Magpie in the traditional worldview of the Buryats

The magpie is one of the most common characters in the folklore of the peoples of Eurasia. In Buryat ethnography, this ornithomorphic image has not yet been analyzed specifically. The study is devoted to the identification of the Buryat traditional ideas about the magpie. The objectives of the work are: to give a general characteristic of the magpie in the traditional culture of the Buryats; to reveal the image of the magpie in the mythological views of the Buryats. The research was based on the linguistic, folklore, and ethnographic materials. The study has been executed through the structural-semiotic method involving identification of the magpie symbolism. It has been determined that the language and small genres of Buryat folklore reflect the main biological characteristics of the magpie (its color, the long tail, movement characteristic of this bird, the bird ’s chirping, dexterity and cunning). It has been noted that the image of the magpie ’s foot is particularly widespread in the traditional culture of the Buryats. It has been found out that the Buryats attributed the magpie to the category of birds allegedly capable of healing. At the same time, this bird of prey was considered as an evil spirit. It is shown that the image of the magpie in the traditional ideology of the Buryats is ambiguous: totemic views are linked to it; it personifies winter, has a feminine origin and plays the role of a messenger; the motive of patronage, the idea of the soul and werewolf are associated with it, at the same time it is an evil spirit partially because it is considered a messenger of death. It is highlighted that some Buryat folk views about this bird have parallels in the traditional consciousness of different ethnic groups of Eurasia, which indicates their universal character.