Orthodox samizdat in Chuvashia in the 1960s–1980s

The article is devoted to the phenomenon of Orthodox church samizdat in second half 20th century. term used this refers a set texts reproduced an artisanal way and distributed goers circle without sanction or secular authorities. In conditions Soviet reality, circles were deep periphery public life was formed from marginalized those pushed out by authorities social margins. specific position people USSR determined repertoire their ideological orientation. source base for large library left after death Elizabeth Feodorovna Zakharova, active parishioner Vvedensky Cathedral Cheboksary. Zakharova typical representative goers. reviews genres works that available as Zakharova’s library: liturgical texts, artisan copies pre-revolutionary publications, spiritual verses, thematic collections, folklore, apologetic literature, eschatologicaland conspiralogical etc. One peculiarities existence Chuvashia many circulated translations into Chuvash language. Among features Cheboksary replication prosaic translation John Milton’s poems “Paradise Lost” Regained”. Church performed number important functions circles: it solved problem demand doctrinal literature deficit conditions, shared uncensored rallied could besource additional income. general, part culture during era. spelling punctuation original unpublished sources are preserved when cited.