『몽골비사』에 나타나는 몽골의 구비문학 전통 연구

A Study of the tradition of oral literature in the Secret History of the Mongols

The purpose of this paper is to examine the characteristics of everyday rituals and relevant social environment of the medieval Mongolians, by looking into the oral literature traditions of Mongolian nomads as shown in the Secret History of the Mongols, published in the 13th century. The Secret history is the best history book of the Mongolians and the most extensive collection of folk tales, covering not only the history of the Mongolians but also a variety of content including ancient and medieval language, folklore and rituals. Thus the text is an important source to understand the mental and material culture of the nomads. Moreover, the Secret History of the Mongols is rich in content on the oral literature of the Mongolian nomads. In addition to the founding of Mongol Empire and narratives about Mongol’s heros, the book also contains rich oral literature and everyday rituals of nomads. The tradition of oral literature in the Secret History of the Mongols include, by genre, congratulatory poems, ceremonial poems, magic and sorcery, words of blessing, scatter food as an offering to hungry devils and congratulatory ceremonies. As a result of observing the everyday rituals of the Mongols, based on these five genres, the following were observed. In congratulatory poems, an image of heroes including Genghis Khan was found to be in line with that time, with the motif of outstanding achievements and capabilities of heroes. This is a different approach from the existing thinking on legends, thus creating a major difference compared to the narrative literature about heroes at the time. This finding can shed a light on the understanding of narrative literature of heroes of the Mongolian nomads in the 13th century. In praising poems, unlike the usual ones from the ancient times of paying tribute to mountains, rivers and the nature in general, focus was made on Genghis Khan, the founder of Mongol Empire and his aides. In magic and sorcery, the birth rituals unique to the nomad Mongols, which is differentiated from those who are settled, were found. In particular, a variety of magic and sorcery performance in devotion and devotion shows real-life resource about the everyday lives of the Mongols, acting as an indicator of the changes in the society and the criterion showing the changes in the region. In words of blessing, Genghis Khan is showcased as a role model for others from childhood. The fact that he is described as a faithful and popular hero, the Secret history of the Mongols is a sheer reflection of the then public mind on justice and ideals. Lastly, Scatter food as an offering to hungry devils and congratulatory ceremonies, which stems from the nomads belief in heavenly god(s), reveals an integration of the unique literary thoughts culture and arts of nomads, in contrast with those of non-nomads.