The use of foreign words in the travelogue "Voyage Beyond Three Seas" by Afanasy Nikitin

Document Type : research article

Authors

Department of Russian Language and Literature, Faculty of Foreign Languages and Literature, University of Tehran, Iran.

Abstract

The travelogue "Voyage Beyond Three Seas" by Afanasy Nikitin is a multicultural and multilingual text. The narrative basis of the text is its journey and hardships, the route, the description of various cultures, trade, statecraft, and prayer in the languages ​​of "own" and "other". Afanasy, a Christian merchant from Tver,'s passage through the three seas of Derbent (Caspian), India (Indian Ocean), and Istanbul (Black Sea) led him to become acquainted with various nations and religions other than Christianity, such as Islam and Hinduism. Afanasy's prayers in "Voyage Beyond Three Seas" are written mainly in Russian (his native language), Arabic, Persian, Turkish, and Mazani, given the author's connection with various ethnic groups. The purpose of the research is to answer the following questions: What are the reasons for mentioning the Asma al-Hosna, Quranic verses, and also prayers in Persian, Arabic, and Turkish in the work "Voyage..."? Did Afanasy convert to Islam by using foreign Islamic terms and phrases? The choice of the Iranian-Islamic name Khajeh Yusuf Khorasani and the use of Arabic terms and phrases, especially Asma al-Hosna and Quranic verses, as well as prayers in foreign languages, have led some researchers to conclude that he converted to Islam. However, by examining different versions, we see that he did not explicitly mention this issue in his autodocumentary prose and intertextual "Voyage..." and it seems that his goal was more to encourage intercultural and interreligious dialogue than to accept and proclaim another religion.

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References

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Journal of Foreign Language Research
Volume 15, Issue 4
December 2025
Pages 313-324

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