몽골 고대서사 문학에 나타난 ‘막내’에 대한 형상과 사회·문화적 의미 고찰

A Study on the Figuration and Sociocultural Meaning of “The Youngest Son” in Ancient Mongolian Narrative Literature

This paper presents an investigation into the nature and sociocultural meanings of the youngest son in ancient Mongolian narrative literature. There was a convention of ultimogeniture among Mongolian nomads with the youngest son inheriting the household as “Guard of Fire” in the family and holding memorial service for the ancestors. Inheriting the household meant protecting the fire pot of the parents and becoming the pillar of the family. The Mongolian lifestyle was closely related to shamanism based on natural faith, and the concept of the youngest son had something to do with the shamanic world view in many parts. In Mongolian myths, Polaris, the ultimate guardian star of the Mongols, was connected to the youngest son because he had played his roles as the center to keep the family intact. In ancient Mongolian narratives, the youngest son was the third or ninth child in the family, which had something to do with the shamanic concept of holy number. In ancient Mongolian narratives, the youngest son became resourceful in life through much hardship and experience and achieved wealth and fame based on assistance from a helper or his innate wits, which demonstrates the popular nature of narrative literature and reflects the concept shared among the Mongols that the youngest son was under divine protection as the source of abundance and the pillar of the family. It can be found in many biographies of historical figures. The youngest son becoming a king was not a form of family power in narrative literature, but the tales tell that there were some correlations between the local leader(king) and the youngest son.