THE MORDVA AND THE CHUVASH: PEOPLES'' INTERRELATIONS - INTERRRELATIONS OF CULTURES AND LANGUAGES
The Mordvin-Chuvash relationships (in contrast to the Mordvin-Tatar ones) have been insufficiently studied. The purpose of this article is to fill this gap. Taking into account that the Mordvins and the Chuvashes have ages-old contacts, the author of this article gives common facts in their everyday activities, family routine, material values and intellectual culture of the two peoples. In addition, the article provides a list of words borrowed by the Mordvins from the Chuvash language. To differentiate the Chuvash words from the Tatar ones, the article focuses on criteria of their differentiation. Apart from phonetic features morphological and semantic criteria are taken into account. The materials of the article are of interest not only for linguists but for historians and ethnographers as well. Ancient links between the Mordvins and the Chuvashes, their current relationships need further research. The material given in the article confirms ancient ties of the Mordvins and the Chuvashes. The author of the article gives evidence of unarrested contacts between the Mordvins and the Chuvashes at present time.