Bogatyr
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The bogatyr (from baghatur, an old Altaic term for a warrior, a military commander, or an epic hero) or vityaz (Russian: витязь, a valiant warrior) was a medieval heroic warrior of Kievan Rus', akin to Western European knight errant.
An early usage of the word bogatyr was recorded in Sernitskiy's book "Descriptio veteris et novae Poloniae cum divisione ejusdem veteri et nova," printed in 1585 in an unknown location, in which he says, "Rossi… de heroibus suis, quos Bohatiros id est semideos vocant, aliis persuadere conantur."
Bylinas prominently feature stories about these heroes, as do several chronicles. Some of bogatyrs are presumed to be historical figures, while others, like giant Sviatogor, are purely fictional and possibly descend from Slavic pagan mythology.
Most of stories about bogatyrs revolve around the court of Vladimir I of Kiev (958–1015). There served the most famous vityazs': the trio of Alyosha Popovich, Dobrynya Nikitich and Ilya Muromets. Each of them tend to be known for a certain character trait: Alyosha Popovich for his wits, Dobrynya Nikitich for his courage, and Ilya Muromets for his physical and spiritual power and integrity, and for his dedication to the protection of his homeland and people.
Novgorod Republic produced a specific kind of hero, an adventurer rather than a noble warrior. The most prominent example is Sadko, another is Vasili Buslayev.
Later famous knights also include those who fought by Alexander Nevsky's side and those who fought in the Battle of Kulikovo.
[edit] Epic bogatyrs
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- Alyosha Popovich - from Rostov
- Dobrynya Nikitich - from Riazan (based on a historical warlord of Vladimir I)
- Ilya Muromets, regarded as the greatest of the bogatyrs, from Murom
- Svyatogor, a giant knight who bequeath his strength to Ilya Muromets (purely fictional)
- Sadko, a merchant and adventurer of Novgorod (fictional)
- Gavrila Alexich of Novgorod, who served Alexander Nevsky in Battle of Neva (historical)
- Ratmir of Novgorod, who served Alexander Nevsky in Battle of Neva (historical)
- Vasili Buslayev of Novgorod
- Peresvet, who sacrificed himself against the Tatars at the Battle of Kulikovo (historical)
- Duke Stepanovich
- Dunaj Ivanovich
- Volha (possibly based on Oleg of Kiev)
- Sukhman The Bogatyr
[edit] See also
- Bylina, oral epics of the Slavic world
- Victor Vasnetsov (1848-1926), Russian painter of the most famous depictions of bogatyrs
- Knight-errant
- Slavic mythology
[edit] References
- Богатыри и витязи Русской земли: По былинам, сказаниям и песням. (1990) Moscow: "Moskovsky Rabochy" publishers (Russian)
