1.
Old East Slavic
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Old East Slavic, Old Ruthenian, Old Rusian was a language used in the 10th–15th centuries by East Slavs in Kievan Rus and states which evolved after the collapse of Kievan Rus. Dialects of it were spoken, though not exclusively, in the area occupied by Belarus, central and northern Ukraine. Linguists from each of the three East Slavic countries tend to treat Old East Slavic as the predecessor of their own language. The Russian drevnerusskij jazyk means Old Rus’ian as well, Rusian is similarly used by some western scholars such as Horace Lunt. The language was a descendant of the Proto-Slavic language and faithfully retained many of its features, a striking innovation in the evolution of this language was the development of so-called pleophony, which came to differentiate the newly evolving East Slavic from other Slavic dialects. For instance, Common Slavic *gordъ settlement, town was reflected as OESl. gorodъ, Common Slavic *melko milk > OESl. moloko, other Slavic dialects are differed by resolving the closed-syllable clusters *eRC and *aRC as liquid metathesis, or by no change at all. Since extant written records of the language are sparse, it is difficult to assess the level of its unity, in consideration of the number of tribes and clans that constituted Kievan Rus, it is probable that there were many dialects of Old East Slavonic. Nonetheless, by 1150 it had more unity than any other branch of Slavic, with time, it evolved into several more diversified forms, which were the predecessors of the modern Belarusian, Russian, Rusyn and Ukrainian languages. The Ukrainian branch split away first, between 1200 and 1500, whereas Russian later separated from Belarusian by 1700, each of these languages preserves much of the Old East Slavic grammar and vocabulary. The Old Church Slavonic language was introduced, documentation of the language of this period is scanty, making it difficult at best fully to determine the relationship between the literary language and its spoken dialects. There are references in Arab and Byzantine sources to pre-Christian Slavs in European Russia using some form of writing, although the Glagolitic alphabet was briefly introduced, as witnessed by church inscriptions in Novgorod, it was soon entirely superseded by the Cyrillic. The following excerpts illustrate two of the most famous literary monuments, the spelling of the original excerpt has been partly modernized. The translations are best attempts at being literal, not literary,1110, from the Laurentian Codex,1377, Early language, fall of the yers in progress or arguably complete. South Slavic features include времѧньнъıх bygone, modern R прошлых, modern Ukr минулих, correct use of perfect and aorist, єсть пошла is/has come, нача began Note the style of punctuation. 1200, from the Pskov manuscript, fifteenth cent, illustrates the sung epics, with typical use of metaphor and simile. The Old East Slavic language developed a certain literature of its own, though much of it was influenced as regards style, the earliest dated specimen of Old East Slavic must be considered the written Slovo o zakone i blagodati, by Hilarion, metropolitan of Kiev. In this work there is a panegyric on Prince Vladimir of Kiev and this subtle and graceful oration admirably conforms to the precepts of the Byzantine eloquence. It is rivalled by another panegyric on Vladimir, written a decade later by Yakov the Monk, from the writings of Theodosius we see that many pagan habits were still in vogue among the people
2.
East Slavs
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The East Slavs are Slavic peoples speaking East Slavic languages. Formerly the main population of the state of Kievan Rus. Researchers know relatively little about the Eastern Slavs prior to approximately 859 AD, zealous Christian missions burned and destroyed all evidences of history of the people before that. The Eastern Slavs of these early times apparently lacked a written language, the few known facts come from archaeological digs, foreign travellers accounts of the Rus land, and linguistic comparative analyses of Slavic languages. Very few native Rus documents dating before the 11th century have survived, the earliest major manuscript with information on Rus history, the Primary Chronicle, dates from the late 11th and early 12th centuries. There is no consensus among scholars as to the urheimat of the Slavs, in the first millennium AD, Slavic settlers are likely to have been in contact with other ethnic groups who moved across the East European Plain during the Migration Period. Between the first and ninth centuries, the Sarmatians, Huns, Alans, Avars, Bulgars, although some of them could have subjugated the regions Slavs, these foreign tribes left little trace in the Slavic lands. The Early Middle Ages also saw Slavic expansion as an agriculturist and beekeeper, hunter, fisher, herder, by the 8th century, the Slavs were the dominant ethnic group on the East European Plain. By 600 AD, the Slavs had split linguistically into southern, western, the East Slavs practiced slash-and-burn agricultural methods which took advantage of the extensive forests in which they settled. This method of agriculture involved clearing tracts of forest with fire, cultivating it, the East Slavs flooded Eastern Europe in two streams. Another group of East Slavs moved from Pomerania to the northeast, the same Slavic population also settled the present-day Tver Oblast and the region of Beloozero. Having reached the lands of the Merya near Rostov, they linked up with the Dnieper group of Slavic migrants. Roughly in the period, the Ilmen Slavs and Krivichs were dominated by the Varangians of the Rus Khaganate. The earliest tribal centres of the East Slavs included Novgorod, Izborsk, Polotsk, Gnezdovo, archaeology indicates that they appeared at the turn of the tenth century, soon after the Slavs and Finns of Novgorod had rebelled against the Norsemen and forced them to withdraw to Scandinavia. The reign of Oleg of Novgorod in the tenth century witnessed the return of the Varangians to Novgorod. From this base, the mixed Varangian-Slavic population launched several expeditions against Constantinople, at first the ruling elite was primarily Norse, but it was rapidly Slavicized by the mid-century. Sviatoslav I of Kiev was the first Rus ruler with a Slavonic name, the disintegration, or parcelling of the polity of Kievan Rus in the 11th century resulted in considerable population shifts and a political, social, and economic regrouping. This article incorporates public domain material from the Library of Congress Country Studies website http, //lcweb2. loc. gov/frd/cs/
3.
Leo Mol
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Leonid Molodoshanin, known as Leo Mol, OC OM was a Ukrainian Canadian stained glass artist and sculptor. Born Leonid Molodozhanyn in Polonne, Russian Empire, he learned the art of ceramics in his fathers pottery workshop, Mol studied sculpture at the Leningrad Academy of Arts from 1936 to 1940. Following the German invasion of the Soviet Union he moved to Germany where he was influenced by Arno Breker, in 1945, he moved to The Hague, and in December,1948, he and his wife, Magareth, emigrated to Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1948. In 1949, he held his first ceramics exhibition in Winnipeg, Mol was known for his sculptures of square dancers, skiers, aboriginals, and wildlife. Mol also completed more than 80 stained-glass windows in churches throughout Winnipeg, more than three hundred of Mols works are displayed in the 1.2 hectare Leo Mol Sculpture Garden in Winnipegs Assiniboine Park which comprises a gallery, a renovated studio, and an outdoor display. The garden was unveiled on June 18,1992 and has expanded twice since. It is supported by donations, and Mol personally donated 200 bronze sculptures to the city of Winnipeg. The sculptures are of religious leaders, prominent people, the human form, Mol died July 4,2009, at the Tache Centre medical facility in Winnipeg, Manitoba. In 2002, his bronze sculpture Lumberjacks, which now stands in Assiniboine Park was featured on a 48¢ Canadian postage stamp in the sculptors series. Mols small bronze sculpture of lumberjacks was his inspiration for a bronze sculpture. He was always known as a prolific artist and some of his most famous works include likenesses of three different Popes which stand in museums in the Vatican. He also has a sculpture of Taras Shevchenko on display on Washington’s Embassy Row, other important subjects who Mol sculpted include members of the Group of Seven, A. J. Casson, A. Y. Mol also sculpted Sir Winston Churchill 1966, Winnipeg editorial cartoonist Peter Kuch, Dwight D. Eisenhower 1965, John F. Kennedy 1969, Elizabeth Bradford Holbrook ca. The maquette of Sir William Stephenson C. C. is displayed in a place of honour within CIA Headquarters, Langley, VA, USA In 1989, in 2000, he was awarded the Order of Manitoba. He was a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts and he received honorary degrees from the University of Winnipeg, the University of Alberta and the University of Manitoba. Mol was also made an academician of the Canadian Portrait Academy in 2000. LeoMol. ca Stained Glass in the Cathedral of Sts
4.
Oleg of Novgorod
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Oleg of Novgorod was a Varangian prince who ruled all or part of the Rus people during the early 10th century. He also launched at least one attack on Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine Empire, according to East Slavic chronicles, Oleg was supreme ruler of the Rus from 882 to 912. The nature of Olegs relationship with the Rurikid ruling family of the Rus, according to the Primary Chronicle, Oleg was a relative of the first ruler, Rurik, and was entrusted by Rurik to take care of both his kingdom and his young son Igor. Oleg gradually took control of the Dnieper cities, seizing the power in Kiev by tricking and slaying Askold and Dir, the new capital was a convenient place to launch a raid against Constantinople in 907. According to the chronicle, the Byzantines attempted to poison Oleg, having fixed his shield to the gate of the imperial capital, Oleg won a favourable trade treaty, which eventually was of great benefit to both nations. Although Byzantine sources did not record these hostilities, the text of the treaty survives in the Chronicle, the Novgorod First Chronicle does not give the date of the commencement of Olegs reign, but dates his death to 922 rather than 912. Scholars have contrasted this dating scheme with the reigns of roughly thirty-three years for both Oleg and Igor in the Primary Chronicle. The Primary Chronicle and other Kievan sources place Olegs grave in Kiev, in the Primary Chronicle, Oleg is known as the Prophet, an epithet alluding to the sacred meaning of his Norse name. According to the legend, romanticised by Alexander Pushkin in his ballad The Song of the Wise Oleg, to defy the prophecies, Oleg sent the horse away. Many years later he asked where his horse was, and was told it had died and he asked to see the remains and was taken to the place where the bones lay. When he touched the skull with his boot a snake slithered from the skull. Oleg died, thus fulfilling the prophecy, in Scandinavian traditions, this legend lived on in the saga of Orvar-Odd. According to the Primary Chronicle, Oleg died in 912 and his successor, Igor of Kiev, the Schechter Letter, a document written by a Jewish Khazar, a contemporary of Romanus I Lecapenus, describes the activities of a Rus warlord named HLGW, usually transcribed as Helgu. For years many scholars disregarded or discounted the Schechter Letter account, zuckerman posited that the early chronology of the Rus had to be re-determined in light of these sources. In contrast to Zuckermans version, the Primary Chronicle and the later Kiev Chronicle place Olegs grave in Kiev, where it could be seen at the time of the compilation of these documents. Furthermore, scholars have pointed out that if Oleg succeeded Rurik in 879, he could hardly have been active almost 70 years later and it has also been suggested that Helgu-Oleg who waged war in the 940s was distinct from both of Ruriks successors. He could have one of the fair and great princes recorded in the Russo-Byzantine treaties of 911 and 944 or one of the archons of Rus mentioned in De administrando imperio. Georgy Vernadsky even identified the Oleg of the Schechter Letter with Igors otherwise anonymous eldest son, however, the academic mainstream has not endorsed either of these theories
5.
Olga of Kiev
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Saint Olga was a ruler of Kievan Rus as regent for her son, Svyatoslav. Because of this, Olga is venerated as a saint, while her birthdate is unknown, it could be as early as AD890 and as late as 5 June 925. Olga, a woman from Pskov, married the future Igor of Kiev, arguably in 903, the Primary Chronicle gives 879 as her date of birth, which is unlikely, given the birth of her only son probably some 65 years after that date. After Igors death, Olga ruled Kievan Rus as regent on behalf of their son Svyatoslav and she was, hypothetically, of Varangian extraction. Old Norse, Helga The following account is taken from the Primary Chronicle, Princess Olga was the wife of Igor of Kiev, who was killed by the Drevlians. At the time of her husbands death, their son Svyatoslav was three years old, making Olga the official ruler of Kievan Rus until he reached adulthood. The Drevlians wanted Olga to marry their Prince Mal, making him the ruler of Kievan Rus, the Drevlians sent twenty of their best men to persuade Olga to marry their Prince Mal and give up her rule of Kievan Rus. Then she sent word to Prince Mal that she accepted the proposal, the Drevlians sent their best men who governed their land. Upon their arrival, she offered them a welcome and an invitation to clean up after their long journey in a bathhouse. After they entered, she locked the doors and set fire to the building, burning them alive, with the best and wisest men out of the way, she planned to destroy the remaining Drevlians. She invited them to a funeral feast so she could mourn over her husbands grave, after the Drevlians were drunk, Olgas soldiers killed over 5,000 of them. She returned to Kiev and prepared an army to attack the survivors, the Drevlians begged for mercy and offered to pay for their freedom with honey and furs. She asked for three pigeons and three sparrows from each house, since she did not want to burden the villagers any further after the siege and they were happy to comply with such a reasonable request. Now Olga gave to each soldier in her army a pigeon or a sparrow, when night fell, Olga bade her soldiers release the pigeons and the sparrows. So the birds flew to their nests, the pigeons to the cotes, the dove-cotes, the coops, the porches, and the haymows were set on fire. There was not a house that was not consumed, and it was impossible to extinguish the flames, the people fled from the city, and Olga ordered her soldiers to catch them. Thus she took the city and burned it, and captured the elders of the city, some of the other captives she killed, while some she gave to others as slaves to her followers. The remnant she left to pay tribute, in 947, Princess Olga launched a punitive expedition against the tribal elites between the Luga and the Msta River
6.
Saints Cyril and Methodius
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Saints Cyril and Methodius were two brothers who were Byzantine Christian theologians and Christian missionaries. Through their work influenced the cultural development of all Slavs. They are credited with devising the Glagolitic alphabet, the first alphabet used to transcribe Old Church Slavonic, after their deaths, their pupils continued their missionary work among other Slavs. Both brothers are venerated in the Orthodox Church as saints with the title of equal-to-apostles, in 1880, Pope Leo XIII introduced their feast into the calendar of the Roman Catholic Church. In 1980, Pope John Paul II declared them co-patron saints of Europe, the two brothers were born in Thessalonica, in present-day Greece – Cyril in about 827–828 and Methodius about 815–820. Cyril was reputedly the youngest of seven brothers, he was born Constantine, Methodius was born Michael and took the name Methodius upon becoming a monk at Mysian Olympus, in northwest Turkey. Their father was Leo, a droungarios of the Byzantine theme of Thessalonica, the exact ethnic origins of the brothers are unknown, there is controversy as to whether Cyril and Methodius were of Slavic or Byzantine Greek origin, or both. The two brothers lost their father when Cyril was fourteen, and the powerful minister Theoktistos, who was logothetes tou dromou, one of the ministers of the Empire. Cyril was ordained as priest some time after his education, while his brother Methodius remained only a deacon until 867/868, Cyrils mastery of theology and command of both Arabic and Hebrew made him eligible for his first state mission. He was sent to the Abbasid Caliph Al-Mutawakkil to discuss the principle of the Holy Trinity with the Arab theologians and this mission was unsuccessful, as later the Khagan imposed Judaism on his people as the national religion. It has been claimed that Methodius accompanied Cyril on the mission to the Khazars, the account of his life presented in the Latin Legenda claims that he learned the Khazar language while in Chersonesos, in Taurica. In 862, the brothers began the work which would give them their historical importance and that year Prince Rastislav of Great Moravia requested that Emperor Michael III and the Patriarch Photius send missionaries to evangelize his Slavic subjects. His motives in doing so were more political than religious. Rastislav had become king with the support of the Frankish ruler Louis the German, Rastislav is said to have expelled missionaries of the Roman Church and instead turned to Constantinople for ecclesiastical assistance and, presumably, a degree of political support. The Emperor quickly chose to send Cyril, accompanied by his brother Methodius, the request provided a convenient opportunity to expand Byzantine influence. Their first work seems to have been the training of assistants, in 863, they began the task of translating the Bible into the language now known as Old Church Slavonic and travelled to Great Moravia to promote it. They enjoyed considerable success in this endeavour, however, they came into conflict with German ecclesiastics who opposed their efforts to create a specifically Slavic liturgy. For the purpose of mission, they devised the Glagolitic alphabet
7.
Slavs
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Slavs are the largest Indo-European ethno-linguistic group in Europe. They are native to Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Southeastern Europe, Northeastern Europe, North Asia, Slavs speak Slavic languages of the Balto-Slavic language group. From the early 6th century they spread to inhabit most of Central, states with Slavic languages comprise over 50% of the territory of Europe, therefore it is the largest ethno-linguistic group in Europe by land area. Present-day Slavic people are classified into West Slavs, East Slavs, there are an estimated 360 million Slavs worldwide. The Slavic autonym is reconstructed in Proto-Slavic as *Slověninъ, plural *Slověne, the oldest documents written in Old Church Slavonic and dating from the 9th century attest the autonym as Slověne. The word slovo and the related slava and slukh originate from the Proto-Indo-European root *ḱlew-, cognate with Ancient Greek κλῆς, whence comes the name Pericles, Latin clueo, some other theories have limited support. The English term slave eventually derives from the ethnonym Slav, Slavs were captured and enslaved by the Muslims of Spain during the ninth century AD. The Slavs under name of the Antes and the Sclaveni make their first appearance in Byzantine records in the early 6th century. Procopius wrote in 545 that the Sclaveni and the Antae actually had a name in the remote past. He described them as barbarians, who lived under democracy, and that believe in one god. They lived in scattered housing, and constantly changed settlement, regarding warfare, they were mainly foot soldiers with small shields and battleaxes, lightly clothed, some entering battle naked with only their genitals covered. And they live a life, giving no heed to bodily comforts. Jordanes described the Sclaveni having swamps and forests for their cities, another 6th-century source refers to them living among nearly impenetrable forests, rivers, lakes, and marshes. Menander Protector mentions a Daurentius that slew an Avar envoy of Khagan Bayan I. The Avars asked the Slavs to accept the suzerainty of the Avars, he declined and is reported as saying, Others do not conquer our land. The relationship between the Slavs and a called the Veneti east of the River Vistula in the Roman period is uncertain. The name may refer both to Balts and Slavs, perhaps some Slavs migrated with the movement of the Vandals to Iberia and north Africa. Around the 6th century, Slavs appeared on Byzantine borders in great numbers, the Byzantine records note that grass would not regrow in places where the Slavs had marched through, so great were their numbers
8.
Vladimir the Great
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Vladimir Sviatoslavich the Great or Volodymyr was a prince of Novgorod, grand prince of Kiev, and ruler of Kievan Rus from 980 to 1015. Vladimirs father was prince Sviatoslav of the Rurik dynasty, in Sweden, with the help from his relative Ladejarl Håkon Sigurdsson, ruler of Norway, he assembled a Varangian army and reconquered Novgorod from Yaropolk. Originally a follower of Slavic paganism, Vladimir converted to Christianity in 988, born in 958, Vladimir was the natural son and youngest son of Sviatoslav I of Kiev by his housekeeper Malusha. Malusha is described in the Norse sagas as a prophetess who lived to the age of 100 and was brought from her cave to the palace to predict the future, malushas brother Dobrynya was Vladimirs tutor and most trusted advisor. His place of birth is identified by different authors either as Budyatychi or Budnik, transferring his capital to Pereyaslavets in 969, Sviatoslav designated Vladimir ruler of Novgorod the Great but gave Kiev to his legitimate son Yaropolk. After Sviatoslavs death at the hands of the Pechenegs in 972, in 977, Vladimir fled to his kinsman Haakon Sigurdsson, ruler of Norway, collecting as many Norse warriors as he could to assist him to recover Novgorod. On his return the next year, he marched against Yaropolk, on his way to Kiev he sent ambassadors to Rogvolod, prince of Polotsk, to sue for the hand of his daughter Rogneda. The high-born princess refused to affiance herself to the son of a bondswoman, so Vladimir attacked Polotsk, slew Rogvolod, Vladimir continued to expand his territories beyond his fathers extensive domain. Although Christianity spread in the region under Olegs rule, Vladimir had remained a pagan, taking eight hundred concubines. He may have attempted to reform Slavic paganism by establishing the thunder-god, Perun, open abuse of the deities that most people in Rus revered triggered widespread indignation. A mob killed the Christian Fyodor and his son Ioann, immediately after the murder of Fyodor and Ioann, early medieval Rus saw persecutions against Christians, many of whom escaped or concealed their belief. However, Prince Vladimir mused over the incident long after, the result is described by the chronicler Nestor. Of the Muslim Bulgarians of the Volga the envoys reported there is no gladness among them, only sorrow and he also reported that Islam was undesirable due to its taboo against alcoholic beverages and pork. Vladimir remarked on the occasion, Drinking is the joy of all Rus and we cannot exist without that pleasure. His emissaries also visited Roman Catholic and Orthodox missionaries, ultimately Vladimir settled on Eastern Orthodox Christianity. If Vladimir was impressed by this account of his envoys, he was more attracted by the political gains of the Byzantine alliance. In 988, having taken the town of Chersonesos in Crimea, he negotiated for the hand of emperor Basil IIs sister. Never before had a Byzantine imperial princess, and one born in the purple at that, married a barbarian, as offers of French kings
9.
National Library of Russia
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The National Library of Russia in St Petersburg, is not only the oldest public library in the nation, but also the first national library in the country. The NLR is currently ranked among the major libraries. It has the second richest library collection in the Russian Federation, a treasury of national heritage, over the course of its history, the Library has aimed for comprehensive acquisition of the national printed output and has provided free access to its collections. It should not be confused with the Russian State Library, located in Moscow, the Imperial Public Library was established in 1795 by Catherine the Great. It was based on the Załuski Library, the famous Polish national library built by Bishop Zalusky in Warsaw, the idea of a public library in Russia emerged in the early 18th century but did not take shape until the arrival of the Russian Enlightenment. The plan of a Russian public library was submitted to Catherine in 1766 but the Empress did not approve the project for the library until 27 May 1795. A site for the building was found at the corner of Nevsky Avenue and Sadovaya Street, the construction work began immediately and lasted for almost fifteen years. The building was designed in a Neoclassical style by architect Yegor Sokolov, the Polish-language books from the library were returned to Poland by the Russian SFSR in 1921. For five years after its foundation, the library was run by Comte Marie-Gabriel-Florent-Auguste de Choiseul-Gouffier, the stocks were arranged according to a specially compiled manual of library classification. In 1810, Emperor Alexander I approved Russia’s first library law stipulating, among other things, the Library was to be opened for the public in 1812 but, as the more valuable collections had to be evacuated because of Napoleon’s invasion, the inauguration was postponed for two years. Under Count Alexander Stroganov, who managed the library during the first decade of the 19th century, the Rossica project was inaugurated, the Imperial Public Library was inaugurated on 14 January 1814 in the presence of Gavrila Derzhavin and Ivan Krylov. The librarys third, and arguably most famous, director was Aleksey Olenin and his 32-year tenure at the helm, with Sergey Uvarov serving as his deputy, raised the profile of the library among Russian intellectuals. Librarianship progressed to a new level in the 1850s, the reader community grew several times, enlarged by common people. At the same time, many gifts of books were offered to the library, consequently, collection growth rates in the 1850s were five times higher than the annual growth rate of five thousand new acquired during the first part of the century. In 1859, Vasily Sobolshchikov prepared for the library the first national manual of library science entitled Public Library Facilities, by 1864, the Public Library held almost 90 per cent of all Russian printed output. The influx of new visitors required a larger reading room in the new building closing the court along the perimeter. An avalanche-like growth of attendance persisted in the part of the 19th century. Library cards and attendance grew tenfold between 1860 and 1913, the public principle triumphed when the class barriers maintained until the mid-19th century were abolished and the petty bourgeois, peasants and even women were often seen among the visitors
