The khazars were a turkic empire in what is today southern russia, around the caspian sea around the years 900 ce. Dictionary of khazars consolidates and refines some of the most provocative features of recent experimental fiction. This was no plain historical work about a vanquished 10thcentury. This lt work represents solely asyet unspecified editions i. Written in two versions, male and female both available in vintage international, which are identical save for seventeen crucial lines, dictionary is the imaginary book of knowledge of the khazars, a people who flourished somewhere beyond transylvania between the seventh and ninth centuries. Khazar, member of a confederation of turkicspeaking tribes that in the late 6th century ce established a major commercial empire covering the southeastern section of modern european russia. Texe marrs, dna science and the jewish bloodline, rivercrest publishing, texas, 20, p 4950 this is not a quote from the conclusion of the article.
A book written by milorad pavic, which was translated from the serbocroatian and published in english in 1988. Dictionary of the khazars 1988 edition open library. The rise of european jewry is therefore explained by the contribution of the judeokhazars. Although the fall of the khazars is generally remembered as a peaceful annexation, some engagements did take place. David of khazaria, marek halters wind of the khazars, michael chabons gentlemen of the road. I liked the book still own it, but read about the difference too late for it to assess how the outcome might have changed, had i read the female. Having religious, minidictionary strands based on each of the three abrahamic religions weave together to tell the fictional stories of the semifictional khazars is clearly a way to work through the complicated religious. The khazar empire was important in world history for keeping arab. The realm of the khazars covered parts of modernday russia, ukraine, kazakhstan, and uzbekistan. So noted milorad pavic in his allabsorbing dictionary of the khazars 1982. This is the english translation of hazarski recnik, which was originally written in serbocroatian. Dictionary of the khazars by milorad pavic, paperback.
Khazar definition is a tatar people existing as a nation in the caucasus and southeastern russia from about the end of the 2d century a. A lexicon novel in 100,000 words, by milorad pavic, a publication, 10 ebook, hundreds publications, and also a lot more. Dictionary of the khazars has a very interesting blend of fiction and nonfiction. It is also notable for its literary use of hypertext. A national bestseller, dictionary of the khazars was cit. Author of the experimental novel dictionary of the. Jan 18, 2012 pavics dictionary of the khazars doesnt even qualify as historical fiction. My favorite part of the book is the introduction, which reads as a somewhat dry, academic, factual account of the history of the khazar people and the original khazar dictionary. Entries are listed alphabetically by name or subject, and are crossreferenced with little symbols. Since the conquest of the khazars by the russians and the disappearance of the khazar kingdom the language of the khazars is known as yiddish. Dictionary of the khazars exists in two editions, male and female, and to.
The boundaries of khazaria were formed by the western coast of the caspian sea as far as the sulak river in northern dagestan, by the lower don river to the point at which it comes closest to the volga, by the lower course of the volga, and by part of the northern caspian lowland. Paratextual play in milorad pavics dictionary of the. The kingdom of the khazars came about sometime in the 6th century ad and lasted until sometime in the 10th century see links for maps but. It was first published in english by knopf, new york in 1988. Why did the author of the dictionary of the khazars. Why ashkenazi jews are not descended from khazars and. While some khazars converted to judaism, most did not and remained in the pagan khazarate religion.
This true hypertext novel was written before the internet era. Only seventeen lines are different, but these come during a crucial letter in the yellow or hebrew book, and the difference does inflect the narrative, adding the issue of gender to its critical meditation on the place of the reader in the practice of writing. Is there any truth to claims that ashkenazi jews are khazars. Shaogong instead emphasizes language, specifically its mutability and restless, dynamic evolutions, symbolic of life itself, and this tactic or fascination does serve to also place external. If you want historical fiction on khazaria, i suggest monroe s. Haaretz the claim that todays ashkenazi jews are descended from khazars who converted in the middle ages is a myth, according to new research by a hebrew university historian. As if dictionary of the khazars doesnt have enough gimmickry in it although the writing and stories rise well above simple gimmicks, the book was issued in two different editions, which pavic calls the male and female edition.
Difference between male and female version of dictionary of the. The dictionary of the khazars, though, is using the khazars as a stalking horse, a metaphor if you will. Noveldictionary, something absolutely extraordinary only milorad pavich can write. Reading practice will certainly consistently lead individuals not to completely satisfied reading dictionary of the khazars. Golden, considered the khazars to be connected with a uyghur or tiele confederation tribe called hesan in chinese sources from the 7thcentury suishu, 84. The capital of khazaria was itil, located near the mouth of the volga river. Difference between male and female version of dictionary of. Why did the author of the dictionary of the khazars publish a male. Written in two versions, male and female both available in vintage international, which are identical save for seventeen crucial lines, dictionary is the imaginary book of knowledge of the khazars, a people who flourished somewhere beyond. Khazars originally practiced a traditional turkic form of cultic practices known as tengriism, which focused on the sky god tengri. Noone really knows why or how or exactly how many or what proportion of the khazars converted. Similar to mongolian blue sky god koke mongke tengri. A dictionary of maqiao is set against the backdrop of the cultural revolution, though these political events dont intrude into the center of the story. This book of knowledge from an imaginary 1,000 year old civilzation extends the normal bounds of fiction.
There are two forms of the book, a male version and a female version. Jews were behind the russian revolution and communism. This extraordinary book is a dictionary which can be read like a novel of a to z, as well as a novel which can be read like a dictionary while following the links between articles. Kiev definition, a city in and the capital of ukraine, on the dnieper river. Dictionary of the khazars purports to be a reconstruction of this lost dictionary about a lost empire. Book, and the difference does inflect the narrative, adding the issue of gender to its critical. And he gave me a few of the xeroxed sheets of paper lying on the table in front of him. There are two versions of the khazars dictionary, male and female the difference between is not obvious, and that is another puzzle the author offers to solve. Ballet dictionary of the khazars dream hunters, after motifs from the novel by milorad pavic, premiered on the main stage on 19 th may. As he passed them to me, his thumb brushed mine and i trembled from the touch. Dictionary of the khazars a lexicon novel in 100,000 words 1st vintage international ed. Whats the difference of male edition and female edition. As you read, however, the facts get more and more bizarre, more and more unlikely, and you.
That alone counts for the presence of jews in eastern europe and germany. According to my websters dictionary, the serbocroatian language is a marriage of two immiscible languages, serbian. Short of publicity stunts, theres not really anything clearcut as to the differences. Milorad pavics dictionary of the khazars was translated from the. In the above picture, the last khazar khagan is depicted with loyalist khazars attempting to break the byzantine siege of his final stronghold. The passage in the female version of the novel that differs from the.
Golden, the author of the acclaimed 2volume reference khazar studies 1980, wrote about pavics novel in his article the khazars of record. The reason the rothschilds claim to be jewish is that the khazars under the instruction of the king, converted to the jewish faith in 740 a. Difference between male and female version of dictionary of the khazars. Written in two versions, male and female both available in vintage international, which are identical save for seventeen crucial lines, dictionary is the imaginary book of knowledge of the khazars, a people who flourished somewhere beyond transylvania between the. Khazars worshipped siva lingam before judaism religions. Khazars article about khazars by the free dictionary. Dictionary of the khazars exists in two editions, male and female, and to that extent challenges not only preconceptions of the dictionary form, but also of broader procedures governing book design and publishing, and of readers consumption of texts. For about six centuries the socalled or selfstyled jews of eastern europe have referred to themselves while still resident in their native eastern european countries as yiddish by nationality.
Dictionary is the imaginary book of knowledge of the khazars. Beider at the international association of jewish genealogical societies conference in orlando in july 2017. Following the collapse of their empire, the judeokhazars fled to eastern europe. The khazar language appears to have been an oghuric tongue, similar to that spoken by the early bulgars and corresponding to the modern day. The two sections critically differ in only a few sentences, in one passage. The history of the ancient khazar empire, a major but almost forgotten power in eastern europe, which in a. Although the origin of the term khazar and the early history of the khazar people are obscure, it is fairly certain that the khazars were originally located in the northern caucasus region and were part of. A lexicon novel is the first novel by serbian writer milorad pavic, published in 1984.
Books similar to dictionary of the khazars male edition dictionary of the khazars male edition by milorad pavic. Having religious, mini dictionary strands based on each of the three. A complex and profound work that is at the same time lighthearted and self. A dictionary of jewish surnames from maghreb, gibraltar, and malta. The dictionary of the khazars was published simultaneously in male and female versions. In 2010 i was contacted by the chief editor of a volume called khazars. The main body of the book is written lexiconstyle and divided into three sections, one for each of the three religions. We know that the king and members of his court became jewish at the beginning and were followed later by other members of the kingdom. The elite of the khazars converted to judaism to trade more effectively with.
Dictionary of the khazars by milorad pavic goodreads. Thus, the term ashkenazi jews initially referred to jews residing in germany, where ashkenazi jewry beg. Written in two versions, male and female both available in. Rather than compose a traditional novel or a typical research paper, pavich creates three seperate dictionaries christian, jewish, and muslim that contain various entries of fictional khazars in history. The khazars were originally nomadic turkic people that spoke in some dialect of the turkic languages, who came to the north caucasus area from centralasia and the territory of the turkic khaganate. Originally written in serbian, the novel has been translated into many languages. As always you can download the file to read off line by right clicking and saving it at the link.
Mar 03, 2008 history of khazarszionism here is a 5 part post of different articles by different authors all in one long file. Rather than reading the dictionary as an implication of the naivete in thinking that difference can be bridged and history demystified 5 in communist yugoslavia, i suggest that the subversive nature of the narrative is a challenge to the ideological underpinnings of unity in the first place. The khazars were forced out of their base in the caucasus and most of them migrated to eastern europe. Dictionary of the khazars constantly hints at a greater pattern that will be visible to readers who finish the entire book, and amazingly enough, it deliverswhen youve read the last few pages, the full picture locks into place, and the effect is shattering and unforgettable. No discussion of the dictionary of the khazars would be complete without mentioning that the book also comes in two distinct editions, a male and a female. Khazaria, a conglomerate of aryan turkic tribes, was finally wiped out by the forces of genghis khan, but evidence indicates that the khazars themselves migrated to poland and formed the cradle of western ashkenazim jewry. Written in two versions, male and female both available in vintage international, which are identical save for seventeen crucial lines, dictionary is the imaginary book of knowledge of the khazars, a people who flourished somewhere beyond transylvania between. The passage in the female version of the novel that differs from the male version is in the last letter of book the yellow book, entries schultz, dr. The two books differ by a mere fifteen lines, which pavic claims are crucial to the readers understanding of the book. Apr, 2001 pavics dictionary is supposed to be, for the most part, a late 20th century reconstruction of the 17th century dictionary.
The difference, taken together, though, does provide a definitive answer to that central crucial question that the dictionary plays with and tries to avoid answering. Buy dictionary of the khazars m vintage international. Having religious, minidictionary strands based on each of the three. The german orientalist karl neumann, in the context of an earlier controversy about possible connections between khazars and the ancestors of the slavic peoples, suggested as early as 1847 emigrant khazars might have influenced the core population of eastern european jews.
The story is a complete intellectual adventure that interwines mystery, romance, fable, fantasy and philosophy. This central conceit of the text effectively emphasizes the distance, the ineluctable gap between writing and that which it seeks to represent, the gap which is the very space of textuality and representation itself. The dictionary even recommends that you read it in whatever order occurs to you to do so. In the intervening years, the book has become required reading for many collegelevel english classes. The difference between ashkenazi and sephardi jews or sephardic jews, sephardim is primarily based on their historical origins. There is a slight, but critical, difference between the texts.
The ballet has been choreographed by ronald savkovic and staged by livija pandur. Difference between male and female version of dictionary of the khazars the passage in the female version of the novel that differs from the male version is in the last letter of book the yellow book, entries schultz, dr. My own experience of the quandary may be instructive. Khazaria article about khazaria by the free dictionary. The khazars were a turkic people among whom central and eastern ashkenazic jews resided. A lexicon novel in 100,000 words, by milorad pavic. The present dictionary of the khazars announces itself as a 1980s reconstruction and updating of a destroyed 1691 book of the same name, which in turn was an amended reconstruction of the lost dictionary of the khazar dream hunters of some eight centuries before, the sect that preceded and was absorbed by or perhaps absorbed the. Difference between male and female version of dictionary. Dictionary of the khazars has a male and a female version, and the reader can also find both in the androgynous edition of this curious book, which is already among the classics of the 20 th century and has been called the first novel of the 21 st century. The author of the dictionary of the khazars, milorad pavic, published two editions. It was first published in english by knopf, new york in 1988 there is no easily discerned plot in the conventional sense, but. Dictionary of the khazars a novel by milorad pavic. Why did the author of the dictionary of the khazars publish a. May 15, 2014 the difference, taken together, though, does provide a definitive answer to that central crucial question that the dictionary plays with and tries to avoid answering.