Ivan Snegirev
Encyclopedia
Ivan Mikhailovich Snegirev ' onMouseout='HidePop("13960")' href="/topics/Moscow">Moscow
—1868, Saint Petersburg
) was one of the first Russian ethnographers. He published detailed descriptions of almost every church and monastery in Moscow
.
The son of a university professor, Snegiryov graduated from Moscow University in 1814 and since 1818 taught Latin language there. He was active as a censor
throughout Nicholas I
's reign, censoring such works as Eugene Onegin
and Dead Souls
.
He shared the ideals of Official Nationality and belonged to a circle of antiquaries dominated by Nikolai Rumyantsev. He was one of the first to collect Russian proverb
s and describe folk rituals and observances. His ground-breaking work on Russian lubok
was printed in 1844.
Snegirev's lengthy description of Moscow (1865-73) was feted by Fyodor Buslayev as the best guidebook to the city. He supervised restoration of the Kremlin
buildings and the Romanov Boyar House. His journals were published in 2 volumes in 1904-05.
s, idioms, way of life, rituals and holidays:
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
—1868, Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
) was one of the first Russian ethnographers. He published detailed descriptions of almost every church and monastery in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
.
The son of a university professor, Snegiryov graduated from Moscow University in 1814 and since 1818 taught Latin language there. He was active as a censor
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
throughout Nicholas I
Nicholas I of Russia
Nicholas I , was the Emperor of Russia from 1825 until 1855, known as one of the most reactionary of the Russian monarchs. On the eve of his death, the Russian Empire reached its historical zenith spanning over 20 million square kilometers...
's reign, censoring such works as Eugene Onegin
Eugene Onegin
Eugene Onegin is a novel in verse written by Alexander Pushkin.It is a classic of Russian literature, and its eponymous protagonist has served as the model for a number of Russian literary heroes . It was published in serial form between 1825 and 1832...
and Dead Souls
Dead Souls
Dead Souls is a novel by Nikolai Gogol, first published in 1842, and widely regarded as an exemplar of 19th-century Russian literature. Gogol himself saw it as an "epic poem in prose", and within the book as a "novel in verse". Despite supposedly completing the trilogy's second part, Gogol...
.
He shared the ideals of Official Nationality and belonged to a circle of antiquaries dominated by Nikolai Rumyantsev. He was one of the first to collect Russian proverb
Proverb
A proverb is a simple and concrete saying popularly known and repeated, which expresses a truth, based on common sense or the practical experience of humanity. They are often metaphorical. A proverb that describes a basic rule of conduct may also be known as a maxim...
s and describe folk rituals and observances. His ground-breaking work on Russian lubok
Lubok
A lubok is a Russian popular print, characterized by simple graphics and narratives derived from literature, religious stories and popular tales. Lubki prints were used as decoration in houses and inns...
was printed in 1844.
Snegirev's lengthy description of Moscow (1865-73) was feted by Fyodor Buslayev as the best guidebook to the city. He supervised restoration of the Kremlin
Moscow Kremlin
The Moscow Kremlin , sometimes referred to as simply The Kremlin, is a historic fortified complex at the heart of Moscow, overlooking the Moskva River , Saint Basil's Cathedral and Red Square and the Alexander Garden...
buildings and the Romanov Boyar House. His journals were published in 2 volumes in 1904-05.
Publications
Ivan Snegirev authored several books on Russian proverbProverb
A proverb is a simple and concrete saying popularly known and repeated, which expresses a truth, based on common sense or the practical experience of humanity. They are often metaphorical. A proverb that describes a basic rule of conduct may also be known as a maxim...
s, idioms, way of life, rituals and holidays:
- Russkie v svoikh poslovitsakh: razsuzhdenia i izsliedovania ob otechestvennykh poslovitsakh i pogovorkakh (lit. Russians in their idioms. Discourses and investigations about the national proverbs and idioms; 1831—1834).
- The common holidays of Russians and superstitious rites (1837—1839).
- Russian folk proverbs and parableParableA parable is a succinct story, in prose or verse, which illustrates one or more instructive principles, or lessons, or a normative principle. It differs from a fable in that fables use animals, plants, inanimate objects, and forces of nature as characters, while parables generally feature human...
s (1848). - On the lubokLubokA lubok is a Russian popular print, characterized by simple graphics and narratives derived from literature, religious stories and popular tales. Lubki prints were used as decoration in houses and inns...
pictures of Russians (1844, second expanded edition published in 1861).