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 Western Ukraine or West Ukraine ( uk, Західна Україна, Zakhidna Ukraina or , ) is the territory of Ukraine linked to the former Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia, which was part of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Austria ...

. The city gave its name to 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 historic province of Galicia (Halychyna), and the Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia, of which it was the capital until the early 14th century, when the seat of the local rulers moved to

Lviv Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukrain ...

. Nowadays, Halych is a small town located only on one part of the territory of the former Galician capital, although it has preserved its name. It belongs to

Ivano-Frankivsk Raion Ivano-Frankivsk Raion ( uk, Івано-Франківський район, translit=Ivano-Frankiwśkyj rajon) is a raion (district) of Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, Ukraine. It was created in July 2020 as part of the reform of administrative divisions ...

(

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...

) of Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast (

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...

). It hosts the administration of

Halych urban hromada Halych urban territorial hromada ( uk, Галицька міська територіа́льна грома́да, translit=Halytska miska terytorialna hromada) is a hromada (municipality) in Ukraine, in Ivano-Frankivsk Raion of Ivano-Frankivsk Ob ...

, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. Halych lies north of the oblast capital, Ivano-Frankivsk. Population: .

Name

The city's name, though spelled identically in modern

East Slavic languages The East Slavic languages constitute one of three regional subgroups of the Slavic languages, distinct from the West and South Slavic languages. East Slavic languages are currently spoken natively throughout Eastern Europe, and eastwards to Siber ...

(Галич), is pronounced ''Halych'' in

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...

and ''Galich'' in

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

. The Russian transliteration should not be confused with the

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

n town of Galich. In

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

the name is rendered ''Halicz''; in the

Yiddish language Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ve ...

''Helitsh'' or ''Heylitsh'' (העליטש); in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

, ''Galic''; in Hungarian, ''Halics''; in

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language *** Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language ** Romanian cuisine, tradition ...

, ''Halici''. Local folk legend would have it that the name "Halych" comes from a legendary "Prince Halychyna", the first ruler of these lands. In fact, a

kurgan A kurgan is a type of tumulus constructed over a grave, often characterized by containing a single human body along with grave vessels, weapons and horses. Originally in use on the Pontic–Caspian steppe, kurgans spread into much of Central As ...

referred to by locals as "Halychyna's tomb", excavated in 1996, contained a ritual

cremation Cremation is a method of final disposition of a dead body through burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India and Nepal, cremation on an open-air pyre is ...

site and a bronze

weapon A weapon, arm or armament is any implement or device that can be used to deter, threaten, inflict physical damage, harm, or kill. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting, crime, law enforcement, ...

and

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile me ...

disc that could have belonged to a noble leader.

Max Vasmer Max Julius Friedrich Vasmer (; russian: Максимилиан Романович Фа́смер, translit=Maksimilian Romanovič Fásmer; 28 February 1886 – 30 November 1962) was a Russo-German linguist. He studied problems of etymology in I ...

and modern

Slavist Slavic (American English) or Slavonic (British English) studies, also known as Slavistics is the academic field of area studies concerned with Slavic areas, languages, literature, history, and culture. Originally, a Slavist or Slavicist was prim ...

s generally agree that "Halych" is an adjective derived from the East Slavic word for "

jackdaw Jackdaws are two species of bird in the genus ''Coloeus'' closely related to, but generally smaller than, the crows and ravens (''Corvus''). ''Coloeus'' is sometimes treated as a subgenus of ''Corvus'', including by the IUCN.Madge & Burn (1994) ...

" ("''halka''"). This bird featured in the town's old

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

History

The oldest archaeological artifacts from the territory of Halych are classified to

Paleolithic period The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic (), also called the Old Stone Age (from Greek: παλαιός ''palaios'', "old" and λίθος '' lithos'', "stone"), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone to ...

40,000 years ago. More systematic findings from a wide number of archaeological cultures dated from 5500 BC till nowadays indicate that population of local terrains was virtually perpetual for some past 7,000 years. According to excavated finds, the population of Halych became especially significant from 8–9 c. AD. Local officials attribute the first written mention of Halych to the year 896. The opinion is supported by a record found in the

Gesta Hungarorum ''Gesta Hungarorum'', or ''The Deeds of the Hungarians'', is the earliest book about Hungarian history which has survived for posterity. Its genre is not chronicle, but ''gesta'', meaning "deeds" or "acts", which is a medieval entertaining li ...

, which are court chronicles of the Hungarian king Béla III from the beginning of the 13th century. The chronicles describe a stay of Hungarian tribes led by

Prince Álmos Álmos (also "Almus", Slovak, hr, Almoš; 1070 or 1075 – 1 September 1127) was a Hungarian prince, the son of King Géza I of Hungary and brother of King Coloman. He held several governmental posts in the Kingdom of Hungary. Life Ea ...

in Halych on their way through Slavic land to Pannonia. The claim is not supported by serious scholars. Similarly, another curious date for the first written mention, 290 AD (with a reference to "''

Getica ''De origine actibusque Getarum'' (''The Origin and Deeds of the Getae oths'), commonly abbreviated ''Getica'', written in Late Latin by Jordanes in or shortly after 551 AD, claims to be a summary of a voluminous account by Cassiodorus of the o ...

''" by

Goth A Goth is a member of the Goths, a group of East Germanic tribes. Two major political entities of the Goths were: *Visigoths, prominent in Spanish history *Ostrogoths, prominent in Italian history Goth or Goths may also refer to: * Goth (surname) ...

Jordanes Jordanes (), also written as Jordanis or Jornandes, was a 6th-century Eastern Roman bureaucrat widely believed to be of Gothic descent who became a historian later in life. Late in life he wrote two works, one on Roman history ('' Romana'') a ...

) is not accepted by majority.

Old Halych (Princely Halych)

The most comprehensive records about Halych are found in the

Hypatian Codex 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 ...

of the Primary Chronicle. The Old Halych is also being referred to as Princely Halych ( uk, Княжий Галич, Knyazhyi Halych) in some Ukrainian sources in order to distinguish it from the contemporary city. Today Old Halych as a settlement of the Old Ruthenia (Rus) is an archaeological landmark on a territory of Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast.Baran, V.D.
Halych (Ancient) (ГАЛИЧ (ДАВНІЙ))
'. Encyclopedia of History of Ukraine. Located in confluence of

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 its tributaries, the Old Halych appeared on the basis of several early settlements and trading sites of

White Croats White Croats ( hr, Bijeli Hrvati; pl, Biali Chorwaci; cz, Bílí Chorvati; uk, Білі хорвати, Bili khorvaty), or simply known as Croats, were a group of Early Slavic tribes who lived among other West and East Slavic tribes in the ar ...

, that in 12–13th centuries were merged into one urban-like system. The central part of the human settlement with the Dormition Cathedral and princely chambers was fortified with powerful vallums and moats and was located over Lukva River (Dniester's tributary) at the place of contemporary village of

Krylos Krylos is a small village of Ivano-Frankivsk Raion in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, Ukraine. It is located south of modern Halych and is part of the National preserve ''Ancient Halych''. The village covers an area of . The village council consists of ...

. The first dynasty of Halych, descending from

Vladimir of Novgorod Vladimir Yaroslavich (russian: Владимир Ярославич, Old Norse ''Valdamarr Jarizleifsson''; 1020 – October 4, 1052) reigned as prince of Novgorod from 1036 until his death. He was the eldest son of Yaroslav I the Wise of Kiev by ...

, a Rurik family branch known as Rostislavichi, culminated in

Yaroslav Osmomysl Yaroslav Osmomysl ( orv, Осмомыслъ Ярославъ, ''Osmomyslŭ Jaroslavŭ''; uk , Ярослав Володимирович Осмомисл, ''Yaroslav Volodymyrkovych Osmomysl'') ( – 1 October 1187) was the most famous Prince of H ...

(1153–1187) – after whose rule

Béla III of Hungary Béla III ( hu, III. Béla, hr, Bela III, sk, Belo III; 114823 April 1196) was King of Hungary and Croatia between 1172 and 1196. He was the second son of King Géza II and Géza's wife, Euphrosyne of Kiev. Around 1161, Géza granted Béla a ...

briefly conquered the Principality in 1188—before going extinct in 1199. The same year

Roman the Great Roman Mstislavich (russian: Рома́н Мстисла́вич Га́лицкий; uk, Рома́н Мстисла́вич), known as Roman the Great (c. 1152 – Zawichost, 19 June 1205) was a Rus’ prince, Grand Prince of Kiev, member of ...

founded the new Rurikid dynasty, uniting

Halychyna Galicia ()"Galicia"
''

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. The ...

into the more powerful principality of Halych-Volhynia. In 1141 Prince ( knyaz)

Volodymyrko Volodarovych Volodymyrko Volodarovych (Volodymyrko Volodarevych, uk, Володимирко Володарович, russian: Владимир Володаревич (Владимирко) , Vladimir Volodarevich "Vladimirko") (1104 - 1152) was a Galicia (Eas ...

(1104–1152) who united the competing principalities of Przemyśl, Zvenyhorod and Terebovlya into the state of Halychyna transferred his capital from Zvenyhorod to Halych making it the seat of his Rurikid dynasty and considerably expanding the settlement. 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 ...

under

Batu Khan Batu Khan ( – 1255),, ''Bat haan'', tt-Cyrl, Бату хан; ; russian: хан Баты́й was a Mongol ruler and founder of the Golden Horde, a constituent of the Mongol Empire. Batu was a son of Jochi, thus a grandson of Genghis Kh ...

took the capital in 1241, when the famous King Danylo was its ruler. Thereafter the town steadily declined, eventually ceding supremacy to the newly founded

. The excavations of 1933–42 ( Jaroslaw Pasternak), 1951–52 (Karger M.K., Aulikh V.), and 1955 uncovered remains of houses, workshops, fortifications, and ten churches built of white stone. Pasternak's excavations established that ancient Halych originated on the spot of today's village

(located 5 km south of modern Halych) as early as the 10th century. In 1936 Pasternak also discovered remains of an 11th to 12th century three-

apse In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an '' exedra''. ...

cathedral with burial tomb of Prince

in it. The cathedral is ascribed to the Cathedral of the Dormition previously known only from

Chronicles Chronicles may refer to: * ''Books of Chronicles'', in the Bible * Chronicle, chronological histories * ''The Chronicles of Narnia'', a novel series by C. S. Lewis * ''Holinshed's Chronicles'', the collected works of Raphael Holinshed * '' The Idh ...

, known to have been a sepulchre of the earliest Halychian princes. The sheer size (37,5 by 32,4 m) of the cathedral (the second largest mediaeval church on the territory of present-day

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

, smaller only to St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv), suggests that ancient Halych was the seat of a

diocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associa ...

. Most likely the cathedral was built in 1157 and destroyed in 1241 by hordes of

, then rebuilt again and last time mentioned in 1576. It is believed that the early Halychian architectural style, thoroughly permeated with Romanesque influences from the West, had been transferred further

north-east The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...

. The builders of temples in Halych are believed to have also been responsible for the extant

Pereslavl Pereslavl-Zalessky ( rus, Переславль-Залесский, p=pʲɪrʲɪˈslavlʲ zɐˈlʲɛskʲɪj, lit. ''Pereslavl beyond the woods''), also known as Pereyaslavl-Zalessky, is a town in Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, located on the main Mosc ...

Cathedral and Church of Intercession upon Nerl.