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116-457: The Principality of Polotsk (obsolete spelling: Polock ; Belarusian : По́лацкае кня́ства , romanized :  Polackaje kniastva ; Latin : Polocensis Ducatus ), also known as the Duchy of Polotsk or Polotskian Rus' , was a medieval principality. The origin and date of the establishment of the state are uncertain. Chronicles of Kievan Rus' mention Polotsk being conquered by Vladimir

232-588: A centre of trade serving as a transit location between other lands of Kievan Rus' and Scandinavia . It also asserted its independent status balancing between Kiev, Novgorod, and the Varangians. Contemporary Norse sagas described the town as the most heavily fortified in all of Kievan Rus'. Most of the time, descendants of Izyaslav ruled the Principality of Polotsk independently of the Grand Prince of

348-562: A custom, the elder son and heir of the ruling Kievan monarch was sent to rule Novgorod even as a minor. When the ruling monarch had no such son, Novgorod was governed by posadniks , such as the legendary Gostomysl , Dobrynya , Konstantin , and Ostromir . Yaroslav the Wise was Prince of Novgorod from 1010 to 1019, while his father, Vladimir the Great , was a prince in Kiev. Yaroslav promulgated

464-533: A language generally referred to as Ruthenian (13th to 18th centuries), which had, in turn, descended from what is referred to as Old East Slavic (10th to 13th centuries). In the first Belarusian census in 1999, the Belarusian language was declared as a "language spoken at home" by about 3,686,000 Belarusian citizens (36.7% of the population). About 6,984,000 (85.6%) of Belarusians declared it their "mother tongue". Other sources, such as Ethnologue , put

580-420: A larger city the other side of Moscow which, between 1932 and 1990, had been renamed Gorky, in honour of Maxim Gorky . Veliky Novgorod is the administrative center of the oblast and, within the framework of administrative divisions , it also serves as the administrative center of Novgorodsky District , even though it is not a part of it. As an administrative division, it is incorporated separately as

696-533: A major centre of crafts which employed the majority of its population. There were more than 200 distinct professions in 16th century. Bells, cannons and other arms were produced in Novgorod; its silversmiths were famous for the skan' technique used for religious items and jewellery. Novgorod chests were in widespread use all across Russia, including the Tsar's household and the northern monasteries. In 1727, Novgorod

812-583: A military commander, legislator and jurist. The exact composition of the Veche , too, is uncertain, with some historians, such as Vasily Klyuchevsky , claiming it was democratic in nature, while later scholars, such as Marxists Valentin Ianin and Aleksandr Khoroshev, see it as a "sham democracy" controlled by the ruling elite. In the 13th century, Novgorod, while not a member of the Hanseatic League ,

928-610: A museum of wooden architecture was established in 1964. Over twenty wooden buildings (churches, houses and mills) dating from the 14th to the 19th century were transported there from all around the Novgorod region. 11,400 graves of the German 1st Luftwaffe Field Division are found at the war cemetery in Novgorod, and 1,900 soldiers of the Spanish Blue Division are buried there. Novgorod has connections to Moscow (531 km) and St. Petersburg (189 km) by

1044-486: A number of names, both contemporary and historical. Some of the most dissimilar are from the Old Belarusian period. Although closely related to other East Slavic languages , especially Ukrainian , Belarusian phonology is distinct in a number of ways. The phoneme inventory of the modern Belarusian language consists of 45 to 54 phonemes: 6 vowels and 39 to 48 consonants , depending on how they are counted. When

1160-467: A number of radical changes. A fully phonetic orthography was introduced. One of the most distinctive changes brought in was the principle of akanye (Belarusian: а́канне ), wherein unstressed "o", pronounced in both Russian and Belarusian as /a/ , is written as "а". The Belarusian Academic Conference on Reform of the Orthography and Alphabet was convened in 1926. After discussions on the project,

1276-458: A perception that Belarusian was a "rural" and "uneducated" language. However, the census was a major breakthrough for the first steps of the Belarusian national self-awareness and identity, since it clearly showed to the Imperial authorities and the still-strong Polish minority that the population and the language were neither Polish nor Russian. The rising influence of Socialist ideas advanced

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1392-551: A population of 224,286 ( 2021 Census ) . At its peak during the 14th century, the city was the capital of the Novgorod Republic and was one of Europe's largest cities. The "Великий" part was added to the city's name in 1999. Veliky Novgorod has a humid continental climate ( Köppen Dfb ). The city has warm summers with temperatures reaching over 30 °C (86 °F) and relatively cold winters with frequent snowfall. The lowest air temperature ever recorded

1508-558: A result of its inability to feed its large population, making it dependent on the Vladimir-Suzdal region for grain. The main cities in the area, Moscow and Tver , used this dependence to gain control over Novgorod. Eventually Ivan III forcibly annexed the city to the Grand Duchy of Moscow in 1478. The Veche was dissolved and a significant part of Novgorod's aristocracy, merchants and smaller landholding families

1624-596: A routine phrase to designate Varangians. Rogvolod was an active player in the power struggle in Rus'. In 972, after the prince of Kiev , Sviatoslav I , died, there was a power struggle between his two sons: prince of Novgorod Vladimir and prince of Kiev Yaropolk . Both had hoped for political and military support from Polotsk. To achieve this, Vladimir proposed to Rogneda , Rogvolod's daughter. She declined, thus making Polotsk an ally of Yaropolk. Vladimir then waged war against Polotsk. According to colourful legends recorded in

1740-521: A yet earlier stage, but the correlation of this reference with the actual city is uncertain. Originally, Holmgård referred to the stronghold, now only 2 km (1.2 miles) to the south of the center of the present-day city, Rurikovo Gorodische (named in comparatively modern times after the Varangian chieftain Rurik , who supposedly made it his "capital" around 860). Archaeological data suggests that

1856-542: Is -45 °C (-49 °F). The warmest month is July with a daily mean of 18.7 °C (65 °F), the coldest month is February with a daily mean of -6 °C (21 °F). The highest amount of precipitation is on average in June with 73 mm (2.9 inches) of precipitation, the driest is March with 30 mm (1.2 inches) of precipitation. The annual amount of precipitation is 603 mm (23.7 inches) . The Sofia First Chronicle makes initial mention of it in 859, while

1972-399: Is found in the representation of vowel reduction, and in particular akanje , the merger of unstressed /a/ and /o/, which exists in both Russian and Belarusian. Belarusian always spells this merged sound as ⟨a⟩ , whereas Russian uses either ⟨a⟩ or ⟨o⟩ , according to what the "underlying" phoneme is (determined by identifying the related words where

2088-400: Is mostly synthetic and partly analytic, and overall quite similar to Russian grammar . Belarusian orthography, however, differs significantly from Russian orthography in some respects, due to the fact that it is a phonemic orthography that closely represents the surface phonology, whereas Russian orthography represents the underlying morphophonology . The most significant instance of this

2204-501: Is rarely used. Standardized Belarusian grammar in its modern form was adopted in 1959, with minor amendments in 1985 and 2008. It was developed from the initial form set down by Branislaw Tarashkyevich (first printed in Vilnius , 1918), and it is mainly based on the Belarusian folk dialects of Minsk - Vilnius region. Historically, there have been several other alternative standardized forms of Belarusian grammar. Belarusian grammar

2320-710: Is the Savior church at Nereditsa (1198). In the 13th century, tiny churches of the three-paddled design were in vogue. These are represented by a small chapel at the Peryn Monastery (1230s) and St. Nicholas' on the Lipnya Islet (1292, also notable for its 14th-century frescoes). The next century saw the development of two original church designs, one of them culminating in St Theodor's church (1360–1361, fine frescoes from 1380s), and another one leading to

2436-585: Is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast , Russia . It is one of the oldest cities in Russia, being first mentioned in the 9th century. The city lies along the Volkhov River just downstream from its outflow from Lake Ilmen and is situated on the M10 federal highway connecting Moscow and Saint Petersburg . UNESCO recognized Novgorod as a World Heritage Site in 1992. The city has

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2552-512: Is the usual conventional borderline between the Ruthenian and Modern Belarusian stages of development. By the end of the 18th century, (Old) Belarusian was still common among the minor nobility in the eastern part, in the territory of present-day Belarus, of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (hereafter GDL). Jan Czeczot in the 1840s had mentioned that even his generation's grandfathers preferred speaking (Old) Belarusian. According to A. N. Pypin,

2668-404: The Veche can be drawn up, the city-state's exact political constitution remains unknown. The boyars and the archbishop ruled the city together, although where one official's power ended and another's began is uncertain. The prince, although his power was reduced from around the middle of the 12th century, was represented by his namestnik , or lieutenant, and still played important roles as

2784-490: The city of oblast significance of Veliky Novgorod —an administrative unit with status equal to that of the districts . As a municipal division , the city of oblast significance of Veliky Novgorod is incorporated as Veliky Novgorod Urban Okrug . The city is known for the variety and age of its medieval monuments. The foremost among these is the Saint Sophia Cathedral , built between 1045 and 1050 under

2900-701: The Baltic region since the late 12th century. Novgorod went to war 26 times with Sweden and 11 times with the Livonian Brothers of the Sword . The German knights , along with Danish and Swedish feudal lords, launched a series of uncoordinated attacks between 1240 and 1242. Novgorodian sources mention that a Swedish army was defeated in the Battle of the Neva in 1240. The Baltic German campaigns ended in failure after

3016-633: The Battle on the Ice in 1242. After the foundation of the castle of Viborg in 1293 the Swedes gained a foothold in Karelia . On 12 August 1323, Sweden and Novgorod signed the Treaty of Nöteborg , regulating their border for the first time. In the 15th century, Novgorod faced significant struggles with food scarcity , which lasted for a decade in the mid-15th century. This scarcity had profound implications for

3132-613: The Belarusian Democratic Republic , Belarusian was used as the only official language (decreed by Belarusian People's Secretariat on 28 April 1918). Subsequently, in the Byelorussian SSR , Belarusian was decreed to be one of the four (Belarusian, Polish, Russian, and Yiddish) official languages (decreed by Central Executive Committee of BSSR in February 1921). A decree of 15 July 1924 confirmed that

3248-610: The Novgorod First Chronicle first mentions it in 862, when it was purportedly already a major Baltic -to- Byzantium station on the trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks . The Charter of Veliky Novgorod recognizes 859 as the year when the city was first mentioned. Novgorod is traditionally considered to be a cradle of Russian statehood. The oldest archaeological excavations in the middle to late 20th century, however, have found cultural layers dating back to

3364-766: The Old Church Slavonic language. The modern Belarusian form was defined in 1918, and consists of thirty-two letters. Before that, Belarusian had also been written in the Belarusian Latin alphabet (Łacinka / Лацінка), the Belarusian Arabic alphabet (by Lipka Tatars ) and the Hebrew alphabet (by Belarusian Jews ). The Glagolitic script was used, sporadically, until the 11th or 12th century. There are several systems of romanization of Belarusian written texts. The Belarusian Latin alphabet

3480-550: The Russian Academy of Sciences refused to print his submission, on the basis that it had not been prepared in a sufficiently scientific manner. From the mid-1830s ethnographic works began to appear, and tentative attempts to study the language were instigated (e.g. Shpilevskiy's grammar). The Belarusian literary tradition began to re-form, based on the folk language, initiated by the works of Vintsent Dunin-Martsinkyevich . See also : Jan Czeczot , Jan Barszczewski . At

3596-588: The Savior church on Ilyina street (1374, painted in 1378 by Feofan Grek ). The Savior' church in Kovalevo (1345) was originally frescoed by Serbian masters, but the church was destroyed during the war. While the church has since been rebuilt, the frescoes have not been restored. During the last century of the republican government, some new churches were consecrated to Saints Peter and Paul (on Slavna, 1367; in Kozhevniki, 1406), to Christ's Nativity (at

Principality of Polotsk - Misplaced Pages Continue

3712-679: The Treaty of Stolbovo . The conflict led to further depopulation: the number of homesteads in the city decreased from 1158 in 1607 to only 493 in 1617, with the Sofia side described as 'deserted'. Novgorod only regained a measure of its former prosperity towards the end of the century, when such ambitious buildings as the Cathedral of the Sign and the Vyazhischi Monastery were constructed. The most famous of Muscovite patriarchs, Nikon ,

3828-578: The Ural Mountains , making it one of the largest states in medieval Europe, although much of the territory north and east of Lakes Ladoga and Onega was sparsely populated and never organized politically. One of the most important local figures in Novgorod was the posadnik , or mayor, an official elected by the public assembly (called the Veche ) from among the city's boyars , or aristocracy. The tysyatsky , or "thousandman", originally

3944-443: The federal highway M10 . There are public buses to Saint Petersburg and other destinations. The city has direct railway passenger connections with Moscow ( Leningradsky Rail Terminal , by night trains), St. Petersburg ( Moscow Rail Terminal and Vitebsk Rail Terminal , by suburban trains ), Minsk ( Belarus ) ( Minsk Passazhirsky railway station , by night trains) and Murmansk . The city's former commercial airport Yurievo

4060-509: The "soft sounding R" ( мякка-эравы ) and "strong akanye " ( моцнае аканне ), and the South-Western dialect is chiefly characterized by the "hard sounding R" ( цвёрда-эравы ) and "moderate akanye" ( умеранае аканне ). The West Polesian dialect group is separated from the rest of the country by the conventional line Pruzhany – Ivatsevichy – Tsyelyakhany – Luninyets – Stolin . There is a high degree of mutual intelligibility among

4176-573: The 12th century originally on the orders of Bishop Nikita (died 1108) (the "porches" or side chapels were painted in 1144 under Archbishop Nifont ) and renovated several times over the centuries, most recently in the nineteenth century. The cathedral features famous bronze gates, which now hang in the west entrance, allegedly made in Magdeburg in 1156 (other sources see them originating from Płock in Poland ) and reportedly snatched by Novgorodians from

4292-547: The 12th century. Later German merchantmen also established tradinghouses in Novgorod. Scandinavian royalty would intermarry with Russian princes and princesses. After the great schism , Novgorod struggled from the beginning of the 13th century against Swedish , Danish , and German crusaders. During the Swedish-Novgorodian Wars , the Swedes invaded lands where some of the population had earlier paid tribute to Novgorod. The Germans had been trying to conquer

4408-431: The 1897 Russian Empire census , about 5.89 million people declared themselves speakers of Belarusian (then known as White Russian). The end of the 19th century, however, still showed that the urban language of Belarusian towns remained either Polish or Russian. The same census showed that towns with a population greater than 50,000 had fewer than a tenth Belarusian speakers. This state of affairs greatly contributed to

4524-562: The Belarusian grammar. In 1915, Rev. Balyaslaw Pachopka had prepared a Belarusian grammar using the Latin script. Belarusian linguist S. M. Nyekrashevich considered Pachopka's grammar unscientific and ignorant of the principles of the language. But Pachopka's grammar was reportedly taught in an unidentified number of schools, from 1918 for an unspecified period. Another grammar was supposedly jointly prepared by A. Lutskyevich and Ya. Stankyevich, and differed from Tarashkyevich's grammar somewhat in

4640-629: The Belarusian language is declared as a "language spoken at home" by about 40,000 inhabitants According to a study done by the Belarusian government in 2009, 72% of Belarusians speak Russian at home, while Belarusian is actively used by only 11.9% of Belarusians (others speak a mixture of Russian and Belarusian, known as Trasianka ). Approximately 29.4% of Belarusians can write, speak, and read Belarusian, while 52.5% can only read and speak it. Nevertheless, there are no Belarusian-language universities in Belarus. The Belarusian language has been known under

4756-458: The Belarusian language was spoken in some areas among the minor nobility during the 19th century. In its vernacular form, it was the language of the smaller town dwellers and of the peasantry and it had been the language of oral folklore. Teaching in Belarusian was conducted mainly in schools run by the Basilian order . The development of Belarusian in the 19th century was strongly influenced by

Principality of Polotsk - Misplaced Pages Continue

4872-706: The Belarusian, Russian, Yiddish and Polish languages had equal status in Soviet Belarus. In the BSSR, Tarashkyevich's grammar had been officially accepted for use in state schooling after its re-publication in unchanged form, first in 1922 by Yazep Lyosik under his own name as Practical grammar. Part I , then in 1923 by the Belarusian State Publishing House under the title Belarusian language. Grammar. Ed. I. 1923 , also by "Ya. Lyosik". In 1925, Lyosik added two new chapters, addressing

4988-522: The Belarusian, Russian, and Ukrainian languages. Within East Slavic, the Belarusian language is most closely related to Ukrainian . The modern Belarusian language was redeveloped on the base of the vernacular spoken remnants of the Ruthenian language , surviving in the ethnic Belarusian territories in the 19th century. The end of the 18th century (the times of the Divisions of Commonwealth )

5104-636: The Cathedral of the Mother of God of the Sign (1688), the St. Nicholas Cathedral of Vyaschizhy Monastery (1685). Nevertheless, the styles of some parochial churches were still in keeping with local traditions: e.g., the churches of Myrrh-bearing Women (1510) and of Saints  Boris and Gleb (1586). In Vitoslavlitsy, along the Volkhov River and the Myachino Lake , close to the Yuriev Monastery ,

5220-640: The Cemetery, 1387), to St. John the Apostle's (1384), to the Twelve Apostles (1455), to St Demetrius (1467), to St. Simeon (1462), and other saints. Generally, they are not thought to be as innovative as the churches from the previous period. Several shrines from the 12th century (i.e., in Opoki) were demolished brick by brick and then reconstructed exactly as they used to be, several of them in

5336-554: The Commission had actually prepared the project for spelling reform. The resulting project had included both completely new rules and existing rules in unchanged and changed forms, some of the changes being the work of the Commission itself, and others resulting from the resolutions of the Belarusian Academic Conference (1926), re-approved by the Commission. Notably, the use of the Ь (soft sign) before

5452-663: The Conference made resolutions on some of the problems. However, the Lyosik brothers' project had not addressed all the problematic issues, so the Conference was not able to address all of those. As the outcome of the conference, the Orthographic Commission was created to prepare the project of the actual reform. This was instigated on 1 October 1927, headed by S. Nyekrashevich, with the following principal guidelines of its work adopted: During its work in 1927–29,

5568-562: The Gorodishche, the residence of the knyaz (prince), dates from the mid-9th century, whereas the town itself dates only from the end of the 10th century; hence the name Novgorod, "new city", from Old East Slavic новъ and городъ ( nov and gorod ); the Old Norse term Nýgarðr is a calque of an Old Russian word. First mention of this Norse etymology to the name of the city of Novgorod (and that of other cities within

5684-654: The Grand Duchy of Moscow. During the era of Old Rus' State , Novgorod was a major trade hub at the northern end of both the Volga trade route and the " route from the Varangians to the Greeks " along the Dnieper river system. A vast array of goods were transported along these routes and exchanged with local Novgorod merchants and other traders. The farmers of Gotland retained the Saint Olof trading house well into

5800-463: The Great , and thereafter it became associated with Kievan Rus' and its ruling Rurik dynasty . The principality was supposedly established around the town of Polotsk (now in Belarus ) by the tribal union of Krivichs . In the second half of the 10th century, Polotsk was governed by its own dynasty; its first ruler mentioned in the chronicles was the semi-legendary Rogvolod (?–978), better known as

5916-531: The Massacre, Ivan the Terrible sacked the city, slaughtered thousands of its inhabitants, and deported the city's merchant elite and nobility to Moscow, Yaroslavl and elsewhere. The last decade of the 16th century was a comparatively favourable period for the city as Boris Godunov restored trade privileges and raised the status of Novgorod bishop. The German trading post was reestablished in 1603. Even after

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6032-552: The Novgorodians dismissed their prince Vsevolod Mstislavich . The year is seen as the traditional beginning of the Novgorod Republic . The city was able to invite and dismiss a number of princes over the next two centuries, but the princely office was never abolished and powerful princes, such as Alexander Nevsky , could assert their will in the city regardless of what Novgorodians said. The city state controlled most of Europe's northeast, from lands east of today's Estonia to

6148-480: The Primary Chronicle, he took the city, raped Rogneda in front of her parents, then killed her entire family and burnt down the city. Rogneda was taken to Kiev to be Vladimir's wife. Thus the local dynasty was exterminated. After Vladimir converted to Christianity in 988 and took Anna Porphyrogeneta as his wife, he had to divorce all his previous wives, including Rogneda. She entered the convent and took

6264-488: The Principality of Polotsk was governed by a local dynasty, and not by an appointed governor from Kiev. Local statehood was a result of local political evolution in the Early East Slavs ' tribal union of Krivichs . The second time Polotsk was mentioned was a full century later, in 980 when its ruler was a Varangian warlord, Ragnvald or Rogvolod. The chronicle reports that he arrived at Polotsk "from overseas",

6380-480: The Rus', only formally recognizing the power of the Rurikides. After the late 10th century, Polotsk was also successful in colonizing the lands of its western neighbours, the ancestors of today's Latvians and Lithuanians. In the early 13th century, Teutonic knights seized power over the former from the hands of Polotsk, but the historical ties with the latter proved much stronger and lasted for 700 more years, although

6496-443: The Russian language and literature department of St. Petersburg University, approached the board of the Belarusian newspaper Nasha Niva with a proposal that a Belarusian linguist be trained under his supervision in order to be able to create documentation of the grammar. Initially, the famous Belarusian poet Maksim Bahdanovič was to be entrusted with this work. However, Bahdanovič's poor health (tuberculosis) precluded his living in

6612-400: The South-Western. In addition, there is a transitional Middle Belarusian dialect group and the separate West Polesian dialect group. The North-Eastern and the South-Western dialects are separated by a hypothetical line Ashmyany – Minsk – Babruysk – Gomel , with the area of the Middle Belarusian dialect group placed on and along this line. The North-Eastern dialect is chiefly characterized by

6728-429: The Swedish town of Sigtuna in 1187. More recent scholarship has determined that the gates were most likely purchased in the mid-15th century, apparently at the behest of Archbishop Euthymius II (1429–1458), a lover of Western art and architectural styles. The Novgorod Kremlin , traditionally known as the Detinets , also contains the oldest palace in Russia (the so-called Chamber of the Facets, 1433), which served as

6844-407: The UNESCO World Heritage Site list as the Historic Monuments of Novgorod and Surroundings . As of 2020, regular archeological rescue work continues across the site. In 1999, the city was officially renamed Veliky Novgorod (literally 'Great Novgorod'), thus partly reverting to its medieval title "Lord Novgorod the Great". This reduced the temptation to confuse Veliky Novgorod with Nizhny Novgorod ,

6960-545: The all-Russian " narodniki " and Belarusian national movements (late 1870s–early 1880s) renewed interest in the Belarusian language (See also: Homan (1884) , Bahushevich , Yefim Karskiy , Dovnar-Zapol'skiy , Bessonov, Pypin, Sheyn, Nasovič). The Belarusian literary tradition was also renewed ( see also : F. Bahushevich ). It was in these times that F. Bahushevich made his famous appeal to Belarusians: "Do not forsake our language, lest you pass away" (Belarusian: Не пакідайце ж мовы нашай, каб не ўмёрлі ). The first dictionary of

7076-584: The beginning of the 1860s, both the Russian and Polish parties in Belarusian lands had begun to realise that the decisive role in the upcoming conflicts was shifting to the peasantry, overwhelmingly Belarusian. So a large amount of propaganda appeared, targeted at the peasantry and written in Belarusian; notably, the anti-Russian, anti-Tsarist, anti-Eastern Orthodox "Manifesto" and the first newspaper Mužyckaja prauda ( Peasants' Truth ) (1862–1863) by Konstanty Kalinowski , and anti-Polish, anti-Revolutionary, pro-Orthodox booklets and poems (1862). The advent of

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7192-478: The chief square of Novgorod). The Yuriev Monastery (one of the oldest in Russia, 1030) contains a tall, three-domed cathedral from 1119 (built by Mstislav's son, Vsevolod , and Kyurik, the head of the monastery). A similar three-domed cathedral (1117), probably designed by the same masters, stands in the Antoniev Monastery , built on the orders of Antony , the founder of that monastery. There are now some fifty medieval and early modern churches scattered throughout

7308-429: The city and its surrounding areas. Some of them were blown up by the Nazis and subsequently restored. The most ancient pattern is represented by those dedicated to Saints Pyotr and Pavel (on the Swallow's Hill, 1185–1192), to Annunciation (in Myachino, 1179), to Assumption (on Volotovo Field , 1180s) and to St. Paraskeva-Piatnitsa (at Yaroslav's Court , 1207). The greatest masterpiece of early Novgorod architecture

7424-465: The city is mentioned as the capital of Gardariki . Many Viking kings and yarls came to Novgorod seeking refuge or employment, including Olaf I of Norway , Olaf II of Norway , Magnus I of Norway , and Harald Hardrada . No more than a few decades after the 1030 death and subsequent canonization of Olaf II of Norway, the city's community had erected in his memory Saint Olaf's Church in Novgorod . The Gotland town of Visby functioned as

7540-446: The city of Riga. Annals affirming the alliance and united military campaigns policy of Polotsk and Lithuania. For example, The Chronicle of Novgorod informs about "Izyaslav had been set to be Knyaz in Luki and covered Novgorod from the Lithuanians" in 1198 while Luki is situated on the east of Polotsk. The Principality of Polotsk escaped the Mongol invasion of Rus' in 1237–1239. However, pagan Lithuanians began consolidating lands of

7656-414: The city was occupied by the German Army . Its historic monuments were systematically obliterated. The Red Army liberated the city on 19 January 1944. Out of 2,536 stone buildings, fewer than forty remained standing. After the war, thanks to plans laid down by Alexey Shchusev , the central part was gradually restored. In 1992, the chief monuments of the city and the surrounding area were inscribed on

7772-409: The city, leading to political disturbances and forcing Alexander Nevsky to punish a number of town officials (he cut off their noses ) for defying him as Grand Prince of Vladimir (soon to be the khan's tax-collector in Russia) and his Mongol overlords. In the 14th century, raids by Novgorod pirates , or ushkuiniki , sowed fear as far as Kazan and Astrakhan , assisting Novgorod in wars with

7888-430: The climate of St. Petersburg, so Branislaw Tarashkyevich , a fresh graduate of the Vilnya Liceum No. 2 , was selected for the task. In the Belarusian community, great interest was vested in this enterprise. The already famous Belarusian poet Yanka Kupala , in his letter to Tarashkyevich, urged him to "hurry with his much-needed work". Tarashkyevich had been working on the preparation of the grammar during 1912–1917, with

8004-631: The combinations "consonant+iotated vowel" ("softened consonants"), which had been previously denounced as highly redundant (e.g., in the proceedings of the Belarusian Academic Conference (1926)), was cancelled. However, the complete resolution of the highly important issue of the orthography of unstressed Е ( IE ) was not achieved. Novgorod Veliky Novgorod ( / v ə ˈ l iː k i ˈ n ɒ v ɡ ə r ɒ d / və-LEE-kee NOV-gə-rod ; Russian : Великий Новгород , IPA: [vʲɪˈlʲikʲɪj ˈnovɡərət] ; lit.   ' Great Newtown ' ), also known simply as Novgorod ( Новгород ),

8120-474: The educational system. The Polish and Russian languages were being introduced and re-introduced, while the general state of the people's education remained poor until the very end of the Russian Empire. In summary, the first two decades of the 19th century had seen the unprecedented prosperity of Polish culture and language in the former GDL lands, and had prepared the era of such famous Polish writers as Adam Mickiewicz and Władysław Syrokomla . The era had seen

8236-406: The effective completion of the Polonization of the lowest level of the nobility, the further reduction of the area of use of contemporary Belarusian, and the effective folklorization of Belarusian culture. Nevertheless, at the beginning of the 19th century "there began a revival of national pride within the country ... and a growth in interest [in Belarusian] from outside". Due both to the state of

8352-427: The emancipation of the Belarusian language even further ( see also: Belarusian Socialist Assembly , Circle of Belarusian People's Education and Belarusian Culture , Belarusian Socialist Lot , Socialist Party "White Russia" , Alaiza Pashkevich , Nasha Dolya ). The fundamental works of Yefim Karsky marked a turning point in the scientific perception of Belarusian. The ban on publishing books and papers in Belarusian

8468-512: The fact that, under the East Slavic house law, since Izyaslav predeceased his father and never reigned in Kiev, his descendants from the House of Polotsk forfeited their dynastic rights to the Kievan throne. In 1020 Bryachislav sacked Novgorod but then lost it to his uncle, Yaroslav the Wise , and had to give up some of his other possessions. For two following centuries, the Principality of Polotsk

8584-508: The father of Rogneda . The principality was heavily involved in several succession crises of the 11th–12th centuries and a war with the Novgorod Land . By the 13th century, it was integrated into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania . At the time of its greatest extent, the principality stretched over large parts of present-day northern and central Belarus and a smaller part of today's southeastern Latvia , including (besides Polotsk itself)

8700-499: The figure at approximately 3.5 million active speakers in Belarus. In Russia , the Belarusian language is declared as a "familiar language" by about 316,000 inhabitants, among them about 248,000 Belarusians, comprising about 30.7% of Belarusians living in Russia. In Ukraine , the Belarusian language is declared as a "native language" by about 55,000 Belarusians, which comprise about 19.7% of Belarusians living in Ukraine. In Poland ,

8816-534: The first written code of laws (later incorporated into Russkaya Pravda ) among the Eastern Slavs and is said to have granted the city a number of freedoms or privileges, which they often referred to in later centuries as precedents in their relations with other princes. His son, Vladimir of Novgorod , sponsored construction of the great Saint Sophia Cathedral , more accurately translated as the Cathedral of Holy Wisdom, which stands to this day. In Norse sagas

8932-496: The following towns: Vitebsk , Drutsk , Minsk , Izjaslaw (now Zaslawye ), Lahoysk , Barysaw , Brachyslaw (now Braslaw ), Kukenois (now Koknese ) and others. There is no exact date on record when the principality was formed; it was likely an evolutionary process. In 862 Polotsk was first mentioned in the Primary Chronicle as a town within the realm of Novgorod Rus' , alongside Murom and Beloozero . Initially,

9048-522: The foreign speakers' task of learning these paradigms; on the other hand, though, it makes spelling easier for native speakers. An example illustrating the contrast between the treatment of akanje in Russian and Belarusian orthography is the spelling of the word for "products; food": Besides the standardized lect , there are two main dialects of the Belarusian language, the North-Eastern and

9164-471: The head of the town militia but later a commercial and judicial official, was also elected by the Veche . Another important local official was the Archbishop of Novgorod who shared power with the boyars. Archbishops were elected by the Veche or by the drawing of lots , and after their election, were sent to the metropolitan for consecration. While a basic outline of the various officials and

9280-558: The help and supervision of Shakhmatov and Karskiy. Tarashkyevich had completed the work by the autumn of 1917, even moving from the tumultuous Petrograd of 1917 to the relative calm of Finland in order to be able to complete it uninterrupted. By the summer of 1918, it became obvious that there were insurmountable problems with the printing of Tarashkyevich's grammar in Petrograd: a lack of paper, type and qualified personnel. Meanwhile, his grammar had apparently been planned to be adopted in

9396-481: The incorporation into the Russian state Novgorod land retained its distinct identity and institutions, including the customs policy and administrative division. Certain elective offices were quickly restored after having been abolished by Ivan III. During the Time of Troubles , Novgorodians submitted to Swedish troops led by Jacob De la Gardie in the summer of 1611. The city was restituted to Muscovy six years later by

9512-504: The language was known in English as Byelorussian or Belorussian , or alternatively as White Russian . Following independence, it became known as Belarusian , or alternatively as Belarusan . As one of the East Slavic languages, Belarusian shares many grammatical and lexical features with other members of the group. To some extent, Russian, Ukrainian , and Belarusian retain a degree of mutual intelligibility . Belarusian descends from

9628-561: The late 10th century, the time of the Christianization of Rus' and a century after it was allegedly founded. Archaeological dating is fairly easy and accurate to within 15–25 years, as the streets were paved with wood, and most of the houses made of wood, allowing tree ring dating . The Varangian name of the city Holmgård or Holmgard ( Holmgarðr or Holmgarðir ) is mentioned in Norse Sagas as existing at

9744-537: The leading role in this “marriage” soon shifted to the other side. The last pagans of Europe, brave and skilful warriors, Lithuanians initially served Polotsk as auxiliary troops in its wars with the Teutonic knights and other East Slavic principalities; but from 1183 they refused obedience to the metropoly and established their state. The Cathedral of Saint Sophia in Polotsk – built by Vseslav between 1044 and 1066 –

9860-658: The leading trading center in the Baltic before the Hansa League . At Novgorod in 1080, Visby merchants established a trading post which they named Gutagard (also known as Gotenhof). Later, in the first half of the 13th century, merchants from northern Germany also established their own trading station in Novgorod, known as the Peterhof . At about the same time, in 1229, German merchants at Novgorod were granted certain privileges, which made their position more secure. In 1136,

9976-419: The main meeting hall of the archbishops; the oldest Russian bell tower (mid-15th century), and the oldest Russian clock tower (1673). The Palace of Facets, the bell tower, and the clock tower were originally built on the orders of Archbishop Euphimius II, although the clock tower collapsed in the 17th century and had to be rebuilt and much of the palace of Euphimius II is no longer standing. Among later structures,

10092-501: The mid-fifteenth century, again under Archbishop Yevfimy II (Euthymius II), perhaps one of the greatest patrons of architecture in medieval Novgorod. Novgorod's conquest by Ivan III in 1478 decisively changed the character of local architecture. Large commissions were thenceforth executed by Muscovite masters and patterned after cathedrals of Moscow Kremlin : e.g., the Savior Cathedral of Khutyn Monastery (1515),

10208-823: The modern Belarusian language authored by Nasovič was published in 1870. In the editorial introduction to the dictionary, it is noted that: The Belarusian local tongue, which dominates a vast area from the Nioman and the Narew to the Upper Volga and from the Western Dvina to the Prypiac and the Ipuc and which is spoken by inhabitants of the North-Western and certain adjacent provinces, or those lands that were in

10324-533: The most remarkable are a royal palace (1771) and a bronze monument to the Millennium of Russia , representing the most important figures from the country's history (unveiled in 1862). Outside the Kremlin walls, there are three large churches constructed during the reign of Mstislav the Great . St. Nicholas Cathedral (1113–1123), containing frescoes of Mstislav's family, graces Yaroslav's Court (formerly

10440-453: The name, Anastasia, then she and her son Izyaslav were exiled back to the lands of Polotsk. Thus the principality was restored but with the most senior branch of the Rurik dynasty on the local throne. Since this time, the lands of the principality became Christian ( Eastern Orthodox ). In 1001 Izyaslav was succeeded by his son, Bryachislav of Polotsk . Under his rule, Polotsk attempted to distance itself from Kiev. Tensions were exacerbated by

10556-462: The nine geminate consonants are excluded as mere variations, there are 39 consonants, and excluding rare consonants further decreases the count. The number 48 includes all consonant sounds, including variations and rare sounds, which may be phonetically distinct in the modern Belarusian language. The Belarusian alphabet is a variant of the Cyrillic script , which was first used as an alphabet for

10672-420: The oldest Slavic book written north of Bulgaria, and the oldest inscription in a Finnic language ( Birch bark letter no. 292 ) were unearthed. Some of the most ancient Russian chronicles ( Novgorod First Chronicle ) were written in the scriptorium of the archbishops who also promoted iconography and patronized church construction. The Novgorod merchant Sadko became a popular hero of Russian folklore . Novgorod

10788-528: The orthography of compound words and partly modifying the orthography of assimilated words. From this point on, Belarusian grammar had been popularized and taught in the educational system in that form. The ambiguous and insufficient development of several components of Tarashkyevich's grammar was perceived to be the cause of some problems in practical usage, and this led to discontent with the grammar. In 1924–25, Lyosik and his brother Anton Lyosik prepared and published their project of orthographic reform, proposing

10904-422: The particularities of different Belarusian dialects. The scientific groundwork for the introduction of a truly scientific and modern grammar of the Belarusian language was laid down by the linguist Yefim Karsky. By the early 1910s, the continuing lack of a codified Belarusian grammar was becoming intolerably obstructive in the opinion of uniformitarian prescriptivists. Then Russian academician Shakhmatov , chair of

11020-567: The past settled by the Kryvic tribe , has long attracted the attention of our philologists because of those precious remains of the ancient Ruthenian language that survived in that tongue. In 1891, in the preface to the Belarusian Flute , Francišak Bahuševič wrote, "There have been many peoples, which first lost their language… and then they perished entirely. So do not abandon our Belarusian language, lest we perish!" According to

11136-425: The patronage of Vladimir Yaroslavich, the son of Yaroslav the Wise ; Vladimir and his mother, Anna Porphyrogenita , are buried in the cathedral. It is one of the best preserved churches from the 11th century. It is also probably the oldest structure still in use in Russia and the first one to represent original features of Russian architecture (austere stone walls, five helmet-like domes). Its frescoes were painted in

11252-509: The people's education and to the strong positions of Polish and Polonized nobility, it was only after the 1880s–1890s that the educated Belarusian element, still shunned because of "peasant origin", began to appear in state offices. In 1846, ethnographer Pavel Shpilevskiy prepared a Belarusian grammar (using the Cyrillic alphabet) on the basis of the folk dialects of the Minsk region. However,

11368-523: The political conflict in the territories of the former GDL, between the Russian Imperial authorities, trying to consolidate their rule over the "joined provinces", and the Polish and Polonized nobility, trying to bring back its pre-Partitions rule (see also Polonization in times of Partitions ). One of the important manifestations of this conflict was the struggle for ideological control over

11484-528: The population and the city's stability during that time, including its downfall. Novgorod was a hub for trade, attracting German merchants in substantial numbers, around 200 German merchants resided in the trade city in the 1430s, comprising about 1% of the total population of Novgorod at that time. The interactions between these merchants and the local population contributed to the nature of Novgorod during that time, influencing its economic prosperity and cultural diversity. The city's downfall occurred partially as

11600-520: The principality, and in 1240 Polotsk became a vassal of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania . It officially became part of Lithuania in 1307, though it retained some degree of local autonomy until the 1390s. Then the principality was abolished and became part of the Połock Voivodeship . 55°30′N 28°50′E  /  55.500°N 28.833°E  / 55.500; 28.833 Belarusian language Before Belarus gained independence in 1991,

11716-522: The principality. Beginning in the mid-12th century there were changes in the lands to the west of the Principality. The fortress of Riga became the main military basis of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword . In 1209 German crusaders conquered the principalities of Jersika and Koknese in the southeast of today's Latvia, which had previously been under the control of Polotsk, forcing Polotsk to permit free travel to German merchants in 1212 and ending Livonian tributes. In 1227 Smolensk ceded Polotsk by treaty to

11832-605: The resolution of some key aspects. On 22 December 1915, Paul von Hindenburg issued an order on schooling in German Army-occupied territories in the Russian Empire ( Ober Ost ), banning schooling in Russian and including the Belarusian language in an exclusive list of four languages made mandatory in the respective native schooling systems (Belarusian, Lithuanian , Polish , Yiddish ). School attendance

11948-464: The territory of the then Kievan Rus' ) occurs in the 10th-century policy manual De Administrando Imperio by Byzantine emperor Constantine VII . In 882, Rurik's successor, Oleg of Novgorod , conquered Kiev and founded the state of Kievan Rus' . Novgorod's size as well as its political, economic, and cultural influence made it the second most important city in Kievan Rus'. According to

12064-421: The vowel is being stressed or, if no such words exist, by written tradition, mostly but not always conforming to etymology). This means that Belarusian noun and verb paradigms, in their written form, have numerous instances of alternations between written ⟨a⟩ and ⟨o⟩ , whereas no such alternations exist in the corresponding written paradigms in Russian. This can significantly complicate

12180-437: The workers' and peasants' schools of Belarus that were to be set up, so Tarashkyevich was permitted to print his book abroad. In June 1918, he arrived in Vilnius , via Finland. The Belarusian Committee petitioned the administration to allow the book to be printed. Finally, the first edition of the "Belarusian grammar for schools" was printed ( Vil'nya , 1918). There existed at least two other contemporary attempts at codifying

12296-478: Was a symbol of the independent-mindedness of Polotsk, rivalling churches of the same name in Novgorod and Kiev and referring to the original Hagia Sophia in Constantinople (and thus to claims of imperial prestige, authority, and sovereignty). After his defeat at the Battle on the river Nemiga and temporary imprisonment, Vseslav died, and the principality was divided between his surviving sons. Polotsk

12412-526: Was active in Novgorod between 1648 and 1652. The Novgorod Land became one of the Old Believers ' strongholds after the Schism . The city remained an important trade centre even though it was now eclipsed by Archangelsk , Novgorodian merchants were trading in the Baltic cities and Stockholm while Swedish merchants came to Novgorod where they had their own trading post since 1627. Novgorod continued to be

12528-424: Was controlled by descendants of Izyaslav. All other lands of Kievan Rus' were under the control of princes who were descendants of Yaroslav the Wise . The golden age of medieval Polotsk is associated with the rule of Bryachislav's son, Vseslav (1044–1101). He profited from the civil wars in Kiev in order to assert his independence and run the affairs of the principality separately. During this time Polotsk became

12644-435: Was decommissioned in 2006, and the area has now been redeveloped into a residential neighbourhood. The still existing Krechevitsy Airport does not serve any regular flights since mid-1990s although there is a plan to turn Krechevitsy into a new operational airport by 2025. The nearest international airport is St. Petersburg's Pulkovo , some 180 kilometres (112 miles) north of the city. Local transportation consists of

12760-529: Was deported to central Russia. The Hanseatic League kontor was closed in 1494 and the goods stored there were seized by Muscovite forces. At the time of annexation, Novgorod became the third largest city under Muscovy and then the Tsardom of Russia (with 5,300 homesteads and 25–30 thousand inhabitants in the 1550s) and remained so until the famine of the 1560s and the Massacre of Novgorod in 1570. In

12876-443: Was made the administrative center of Novgorod Governorate of the Russian Empire , which was detached from Saint Petersburg Governorate (see Administrative divisions of Russia in 1727–1728 ). This administrative division existed until 1927. Between 1927 and 1944, the city was a part of Leningrad Oblast , and then became the administrative center of the newly formed Novgorod Oblast . On 15 August 1941, during World War II ,

12992-783: Was never conquered by the Mongols during the Mongol invasion of Rus . The Mongol army turned back about 200 kilometers (120 mi) from the city, not because of the city's strength, but probably because the Mongol commanders did not want to get bogged down in the marshlands surrounding the city. However, the grand princes of Moscow, who acted as tax collectors for the khans of the Golden Horde, did collect tribute in Novgorod, most notably Yury Danilovich and his brother, Ivan Kalita . In 1259, Mongol tax-collectors and census-takers arrived in

13108-584: Was not made mandatory, though. Passports at this time were bilingual, in German and in one of the "native languages". Also at this time, Belarusian preparatory schools, printing houses, press organs were opened ( see also: Homan (1916) ). After the 1917 February Revolution in Russia, the Belarusian language became an important factor in political activities in the Belarusian lands ( see also: Central Council of Belarusian Organisations , Great Belarusian Council , First All-Belarusian Congress , Belnatskom ). In

13224-462: Was officially removed (25 December 1904). The unprecedented surge of national feeling in the 20th century, especially among the workers and peasants, particularly after the events of 1905, gave momentum to the intensive development of Belarusian literature and press (See also: Nasha Niva , Yanka Kupala , Yakub Kolas ). During the 19th and early 20th century, there was no normative Belarusian grammar. Authors wrote as they saw fit, usually representing

13340-481: Was splintered between various smaller fiefs – the Principality of Minsk , Principality of Vitebsk , Principality of Druck , Principality of Jersika , and Principality of Koknese . Local princes waged wars against each other trying to assert control over Polotsk. At last the rulers of Vitebsk emerged victorious. For short periods, the neighbouring Principality of Smolensk also claimed control over some lands of

13456-528: Was the easternmost kontor , or entrepôt , of the league, being the source of enormous quantities of luxury ( sable , ermine , fox , marmot ) and non-luxury furs (squirrel pelts). Throughout the Middle Ages, the city thrived culturally. A large number of birch bark letters have been unearthed in excavations, perhaps suggesting widespread literacy. It was in Novgorod that the Novgorod Codex ,

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