Към типологията на българските рала
On the Typology of Bulgarian Ploughs

Summary/Abstract: In the researches carried out so far by Bulgarian ethnographers (Hr. Vakarelski, Zh. Vuzharova, V. Marinov, etc.,) the form of the beam served as the basic classification sign in the typology of ploughs. The two main groups of Bulgarian ploughs, straight-beam and crooked-beam, are determined by this sign. This article gives preference to a complex typological criterion: the framework of the plough formed from the following basic constructive elements: beam, handles, ploughshare, beam support. The basic structure of the plough is considered as being placed in a co-ordinate system, the beginning of which (p. O) coincides with the tip of the angle, formed by the handles and the ploughshare. According to this criterion four types of ploughs are differentiated: (1) Two-frame or single-angle plough, the beam of which is attached to the back-end of the ploughshare and has no support (open plough, double frame, monan-gulum=iMo); (2) Three-sided or triangular plough, the beam of which is attached to the ploughshare in the angle (p. O) between the handle and the ploughshare (Triangulum-0=To); (3) Three-sided or triangular plough whose beam is attached to the ploughshare at p.X (Triangulum-Х =Tx) and (4) Four-sided or quadrangular plough, whose beam is attached to the handles at p. Y (quadrangulum = Qy). According to the data collected so far, all of these types are to be found in the Bulgarian ethnic territory. The respective conceptual-terminological apparatus is introduced with a view to the territorial characterization of the ethnocultural phenomena.

• Details
• Contents