The Turkic languages, including the Krymchak (=Krimchak) Jewish ethnolect of the Crimean Tatar, have no formal markers of the (in)definiteness of a noun, but a certain lexical and morphological set allow for linguists to determine the meaning of the definiteness / indefiniteness. However, also the Krymchak nominative case fulfils the role of the indefinite index in the functions of a direct object and of an attribute, which is argued in the first part of this article. Thus, the connection and opposition of the nominative with accusative and genitive cases are shown. After some remarks on the category of (in)definiteness in the Turkic languages we analyze the nominative form in the functions of subject, direct object and of attribute in comparison with accusative and genitive case forms used in the analogical functions. By comparison, their definite/indefinite meanings are revealed to be clear. Finally, we discuss the described material, and offer three tables as results. Some instances of the unusual use of the nominative case in the Krymchak Biblical translations is discussed in the second part of this paper. The cited examples are taken from written sources published during the last half century, including the Krymchak translations of Biblical books.

Wojciech Bobowski (ca. 1610–1675) is one of the most remarkable figures in the history of cultural contacts between Europe and the Ottoman Empire. His numerous works on Ottoman Turkish music, language and culture are widely recognised and have attracted increased interest from researchers in recent years, but Bobowski’s life story remains rather mysterious. This is especially true of the first part of his life, which he spent in the Polish- -Lithuanian Commonwealth. My current research reveals that the Polish lore concerning Bobovius differs from what is generally written about him in Turkish and Western European literature. In this paper, I present the results of my research in Polish and Ukrainian archives along with excerpts from 17th–19th-century Polish literature that have not previously been available to international academia. I aim to provide new facts of the life of Bobowski by looking for clues hidden between the lines of his works (mainly Serai Enderum) and by tracing his possible contacts with Poles in the course of his long and fascinating life.

The article examines Ḫātūn Baġdād (The Lady of Baghdad), a novel written in Arabic by the Iraqi author Šākir Nūrī and published in 2017. The literary text revolves around the character of Gertrude Bell, an icon of British Orientalism, and draws on her earlier media representations. The present article thus indicates how Nūrī’s novel, considered a medium of memory, participates in the remediation of Bell’s image in the context of Iraq’s modern history. In its three main sections, discussed are the Iraqi writer’s views on the relationships between the novel and history, literature and other arts, and the impact of these relations on the narrative structure of Ḫātūn Baġdād. The article likewise scrutinizes both the heroine’s attitude in the novel towards her colonial mission in Iraq and the country’s inhabitants, and Iraqi characters’ perceptions of Bell. The article refers to several studies in cultural memory, Orientalism, and postcolonial literature.

During the period of Kalmyk immigration into various European countries between the 1920s to the 1940s, Kalmyk intellectuals established organization and societies, such as Kalmyk Commission of Culture Workers in Czechoslovakia, Kalmyk National Organization “Khal’mak Tangachin Tuk”, and the Kalmyk National Committee. They also started periodicals such as Ulan Zalat (Улан Залат), Tsagan övsni dolgan (Цаган öвсни долган), Khal’mäg (Хальмәг) and Khonkho (Хонхо), etc. The periodicals were an effective means for Kalmyk intellectuals to express, disseminate, and advocate their ideas, ideologies, and political beliefs. Via these periodicals they were able to articulate their perspectives and contribute to the cultural and political landscape of their community. Today this Kalmyk material is to be found in European libraries and private collections, including Prof. Władysław Kotwicz’s notable collection in the Library of Mongolian and Tibetan Studies Programme at the Faculty of Oriental Studies, University of Warsaw. The research in the field has recently started with brief discussions of the background and characteristics of some of the periodicals, but, unfortunately, inaccuracies are not avoided, the data on collections is not complete, and comprehensive bibliographies are lacking. Thus, to underline the value of the unique sources in question, as well as to provide a comprehensive introduction to Kalmyk émigré periodicals in Europe, the present paper focuses on Prof. Kotwicz’s collection and emphasizes the need for further research in the field.

The paper examines two mid-18th century poems, Sujān vilās and Dīrghnagarvarṇan, composed in Brajbhasha (Braj Bhasha) by Somnāth, at the then recently established court of the Jat rulers. It focuses on the description of the city, i.e. nagaravarṇana convention rooted in Sanskrit poetics and common in Sanskrit kāvya literature, further adopted by the authors belonging to the courtly ornate poetry of the Hindi literary tradition. In Somnāth’s works which offer three instances of the nagaravarṇana, this convention sees its transformation into a fully-fledged literary genre. The poetics of the Brajbhasha literary production have been by then enriched to a considerable extent by Persian literary practices, with both courtly literary cultures, the Persian and the Brajbhasha, enjoying patronage of the Mughal center of power leading thus to diffusion of its various cultural practices, including the literary, to many neighboring states and dominions. The present inquiry situates Somnāth’s works in this historico-literary settings with a view to define features of the nagaravarṇanas and thus trace the development of this literary genre and map its changing functions. Those functions, as argued here, point to disparate forms of patronage that underlie both compositions – probably a single, composite literary project.

The research subject of this article is modern Korean theater, which began to develop in the early 20th century. However, the process of its development took place under extremely difficult conditions and reflected the violent political, social and cultural processes that were taking place on the Korean peninsula. These had a huge impact on the development of Korean theater and the activities of theater companies. They also became a source of numerous paradoxes, which were in part the outcome of the specific nature of the theater itself, and in part due to the dramatic inability to reconcile creative ideals with the realities of occupied Korea (1910–1945). The research aims to show that the phenomenon of paradox, understood as a conflict between Korean artists’ motivations and the real effects of their activity, had a dramatic influence on the development of Korean theater in the first decades of the 20th century. The scale of this phenomenon justifies, in the author’s opinion, the statement presented in the title, that the phenomenon of paradox defines the identity of Korean theater.

The 60th anniversary of the African Studies program was celebrated at the University of Warsaw in the academic year 2022/23. This is equivalent to 60 years of experience in teaching African languages to Polish students. Since every anniversary encourages reflection, we take this opportunity to summarize the challenges we faced in this endeavour. Teaching foreign languages is not only about presenting new words and structures; it is even more about other cultures, people’s lives, and beliefs. Teaching and learning languages of such distant cultures as we encounter in Africa is quite a challenge to both the teachers and students found in the European context. In the article, we focus on two African languages; Hausa and Swahili, taught at the Chair of African Languages and Cultures, University of Warsaw. We aim to discuss chosen grammatical and cultural differences that pose problems during the teaching of these languages to Polish students.