Research Article

Two Mountains, Two Tricksters: A Comparative Analysis of Nart Sosruquo and Mercurius/Hermes

Volume: 10 Number: 16 May 31, 2025
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Two Mountains, Two Tricksters: A Comparative Analysis of Nart Sosruquo and Mercurius/Hermes

Abstract

As this study concerns itself with previous scholarship on the Nart Sagas of the Caucasus—that particularly focus on the figure of Sosruquo—it remedies certain lapses and misrepresentations present in the literature. Furthermore, in its analysis of “Sosruquo and the Inquisitive Ayniwzh” (Colarusso), the study utilizes a Jungian framework to interpret the complex mythological figure of Sosruquo, as to an archetypal dimension of Sosruquo is wanting in previous scholarship. As the study argues Sosruquo presents a unique blend of the divine child, the hero, and the trickster archetypes, it emphasizes the sui generis position of this character in comparative mythology through a close reading of the aforementioned tale—and emphasizing the tension between Sosruquo the figure of Mercurius / Hermes, the latter whom Jung explores in his Alchemical Studies. As the study argues Sosruquo, and therefore on a larger scale, the Nart Sagas cannot be reduced to variations of other mythological corpi, it also establishes Sosruquo as a distinctive figure that breaks through the mold of traditional Jungian dichotomies. The significance of the study lies in the fact that it goes against the grain of the orthodox readings of Caucasus mythology—and yet it does not entrap itself in a contrarianism simply for its own sake. Rather the study intimates a paradigm shift in reading the mythopoeia of the Caucasus within the context of oral literature, a paradigm shift that does not rest on parallelisms and psychologisms.

Keywords

References

  1. Colarusso, John. Nart Sagas: Ancient Myths and Legends of the Circassians and Abkhazians. Princeton UP, 2016.
  2. Colarusso, John, and Tamirlan Salbiev. Tales of the Narts: Ancient Myths and Legends of the Ossetians. Princeton UP, 2020.
  3. Dumézil, Georges. Gods of the Ancient Northmen. Univ of California Press, 1977. Fritz, Sonja and Gippert, Jost. “Onomastica Nartica: Sozyryqo - Soslan” Haptačahaptāitiš: Festschrift. 2004. pp. 73-89
  4. Jaimoukha, Amjad. Circassian Literature. Independent Publishing. 2014.
  5. Jaimoukha, Amjad. Circassian Religion and Beliefs. Independent Publishing. 2009.
  6. Jung, C. G. “The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious.” Routledge eBooks, 2014, https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315725642.
  7. Jung, C. G. Collected Works of C.G. Jung, Volume 5: Symbols of Transformation. Princeton University Press eBooks, 2014, doi:10.1515/9781400850945.
  8. Jung, C. G. Collected Works of C.G. Jung, Volume 13: Alchemical Studies. Princeton University Press eBooks, 2014, https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400850990.

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Caucasian Language, Literature and Culture

Journal Section

Research Article

Early Pub Date

May 31, 2025

Publication Date

May 31, 2025

Submission Date

May 16, 2025

Acceptance Date

May 31, 2025

Published in Issue

Year 2025 Volume: 10 Number: 16

APA
Topçu, K. B. (2025). Two Mountains, Two Tricksters: A Comparative Analysis of Nart Sosruquo and Mercurius/Hermes. Kafkasya Çalışmaları, 10(16), 63-78. https://doi.org/10.21488/jocas.1701029
AMA
1.Topçu KB. Two Mountains, Two Tricksters: A Comparative Analysis of Nart Sosruquo and Mercurius/Hermes. JOCAS. 2025;10(16):63-78. doi:10.21488/jocas.1701029
Chicago
Topçu, Kerem B. 2025. “Two Mountains, Two Tricksters: A Comparative Analysis of Nart Sosruquo and Mercurius Hermes”. Kafkasya Çalışmaları 10 (16): 63-78. https://doi.org/10.21488/jocas.1701029.
EndNote
Topçu KB (May 1, 2025) Two Mountains, Two Tricksters: A Comparative Analysis of Nart Sosruquo and Mercurius/Hermes. Kafkasya Çalışmaları 10 16 63–78.
IEEE
[1]K. B. Topçu, “Two Mountains, Two Tricksters: A Comparative Analysis of Nart Sosruquo and Mercurius/Hermes”, JOCAS, vol. 10, no. 16, pp. 63–78, May 2025, doi: 10.21488/jocas.1701029.
ISNAD
Topçu, Kerem B. “Two Mountains, Two Tricksters: A Comparative Analysis of Nart Sosruquo and Mercurius Hermes”. Kafkasya Çalışmaları 10/16 (May 1, 2025): 63-78. https://doi.org/10.21488/jocas.1701029.
JAMA
1.Topçu KB. Two Mountains, Two Tricksters: A Comparative Analysis of Nart Sosruquo and Mercurius/Hermes. JOCAS. 2025;10:63–78.
MLA
Topçu, Kerem B. “Two Mountains, Two Tricksters: A Comparative Analysis of Nart Sosruquo and Mercurius Hermes”. Kafkasya Çalışmaları, vol. 10, no. 16, May 2025, pp. 63-78, doi:10.21488/jocas.1701029.
Vancouver
1.Kerem B. Topçu. Two Mountains, Two Tricksters: A Comparative Analysis of Nart Sosruquo and Mercurius/Hermes. JOCAS. 2025 May 1;10(16):63-78. doi:10.21488/jocas.1701029

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