Prince Kiy is the legendary founder of the city of Kyiv, which in a few centuries will become the center of the Old Russian state. There is a lot of controversy about the reality of this person: some historians consider his activities absolutely legendary, others say that legends may have a foundation of real events. So who was Prince Kiy? Biography, various versions of his life, as well as their interpretation will be the subject of our discussion.
Evidence from The Tale of Bygone Years
The first source that should be mentioned when searching for the truth, who was the founder of Kyiv, Prince Kiy, is the chronicle "The Tale of Bygone Years".
According to the annals, the brothers Kyi, Shchek and Khoriv, as well as their sister, the beautiful Lybid, belonged to the Glade tribe. Schek lived on a mountain, which in the future was called Shchekovitsa, and Khoriv lived on a hill, called Horivitsy. In honor of Lybid, a river flowing into the Dnieper was named. Three brothers and a sister founded the city, which was given the name Kyiv after the eldest of them.
At the same time, the chronicler gives another version of the founding of the city, according to which Kiy is not a prince at all, but a simple carrier across the Dnieper. Therefore, this area began to be called "transport Kyiv". In the future, this name was assigned to the city founded in these places. But the chronicler himself refutes this version, saying that Kiy visited Constantinople (the capital of Byzantium, Constantinople) and was received by the emperor, and a simple carrier could not do this, so he is definitely a prince.
Further in the annals it is said that, returning back, Prince Kiy founded a small town on the banks of the Danube, in which he decided to settle. But the locals disliked the newcomers, and therefore they were forced to return to the banks of their native Dnieper, to Kyiv. But nevertheless, on the Danube there was a settlement, which was called Kievets. Kiy, like his brothers and sister, died in the city of Kyiv he founded.
This is the most authoritative legend about Prince Kiya.
Version of the Novgorod Chronicle
The Novgorod Chronicle is a kind of continuation of The Tale of Bygone Years. Nevertheless, it clearly states that Kiy is not a prince at all, but a carrier. It also tells that he was a hunter of animals.
This chronicle also ties the activities of Kiy to a specific time - 854. But most historians believe that if he existed, he lived much earlier. After all, it turns out that just 28 years later, Kyiv was captured by the ruler of Novgorod, Oleg. Prince Kiy was supposed to found Kyiv no later than the end of the 8th century. So, in any case, the famous Soviet historian Mikhail Nikolayevich Tikhomirov thought.
Polish chronicle of Jan Dlugosz
Cue is mentioned not only in domesticChronicles, but also in the sources of other countries. For example, there is a mention of it in the Polish chronicle of the 15th century by Jan Długosz. However, Dlugosh, mentioning Kyi, relied primarily on all the same Russian chronicles that we spoke about above, so his message is secondary.
So how is the cue presented in this chronicle? The prince is mentioned only in connection with what is called the founder of the dynasty that ruled in Kyiv until the brothers Askold and Dir. But The Tale of Bygone Years considers the latter not the descendants of Kiy, but the Vikings. Moreover, Arab chronicles and some modern historians generally doubt that Askold and Dir could rule at the same time, considering them either father and son, or people not related to each other at all.
Armenian interpretation
There is also a legend in Armenia that not only echoes the message from The Tale of Bygone Years, but even operates with identical names. She came to us through the "History of Taron" by Zenob Glack (approximately the 6th-8th centuries). The legend speaks of two brothers who were forced to flee from their native places to Armenia. The local king first granted them lands and granted them lands, but after 15 years he killed them, and betrayed their property to their sons - Cuar, Melthea and Chorean. Each of the brothers founded a city and named it after its own name. Between the settlements they founded a pagan temple.
Kiy and Khoriv are easily guessed in the names of the brothers Kuar and Khorean. The name of the city of Kuara is identical to Kyiv. But what about Meltey? The fact is thatthis name is translated from Armenian as "serpent". The same translation from Old Slavonic has the name Shchek.
But how are the Armenian and Slavic legends related? There is a version that they are united by an ancient common Indo-European legend. It is also suggested that both peoples adopted it from the Scythians.
Archaeological data
How does this information from legends compare with real material data obtained as a result of archaeological excavations? After all, only a legend confirmed by archeology can claim to be historic.
However, there are archaeological finds indicating the presence of a settlement on the site of modern Kyiv as early as the end of the 5th century AD. e. Therefore, in 1982, 1500 years since the founding of Kyiv were conditionally officially celebrated. At the time the settlement was founded, it was located on the borders of three archaeological cultures at the same time: Kolochinsky, Penkovsky and Prague-Korchak. All three cultural groups are classified by most scientists as Slavic tribes. Even earlier, from the 2nd to the 5th centuries, Kyiv culture was located on the site of the future capital of Ukraine. Its immediate successor is the Kolochin culture mentioned above, and its predecessor is Zarubinets.
But archaeologists have found only the remains of an ordinary Slavic settlement of the 5th century. At that time, there was no talk of any full-fledged city with a permanent population. It is only starting from the 8th century that it can be said with certainty that a full-fledged city arose on the site of Kyiv, with fortifications and an urban lifestyle, of course, adjusted for the era. At this time, from the 8th to the 10th centuries,this place intersected Volyntsevskaya culture and Luki-Raikovetskaya. Volintsevo culture is usually associated with the Slavic tribes of the northerners, who had a center in Chernigov. The Luka-Raikovets culture was the successor of the Korchak culture, and is possibly associated with the tribes of the Polans, who actually founded Kyiv, according to the theory accepted by most historians. It should be noted that representatives of the Volyntsevo culture pushed their neighbors to the west.
In 1908, the famous archaeologist VV Khvoyka discovered a complex on Starokievsky Hill, which he himself interpreted as a pagan altar of Prince Kyi. Approximately this find dates back to the VIII-X centuries. However, later Khvoyk's conclusions about the purpose of this structure were called into question by some experts.
Search for truth in Byzantine sources
As mentioned above, in the "Tale of Bygone Years", there was Kiy in Constantinople. The prince was received by the Byzantine emperor. Therefore, if this is not an invention of the chronicler or just a legend, this fact could serve as a good clue to find out who Kiy was and what time he lived.
Some medieval historians even tried to connect this event with the message of the Byzantine Nicephorus Grigora, who lived in the XIII-XIV centuries. According to him, during the reign of the Roman emperor Constantine the Great in the 4th century, the rulers of different countries came to Constantinople. Among them was also named "ruler of Russia". It should be noted that this message in the Middle Ages was perceivedpretty seriously. In one of the chronicles of the 18th century, based on this Byzantine evidence, the year of the foundation of Kyiv was indicated - 334 from the Nativity of Christ.
But with a more careful approach, the testimony of Nicephorus Grigora does not stand up to scrutiny. During the reign of Constantine the Great, there could not yet be any Russia, and the Slavs were scattered tribes, not even united in the semblance of states. For the first time, the term "Rus" appeared only in the 9th century, that is, after five hundred years. In addition, this event was not mentioned anywhere else, and Nicephorus Gregory himself lived 1000 years later than the events described. Most likely, in order to emphasize the greatness of Constantine the Great, he composed this message about the embassy, inserting there the name of the states contemporary to Nicephorus.
An attempt to connect the reign of the founder of Kyiv with the time of Justinian I looks more realistic. It was then that a person lived who can be compared to Kiy. The prince made a journey to Constantinople. Perhaps it was a military campaign, which was often carried out at that time by the Slavs from the union of the Antes. One of them, Khilbudius, was even appointed by the emperor as ruler of the province of Thrace. Some modern scholars are trying to compare Khilbudiya and Kiya. Literally, in the "Tale of Bygone Years" it is indicated that Kiy "received a great honor from the king." The word "honor" for the ancient Slavs also meant the transition to the service. So Kyi could well serve with Justinian as a federate or even hold a post in the Byzantine army, as Khilbudius did. In addition, the Byzantine sources indicate the name of the father Khilbudiya - Samvatas. The same was one of the names of Kyiv.
The historical Khilbudiy was killed in 533 in a battle with one of the Slavic tribes.
Another version compares Kiya with the leader of the Bulgarians Kuber, who lived in the first half of the 7th century.
Khazar version
There is also a hypothesis according to which Kiy - the prince of Kyiv - had a Khazar or Magyar origin. This version was first put forward by the famous historian Vernadsky G. V. He believed that Kyiv was founded relatively late, not earlier than 830. This happened when the borders of the Khazar state moved towards the Dnieper. According to this version, Kiy, Shchek and Khoriv were either Khazars or leaders of the Magyar tribes in the service of the Khazars.
The name "Kiy" Vernadsky derived from the Turkic word, which meant the bank of the river. In addition, the Byzantine emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus calls Kyiv Samvatas, and, according to linguists, this toponym is of Khazar origin.
Reign time
So when did Kiy-prince live? No one can name the years of government exactly. Even the century in which he ruled, if he existed in reality, is very difficult to name. But some time frames can be outlined.
According to various testimonies and interpretations, Kiy lived in the period from the 4th to the 9th centuries. However, if we discard the most extreme and unlikely, such as, for example, the testimony of Nicephorus Gregory, then we get a time period from the 6th to the 8th centuries.
Scientists' findings
Most modern scientists consider the personality of Kiya absolutelylegendary. They define his name as an eponym. That is, the legend of Kiya, according to academic science, was invented in order to explain the name of the city, the origin of which was forgotten.
But still I don't want to believe in such a boring and banal explanation, because the legend is much more interesting.
Cue in modern culture
Currently, Kiy is considered the patron saint of the capital of Ukraine. The monument to the founders of Kyiv Kyi, Shchek, Khoriv and Lybid was erected in 1982, in honor of the celebration of the 1500th anniversary of the founding of the city.
In 1980, the book "Prince Kiy" was written. It belongs to the Ukrainian writer Volodymyr Malik.
Cue stick: history and legend
In the story of Prince Kiya, it is very difficult to separate the real story from the legend. Moreover, most historians believe that this ruler never existed.
Nevertheless, Kiy, the prince whose name has become a legend, will forever remain connected with the founding of the city of Kyiv in the minds of many people.
