Have you ever thought that on our Earth there are the most ancient witnesses of the entire history of mankind? These are rivers. In this regard, the Volga River is one of the key witnesses of Russian history. But how many of us know that this river had other, more ancient names?
First mentions
The Russian state arose rather late, especially in relation to such European civilizations as the Roman Empire or Byzantium. The initial Russian chronicle "The Tale of Bygone Years" dates back to the 12th century. The first Russian chronicler Nestor calls the river the Volga. But there were much more ancient chronicles in which we first meet our heroine under other names. It is no coincidence that the name of the river directly depends on which civilization the chronicler belonged to. So, the ancient Roman and ancient Greek chronicle mentions the old name of the Volga River briefly - Ra. However, ancient Arabic sources indicate that a river called Atel flowed in this area.
Each author has his own point of view on the origin of the mentioned names. For example, RaAccording to different versions of linguists, it means “generosity” (if we turn to Roman roots) or “calm water” (if we take Indo-European dialects as a basis). So is it fair to say that there is an old name for the Volga River?
Old or foreign?
By the way, the Arabic name of the Volga River turned out to be more tenacious, in various variations it entered the history and maps of many peoples. There is a widespread point of view that the old name of the Volga River is Itil. But to call him old is not entirely correct. This is, rather, one of the names that the tribes living in its lower reaches gave in their own way to the river. Namely, the Bulgars. The language spoken by the ancient Bulgars was Turkic, largely related to and borrowed from Arabic. The word Itil (Atal, Etel) in this group of languages means literally "river".
Origin of the name
Whether this is the new or the old name of the Volga River, history does not confirm exactly. Such is the nature of this science - precision is not its part. But you can figure out the origin of the most native and closest name to us - the Volga. The word has Slavic roots - most researchers agree on this. The words "volgly", "vologa" the tribes that lived along the banks of the river, from ancient times denoted the concepts of moisture, wet, swampy. The Volga, indeed, like most large rivers, originates in a wet swampy area.
However, there is another curious theory that says that the old name of the river (Volga) itself is primary. It is fromthe very name appeared the concept of volgly - wet, wet. This theory is based on the principle: the more significant the geographical object and the more important its role in the life of mankind of past historical periods, the more ancient its name.
Other versions of the name history
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There is a somewhat naive version of the mythological origin of the ancient name of the river, first mentioned in the annals of Ptolemy. Ra is the old name of the Volga River, and for children it is clear that Ra is also the Egyptian god of the Sun. Hardly anyone would call the river of the Central European plain in honor of the sun god of the ancient Egyptians. But in addition, the root "ra" in Latin and Greek means literally "outflow".
Another assumption about the origin of the word "Volga" again sends us to the B altic peoples. "Valka" in the dialect of the B alts meant "flowing stream".
What does the name Volga mean to us
We found out the old name of the Volga River and where it came from. Now it is difficult to imagine that this word could come into our language from somewhere outside, it is so familiar and close. In addition, the very name of this great river gave the name to many large cities (and not only cities), which is forever rooted in our language. Let's try to count how many cities and towns are named after the Volga River: Volgograd, Vologda, Volgodonsk,Volgorechensk, Volzhsk and Zavolzhye, Volzhsky and Zavolzhsk. And what about the legendary car "Volga", produced at the GAZ automobile plant in Nizhny Novgorod? This brand remains one of the best in the domestic auto industry today. And it is named after the same great river, and in many ways it is similar to it.
The name of the river has entered into all areas of art: literature, poetry, painting, music and cinema. Author's and folk songs beloved by all, which will never leave the lips of a Russian person, immortalized the name of the Volga River. Famous Russian artists found in its waters an inexhaustible source of inspiration. I. I. Levitan, B. M. Kustodiev, F. A. Vasiliev, the Chernetsov brothers and many others were in love with the Volga.
Now it does not really matter for us whether the Volga had ancient names, what their origin is. The important thing is that for our children and grandchildren she will remain the same kind mother and breadwinner that she was for our distant ancestors.
