Migration through Gaelic and Russian Proverbs

Abstract

History reminds us that Scots have always been notorious for their migration to other countries of the world, frequently a forced one, for the lack of space or constant trouble at home. Many a good Gaelic name left trace in the history of Europe and Americas, as well as Australia; indeed even in Russia every single Scottish clan name happens to be somehow mentioned in her history. The Russians, on the contrary, at least until the early 20th century, were rather reluctant to leave their motherland, for in case of trouble there was plenty of room for them to move to, especially eastwards or northwards as the starovers did, or southwards and westwards. But how do these two peoples so different in their migration behaviour, the Gaels and the Russians, perceive the migration process? How are their attitude and behaviour patterns reflected in their proverbial lore? Do they share any patterns despite all the outward differences? How does it fit into the wider international proverbial context? And, more importantly, into demographic study? From a bulk of almost 6,000 of original Gaelic, 12,000 of Russian and more than 40,000 proverbs collected in different regions of Europe, Asia and Africa, about 500 proverbs were selected, then carefully analyzed and compared by the authors.