The Early Stage of Buryat-Mongol Literature

The article examines the genesis of Buryat literature, which is key to the modern literary studies of Buryatia. Its aim is to recreate the history of Buryat literature and place it in the cultural and philosophical context of the history of Mongolian ethnos. It is well known that the genesis of Buryat literature owes to the literary work as well as to the theoretical and literary research of the first Buryat scholars and writers from among the Buddhist clergy. The search, introduction, and study of literary works written by Buryat authors in the 18 th — early 20 th centuries is one of the relevant research tasks that opens new perspectives for modern Buryat literary criticism and for humanities in general. The emergence and development of Buryat literature is closely connected with the spread of Buddhist culture, the Buddhist vision of the world, therefore it should be studied in the context of Buddhist aesthetic thought. The article pays special attention to the literary history of Mongolians that, since the 13 th century, has been developing in the context of multilateral literary ties and contacts. It examines the following typical genres: travelogue, hagiographic, hymn poetry, subhashita, and poem.