AS USSR Orientalists in Borovoe during the Great Patriotic War

The article is devoted to the unknown pages of the history of Soviet Orientalist researchers evacuated to Borovoye (Kazakhstan, Akmola region) during the Great Patriotic War. They were employees of Leningrad Institute of Oriental Studies of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR. Among them were sinologist Academician V.M. Alekseev, indologists Academicians F.I. Shcherbatskoy and A.P. Barannikov, iranist Corresponding Member A.A. Freiman. In Borovoe Academician V.M. Alekseev completed three translations of essays by the Chinese philosopher Wang Yangming. In addition to the translation, he was engaged in elaboration of new principles of scientific and literary translation combining scientific accuracy with rhythmization, simulating the rhythm of the Chinese script. The academician continued his work on compiling catalogues of a Chinese-Russian dictionary, which he began in 1938. In September 1944, V.M. Alekseev returned to Leningrad. F.I. Shcherbatskoy, an outstanding Soviet indologist, tibetologist, the founder of the Russian School of Buddhist studies, Academician of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, was an honorary member of scientific societies of Great Britain, Germany and France. F.I. Shcherbatskoy studied the Buddhist philosophy. He published his 25-year work, The Buddhist Logic, in 2 volumes; it was the last part of his monumental trilogy. The scholar died on 18 March 1942 in Borovoe and was buried at the local cemetery. Academician of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR A.P. Barannikov (1890-1952) was a famous indologist. In his works, he studied new Indian languages, as well as medieval and ancient Indian dialects, the history of Indian literature, the scientific and religious systems of India. He published 250 academic works on Indian studies. He came to Borovoe with his wife, son and daughter, and continued his research of Indian languages and literature. His main work was the translation of the poem Ramayana that made his name immortal. In the summer of 1944, Barannikov returned to Leningrad. A.A. Freiman (1879-1968) was a Russian Soviet philologist iranist, Doctor of Linguistics, Corresponding Member of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, the founder and head of the Soviet School of the Old Iranian philology and comparative historical Iranian linguistics. On November 19, 1941, A.A.Freiman and his wife arrived in Borovoe and lived in Building 11. In Borovoe, the scholar participated in the meetings of the academic group (two meeting protocols signed by V.M. Alekseev and A.A. Freiman have been preserved). The author concludes that during the Great Patriotic War the evacuation of the Soviet outstanding orientalists played a significant role in the preservation of this research direction in Russia.

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