Lev Rafailovich Kontsevich (born September 3, 1930, Tambov) – famous Soviet and Russian orientalist, Korean studies, candidate of philological sciences. He is best known for the development of a system for transliterating the characters of the Korean Hangeul alphabet into Cyrillic (Kontsevich system), which is now the de facto standard for translating Korean words into Cyrillic and since the 1970s has been used when transmitting geographic names of Korea into Russian. Father of the mathematician Maxim .
Biography
Born into a family of employees Rafail Stanislavovich Kontsevich and Sofia Nikolaevna Popova. He was educated at the Moscow Institute of Oriental Studies. He graduated from the postgraduate course of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the USSR Academy of Sciences, then worked there as a junior researcher. In 1958-1974 he worked as head of the department of culture and language and executive secretary of the scientific journal „Peoples of Asia and Africa” (now „Vostok”). In 1973 he defended his dissertation and received the degree of candidate of philological sciences. In 1974 he returned to the Institute of Oriental Studies as a senior research fellow. In 1991-1995 he worked as a visiting professor in South Korea. In 1995-2003 he was a leading researcher at the International Center for Korean Studies at Moscow State University (concurrently). At present, he is a leading researcher at the Department of Oriental Languages at the Institute of Oriental Studies.
Scientific activity
He is the author and editor of a large number of studies, articles and publications on oriental studies, as well as translations of Korean traditional literature. He is best known for developing the rules for transcribing from Hangul to Cyrillic. Recipient of the Korean Linguistics Achievement Award from the Dongsun Science Foundation in Seoul.
Among the most significant publications it should be noted: compilation and preparation for publication of „Selected Works. Works on Oriental and General Linguistics „by E. D. Polivanova (1991), posthumous edition of” Grammar of the Korean Language (Theoretical Course) „by Yu. N. Mazur (2001),” „(volume 3, together with others, 2002) , four issues of the anthology „Russian Korean Studies” (editor-in-chief, 2001-2008), the reference manual „Chinese proper names and terms in the Russian text” (2002), sections of Korean classical prose and poetry in the series „Libraries of World Literature” (volumes 16 and 18), articles on Korean mythology in the encyclopedia „Myths of the peoples of the world” (1980-1982), „Korean traditions and legends from medieval books” (1980), compilation and translation (together with MI Nikitina) from the Old Korean anthology „Bamboo In the snow. Korean lyrics of the 8th – 19th centuries (in a poetic translation by A. Zhovtis) „(1978), a collection of Chong Chol’s” Lonely crane. From Korean poetry of the 16th century (in the poetic translation of A. Zhovtis) “(1975/2009) and so on.
Publications
- Questions of textual criticism of the first monument of Korean writing „Hongmin Chonyum”. / Author’s abstract. diss. … K. philol. n. – M., 1973.
- Hongmin Chonim (Guidance to the People on Correct Pronunciation) / Research and transl. from Hanmun L. R. Kontsevich. – (Series „Monuments of of the East.” Issue 58) – M .: Nauka, 1979. – 530 p.
- Korean Studies: Selected Works. – M .: Muravei-Guide, 2001 .– 637 p.
- Contemporary Russian Korean Studies: a reference publication / Comp. L.R.Kontsevich, T.M. Simbirtseva. – (Series „Russian Korean Studies in the Past and Present.” T. 3) – M .: Institute of Oriental Studies, 2006. – 622 p.
- Selected bibliography of literature on Korea in Russian and Western European languages (from the 19th century to 2007). – (Series „Russian Korean Studies in the Past and Present”. T. 6) – M., 2008. – 590 p.
- The world of Hongming Chong-Eum. – (Series „Russian Korean Studies in the Past and Present.”
- Dictionary of Geographical Names of the of Korea. Reference manual. / Ed .: Song Zhihun, Oh Dongong .; Institute of Oriental Studies RAS. – M .: Nauka – Vostochnaya Literatura, 2018 .– 733 p., Schematic maps.
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