The Oldest Russian Sticheraria from the Triodion: Some Remarks on Their Homogeneity and Diversity

Abstract

This article concerns a group of Russian chant liturgical books, Sticheraria of the Triodion cycle, which collect stichera from the weeks preparatory to Lent to the Sunday of All Saints. The oldest survived codices belong to the 12th-13th centuries and are separated from the initial moment of Christian worship according to the Byzantine rite in Russia by the period of near a century and half-two centuries.

To get closer to answering the question of what was the liturgical singing in this little known period and by which Byzantine traditions it was influenced, the article suggests to compare Old Russian Sticheraria in several aspects and to identify their unifying and dividing characteristics. As a result, it was found that a number of characteristics emerged under the direct influence of Russian model books derived from the redaction of the second half of the 11th century. Other characteristics allow us to see the particularities of earlier Greek Studite prototypes, as well as the impact of the Palestinian tradition. However, a great number of the divergences need a future enlightenment.