Food taboos among Russian peasants in the late XIX - early XX centuries

The article discusses the food traditions, taboos, standards and regulations among the peasants at the turn of the 19th - 20th centuries. It studies forms and grounds of prohibition. The article reviews the reasons for the appearance of various forms of food regulation, determines a certain system in this regard, and identifies the criteria for its prohibition. The authors compare modern and traditional rules, regulations and restrictions in the field of food consumption. The study proves that prohibition existed in national culture and remained in the everyday life of a modern man, especially in rituals and rites. It is concluded that food taboos are not the isolated incidents, but a flexible and variable system since they are aimed at different categories of people. They depend on either gender and age or season and the range of influence. Various standards are based on the economic and mythological component combined with a later religious one.