Permalink : http://hdl.handle.net/2115/38240

This paper translates and provides commentary on the "Church" Statute of Prince Jaroslav (d.1054). This Statute was originally drafted in the 11th century, but it was considerably revised in each Russian eparchy up to the 18th century, and served as the judicial basis of Russian society. Moreover, the Statute defines the jurisdiction of the church and prescribes punitive measures against wrongdoings that would be referred to the church. Although a large number of studies have been made of the textlogical and chronological investigation of the Statute since the 19th century, there was little consensus. For example, N. Karamzin (1842) asserted that the Statute was drafted in the 14th century, that is, it was not the work of Jaroslav. But in 1972, J.N. Shchapov finally provided detailed evidence of when and how the Statute was drafted. He recognized the Statute as authentic, compiled by Jaroslav, and dating from 11th century. His thesis on the Statute is widely accepted. But this paper criticizes his idea of the "historical" relations between the short and long versions of the Statute. The paper also provides translations of both versions.