On the definition of the concept "constitution" in Russian and foreign doctrines of the late 19th - early 21st centuries

The aim of the study is the analysis of the transformation of the meaning of the term "constitution" over time. In the course of it, the views of authors of different periods are considered, and a final definition, which can become suitable for the modern science of constitutional law, is proposed. The study is based on the theoretical material, which includes the works of V.F. Zalesky, A.V. Daisi, B.N. Chicherin, C. Borzho, G. Jellinek, G. Kelzen, F. Lassalle, N.I. Palienko, M.A. Reisner, A.I. Elistratov, V.N. Durdenevsky, V.K. Dyablo, V.I. Lenin, N.P. Farberov, A.N. Kokotov, O.E. Kutafin, V.E. Chirkin, N.S. Bondar, V.V. Nevinsky, T.Ya. Khabrieva and other prominent scholars, as well as the materials of the RF Constitutional Commission and the RF Constitutional Assembly. The methodological basis of the research is dialectical, historical and legal methods. In particular, the use of the dialectical method contributed to the study of the term "constitution" in its formation and development. The use of the historical and legal method helped to substantiate the historical significance of securing the term of the Constitution of the Russian Federation in the modern constitutional law of Russia. The author analyzes Russian and foreign doctrines, and outlines the main trends in the definition of the concept "constitution" that took shape in the pre-revolutionary, revolutionary, Soviet period and when discussing drafts of the Basic Law of the Russian Federation. On the basis of the foregoing, the researcher developed his own approach to the modern term "The Constitution of the Russian Federation". It is noted that in the development of the constitutional and legal thought, the content of the basic laws of states also changed, provisions on human rights and citizens were added. As a result, the author came to a conclusion that the science of pre-revolutionary, revolutionary and Soviet state law, despite the absence of appropriate constitutional templates, prepared a theoretical basis for defining the concept of the Constitution of Russia; this material was also relevant in the development of a new Russian constitution, which is confirmed in the materials of the RF Constitutional Commission and the RF Constitutional Assembly. The author believes that the unity of the state and social system generates not only the constitutional order, but also determines the direct interaction of the state and civil society, which is permanent, stable and systematic. In this regard, it is proposed to understand the Constitution of the Russian Federation as the legal superstructure of the life of the state and society; the basis of the legal field of the home state; the Basic Law, which establishes fundamental social relations, the basis of the legal status of man and citizen, the federal structure, the organization of state power and local self-government; a political and legal act which is based on the values of the state and society, having a programmatic character.

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