Vocabulary of the alchik game of the Kalmyks (ethnolinguistic aspect)

Abstract

Alchiki (dice) game is an ancient folk game of nomadic peoples. It was known throughout Eurasia from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, from the Kola Peninsula to Asia Minor. This folk game was extremely popular among the pastoral peoples of Eurasia, as well as in the Caucasus, in Central Asia. It was played mainly by children and youth, but also by adult men, while women rarely took part in this folk fun. There are suggestions that the game comes from a rite that appeared during the period of domestication of animals. The game inventory of folk children’s fun consisted of a large number of articular bones of small animals, the agreed number of which the players knocked out with a special bone (a bat). The dice that fell on the winning side were taken by the winner. The subject of the research is the Kalmyk folk game of alchiki. The purpose of the study is to study the existence of this game among the nomadic Kalmyk people, to analyze the variants of the game among the Mongolian peoples. The research materials were the historical and ethnographic works of Russian scientists, folklore collections, and the author’s field notes. At present, the folk game of alchiki is not so well known among the current younger generation. The active popularization of this folk game among children and youth will be another effective step in the revival of the national culture of the Kalmyks.