“History of Khazars” by A. Yu. Krymskyi in fonds of Institute of Manuscript of V. I. Vernadskyi National Library of Ukraine

The aim of the work is to analyze the structure and content of the manuscript of monograph “History of the Khazars” by A. Yu. Krymskyi, which is stored in the fonds of the Institute of Manuscript of the V. I. Vernadskyi National Library of Ukraine, and also to explain the circumstances of its writing. The research methodology is based on the principles of historicism, scientific objectivity and a combination of methods of historical research – historical, comparative, chronological, source study, archival study, bibliographic. The scientific novelty of the research is that firstly not only the content of the monograph “History of the Khazars” was studied, but also the origin of certain parts of the manuscript of the monograph was analyzed. Some fragments of this work are also stored outside the Institute of Manuscript of the V. I. Vernadskyi National Library of Ukraine – in the O. Pritsak Research Center for Oriental Studies of the National University of “Kyiv-Mohyla Academy”. However, they duplicate of the sheets, which stored in the fonds of the Institute of Manuscript. We know, the research consists of two large parts that contradict each other. The part, where the events after the 6th century AD are described, has a great scientific importance. It was mainly completed before 1936. The part, where the events before the 6th century AD are described, does not have a great scientific significance, because it is written according to the N. Marr's positions. It was completed in 1937. According to the biography of A. Yu. Krymskyi, we can believe that a purely scientific part of monograph by A. Yu. Krymskyi was completed before the repressions against him. A. Yu. Krymskyi had written a part according to the ideas of N. Marr during the exile in Zvenyhorodka. It saved him, because in 1937 the repression against him was temporarily decreased. Conclusions. A great work “History of the Khazars” by A. Yu. Krymskyi, the manuscript of which is stored in the fonds of the Institute of Manuscript of the V. I. Vernadskyi National Library of Ukraine, is an outstanding event in the history of Khazar studies. It is especially true of the main part, dedicated to the events after the 6th century AD. Unfortunately, the first and last pages of the main part of the “History of the Khazars” have not been found. Therefore in the future we will have a chance to publish a more complete version of the great research of the Ukrainian scholar.