Представе о гнезду у народној култури словена
Conceptions of the Nest in Slavic Folk Culture

Summary/Abstract: This study examines the concept of the nest in Slavic folk culture, which includes an examination of the etymology of the word gnezdo and the meanings of this concept based on material from various written sources in the relevant field. It analyzes the semantic development of the word from the Indo-European root *ni-sd-o- to the Proto-Slavic *gnězdo, as well as its metaphorical use in the sense of ‘ancestral home, family’. Special attention is paid to the symbolic representations of the nest in folk beliefs, customs, fairy tales, and magical practices. These representations can be grouped into several thematic units: (1) love and marital symbolism of the nest, (2) the nest as a symbol of fortune, (3) miraculous objects in the nest, (4) who builds the nest in a person (?), (5) the nest as a time period, (6) the world tree and the nest on it. The study demonstrates that the nest in Slavic culture unites different levels of the cosmos, connects life and death, order and chaos, and represents a place of renewal and protection.

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