirit’ are examined in detail. This understanding was formed under the influence of German tradition, Slavophile ideas, and his own empirical and practical experience. The implementation of this concept in the fiction and journalistic works of V. I. Dahl is analyzed, drawing on materials from the “Explanatory Dictionary of the Living Great Russian Language” and the collection “Proverbs of the Russian People.” For Dahl, ‘folk spirit’ is a living, integral system expressed in language, folklore, everyday life, and moral foundations and rooted in Orthodoxy. Dahl’s methodology, which synthesizes philological accuracy and ethnographic thoroughness, allowed him to create a unique encyclopedia of the national worldview. This encyclopedia preserved the spiritual and linguistic substance of Russian traditional culture for future generations.