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 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 (he received the name Cyril Constantine 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. Brothers Constantine and Methodius were born in Thessaloniki (Thessaloniki in Greek) into the family of a military leader and received a good education. Cyril studied in Constantinople at the court of the Byzantine Emperor Michael III, knew Greek, Slavic, Latin, Hebrew, and Arabic 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.
To be able to preach Christianity in the Slavic language, it was necessary to translate the Holy Scriptures into the Slavic language; however, there was no alphabet capable of conveying Slavic speech 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 Thessaloniki (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 verb - “speech” and the Cyrillic alphabet; until now, scientists 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 Slavic. The Slavs were given the opportunity to read and write in their own language. The Slavs not only had their own Slavic alphabet, but also the first Slavic alphabet was born literary language, 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, expelled from Moravia in 886,
in 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 literacy was firmly established in Bulgaria, from where it spread to the countries of the southern and eastern Slavs (9th century). Writing came to Rus' in the 10th century (988 – the baptism of Rus').
The creation of the Slavic alphabet was and still is of great importance for the development Slavic writing, Slavic peoples, Slavic culture.
The Bulgarian Church established the day of remembrance of Cyril and Methodius - May 11 according to the old style (May 24 according to the new style). The Order of Cyril and Methodius was also established in Bulgaria.
May 24 in many Slavic countries, including Russia, is a holiday of Slavic writing and culture.
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).
The year 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 (he received the name Cyril Constantine 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. Brothers Constantine and Methodius were born in Thessaloniki (Thessaloniki in Greek) into the family of a military leader and received a good education. Cyril studied in Constantinople at the court of the Byzantine Emperor Michael III, knew Greek, Slavic, Latin, Hebrew, and Arabic 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.
To be able to preach Christianity in the Slavic language, it was necessary to translate the Holy Scriptures into the Slavic language; however, there was no alphabet capable of conveying Slavic speech 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 Thessaloniki (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 verb - “speech” and the Cyrillic alphabet; until now, scientists 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 Slavic. The Slavs were given the opportunity to read and write in their own language. The Slavs not only acquired their own Slavic alphabet, but also the first Slavic literary language was born, many words of which still live in Bulgarian, Russian, Ukrainian and other Slavic languages.
After the death of the brothers, their activities were continued by their students, expelled from Moravia in 886,
in 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 literacy was firmly established in Bulgaria, from where it spread to the countries of the southern and eastern Slavs (9th century). Writing came to Rus' in the 10th century (988 – the baptism of Rus').
The creation of the Slavic alphabet was and still is of great importance for the development of Slavic writing, Slavic peoples, and Slavic culture.
The Bulgarian Church established the day of remembrance of Cyril and Methodius - May 11 according to the old style (May 24 according to the new style). The Order of Cyril and Methodius was also established in Bulgaria.
May 24 in many Slavic countries, including Russia, is a holiday of Slavic writing and culture.
Kostin Pavel 3rd grade
May 24th is celebrated Slavic culture and writing. Cyril and Methodius are considered the founders of Slavic writing. The work of a 3rd grade student, dedicated to the founders of Slavic writing.
Download:
Preview:
Kostin Pavel, 3rd grade
Cyril and Methodius - the founders of Slavic writing
Celebrates Slavic writing and culture. Year of birth (creation) of the Slavic
brothers Cyril (before becoming a monk, Constantine) and Methodius.
Cyril (circa 827-869) and his older brother Methodius (circa 825-885)
were born in the Greek city of Thessaloniki (now Thessaloniki). Father named Leo was
famous Greek official. One of the later sources says about the mother,
that she is a Slav by birth named Maria. And although, presumably, the family spoke
The brothers listened to Greek, Slavic words, and music of the language in the house since childhood. Yes and no
only in the house. There were many Slavic merchants in the trading districts of Thessaloniki. Many
The Slavs settled in Greece several centuries before the birth of the brothers. No wonder many years
later, sending the brothers to Moravia at the request of the Slavic prince to send teachers,
who will teach church reading, singing and writing in their native Slavic language,
Emperor Michael said: “No one can do this better than you. Go
together with Abbot Methodius, since you are Solunians, and Solunians all speak
purely Slavic" (beginning of 863).
Having received an education in hometown, Methodius served for ten years as a military commander in
one of the Slavic provinces of Byzantium. Constantine studied in the capital of the empire
Constantinople and showed brilliant philological talent. He has mastered perfectly
several languages, including Latin, Syriac and Hebrew. When Konstantin
graduated from college, he was offered a very honorable position as a librarian at
patriarchal repository of books. At the same time, he became the patriarch's secretary. Working
in the library (the best library in the world), he constantly expanded his knowledge by comparing
one language with another, wrote Yuri Loschits in one of the magazines in the article “Prophetic Rumor”.
Only if you have an ear for music and develop it, you can hear in an unfamiliar
Greek of someone else's speech individual sounds and sound combinations. Konstantin was not ashamed that
It's called looking into the speaker's mouth to figure out exactly what position
lips, teeth and tongue of the interlocutor, a sound escapes from his mouth, outlandish for
Greek hearing. The sounds “z”, “z”, and “z” seemed so strange and unusual to the Greeks."sh",
"sch" etc. To us, Russian people, and to those for whom Russian is their native language, it seems funny,
when these and other sounds are difficult for foreigners to pronounce. Sounds in Slavic speech
turned out to be significantly more than in Greek (later the brothers had to
create 14 more letters than in the Greek alphabet). Kirill managed to hear
sounds of Slavic speech, isolate them from a smooth, coherent flow and create under these
sounds signs-letters.
When we talk about the creation of the Slavic alphabet by the brothers Cyril and Mefoliy, then
We call the youngest one first. This was the case during both of their lives. Methodius himself said:
“He served, like a slave, his younger brother, obeying him.” The younger brother was a genius
a philologist, as we would say now, a brilliant polyglot. He had to many times
engage in scientific disputes, and not only scientific ones. The new business of creating writing
numerous Slavic people found many enemies (in Moravia and Pannonia -
on the lands of modern Hungary, former Yugoslavia, Austria). After the brothers' death
about 200 of their students were sold into slavery, and their closest and most capable
comrades thrown into prison.
The tragic personal fates of the disciples Cyril and Methodius did not stop
the spread of Slavic writing from one Slavic people to another. From
Moravia and Pannonia it passed to Bulgaria, and in the 10th century, after the adoption
Christianity, and to ancient Rus'.
What was the Slavic alphabet? We need to talk about this in more detail,
since this writing was used in Rus' until the 18th century. Under Peter I and
then several more times in the 18th century. the alphabetical composition changed, i.e. number of letters and their
graphics (writing). The last reform of the Cyrillic alphabet took place in 1917-1918. In total there were
12 letters were excluded, and two new ones were introduced - “i” and “e”. If you look at the names of the letters
Cyrillic alphabet, the origin of the word “alphabet” itself will become clear: a - az, b - beeches. Like
the name of the alphabet, the name “alphabet” comes from the first two letters of the Greek
languages "alpha" and "vita".
All Slavs from the Baltic spoke, wrote, and created literature in the “Slovenian language”
to the Aegean Sea, from the Alps to the Volga. Six long centuries, up to the 15th century,
only three ancient languages (Slavic, Greek, Latin) were accepted in the world
as the main languages of interethnic communication. And now it’s a matter of honor for millions of people
Speakers of Slavic languages - to protect, preserve and develop it.
How did distant ancestors learn to read and write?
Education at school was individual, and each teacher had no more than 6-8
students. The teaching methods were very imperfect. Folk proverbs
retained the memory of the difficulty of learning the alphabet: “Az, beeches, lead them to fear how
bears", "They teach the alphabet, they shout at the whole hut."
Learning the Old Church Slavonic alphabet was not an easy task. Not sounds were pronounced, but
the names of the letters are complex in themselves. Having memorized the alphabet, they began to study syllables, or
warehouses, first from two letters: “buki”, “az” - the student named the names of the letters, and
then pronounced the syllable “ba”; for the syllable “vo” it was necessary to name “vedi”, “on”. Then
they taught syllables of three letters: “buki”, “rtsy”, “az” - “bra”, etc.
The complex names of the letters were not taken, as they say, out of thin air. Each title
carried great meaning and moral content. He who mastered literacy absorbed
enormous depth moral concepts, developed a line of behavior for himself in
life, received concepts of goodness and morality. I can’t even believe it: well, letters and letters.
But no. When a person learning to read and write repeated after the teacher “az, beeches, lead,” he
He said the whole phrase: “I know letters.” Next came g, d, f - “The verb is good
is." In listing these letters in a row there is a commandment for man not to waste
I didn’t throw around words, I didn’t mince words, because “The word is good.”
Let's see what letters like r meant. s, t. They were called “Rtsy the word is firm”, i.e.
e. “Speak the word clearly”, “be responsible for your words.” It would be good for many of us
learn both pronunciation and responsibility for the spoken word.
After memorizing the syllables, reading began. The second proverb reminds us of order
work: the teacher pronounced the letters, and the students repeated them in chorus until
haven't remembered yet.
Literature:
Great Encyclopedia of Primary School
Excerpts from historical sources"The Tale of Bygone Years" and "The Life of Konstantin-Kirill"
Is it possible to imagine life without electricity? Of course it's difficult! But it is known that people used to read and write by candles and torches. Imagine life without writing. Some of you will now think to yourself, well, it would be great: you don’t have to write dictations and essays. But then there will be no libraries, books, posters, letters, and even Email and "text messages". Language, like a mirror, reflects the whole world, our whole life. And reading written or printed texts, it’s as if we are getting into a time machine and can be transported to both recent times and the distant past.
But people did not always master the art of writing. This art has been developing for a long time, over many millennia. Do you know who we should be grateful to for our written word, in which our favorite books are written? For our literacy, which we learn at school? For our great Russian literature, which you are becoming familiar 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 are speechless without Christ!
We need to create an alphabet for the Slavs...
It was thanks to the works of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril and Methodius that the Slavic alphabet was created.
The brothers were born in the Byzantine city of Thessaloniki in the family of a military leader. Methodius was the eldest son, and, having chosen the military path, 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 he passionately fell in love with science and amazed his 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, and mastered Slavic, Greek, Hebrew, Latin and Arabic languages. Refusing the high administrative position offered to him, Kirill took a modest position as 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 military service early. For 10 years he was the manager of one of the regions inhabited by the Slavs. Being an honest and straightforward person, intolerant of injustice, he left with military service and retired to a monastery.
In 863, ambassadors from Moravia arrived in Constantinople to ask for preachers to be sent to their country and tell the population about Christianity. The emperor decided to send Cyril and Methodius to Moravia. Cyril, before setting off, asked if the Moravians had an alphabet for their language - “for enlightening a people without writing their language is like trying to write on water,” Cyril explained. To which I received a negative answer. The Moravians did not have an alphabet, so the brothers began work. They had months, not years, at their disposal. They worked from early morning, just before dawn, until late in the evening, when their eyes were already dim with fatigue. In a short time, an alphabet for the Moravians was created. It was named after one of its creators - Kirill - Cyrillic.
Using the Slavic alphabet, Cyril and Methodius very quickly translated the main liturgical books from Greek into Slavic. 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 services.
The Slavic alphabet existed unchanged in Rus' 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, as soon as he saw them, immediately wanted to master writing.
Each letter had its own name - “az” - A; “beeches” - B; “lead” - B; “verb” - G; "good" -D.
This is where it comes from catchphrases“Az and beeches – that’s all science”, “Whoever knows “Az” and “Beeches” will have books in their hands.” In addition, letters could also represent numbers. There were 43 letters in the Cyrillic alphabet.
The Cyrillic alphabet existed in the Russian language without changes until Peter I, who removed outdated letters that could have been completely dispensed with - “yus big”, “yus small”, “omega”, “uk”. In 1918, 5 more letters left the Russian alphabet - “yat”, “fita”, “izhitsa”, “er”, “er”. Over the course of a thousand years, many letters have disappeared from our alphabet, and only two have appeared - “y” and “e”. They were invented in the 17th century by the Russian writer and historian Karamzin. And now, finally, there are 33 letters left in the modern alphabet.
Where do you think the word “AZBUKA” came from - from the names of the first letters of the alphabet, “az” and “buki”; in Rus' 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”. Carriers Western languages That’s what they call “alphabete.” And we pronounce it like “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! “That was a wonderful moment!.. The deaf began to hear, and the dumb began to speak, for until that time the Slavs were both deaf and dumb” - recorded in the chronicles of those times.
Not only children, but also adults began to study. They wrote with sharp sticks on wooden tablets coated with wax. The children fell in love with their teachers Cyril and Methodius. The little Slavs happily went to class, 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 Rus'. 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 to seven years and was very expensive. In a precious frame, 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, “it” was expensive. She alone could be exchanged for a herd of horses or a herd of cows, or for sable fur coats. And it’s not about the jewelry in which the beauty and clever girl were dressed up. And she only wore expensive embossed leather, pearls and precious stones! Gold and silver clasps decorated her outfit! Admiring her, people said: “Light, you are ours!” We 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 the people. She could have died in a fire or flood. They valued her very much: she inspired hope, restored strength of spirit. What kind of curiosity is this? Yes, guys, this is Her Majesty - the Book. She 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 Rus' have always been monasteries. There, through fasting and prayer, hardworking monks copied and decorated books. A collection of books of 500-1000 manuscripts was considered very rare.
Life goes on, and in the middle of the 16th century, printing appeared in Rus'. 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 began to type the first page of the first printed book, “The Apostle.” In total, he published 12 books during 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 Slovenian teachers,” became a symbol of spiritual achievement. And every person studying the Russian language should know and keep in his memory the holy names of the first Slavic enlighteners - the brothers Cyril and Methodius.
Across broad Rus' - our mother
The bells ring out.
Now the brothers Saints Cyril and Methodius
They are glorified for their efforts.
“Learning is light, and ignorance is darkness,” says the Russian proverb. Cyril and Methodius, brothers from Thessaloniki, are Slovenian educators, 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 great educators 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, the Day of Slavic Literature is celebrated all over the world on May 24. In the year of the millennium since the creation of the Slavic script in Russia, the Holy Synod adopted a resolution that established “every year, starting from this 1863, on the 11th (24th) day of May, the church celebration of St. Cyril and Methodius.” Until 1917, Russia celebrated the church holiday Day of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Brothers Cyril and Methodius. With coming Soviet power this one was forgotten great holiday. It was revived in 1986. This holiday began to be called the Day of Slavic Literature and Culture.
Quiz
1.Who created the Slavic alphabet? (Cyril and Methodius)
2.Which year is considered the year of the emergence of Slavic writing and bookmaking? (863)
3.Why are Cyril and Methodius called “Thessalonica brothers”? (The birthplace of the enlightenment brothers is the city of Thessaloniki in Macedonia)
4.Who was the older 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 which was a warrior? (Cyril - librarian, Methodius - military leader,)
7.What was Kirill called for his intelligence and diligence? (Philosopher)
8. During whose reign the Slavic alphabet was changed - simplified. (Peter 1)
9. How many letters were there in the Cyrillic alphabet before Peter the Great? (43 letters)
10. How many letters are there in the modern alphabet? (33 letters)
11.Who was the first printer in Rus'? (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 emergence of Slavic writing originates in IXcentury ad. In the 50s or early 60s of this century, the Moravian prince Rostislav decided that an alphabet developed specifically for the Slavs would facilitate more convenient conduct of Christian ceremonies. In Moravia (the eastern part of the Czech Republic), Christianity was new at that time, and therefore it had to be spread quickly, before small pockets of the Christian faith went out under the onslaught of paganism.
With this thought, the prince Rostislav asked the emperor Byzantium Michael III equip someone to compile such an alphabet, and then translate some church books into this new language.
Michael III agreed. If the Slavs had their own written language, the spread of Christianity among the Slavic peoples would have happened faster. Thus, not only Moravia would have joined the Christian camp, but also the rest of the Slavs (at this time the languages of the Slavs were still quite similar). At the same time, the Slavs would have adopted the Eastern, Orthodox form of this religion, which would only strengthen the position of Byzantium, which was the center of Eastern Christianity until the 15th century. That’s why he agreed to fulfill Rostislav’s request.
The emperor received the task of creating such writing to two monks from Greece - brothers Cyril and Methodius. IN 863
brothers formed the Slavic alphabet based on the Greek alphabet. The Cyrillic alphabet, familiar to us and still used today, appeared a little later. The first version of the Old Church Slavonic language was called Glagolitic. It differed from the Cyrillic alphabet in the way its letters were written (they were often very different from their Greek counterparts).
The Greeks tried to instill the Glagolitic alphabet among the Moravian Slavs in their missions, but there was no success there. This happened due to Catholic protest. It is known that Catholicism strictly obliges parishioners to conduct services in Latin. Therefore, in Catholic Germany, which was close to Moravia, the practice of holding services in the local language was immediately condemned. The King of Germany invaded Moravia and began to radically impose Catholic rites. The Catholic tradition is still strong in the Czech Republic thanks to this pivotal event.
But the cause of Cyril and Methodius did not die. Immediately after the creation of the Cyrillic alphabet Tsar Boris I of Bulgaria decided to found the world's first Slavic book school - Book school in Preslav. This institution was engaged in translating Christian writings from Greek language into Slavic.
Being a Christian, Boris wanted, at all costs, to spread his faith to all of pagan Bulgaria in order to find an ally in Byzantium. He managed to do this soon. Bulgaria became the center of Slavic writing, from here the Old Church Slavonic language spread to Rus', Serbia, and then to many other Slavic countries. In, for example, Poland and the Czech Republic, the Latin alphabet is used, which has become entrenched in everyday life thanks to the deep Catholic tradition of these countries.
Church Slavonic language(Russian version of the Cyrillic alphabet, which for a long time did not change at all) was fully used in Rus' before 18th century,
when Peter I introduced a new standardized letter to replace the outdated church writing. He extracted several letters from the alphabet, redrew the spelling and introduced many other rules. Peter the Great actually founded the Russian language, which we still use today in a very time-worn form. The Church Slavonic language, however, is still used in churches today. Watch and listen to how they spoke approximately Ancient Rus', you can in any church during the service.
Cyril and Methodius for their mission were canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church. They are still among the most popular saints in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, even modern youth knows these historical figures.