понедельник, 8 ноября 2010 г.

THE PREFACE

The map in its diverse kinds — from a card of hemispheres to cards of separate continents, the countries, small territories, long since serves people as an irreplaceable directory, enriches with knowledge, accompanies on the journey, helps with set of various works. At the same time the card of the Earth — one of the most remarkable monuments of history of a science and culture, it as though accumulates a centuries-old way of knowledge mankind of a surface of our planet.

The map reminds us of works and feats of many and many seafarers and travelers, people of the different countries and the epoch well-known and anonymous researchers. It reminds and that the history of opening of the new earths and the seas is strongly connected with social and economic history of a society, is caused by it, accompanied in the history of class pre-capitalistic societies and in particular in the conditions of capitalism by gains, enslavement of the people, occurrence of colonial powers and their rivalry.

Place names on a card cause at times in memory of page of history of opening. With a pride for fulfillments of our ancestors we find on a card names of Russian землепроходцев, participants of Great Northern expedition, pioneers of Antarctica; in many place names the history of researches and Soviet period opening is reflected.

It is not necessary to explain, educational and educational value of history of opening thanks to which the physical map of the Earth was formed is how much great. In istoriko-scientific aspect creation of this card — the most considerable achievement of a geographical science of the past.

The geography has arisen also long time developed as a science which is engaged in the description of the Earth. Still were in the ancient time designated in it землеведческое and regional geographic directions. And its major business throughout centuries there was a creation and the specification of a card connected with distant sea and overland travel. Not casually sense of concept «geographical opening» was reduced to detection of the geographical object which has been not put on a card. Such treatment of this concept became traditional.

The modern geography representing the whole system of sciences, cardinally differs from former descriptive geography. The Soviet geographers pay the increasing attention to researches of diverse geographical laws, solve challenges of scientific forecasts. It is natural that nowadays in development of a geographical science on the foreground the opening leading to revealing of empirical and theoretical laws, to deepening of knowledge of essence of the geographical phenomena and their interrelations are put forward. The significant boundary in the history of knowledge of the Earth there is no time have made the great geographical opening, played a huge role in formation of a physical map of our planet. It is possible to assume that great opening in geography still ahead is the future our science.

The told doesn't belittle, of course, great historical value of territorial and equatorial opening in which result all continents and oceans of our planet have been put on a card. These opening have ranked high and in the history of scientific researches of the Earth throughout XX century when the exact card of Antarctica has been created, the highest top of our country — Communism peak is found out, enormous Cherskogo range is opened, many other tops, ridges, glaciers, lakes, the rivers are put on a card. It is necessary to carry to the modern also the opening caused картированием of a bottom of the seas and oceans; as a result it was possible to receive representation about the basic orographical units forming a deep-water relief.

Features of modern geographical opening are interfaced to scientific and technical progress, with space shooting; last years with its help large-scale topographic maps are specified, huge linear breaks and the ring structures of a various origin finding the expression in a macrorelief of the Earth are revealed.

Far the problematics of history of opening of former times hasn't sputtered out also. Undoubtedly that the next decades much will be already made that more deeply, versatile to present a long way of opening of a terrestrial surface and map creation as process in which the people of all manned continents, all countries participated. Obviously, considerable contribution will be brought in this question by the young national geographical schools having nowadays development in a number of the countries of Asia, Africa, Latin America.

The literature including many hundreds and thousand of products — scientific, popular scientific, art is devoted history of opening extensive, vast already nowadays. Among them the special place is occupied with the works of generalizing character having the purpose to capture all historical way of opening of continents and oceans of the Earth, creation of a map of the world. It is not a lot of them, though they also are presented by tens books in the different languages written at various times. In the Soviet geographical literature to the most considerable products such I. P.Magidovicha written with the assistance of V.I.Magidovicha's the fundamental work, — «sketches on stories of geographical opening», twice (1957 and 1967) published in the USSR and published in a number of the socialist countries belongs.

I. P.Magidovich has brought the big contribution to history of geographical knowledge. Throughout the long scientific activity it prosecuted subjects of a demography, regional geography, economic geography of foreign countries. To the Istoriko-geographical problems which have become by the main things on the scientific importance, last decades have been entirely devoted his life, but they have entered into sphere of its scientific interests in 20 — 30th Undoubtedly that occurrence of these works was promoted by the experience which has been saved up by it in the Big Soviet Encyclopedia and at the Moscow university.

The polyglot, the good lecturer, encyclopedically formed person, I. P.Magidovich was "Encyclopaedist" and in literal sense, cooperating in geographical edition of first edition БСЭ. Subsequently at it steady interest to works of the encyclopedic character, reflected in a number of its istoriko-geographical articles in БСЭ has remained, the Short geographical encyclopedia, etc. Till now hasn't lost the value and the extensive arch of curriculum vitae about Russian seafarers and data on the geographical objects named their names, made by it for the edition «Russian seafarers» (М, 1953).

At the Moscow university where I. P.Magidovich taught a number of years on chair of economic geography of foreign countries, it conducted also a course of history of the geographical opening, which working out, as a matter of fact, and has begun its later generalizing capital works in this area. To them, except «Sketches but stories of geographical opening», concern three volumes included in a known series «Opening of the Earth» (1962–1973) and devoted to the North America (1962), Central both the South America (1965) and Europe (1970). The Latest book — «History of opening and research of Europe», written to the co-authorship from V.I.Magidovichem, was the first special monography on this theme in the world scientific literature.

A lot of work has enclosed I. P.Magidovich in scientific editing of works on stories of geographical knowledge. «The book Marco Polo"and"Christopher Columbus's Travel (Diaries, letters, documents)","Magellan's Travel», leaving under its edition with substantial introductory articles, have sustained repeated editions. About product of J. Бейкера «Stories of geographical opening and researches», received wide popularity in first half XX century, it is necessary to tell more in detail. In «the Preface of the editor» to Russian translation of this book (1950) accurately come to light not only its distinctive features, but also approaches to an istoriko-geographical problematics, characteristic for I. P.Magidovicha. Marking help value of the monography, its advantage in which force it «… can be considered as the best modern foreign directory on stories of geographical opening and researches», I. P.Magidovich defines also its main lack:« To be history of opening, work of Bejkera doesn't have not enough the most essential: listing the various expeditions organized for the purpose of opening or those researches or other parts of a land or the World ocean, it very seldom finds out the historical reasons of such research activity ». To lacks of the book it had been carried also absence of exact principles of selection — from many tens thousand known — those travel which are mentioned on its pages. Thereupon it is noted also obvious европоцентризм, affecting in material allocation.

Work I.P. Magidovicha are free from this lack: as itself, and in the co-authorship from V.I.Magidovichem, it in a number of the books including «Sketches …», tells about large geographical opening of some others — except European — the people.

However, according to the accepted authors restrictions (Introduction see) outside of «Sketches …» there is a circle of the problems connected with formation of initial representations about separate parts of a land, the seas and oceans in a primitive society. In particular, great geographical opening of inhabitants of islands of Pacific ocean — Polynesians, in V–XIV d.C. though Polynesians «the first left in open ocean for the purpose of development of the new earths …» Their swimmings captured huge spaces of Pacific ocean and made in the conditions of very developed shipbuilding and мореходства — signs of high Polynesian culture of that time aren't reflected century, — it is necessary to consider as «the present heroic feat» (the World history, т. V, М, 1958, with. 332–334).

For 400–500 years before Dutch Tasman has opened "for the first time" New Zealand, it was occupied by Polynesians (about it see for example, in monographies: Ja. M.Svet «History of opening and research of Australia and Ocenia», М, 1966, with. 41; Peter Bak «Seafarers of solar rising». М, 1959, etc.). The modern data it is conclusive testify that initial opening and settling of islands and archipelagoes of Pacific ocean Polynesians has been connected with formation of elementary knowledge of these earths mislaid at ocean, about oceanic ways, with beginning fastening of the received knowledge in public memory, occurrence of primitive "cards", reflection of the extracted knowledge in folklore of islanders and etc.

There is no doubt that the preliterate period of history of mankind is rich with many large geographical opening. The majority of them for the present isn't established. But about already known it is necessary to store and do memory by property of studying youth carefully.

Books have the destiny, to «to Sketches …» the fate has a kind feeling deservedly: they have passed test by time, became an encyclopedic directory and nowadays, updated, we are assured, again will find the grateful and attentive reader. And not only among teachers for whom they are conceived and intended, — «…» it is possible to recommend Sketches to wide ranges of the interested history of geographical opening.