NAMES OF DISEASES ACCORDING TO THE „KOBULETIAN-ADJARIAN DEDABRULI MANUSCRIPTS

Mzia Khakhutaishvili; Nana Tsetskhladze

Mzia Khakhutaishvili Doctor of Philological Sciences, Associate Professor of Batumi Shota Rustaveli State University, Batumi, Rustaveli/Ninoshvili st., №32/35, 6010, Georgia, http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9734-2714
Nana Tsetskhladze Doctor of Philological Sciences, Associate Professor of Batumi Shota Rustaveli State University, Batumi, Rustaveli / Ninoshvili st., №32/35, 6010, Georgia http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7347-0033

Abstract

The digital corpus of Kobuletian-Adjarian “Dedabruli Manuscripts” [BSU Targeted Scientific Grant Project, Contract N. 01-50/120), in addition to texts of other genres, it also contains amulets. These are manuscripts 1258 A and Q 1556 of the H fund preserved in the Kobuleti Museum (Kob.) and the Korneli Kekelidze National Center of Manuscripts. Texts of “Dedabruli Manuscript” amulets are also secret, they are understood only by the spellcasters. Studying the names of diseases preserved in amulets reveals the geography of distribution of these diseases and the principles of their names.The following hyperonyms can be found in the „Dedabruli” amulets: Salmoba, Satkivari, Avaboda, Avadkofna, Sneuleba. The Plague (Chiri) generally represents various human diseases. It is a hyponym in amulets. The Plague is not used as a co-hyponym. In the fundamental medical writings of the Middle Ages, the black plague is also called Avi Zham-i, which was not identified in amulets.

According to monastiс medicine, the cause of all diseases in the world is hot or cold wind. Most of the names of infectious diseases include the word qari (wind): kus qari (mastitis), sajdomi nervis tiaqari (ischiadicis), tiaqari (hernia), savajo bilwi qari (diathesis), sokos qari (haemorrhois), qarebi (rheumatism), avi qari (gout). Nikris Wind and Red Wind are not named.

In our materials there are also mentioned the symptoms of the diseases: Medgari Tekhva (severe pain of joints), Medgari Salmoba (severe illness), Medgari Tskro and Khurveba (severe fever) Simwvavis qari ( severe pain).

Archaisms of fever-meaning Malaria are often found in the “Dedabruli” amulets, Tskro is often used in the spells (also preserved in Adjarian and Eastern dialects), as well as the new Georgian word tsieba. The term malaria is not used.

There is often hyponym mavali (contagious disease that would reach everyone).

Among the amulets are sayvitlo (hepatitis), stomach and heart tskalmanki (ascites and pericarditis), sawereli (panaritium), suravandi, jirkvala (lymphadenitis).

The symptoms of the disease are named: abdominal pain, cold, fever, Texa, Medgar Texa, tumor. The latter is swelling, not an oncological disease.

Diseases that have not yet appeared are named in the research manuscripts, along with real diseases, superstitions are also found: ujmuri (evil spirit), tvalis wakvra (wink of the eye), tvalis tsema (catching the evil eye).

In the folk medicine of the Georgian languages, sometimes the name of the diseases and its healing plants/substances are the same (for example, kartsetskhla and eczema). Matauri (Kuntrusha) is name of disease and in Meskheti - a small oval healing stone of Matauri, which falls from the sky after a hailstorm. It is passed down from generation to generation. Matauri is used to treat female infertility, miscarriage, as well as conception of a child. Uzhmuri (evil spirit) is the name of both the diseases and the evil spirits causing the disease.

The names of the diseases preserved in the amulets indicate what diseases were widespread in Adjara at that time, as well as which of them were treated by magical methods or with their help, and in general, at what level of development medical knowledge was. Keywords. Manuscripts; „Dedabruli manuscrips;”Kobuletian-Adjarian; Amulets; Names of diseases.