Crymka in Crimea
Or journey with puppy

By Edward Drach

One of the names of Saluki/Tazy is Crymka*.
This name you can find even in classic literature.
The Great Ukrainian Russian languaged writer Mykola Hohol**
(in his “Dead Souls” described one landlord Nozdriov keen on crymka's.

They were very popular dogs. Landlords could even change their willageman
for them. But they disappeared from our country the first time with lords after
revolution and the second time may be with departured Crimean Tartars after
the 2-nd world war.

That's why the returning of Crymka to Crimea was interesting to me.
My wife is from Crimea and she has a lot of relatives to visit them.
My vacations as usual are long enough to have such a pleasant journey.
But this time we were with our puppy – Crymka by name of Bounchouk.
And his visit to Crimea was the visit to the former area of his relatives.
Crimea is a Southern part of Ukraine. Climate in the South Coast of
Crimea is Subtropical. Sometimes they compare it with Italian one or
climate of a Southern France resorts.
Partenit, where we had been was an old Greek Diaspora in ancient
Mediterranean region. It's name created from ancient Greek word
Partenos – lady. There was a great temple devoted to the beautiful half
of Mankind. And they killed the representatives of another part of Mankind
(as usual – foreign sailors) devoting them to their goddess (O tempera o mores!).
Several centuries later Goths came to Crimea and admitted Christianity.
In centuries the Tartars came and brought Islam. They had closer relationship
with all Muslim world so that Saluki came to Crimea and became Tazy
(Tazy means “clear” in tartar language, they had another word for another
dogs – “it”, because saluki/tazy were of another kind. Islam let keep them indoor.
Generally, as for Muslims, they had the legend about the origin of Tazy from
wolf and cheetah . Then with Tartar Cavaliery part of them was brought to
Poland (Tartars served as a base of Cavaliery in the army of Poland up to 1939)
and become an ancestor of Hart Polsky (domestic hound). Those who came to
Ukraine were named as Hort or Crymka. That's a shortened history and I'm very
grad to finish this may be was a little bit boring but very important part of my story.

This history began when old car Lada of 1976 appeared among our family's things
this summer (2002).
It was Italian Fiat 124 made in the former USSR – wondercar of soviet roads
in early 1970-th's. It was really great adventure!

To be continued.

Footnotes
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* sometimes is written as Krimka, or Krymka.

** better known as spoken in Russian transcription Nikolai Gogol.