Can you imagine life without electricity? Of course it's difficult! But it is known that earlier people read and wrote by candlelight and splinter. Imagine life without writing. Some of you will now think to yourself, well, well, that would be great: you don’t have to write dictations and essays. But then there will be no libraries, books, posters, letters, and even e-mail and text messages. Language, like a mirror, reflects the whole world, our whole life. And when reading written or printed texts, we seem to sit in a time machine and can be transported both to recent times and to the distant past.

But people have not always mastered the art of writing. This art has been developing for a long time, over many millennia. And do you know to whom we should be grateful for our written word, on which our favorite books are written? For our diploma, which we study at school? For our great Russian literature, which you get acquainted with and will continue to study in high school.

Cyril and Methodius lived in the world,

Two Byzantine monks and suddenly

(No, not a legend, not a myth, not a parody)

Some of them thought: “Friend!

How many Slavs without Christ are speechless!

It is necessary to create an alphabet for the Slavs ...

It was thanks to the work of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles brothers Cyril and Methodius that the Slavic alphabet was created.

The brothers were born in the Byzantine city of Thessalonica in the family of a military leader. Methodius was the eldest son, and, having chosen the path of a military man, he went to serve in one of the Slavic regions. His brother, Cyril, was born 7-10 years later than Methodius, and already in childhood, having passionately fallen in love with science, amazed teachers with his brilliant abilities. At the age of 14, his parents sent him to Constantinople, where he quickly studied grammar and geometry, arithmetic, astronomy and medicine, ancient art, mastered the Slavic, Greek, Hebrew, Latin and Arabic languages ​​well. Rejecting the high administrative position offered to him, Cyril took the modest position of a librarian in the Patriarchal Library and at the same time taught philosophy at the university, for which he received the nickname "philosopher". His older brother Methodius entered the military early. For 10 years he was the ruler of one of the regions inhabited by Slavs. Being an honest and straightforward man, intolerant of injustice, he retired from military service and retired to a monastery.

In 863, ambassadors from Moravia arrived in Constantinople to ask them to send preachers to their country and tell the population about Christianity. The emperor decided to send Cyril and Methodius to Moravia. Cyril, before setting off on his journey, asked if the Moravians had an alphabet for their language - “for the enlightenment of the people without the writing of their language is like trying to write on water,” Kirill explained. To which he received a negative answer. The Moravians did not have the alphabet, so the brothers began work. At their disposal were not years, but months. They worked from early morning, barely blossoming, and until late evening, when their eyes were already rippling from fatigue. In a short time, an alphabet for the Moravians was created. It was named after one of its creators - Cyril - Cyrillic.

With the help of the Slavic alphabet, Cyril and Methodius very quickly translated the main liturgical books from Greek into Slavonic. The first book written in Cyrillic was the “Ostromir Gospel”, the first words written using the Slavic alphabet were the phrase “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” And now, for more than a thousand years, the Church Slavonic language has been used in the Russian Orthodox Church during worship.

The Slavic alphabet existed in Russia unchanged for more than seven centuries. Its creators tried to make each letter of the first Russian alphabet simple and clear, easy to write. They remembered that the letters should also be beautiful, so that a person who barely saw them would immediately want to master the letter.

Each letter had its own name - "az" - A; "beeches" - B; "lead" - B; "verb" - G; "good" D.

This is where the catchphrases "Az and beeches - that's all the sciences", "" Who knows "Az" and "Beeches" book in hand." In addition, letters could also denote numbers. In total, there were 43 letters in the Cyrillic alphabet.

The Cyrillic alphabet existed in the Russian language without changes until Peter I, who removed the obsolete letters, without which it was quite possible to do - “yus big”, “yus small”, “omega”, “uk”. In 1918, 5 more letters left the Russian alphabet - “yat”, “fita”, “izhitsa”, “er”, “er”. For a thousand years, many letters have disappeared from our alphabet, and only two have appeared - “y” and “ё”. They were invented in the 17th century by the Russian writer and historian Karamzin. And finally, 33 letters remained in the modern alphabet.

And what do you think, where did the word "AZBUKA" come from - by the name of the first letters of the alphabet, "az" and "beeches"; in Russia, there were several more names for the alphabet - "abevega" and "letter letter".

Why is the alphabet called alphabet? The history of this word is interesting. Alphabet. It was born in ancient Greece and consists of the names of the first two letters of the Greek alphabet: "alpha" and "beta". Native speakers of Western languages ​​call it “alphabete”. We pronounce it like the alphabet.

The Slavs were very happy: other peoples of Europe (Germans, Franks, Britons) did not have their own written language. The Slavs now had their own alphabet, and everyone could learn to read a book! “It was a wonderful moment!.. The deaf began to hear, and the dumb began to speak, for until that time the Slavs were like deaf and dumb,” is written in the annals of those times.

Not only children, but also adults began to learn. They wrote with sharp sticks on wooden boards coated with wax. The children fell in love with their teachers Cyril and Methodius. Little Slavs went to classes with joy, because the journey along the roads of Truth was so interesting!

With the advent of the Slavic alphabet, written culture began to develop rapidly. Books appeared in Bulgaria, Serbia, and Russia. And how they were designed! The first letter - the initial letter - began each new chapter. The initial letter is unusually beautiful: in the form of a beautiful bird or flower, it was painted with bright, often red flowers. That is why the term “red line” exists today. A Slavic handwritten book could be created within six or seven years and was very expensive. In a precious salary, with illustrations, today it is a real monument of art.

A long time ago, when the history of the great Russian state was just beginning, "she" was expensive. Her one could be exchanged for a herd of horses or a herd of cows, for sable fur coats. And the point here is not in the decorations in which the beautiful and clever girl was dressed up. And she walked only in expensive embossed leather, in pearls and precious stones! Gold and silver clasps adorned her outfit! Admiring her, people said: “Light, you are ours!” They worked on its creation for a long time, but its fate could have been very sad. During the invasion of enemies, she was taken prisoner along with people. She could have died in a fire or a flood. She was greatly valued: she inspired hope, returned strength of mind. What kind of curiosity is this. Yes, folks, this is Her Majesty the Book. She has preserved to us the Word of God and the traditions of distant years. The first books were handwritten. It took months and sometimes years to rewrite one book. The centers of book learning in Russia have always been monasteries. There, in fasting and prayer, industrious monks copied and decorated books. A collection of books in 500-1000 manuscripts was considered a rarity.

Life goes on, and in the middle of the XVI century book printing appeared in Russia. The printing house in Moscow appeared under Ivan the Terrible. It was led by Ivan Fedorov, who is called the first book printer. Being a deacon and serving in the temple, he tried to realize his dream - to rewrite sacred books without scribes. And so, in 1563, he set about typesetting the first page of the first printed book, The Apostle. In total, he published 12 books in his life, among them was the complete Slavic Bible.

The Slavic alphabet is amazing and is still considered one of the most convenient writing systems. And the names of Cyril and Methodius, "the first teachers of Slovenia", became a symbol of spiritual achievement. And every person who studies the Russian language should know and keep in his memory the holy names of the first Slavic enlighteners - the brothers Cyril and Methodius.

Across wide Russia - our mother

The bell ringing is spreading.

Now brothers Saints Cyril and Methodius

They are glorified for their work.

“Learning is light, and ignorance is darkness,” says a Russian proverb. Cyril and Methodius, brothers from Thessalonica, are Slovenian enlighteners, creators of the Slavic alphabet, preachers of Christianity. They are called holy teachers. Enlighteners are those who bring light and illuminate everyone with it. Without the alphabet, there is no writing, and without it there is no book that enlightens people, and therefore moves life forward. Monuments to the great enlighteners around the world remind us of the spiritual feat of Cyril and Methodius, who gave the world the Slavic alphabet.

In memory of the great feat of Cyril and Methodius, on May 24, the Day of Slavic Literature is celebrated all over the world. In the year of the millennium from the date of the creation of the Slavonic script in Russia, the Holy Synod adopted a resolution that established "every year, starting from this year 1863, on May 11 (24), the church celebration of St. Cyril and Methodius." Until 1917, a church holiday was celebrated in Russia, the Day of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Brothers Cyril and Methodius. With the advent of Soviet power, this great holiday was forgotten. In 1986 it was revived. This holiday began to be called the Day of Slavic Literature and Culture.

Quiz

1. Who created the Slavic alphabet? (Cyril and Methodius)

2. What year is considered the year of the emergence of Slavic writing and book business? (863)

3. Why are Cyril and Methodius called "Thessalonica brothers"? (Birthplace of the brothers-enlighteners the city of Thessalonica in Macedonia)

4. Who was the elder brother: Cyril or Methodius? (Methodius)

5. What was the name of the first book written in Cyrillic? (Ostromir Gospel)

6. Which of the brothers was a librarian, and who was a warrior? (Cyril is a librarian, Methodius is a military leader,)

7. What was Cyril called for his mind and diligence? (Philosopher)

8. In whose reign the Slavic alphabet was changed - simplified. (Peter 1)

9. How many letters were there in Cyrillic before Peter the Great? (43 letters)

10. How many letters have become in the modern alphabet? (33 letters)

11. Who was the first printer in Russia? (Ivan Fedorov)

12. What was the name of the first printed book? ("Apostle")

13. What words were first written in the Slavic language? (In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God)

The alphabet is also a set of symbols used to convey written speech in a particular language, otherwise the alphabet; and a book for mastering the alphabet and the basics of written literacy.
Wikimedia Commons()

Therefore, answering the question, what was the name of the first Slavic alphabet, one should speak about both the symbolic corpus and the book.

Cyrillic or Glagolitic?

Traditionally, the Cyrillic alphabet is called the first Slavic alphabet. We use it to this day. Also, the official version says that the creators of the first Slavic alphabet were Methodius and Constantine (Cyril) Philosopher - Christian preachers from the Greek city of Thessaloniki.

In 863, presumably, they streamlined the Old Slavonic writing and, with the help of a new alphabet - Cyrillic (named after Cyril) - began to translate Greek religious texts into Slavic (Old Bulgarian). This activity of theirs led to a significant spread of Orthodoxy.

For a long time it was believed that the brothers created the alphabet, which became the basis for 108 modern languages ​​- Russian, Montenegrin, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Serbian, a number of Caucasian, Turkic, Ural and others. However, now most scientists consider the Cyrillic alphabet a later formation, and its predecessor - the Glagolitic.

It was the Glagolitic alphabet that Cyril the Philosopher developed to translate religious texts (“books without which Divine services are not performed”) into Old Church Slavonic. There are several proofs for this:

- Glagolitic inscription of 893 (exact date) in the church of Preslavl;

Wikimedia Commons / Lapot ()
- palimpsests - parchment manuscripts, on which the old - Glagolitic - text was scraped off, and the new one was already written in Cyrillic: parchments were very expensive, therefore, for the sake of economy, more important things were written down, scraping off records that had lost their relevance;

- the absence of palimpsests, on which the Cyrillic alphabet is the first layer;

- the presence of negative references to the Glagolitic alphabet in the context of the need to replace it with "Slavic pimens", in which there are "more holiness and honor", for example, in the work of Chernorizets Brave "On Writings".

In ancient Russian writing, as a later Glagolitic script, it was used extremely rarely, usually as cryptography or separate inclusions in Cyrillic texts.

Who is the author of the Cyrillic alphabet?

According to scientists, the creator of the Cyrillic alphabet is Clement Ohridsky, a student of Cyril the Philosopher, a resident of the Bulgarian city of Ohrid (now Macedonia). In 893, a popular council in Veliky Preslavl unanimously voted for the election of Clement "bishop of the Slavic language" - this is another evidence in favor of his authorship of the Cyrillic alphabet.

The first printed alphabet

The first printed alphabets, or primers, appeared in the 16th century. In 1574, the pioneer printer Ivan Fedorov published his "ABC" in Lvov, the addressee of the book is "beloved honest Christian Russian people."

The circulation, together with the second building - Ostroh, amounted to about 2,000 copies. The second edition contained not only letters (symbols), but also exercises for practicing reading.

Only three books from the first ABCs of Fedorov have survived. One "ABC" of 1574 belonged to S. P. Diaghilev (1872 - 1929) - a Russian theatrical figure, organizer of the Parisian "Russian Seasons" and "Russian Ballet of Diaghilev". When the owner died, the relic became the property of the Harvard University Library.

Two other "ABCs" of 1578 are kept in the Copenhagen Royal Library and the State Library in the Goths in Germany.

The "ABC" of Ivan Fedorov is built on the Roman and Greek subjunctive learning system. First, it contains an alphabet of 46 letters. Further - the reverse (from "izhitsa" to "az") alphabet, the alphabet in eight vertical columns. Behind him are syllables of two letters, syllables of three letters (possible combinations of all vowels with all consonants).

Such an arrangement of material in the book reflects the system of teaching literacy, in which images and names of symbols were first firmly memorized, then syllables, and only after that the student began to read texts taken from the Bible.

The texts were not just religious, but always instructive, educative. We must pay tribute to the first printer, the teachings were addressed not only to children, but also to parents, for example: do not irritate your children. Perhaps this to some extent determined the general direction of Russian literature to this day.

Wikimedia Commons/Anntinomy()
In 1596, the first primer "Science to Reading ..." by Lavrenty Zizania was published in Vilna. In 1634, Vasily Burtsov published in Moscow "A Primer of the Slovenska Language". Since then, the printing of ABCs has become massive.

Where did our alphabet come from? Who doesn't know this! A long time ago, two Bulgarians, Cyril and Methodius, came to Russia and invented the Cyrillic alphabet. But that's not the case! Their names were not Cyril or Methodius at all, they were not born in Bulgaria, they did not come to Russia and did not create the Cyrillic alphabet! Like this? And what happened then? And there were amazing journeys and adventures of the holy brothers, enlighteners of the Slavs. Let's follow their path from the very beginning!

About the time in which Cyril and Methodius lived

In the 9th century, there were two great Christian empires in the vastness of Europe: one was Byzantium with its capital in Constantinople, the other was the Frankish Empire. In 843, it was divided among the heirs of King Charlemagne into several kingdoms. Between these empires stretched lands inhabited mainly by pagan Slavs. By that time, Greek had become the official language in Byzantium, and Latin in the possessions of the Franks, although in everyday life the inhabitants of all these states used a variety of languages.

And what happened in those days on the lands where Russia later arose? Slavic tribes lived there - glades, drevlyans, krivichi, vyatichi and others. The state of the Rus was just in its infancy.

About how the brothers broke up and then met

On the shores of the Aegean Sea lies the Byzantine city of Thessaloniki, or, as the Slavs called it, Thessalonica. Representatives of different nations lived in this big city. There were also a lot of Slavs here, so many people in these places spoke the Slavic language. He was also known in the family of an officer named Leo. The eldest of his seven sons, the strongest and most courageous, was called Michael. The younger, sickly, "big-headed", but very gifted boy, bore the name Konstantin.

The brothers were friends, the elder always took care and protected the younger.

Michael, following the example of his father, chose a military career. Soon he achieved great success in his service - he became the head of one of the provinces of Byzantium, where the Slavs lived. For ten years, Michael honestly managed the lands entrusted to him, and then he decided to retire from the world and went to Mount Small Olympus, on the southern coast of the Sea of ​​​​Marmara. There was a monastery there. Michael took the vows as a monk, taking the name Methodius.

And the younger brother, Konstantin, went to study in Constantinople. There he showed himself so well that he was appointed to help study the future Byzantine king - the minor heir Michael. The most respected teachers of that era instructed the boys in grammar and astronomy, geometry and philosophy, music and arithmetic ... Konstantin studied more than six languages! Including in perfection - Slavic.

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The young man refused a profitable marriage, firmly deciding to devote himself to the sciences. Then the Byzantine empress and the Patriarch, wanting to bring Constantine closer to themselves, persuaded him to take holy orders and become a librarian at the temple. Later, Konstantin became a teacher of philosophy and even received the nickname Philosopher.

The Byzantine king and patriarch greatly appreciated the young scientist, invited him to councils and disputes, where Constantine spoke on an equal footing with the venerable sages. In 852, when the Philosopher was only 24 years old, he was even sent to Samara, the capital of the Arab Caliphate. They sent it because the Arabs often scolded the Christian faith during negotiations with Byzantium. Literate people were needed who could change the opinion of the Arabs about Christianity. Konstantin joined the embassy, ​​and took part in long disputes about faith. In Samara, a young man surprised Arab scholars with reasonable statements and excellent knowledge of the Holy Scriptures. Home, in Constantinople, the Arabs saw him off with honor and generous gifts.

Shortly after his return, Constantine left the capital and went to the Lesser Olympus, to his elder brother Methodius.

Here the brothers are finally reunited after a long separation. They lived together in a monastery, studied the works of the holy fathers, prayed and worked. But their quiet retreat soon ended.

About how Methodius and Constantine went to the Khazars

At that time, ambassadors from the Khazars came to Tsar Michael. This was the name of the people who lived far north of Byzantium, in the Khazar Khaganate, next to the future ancient Russian lands (now it is Dagestan, part of the Crimea, the Don and the Lower Volga region). The Khazars asked to send them wise people who would tell about the teachings of Christ. The Khazar kagan - the supreme ruler, "khan of khans" - chose at that time what faith to accept: Islam, Judaism or Christianity.

Tsar Michael appointed Constantine as an envoy to the Khazars, and he persuaded his brother, a former warrior, to help him on a dangerous and long journey.

The path through the steppes was not easy! The wild tribes of the Ugrians, who, as the chronicler testifies, walked in skins and howled like wolves, attacked the caravans of travelers. According to legend, the robbers also attacked the brothers when they stopped in the steppe for prayer. Konstantin was not frightened, he just kept repeating: “Lord, have mercy!..” When the saint finished his prayer, the fierce Ugrian people suddenly subsided, began to bow to him and ask for teachings. Having received a blessing, the robbers released the monks, and they safely continued on their way.

Constantine and Methodius had an important and lengthy stop on the way to Khazaria in the Crimean city of Khersones, or, in Slavic, Korsun, which is not far from present-day Sevastopol. Preparing for the upcoming mission, the holy brothers continued to study the Khazar and Hebrew languages, and improved in Slavic.

In Chersonese, thanks to Methodius and Constantine, a real miracle happened! In those places, not far from the coast, the relics of the revered Christian Saint Clement, the closest disciple of the Apostle Peter, were hidden in the sea. Clement was executed in Chersonese, in exile, at the very beginning of the 2nd century AD. Cyril and Methodius persuaded the local bishop to find the relics of the saint.

After sunset, the brothers, along with the bishop and many clergy, boarded a ship and set sail for the sea. There they prayed fervently for a long time. At midnight a light suddenly shone from the sea! Holy relics appeared before the astonished priests. They were put on a ship, taken to the city and placed in the Apostolic Church. The brothers took part of the relics with them on a journey, in order to eventually take them to Rome.

From Chersonese, Constantine and Methodius made a long journey by sea and land until they reached the Caucasus Mountains, where the kagan, the ruler of Khazaria, was then located.

In the Khan's palace, the brothers were greeted with honor and received a letter from them from Tsar Michael. In long conversations with Muslims, Jews and Khazars, Constantine explained the subtleties of the Christian faith, referring to the Old Testament, to the ancient prophets and forefathers, who were recognized and honored by both Jews and Muslims - Adam, Abraham, Noah, Moses, David, Saul ...

The noble Khazars, who heard the long disputes of Jews, Muslims and Christians, liked the speeches of the young Byzantine preacher Constantine so much that two hundred of them accepted the Christian faith. As a sign of gratitude, the Khazars released more than two hundred Greek captives from the kaganate along with Methodius and Constantine.

The brothers set out on their way back to Constantinople. The returning envoys were received in the royal palace with triumph, like real apostles.

Methodius became abbot of the Polychronius Monastery on the Small Olympus, and Constantine settled at the church. Again, their rest was short.

About letters for Great Moravia

Great Moravia (now it is the territory of the Czech Republic) was baptized by German missionaries long ago. They also translated into Slavonic, but they translated only the most necessary prayers and teachings for the parishioners. In the temples, the believers heard only Latin, did not understand it, and therefore the German priests could explain the Christian doctrine to them in the way they wanted. It was still impossible for illiterate peasants to check whether they were telling the truth.

In 862, the Moravian prince Rostislav turned to Tsar Michael: “Our people rejected paganism and adopted the Christian law. Only we do not have such a teacher who would explain the faith of Christ to us in our language. Send us a bishop and a teacher!”

Tsar Michael responded to the request of Rostislav and first of all called the Philosopher Constantine educated in languages:
- After all, you and your brother come from Thessaloniki (this is another name for the city of Thessaloniki, native to Cyril and Methodius), and the Thessalonians all speak Slavonic well. So you go to the Slavs in Moravia.

Constantine was unwell at the time, but agreed to go to a distant country. He only asked:
- Do the inhabitants of Moravia have letters in their language?
Michael replied:
- No, they don't.
- How will I preach to them? - the Philosopher was upset. - It's like recording a conversation on the water. In addition, if the Slavs misunderstand me, it will turn out that I am preaching heresy - the wrong church teaching!
- If you want, God will give you what you ask for! - the Byzantine king assured Constantine. He understood that not only Moravia needed the creation of a written Slavic language - the new language would help the Byzantine Empire convert thousands and thousands of pagan Slavs to Christianity!

Constantine again went to the Small Olympus to Methodius. There he prayed, fasted for forty days, and then set to work. The brothers faced a very difficult task, but Cyril was able to come up with letters that took into account all the features of the pronunciation of the Slavs. The holy brothers took as a basis the dialects of the Slavs who lived near Thessalonica and created the Glagolitic alphabet - an alphabet that is understandable to residents of other parts of the Slavic world. Why? Because at that time the Slavs had a single language - different Slavic tribes and nationalities spoke approximately the same way and understood each other perfectly.

Constantine had to translate into a new language the Holy Scriptures, a very complex text. Many of the words used there simply did not exist in the Slavic language, they had to be created anew. Such a complex work was undertaken by the holy philosopher. By Easter, the translation of the beginning of the Gospel of John into the new Slavic language was ready. Having completed their work, the holy brothers again set off on their journey.

In Moravia, Methodius and Constantine began by going to schools with local children. Schools prepared future clergy and for this they taught children the Latin language. The brothers showed the students a new, Slavic alphabet and books translated into Slavic.

The local prince Rostislav, under the command of Constantine and Methodius, began to build new churches, where services were held in the Slavic language.

The philosopher and his students continued to translate church services, people in Moravia finally began to understand what the prayers say and how to praise God correctly.

Unfortunately, the German priests did not like the apostolic activity of the brothers. The Germans were convinced that divine services could only be held in three languages ​​- Latin, Hebrew and Greek. This was an erroneous opinion then widespread in Latin Western Europe, which was later called the “trilingual heresy”. Konstantin heatedly argued with the Germans, recalling the words of the ancient prophet David: “Praise the Lord in all languages!” and the words of the Gospel: "Go and teach all languages ​​...", that is, he convinced everyone that it is possible to praise God in any language.

Constantine and Methodius spent more than three years in Moravia. They went around many lands, equipped schools, taught people everywhere the Slavic script and the word of God. Many disciples from the Slavs were ready to become priests and deacons, but only a bishop could give them holy orders. And then there was no bishop in Moravia. In addition, Western high-ranking clergy, dissatisfied with the popularity of Byzantine preachers, sent a complaint to Rome that Constantine and Methodius were teaching the Slavs worship in the Slavic language.

To defend their innocence, Constantine and Methodius had to go to Rome. They took with them the relics of St. Clement, which they brought from Chersonesos.

How the Holy Brothers Came to the Eternal City

On the way to Rome, Constantine and Methodius stopped in Pannonia, in the Blatensky Principality (it was located near Blatensky Lake, modern Balaton - the territory of Hungary, eastern Austria and southwestern Slovakia). Prince Kozel ruled there. He received the brothers very cordially, and the Byzantines stayed at Kotsel for about half a year. The prince gathered 50 students from his people, and together with them he learned the Slavic alphabet from Constantine and Methodius. Saying goodbye, Kotsel offered rich gifts to the preachers, but they refused. They only asked to release nine hundred Greek captives, which was done.

Then the saints moved to the Adriatic Sea, from there they arrived with their disciples in the Italian city of Venice. In the city on the water, they met and again argued a lot, heatedly with the priests, who also fell into the heresy of “trilingualism”. Proving that he was right here too, Constantine recalled the words of the Apostle Paul: “Does not God rain equally on all, or does the sun not shine for all, or does not the whole creation breathe the same air? How dare you not be ashamed to think that besides the three languages, all other tribes and languages ​​must be blind and deaf.”

The Byzantine listed the peoples who pray to the Christian God in their own language - Armenians, Persians, Abkhazians, Iberians, Sughds, Goths, obras, Turks, Kozars, Arabians, Egyptians, Syrians and many others. “Let every breath praise the Lord!”

In Rome, the chief bishop Adrian with the priests met Constantine and Methodius "as angels of God." The relics of St. Clement were considered the greatest relic, so the people who delivered the shrine were given every honor and patronage. Adrian approved the service in the Slavic language and blessed the translations made by the brothers. Slavic books were placed on the altar in the churches of Santa Maria Maggiore and in San Paolo Fuori le Mura, the largest Roman churches of that time. The brothers were allowed to hold the main service in Slavonic - the liturgy in the Church of the Apostle Peter.

The trip to Rome was Constantine's last journey. A year after arriving in the Eternal City, the forty-year-old educator, who was in poor health, caught a serious cold. Konstantin the Philosopher bequeathed to his older brother, faithful comrade and defender: “You and I are like two oxen: one fell from a heavy burden, the other must continue on his way.”

Fifty days before his death, Konstantin took the vows as a monk with the name Cyril. Methodius wanted to take his brother's body to be buried at home, but, on the advice of the Roman bishop, Cyril was buried in the church of St. Clement, next to the relics that the brothers brought to Rome. From that moment on, Cyril began to be revered as a saint. And Methodius had to continue the work that the brothers started together.

About the long wanderings of Methodius

After some time, the prince of Pannonia, Kotsel, asked the bishop of Rome to send Methodius to him again.

The Bishop of Rome Adrian II confirmed that Methodius had the right to celebrate the liturgy in the Slavic language and appointed him his official envoy. Great Moravia and Pannonia were now lands entrusted to Methodius.

On the way to Pannonia, Methodius stopped in Great Moravia. And there everything had already changed: Prince Rostislav, who had previously received the holy brothers so cordially, no longer led the country. On the throne was his nephew Svyatopolk. This ruler again opened the country to German missionaries, and those, of course, did not want to see a rival preacher nearby who teaches and serves in the “wrong” language. In 870, during the campaign of King Louis the German against Moravia, Methodius was captured. The German bishops took advantage of this: Methodius was accused of seizing foreign church territories, arrested, tried and sent into exile in Swabia, a region in the southwest of modern Germany, to one of the monasteries. There, in prison, together with some of his students, he spent almost three years. No one reported this to Rome; there was no one to protect the saint.

Methodius suffered a lot in prison - both hunger and deprivation ... In the end, the news of the metropolitan's misfortunes nevertheless reached the new Bishop of Rome, John VIII. He immediately gave a stern order to release the prisoner.

Methodius was acquitted, his rights were restored, and the land that the metropolitan nourished (that is, he took care of, was responsible for) was returned.

Having reached Great Moravia, the saint, surrounded by his disciples, continued his apostolic labors: he translated liturgical books into Slavonic, preached the teachings of Christ to the locals, converted the Czech prince Borivoj and his wife Lyudmila to Christianity.

Methodius' ministry was not cloudless. The authorities changed, and he was either honored and helped in everything, then again accused of heresy, oppressed, prevented from holding services in the Slavic language. At such moments, only the intervention of Rome saved the saint. Methodius became an archbishop, translated into Slavic almost the entire Old Testament, a collection of church canons, secular laws, and many books.

Methodius had to travel a lot: from Pannonia to Moravia, from there to Rome, again to Moravia, to Constantinople and again to Moravia ... In the forests along the way he was attacked by robbers, at sea he fell into storms more than once, on the rivers he almost drowned in deep pools. But despite the trials, the saint did not leave the service until his death in 885. He was buried in the capital of Great Moravia, Velehrad. They buried him in Slavic, Greek and Latin. Before his death, Methodius appointed his successor. It was Gorazd of Ohrid, a Slav, an archbishop who not only preserved the legacy of Cyril and Methodius, but also, together with other disciples of the holy brothers, took part in the creation of the Cyrillic alphabet based on the Glagolitic script that we use today.

Why was the Cyrillic alphabet needed if there was already a Glagolitic alphabet? In Cyrillic, the lettering is very similar to the Greek alphabet. And in those days everyone knew it - Greek was, as they would say now, “the language of interethnic communication”, like English today. The Cyrillic alphabet looked more familiar and was easier to perceive by scientists, and merchants, and princes, and ordinary people, although all letters, all sounds were transferred to it from the alphabet of Cyril and Methodius - Glagolitic.

All alphabets created after the Nativity of Christ are inextricably linked with the adoption of Christianity by the peoples. And the Goths, and the Ethiopians, and the Slavs received their alphabets and their own literary languages ​​only after baptism. The holy brothers understood that Christ's teaching is addressed to all peoples, and it is difficult for illiterate people to preach. Thanks to Cyril and Methodius, the Slavs received not only the gospel and worship in their native language, but also the opportunity to read Byzantine books.

Almost a thousand years after the birth of the Savior, Russia was also baptized. The heritage of the holy brothers and their disciples has become available to us. The Russians got acquainted with the books of Cyril, Methodius and their students, and began to write their own books! Old Russian literature appeared: Metropolitan Hilarion's "Sermon on Law and Grace", Vladimir Monomakh's "Instruction", "The Tale of Boris and Gleb" and others. We are rightfully the successors and custodians of the legacy of Cyril and Methodius.

Glagolitic

Constantine got an alphabet of 41 letters (later reduced to 30). Only it was not known to us Cyrillic , and the other, the first Slavic alphabet - Glagolitic . The name may have come from the fourth letter of the alphabet - "verb", which meant "word". "verb" - to speak. It turns out that with the help of the Glagolitic letters, the sacred books spoke to the Slavs in their native language.

Konstantin came up with a completely new alphabet. Its letters, by their very form, were ideally suited for preaching, as they were combinations of Christian elements symbolizing Christian teaching: the cross - the Passion of Christ, the circle - Divine perfection, the triangle - the Holy Trinity.

The Glagolitic alphabet lasted the longest in Croatia, the last printed edition was published in Rome at the beginning of the last century, however, the letters changed outwardly under the influence of Western Gothic letters.

Cyrillic

The Cyrillic alphabet - Cyrillic - was compiled later, after the death of the holy brothers, on the basis of the Glagolitic alphabet in sound and Greek writing in writing. It is believed that the new alphabet was compiled by the disciples of Methodius, who found shelter in Bulgaria after they were expelled by the authorities from Great Moravia.

Why was the Cyrillic alphabet needed and subsequently became popular, if there was already a Glagolitic alphabet? The fact is that the Cyrillic alphabet is very similar in writing to the Greek alphabet, which was then widespread. Liturgical books were rewritten in Greek letters, so it was more convenient and understandable for the Slavs to write in a similar Cyrillic alphabet. Today Cyrillic is written in Belarus, Bulgaria, Serbia, North Macedonia, Russia, Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Abkhazia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, South Ossetia...

Take our little quiz and find out if you have carefully read the story of the enlightenment brothers!

At the end of 862, the prince of Great Moravia (the state of the Western Slavs) Rostislav turned to the Byzantine emperor Michael with a request to send preachers to Moravia who could spread Christianity in the Slavic language (sermons in those parts were read in Latin, unfamiliar and incomprehensible to the people).

863 is considered the year of birth of the Slavic alphabet.

The creators of the Slavic alphabet were the brothers Cyril and Methodius.

Emperor Michael sent the Greeks to Moravia - the scientist Constantine the Philosopher (the name Cyril Constantine received when he became a monk in 869, and with this name he went down in history) and his older brother Methodius.

The choice was not random. The brothers Constantine and Methodius were born in Thessalonica (in Greek, Thessaloniki) in the family of a military commander, received a good education. Cyril studied in Constantinople at the court of the Byzantine emperor Michael III, knew Greek, Slavic, Latin, Hebrew, Arabic languages ​​well, taught philosophy, for which he received the nickname Philosopher. Methodius was in military service, then for several years he ruled one of the regions inhabited by the Slavs; subsequently retired to a monastery.

In 860, the brothers had already made a trip to the Khazars for missionary and diplomatic purposes.

In order to be able to preach Christianity in the Slavic language, it was necessary to make a translation of the Holy Scripture into the Slavic language; however, the alphabet capable of conveying Slavic speech did not exist at that moment.

Constantine set about creating the Slavic alphabet. Methodius, who also knew the Slavic language well, helped him in his work, since a lot of Slavs lived in Thessalonica (the city was considered half-Greek, half-Slavic). In 863, the Slavic alphabet was created (the Slavic alphabet existed in two versions: the Glagolitic alphabet - from the verb - “speech” and the Cyrillic alphabet; scientists still do not have a consensus which of these two options was created by Cyril). With the help of Methodius, a number of liturgical books were translated from Greek into Slavonic. The Slavs got the opportunity to read and write in their own language. The Slavs not only had their own, Slavic, alphabet, but also the first Slavic literary language was born, many of whose words still live in Bulgarian, Russian, Ukrainian and other Slavic languages.

After the death of the brothers, their activities were continued by their students, who were expelled from Moravia in 886,

in the South Slavic countries. (In the West, the Slavic alphabet and Slavic literacy did not survive; Western Slavs - Poles, Czechs ... - still use the Latin alphabet). Slavic writing was firmly established in Bulgaria, from where it spread to the countries of the southern and eastern Slavs (IX century). Writing came to Russia in the 10th century (988 - the baptism of Russia).

The creation of the Slavic alphabet was and still is of great importance for the development of Slavic writing, Slavic peoples, Slavic culture.

The Bulgarian Church established the day of memory of Cyril and Methodius - May 11, according to the old style (May 24, according to the new style). Bulgaria also established the Order of Cyril and Methodius.

May 24 in many Slavic countries, including Russia, is a holiday of Slavic writing and culture.

Not all people know what May 24 is famous for, but it’s even impossible to imagine what would have become of us if this day in 863 turned out to be completely different and the creators of writing abandoned their work.

Who created Slavic writing in the 9th century? It was Cyril and Methodius, and this event happened just on May 24, 863, which led to the celebration of one of the most important events in the history of mankind. Now the Slavic peoples could use their own script, and not borrow the languages ​​of other peoples.

The creators of Slavic writing - Cyril and Methodius?

The history of the development of Slavic writing is not as "transparent" as it might seem at first glance, there are different opinions about its creators. There is an interesting fact that Cyril, even before he began to work on the creation of the Slavic alphabet, was in Chersonese (today it is Crimea), from where he was able to take the sacred writings of the Gospel or the Psalter, which already at that moment turned out to be written precisely in the letters of the Slavic alphabet. This fact makes one wonder: who created the Slavic script, did Cyril and Methodius really write the alphabet or did they take the finished work?

However, besides the fact that Cyril brought the finished alphabet from Chersonesus, there is other evidence that the creators of Slavic writing were other people, and who lived long before Cyril and Methodius.

Arabic sources of historical events say that 23 years before Cyril and Methodius created the Slavic alphabet, namely in the 40s of the 9th century, there were baptized people who had books written specifically in the Slavic language in their hands. There is also another serious fact proving that the creation of Slavic writing took place even earlier than the stated date. The bottom line is that Pope Leo IV had a diploma issued before 863, which consisted of the letters of the Slavic alphabet, and this figure was on the throne in the interval from 847 to 855 of the IX century.

Another, but also important fact of proving the more ancient origin of Slavic writing is the assertion of Catherine II, who during her reign wrote that the Slavs are an older people than is commonly believed, and they have had written language since the time preceding the birth of Christ.

Evidence of antiquity among other peoples

The creation of Slavic writing before 863 can be proved by other facts that are present in the documents of other peoples who lived in ancient times and used other types of writing in their time. There are quite a few such sources, and they are found in the Persian historian named Ibn Fodlan, in El Massoudi, as well as in slightly later creators in fairly well-known works, which say that Slavic writing was formed before the Slavs had books.

The historian, who lived on the border of the 9th and 10th centuries, argued that the Slavic people are more ancient and more developed than the Romans, and as proof, he cited some monuments that allow us to determine the antiquity of the origin of the Slavic people and their writing.

And the last fact that can seriously affect the train of thought of people in search of an answer to the question of who created the Slavic script is coins that have different letters of the Russian alphabet, dated earlier than 863, and located in the territories of such European countries like England, Scandinavia, Denmark and others.

Refutation of the ancient origin of Slavic writing

The alleged creators of the Slavic script "missed" a little with one thing: they did not leave any books and documents written in it. However, for many scientists it is enough that the Slavic script is present on various stones, rocks, weapons and household items that were used by the ancient inhabitants in their Everyday life.

Many scientists worked on studying the historical achievements in the writing of the Slavs, however, a senior researcher named Grinevich was able to reach almost the very source, and his work made it possible to decipher any text written in Old Slavonic.

Grinevich's work in the study of Slavic writing

In order to understand the writing of the ancient Slavs, Grinevich had to do a lot of work, during which he discovered that it was not based on letters, but had a more complex system that worked through syllables. The scientist himself absolutely seriously believed that the formation of the Slavic alphabet began 7,000 years ago.

The signs of the Slavic alphabet had a different basis, and after grouping all the symbols, Grinevich singled out four categories: linear, separating symbols, pictorial and restrictive signs.

For research, Grinevich used about 150 different inscriptions that were present on all kinds of objects, and all his achievements were based on the decoding of these symbols.

Grinevich, in the course of his research, found out that the history of Slavic writing is older, and the ancient Slavs used 74 signs. However, there are too many signs for the alphabet, and if we talk about whole words, then there cannot be only 74 of them in the language. These reflections led the researcher to the idea that the Slavs used syllables instead of letters in the alphabet.

Example: "horse" - syllable "lo"

His approach made it possible to decipher the inscriptions that many scientists fought over and could not understand what they meant. And it turned out that everything is quite simple:

1. The pot, which was found near Ryazan, had an inscription - instructions, which said that it must be put in the oven and closed.
2. The sinker, which was found near the Trinity city, had a simple inscription: "Weighs 2 ounces."

All the above evidence fully refutes the fact that the creators of Slavic writing are Cyril and Methodius, and prove the antiquity of our language.

Slavic runes in the creation of Slavic writing

The one who created Slavic writing was a rather smart and courageous person, because such an idea at that time could destroy the creator due to the ignorance of all other people. But besides the letter, other options for disseminating information to people were invented - Slavic runes.

In total, 18 runes have been found in the world, which are present on a large number of different ceramics, stone statues and other artifacts. An example is ceramic products from the village of Lepesovka, located in southern Volhynia, as well as an earthen vessel in the village of Voyskovo. In addition to evidence located on the territory of Russia, there are monuments that are located in Poland and were discovered back in 1771. They also have Slavic runes. We should not forget the temple of Radegast, located in Retra, where the walls are decorated with Slavic symbols. The last place that scientists learned about from Titmar of Merseburg is a fortress-temple and is located on an island called Rügen. There are a large number of idols, whose names are written using runes of Slavic origin.

Slavic writing. Cyril and Methodius as creators

The creation of writing is attributed to Cyril and Methodius, and in support of this, historical data are given for the corresponding period of their lives, which is described in some detail. They affect the meaning of their activities, as well as the reasons for working on the creation of new symbols.

Cyril and Methodius led to the creation of the alphabet by the conclusion that other languages ​​\u200b\u200bcannot fully reflect Slavic speech. This constraint is proved by the works of the Chernoristian Brave, in which it is noted that before the adoption of the Slavic alphabet for general use, baptism was carried out either in Greek or in Latin, and already in those days it became clear that they could not reflect all the sounds that filled our speech. .

Political influence on the Slavic alphabet

Politics began its influence on society from the very beginning of the birth of countries and religions, and it also had a hand in, as well as in other aspects of people's lives.

As described above, Slavic baptismal services were held either in Greek or Latin, which allowed other churches to influence the minds and strengthen the idea of ​​their leading role in the heads of the Slavs.

Those countries where the liturgies were held not in Greek, but in Latin, received an increase in the influence of German priests on the faith of people, and for the Byzantine Church this was unacceptable, and she took a retaliatory step, instructing Cyril and Methodius to create writing, in which it will be written service and sacred texts.

The Byzantine Church reasoned correctly at that moment, and its plans were such that the one who created the Slavic script based on the Greek alphabet would help weaken the influence of the German Church on all Slavic countries at the same time and at the same time help bring the people closer to Byzantium. These actions can also be seen as dictated by self-interest.

Who created the Slavic alphabet based on the Greek alphabet? Created by Cyril and Methodius, and for this work they were chosen by the Byzantine Church not by chance. Kirill grew up in the city of Thessalonica, which, although it was Greek, about half of its inhabitants spoke the Slavic language fluently, and Kirill himself was well versed in it, and also had an excellent memory.

Byzantium and its role

As for when work began on the creation of Slavic writing, there are quite serious disputes, because May 24 is the official date, but there is a large gap in history in history that creates a discrepancy.

After Byzantium gave this difficult task, Cyril and Methodius began the development of Slavic writing and in 864 arrived in Moravia with a ready-made Slavic alphabet and a fully translated Gospel, where they recruited students for the school.

After receiving an assignment from the Byzantine Church, Cyril and Methodius head to Morvia. During their journey, they are engaged in writing the alphabet and translating the texts of the Gospel into Slavonic, and already upon arrival in the city, they have finished works in their hands. However, the road to Moravia does not take so much time. Perhaps this time period allows you to create an alphabet, but it is simply impossible to translate the gospel letters in such a short time, which indicates advance work on the Slavic language and translation of texts.

Cyril's illness and his departure

After three years of work in his own school of Slavic writing, Kirill abandons this business and leaves for Rome. This turn of events was caused by the disease. Cyril left everything for a quiet death in Rome. Methodius, finding himself alone, continues to pursue his goal and does not step back, although now it has become more difficult for him, because the Catholic Church has begun to understand the scale of the work done and is not enthusiastic about it. The Roman Church imposes bans on translations into Slavic and openly demonstrates its discontent, but Methodius now has followers who help and continue his work.

Cyrillic and Glagolitic - what laid the foundation for modern writing?

There are no confirmed facts that can prove which of the scripts originated earlier, and there is no exact information about who created the Slavic and which of the two possible Cyril had a hand in. Only one thing is known, but the most important thing is that it was the Cyrillic alphabet that became the founder of today's Russian alphabet, and only thanks to it can we write the way we write now.

The Cyrillic alphabet has 43 letters in its composition, and the fact that its creator, Cyril, proves the presence of 24 in it. And the remaining 19, the creator of the Cyrillic alphabet based on the Greek alphabet, included it solely to reflect complex sounds that were present only among the peoples who used the Slavic language for communication.

Over time, the Cyrillic alphabet was transformed, almost constantly it was influenced in order to simplify and improve. However, there were moments that at first made it difficult to write, for example, the letter "e", which is an analogue of "e", the letter "y" is an analogue of "i". Such letters at first made it difficult to spell, but reflected the sounds corresponding to them.

The Glagolitic, in fact, was an analogue of the Cyrillic alphabet and used 40 letters, 39 of which were taken from the Cyrillic alphabet. The main difference between Glagolitic is that it has a more rounded style of writing and is not inherently angular, unlike Cyrillic.

The disappeared alphabet (Glagolitic), although it did not take root, was intensively used by the Slavs living in the southern and western latitudes, and, depending on the location of the inhabitants, it had its own writing styles. Slavs living in Bulgaria used Glagolitic with a more rounded style for writing, while Croatians gravitated towards angular writing.

Despite the number of hypotheses and even the absurdity of some of them, each is worthy of attention, and it is impossible to answer exactly who the creators of Slavic writing are. The answers will be vague, with many flaws and shortcomings. And although there are many facts that refute the creation of writing by Cyril and Methodius, they were honored for their work, which allowed the alphabet to spread and transform to its current form.