Technology has made it possible for anyone in the 21st century to find out the details of any interesting incident from every corner of the Earth with its own blogger in seconds. And therefore the chronicler is a relic of ancient times, a profession mysterious and incomprehensible to contemporaries. But at the same time it is very important for the study of history, since it was thanks to it that the first archival records appeared, according to which people were able to recreate the image of the past formed by the ancestors.
What is the origin of the word?
A direct connection with the term "annals" is obvious even with a superficial study of the issue. What was the essence of the profession? Under any prince was a chronicler. This position is responsible, albeit subtle. Such a specialist noted the most significant events in the life of the entire state or a separate region, after which he put them on a special list in chronological order.
Some lists were short, consisted of a date and a concise description. Others, however, dwelt in detail on the life of the townspeople, the specifics of the conflict situation, or quoted the most striking speeches of military leaders and rulers. Today, fiction and cinema often borrow images directly from such sources.
How to decipher the concept?
Several equivalent interpretations are possible. The main meaning of the word “chronicler” directly indicates the type of activity, while the side ones play with meanings. Two versions are popular:
- directly the compiler of the annals, its author;
- A person who regularly records events.
A full-fledged Old Russian analogue of a historian, albeit with features. It is difficult to be objective when there are no universal criteria for evaluating the text, and behind the back there is always a king who wants to be famous for centuries. But even in such conditions, the chronicle gave an idea of the life of both the simple estate and aristocrats.
Today, everyone who keeps a personal diary is a chronicler. The population is completely literate, has the skill of writing. And life pictures and a description of vivid emotions on a historical background differ little from the classical annals, even if they do not have the same significance for preserving folk memory.
How much in demand today?
To earn the glory of the conditional Nestor is not for everyone. But to go online is a matter of two seconds. Let bloggers become more and more inclined towards commerce and try to talk about cosmetics and ways to earn money. Initially, each of them is a chronicler in public space. The author shares his thoughts, reactions to relevant topics, and thousands of commentators also respond to his work. And the result is a colorful biography, which in a couple of centuries can form the basis of scientific research.