Bolokhovians, Bolokhoveni, also Bolokhovens ( ro, Bolohoveni; Old Slavic: Болоховци, Bolokhovtsy), were a 13th-century ethnic group that resided in the vicinity of the Rus' principalities of

Halych Halych ( uk, Га́лич ; ro, Halici; pl, Halicz; russian: Га́лич, Galich; german: Halytsch, ''Halitsch'' or ''Galitsch''; yi, העליטש) is a historic city on the Dniester River in western Ukraine. The city gave its name to the P ...

Volhynia Volhynia (also spelled Volynia) ( ; uk, Воли́нь, Volyn' pl, Wołyń, russian: Волы́нь, Volýnʹ, ), is a historic region in Central and Eastern Europe, between south-eastern Poland, south-western Belarus, and western Ukraine. Th ...

and

Kiev Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

, in the territory known as the "" centered at the city of

Bolokhov Bolokhov ( cu, Болохов; pl, Bołochów; ro, Bolohov; russian: Болохов; uk, Болохов) was a city mentioned in the '' Kyivan'' and '' Galician–Volhynian'' chronicles, which gave the name to the , but that has not yet been f ...

or Bolokhovo (not identified yet). Their ethnic identity is uncertain; although Romanian scholars, basing on their ethnonym identify them as

Romanians The Romanians ( ro, români, ; dated exonym ''Vlachs'') are a Romance languages, Romance-speaking ethnic group. Sharing a common Culture of Romania, Romanian culture and Cultural heritage, ancestry, and speaking the Romanian language, they l ...

(who were called

Vlachs "Vlach" ( or ), also "Wallachian" (and many other variants), is a historical term and exonym used from the Middle Ages until the Modern Era to designate mainly Romanians but also Aromanians, Megleno-Romanians, Istro-Romanians and other Easter ...

in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

), archeological evidence and the ''

Hypatian Chronicle The Hypatian Codex (also known as Hypatian Letopis or Ipatiev Letopis; be, Іпацьеўскі летапіс; russian: Ипатьевская летопись; uk, Іпатіївський літопис) is a ''svod'' (compendium) of three ''l ...

'' (which is the only

primary source In the study of history as an academic discipline, a primary source (also called an original source) is an artifact, document, diary, manuscript, autobiography, recording, or any other source of information that was created at the time under ...

that documents their history) suggest that they were a

Slavic people Slavs are the largest European ethnolinguistic group. They speak the various Slavic languages, belonging to the larger Balto-Slavic branch of the Indo-European languages. Slavs are geographically distributed throughout northern Eurasia, main ...

. Their princes, or ''

knyaz , or ( Old Church Slavonic: Кнѧзь) is a historical Slavic title, used both as a royal and noble title in different times of history and different ancient Slavic lands. It is usually translated into English as prince or duke, dependi ...

es'', were in constant conflict with

Daniel of Galicia Daniel of Galicia ( uk, Данило Романович (Галицький), Danylo Romanovych (Halytskyi); Old Ruthenian: Данило Романовичъ, ''Danylo Romanovyčъ''; pl, Daniel I Romanowicz Halicki; 1201 – 1264) was a King ...

, Prince of Halych and Volhynia, between 1231 and 1257. After the Mongols sacked Kiev in 1240, the Bolokhovians supplied them with troops, but the Bolokhovian princes fled to

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

. The Bolokhovians disappeared after Daniel defeated them in 1257.

Etymology

Romanian scholars suggest that the name "Bolokhoveni" may have derived from ''Voloch'', the East Slavic term for

, or

. If this theory is correct, the Bolokhoveni were Romanians living in the western regions of

Kievan Rus' Kievan Rusʹ, also known as Kyivan Rusʹ ( orv, , Rusĭ, or , , ; Old Norse: ''Garðaríki''), was a state in Eastern and Northern Europe from the late 9th to the mid-13th century.John Channon & Robert Hudson, ''Penguin Historical Atlas of ...

. However this theory is contradicted by archaeological evidence, which indicates that the Bolokhovian material culture resembled that of its contemporaries in the western parts of Kievan Rus'. Furthermore, it is documented that the Bolokhovian princes had family ties with ''

boyar A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the Feudalism, feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Kievan Rus', Bulgarian Empire, Bulgaria, Russian nobility, Russia, Boyars of Moldavia and Wallachia, Wallachia and ...

s'' of the

Principality of Halych The Principality of Halych ( uk, Галицьке князівство, translit=Halytske kniazivstvo; rus, Галицкое княжество; orv, Галицкоє кънѧжьство; ro, Cnezatul Galiția), or Principality of Halychian Ru ...

. The ethnonym seems to be connected to the name ''Bolokhovo'', an early medieval settlement that the ''

''an accurate source of the history of Kievan Rus'mentioned around 1150. According to historian

Victor Spinei Victor Spinei (born 26 October 1943 in Lozova, Lăpușna County, Romania) is Emeritus Professor of history and archaeology at the Alexandru Ioan Cuza University, member and vice president of the Romanian Academy. He is a specialist on the history ...

, this town may have been the same town as ''Borokhov'', which was recorded by the same chronicle in 1172. Alternatively, Spinei states, ''Bolokhovo'' may be the same town as Bolechow (now Bolekhiv, Ukraine), which was mentioned as the "town called 'the Vlachs in a Polish charter from 1472.

Geography

The ''Hypatian Chronicle'' refers to the "" once. Based on the chronicle, modern historians say that this land bordered the principalities of

and

. Bozhskyy, along with other Bolokhovian towns mentioned in the chronicle, were situated along the

Buzhok Buzhok ( uk, Бужок) is a village (''selo'') in Zolochiv Raion, Lviv Oblast, in western Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which ...

and Sluch rivers. According to the ''

Encyclopedia of Ukraine The ''Encyclopedia of Ukraine'' ( uk, Енциклопедія українознавства, translit=Entsyklopediia ukrainoznavstva), published from 1984 to 2001, is a fundamental work of Ukrainian Studies. Development The work was creat ...

'', the Bolokhovians inhabited the region around the sources of the

Teteriv The Teteriv () is a right tributary of the Dnieper River in Ukraine. It has a length of 365 km and a drainage basin of 15,300 km². In the underflow the valley of the Teteriv in Polissia on up to 4 km, the width of the river widens ...

, Boh,

Horyn The Horyn or Haryn ( uk, Горинь ; be, Гарынь ; russian: Горы́нь; pl, Horyń) is a tributary of the Pripyat, which flows through Ukraine and Belarus. The Horyn is long, and has a drainage basin of .Sluch rivers. On the other hand, historian Alexandru V. Boldur believes that the Bolokhovian Land was located between the

Dniester The Dniester, ; rus, Дне́стр, links=1, Dnéstr, ˈdⁿʲestr; ro, Nistru; grc, Τύρᾱς, Tyrās, ; la, Tyrās, la, Danaster, label=none, ) ( ,) is a transboundary river in Eastern Europe. It runs first through Ukraine and th ...

and

Dnieper } The Dnieper () or Dnipro (); , ; . is one of the major transboundary rivers of Europe, rising in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea. It is the longest river of Ukraine and B ...

rivers. He also says that the Bolokhoveni were located southeast of the present-day town of Ushitsa ( ro, Ușița). According to Niketas Choniates's chronicle, "the Vlachs, who had heard rumors" of the escape of Andronikos Komnenus (a rebellious cousin of the Byzantine Emperor Manuel I), captured him in 1164 at the borders of Halych.

History

The ''Hypatian Chronicle'' first refers to "Bolokhovian princes" when documenting a war between Daniil Romanovich, Prince of Halych and Volhynia, and the

Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars ( ; hu, magyarok ), are a nation and ethnic group native to Hungary () and historical Hungarian lands who share a common culture, history, ancestry, and language. The Hungarian language belongs to the Urali ...

in 1231. The Bolokhovian princes fought in alliance with the Hungarians. The Bolokhovian princes supported a rebellion against Daniil Romanovich, and they besieged an important stronghold,

Kamianets-Podilskyi Kamianets-Podilskyi ( uk, Ка́м'яне́ць-Поді́льський, russian: Каменец-Подольский, Kamenets-Podolskiy, pl, Kamieniec Podolski, ro, Camenița, yi, קאַמענעץ־פּאָדאָלסק / קאַמעניץ, ...

, in 1233 or 1235. However, the princes were captured and brought to the court of Daniil Romanovich in

Vladimir Vladimir may refer to: Names * Vladimir (name) for the Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Macedonian, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak and Slovenian spellings of a Slavic name * Uladzimir for the Belarusian version of the name * Volodymyr for the Ukr ...

. When Mikhail,

Prince of Chernigov The Prince of Chernigov was the ''kniaz'', the ruler or sub-ruler, of the Rus' Principality of Chernigov, a lordship which lasted four centuries straddling what are now parts of Ukraine, Belarus and the Russian Federation. List of Princes of Chern ...

, and Iziaslav, Prince of Novgorod-Seversk, requested their release, they referred to Bolokhovian princes as their "brothers". After the

Mongols The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal membe ...

destroyed Kiev in 1240, the Mongols moving westward did not attack the "Bolokhovian Land". However, they did force the Bolokhovians to supply their army with crops. At the same time, the Bolokhovian princes fled to the

Duchy of Masovia Duchy of Masovia was a district principality and a fiefdom of the Kingdom of Poland, existing during the Middle Ages. The state was centered in Mazovia in the northeastern Kingdom of Poland, and during its existence, its capital was located in ...

(now in Poland). They promised Duke

Bolesław I of Masovia Bolesław I of Masovia ( pl, Bolesław I Mazowiecki; 1208 – ca. 25 February 1248), was Polish prince member of the Polish House of Piast, Duke of Sandomierz (only a part) during 1229-1232, Duke of Dobrzyń during 1233-1247 and Duke over whole M ...

that they would accept his suzerainty, but the duke captured them. They were released after Daniil Romanovich and his brother,

Vasilko Romanovich Vasylko Romanovych (1203–1269), Prince of Belz (1207–1269), Prince of Brest (1231–1269), and Prince of Volhynia (1231–1269). He was the son of Roman the Great, the younger brother of Daniel of Galicia. Family Father *Roman the Great Bro ...

, promised to give Duke Bolesław I many gifts. The

Mongol invasion of Rus' The Mongol Empire invaded and conquered Kievan Rus' in the 13th century, destroying numerous southern cities, including the largest cities, Kiev (50,000 inhabitants) and Chernihiv (30,000 inhabitants), with the only major cities escaping destr ...

did not end the conflicts among the local rulers. The Bolokhovian princes supported

Rostislav Mikhailovich Rostislav Mikhailovich ( hu, Rosztyiszláv, Bulgarian and Russian: Ростислав Михайлович) (after 1210 / c. 1225 – 1262) was a Rus' prince (a member of the Rurik dynasty), and a dignitary in the Kingdom of Hungary. He was pri ...

when he besieged Bakota, a major town held by Daniil Romanovich's officials, in 1241. In revenge for the attack, Daniil Romanovich invaded and pillaged the Bolokhovian Land and destroyed their fortified towns. Archaeological research at Gubin and Kudin, two supposedly Bolokhovian towns, shows that the town walls were dug up by Daniil's army. However, no corpses or traces of fire were found, implying that Daniil took the towns' inhabitants to his own principality. Their defeat by Daniil's troops in 1257 was the last recorded event of the history of the Bolokhovians.

References

Sources

* * * *

Etymology

Geography

History

See also

References

Sources

Further reading