Malusha Malkovna (

Old Ruthenian Ruthenian (Belarusian language, Belarusian: руская мова; Ukrainian language, Ukrainian: руська мова; Ruthenian: руска(ѧ) мова; also see #Nomenclature, other names) is an exonymic linguonym for a closely-related grou ...

: Малушa) was allegedly a servant (

kholop A kholop ( rus, холо́п, p=xɐˈlop) was a type of feudal serf in Kievan Rus', then in Russia between the 10th and early 18th centuries. Their legal status was close to that of slaves. Etymology The word ''kholop'' was first mentioned in ...

ka) for

Olga of Kiev Olga ( orv, Вольга, Volĭga; (); russian: Ольга (); uk, Ольга (). Old Norse: '; Lithuanian language, Lith: ''Alge''; Christian name: ''Elena''; c. 890–925 – 969) was a regent of Kievan Rus' for her son Sviatoslav I of Kiev, ...

and concubine of

Sviatoslav I of Kiev ; (943 – 26 March 972), also spelled Svyatoslav, was Grand Prince of Kiev famous for his persistent campaigns in the east and south, which precipitated the collapse of two great powers of Eastern Europe, Khazars, Khazaria and the First Bulgarian E ...

. According to Slavonic chronicles, she was the mother of

Vladimir the Great Vladimir I Sviatoslavich or Volodymyr I Sviatoslavych ( orv, Володимѣръ Свѧтославичь, ''Volodiměrъ Svętoslavičь'';, ''Uladzimir'', russian: Владимир, ''Vladimir'', uk, Володимир, ''Volodymyr''. Se ...

and sister of

Dobrynya Dobrynya (russian: Добрыня, uk, Добриня) was Vladimir the Great's maternal uncle and tutor. He was the historical prototype of the invincible bogatyr Dobrynya Nikitich in Kievan Rus folklore. Dobrynya's life and extent of his inf ...

. The

Norse saga is a series of science fantasy role-playing video games by Square Enix. The series originated on the Game Boy in 1989 as the creation of Akitoshi Kawazu at Square. It has since continued across multiple platforms, from the Super NES to the Play ...

s describe Vladimir's mother as a prophetess who lived to the age of 100 and was brought from her cave to the palace to predict the future. There are monuments of Malusha with her young son, Vladimir, in

Korosten Korosten ( uk, Ко́ростень, ; historically also ''Iskorosten'' ) is a historic city and a large transport hub in the Zhytomyr Oblast (province) of northern Ukraine. It is located on the Uzh River. Korosten serves as the administrative ce ...

, Ukraine.

Origin

As the chronicles are silent on the subject of Malusha's pedigree, 19th-century Russian and Ukrainian historians devised various theories to explain her parentage and name. Malusha Malkovna is said to be the daughter of Malk of

Lyubech Liubech ( uk, Любеч, russian: Любеч, pl, Lubecz) is an urban-type settlement, previously a small ancient town (first mentioned in 882) connected with many important events in the Principality of Chernigov since the times of Kievan Rus'. ...

, prince of the

Drevlians The Drevlians ( uk, Древляни, Drevliany, russian: Древля́не, Drevlyane) were a tribe of Early East Slavs between the 6th and the 10th centuries, which inhabited the territories of Polesia and right-bank Ukraine, west of the eas ...

. The same one that wanted to marry

after she became a widow. However, historian Leo Loewenson rebutted that Malk was not Drevlian nor a prince, pointing out that the ''

Primary Chronicle The ''Tale of Bygone Years'' ( orv, Повѣсть времѧньныхъ лѣтъ, translit=Pověstĭ vremęnĭnyxŭ lětŭ; ; ; ; ), often known in English as the ''Rus' Primary Chronicle'', the ''Russian Primary Chronicle'', or simply the ...

'' only mentions his name as 'Malk Lyubechinin' or 'Malk of Lyubech' and that there "there is not the faintest indication that Malyusha's father was a prince". Loewenson further notes that Lyubech "was a town of the

Severians The Severians or Severyans or Siverians ( be, Севяране; bg, Севери; russian: Северяне; uk, Сiверяни, translit=Siveriany) were a tribe or tribal confederation of early East Slavs occupying areas to the east of the mi ...

not the Drevlians".

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

Israeli Israeli may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the State of Israel * Israelis, citizens or permanent residents of the State of Israel * Modern Hebrew, a language * ''Israeli'' (newspaper), published from 2006 to 2008 * Guni Israeli ...

historian Savely Dudakov stated that due to having a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

name and with Lyubech being a part of pre-

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

Rus Rus or RUS may refer to: People and places * Rus (surname), a Romanian-language surname * East Slavic historical territories and peoples (). See Names of Rus', Russia and Ruthenia ** Rus' people, the people of Rus' ** Rus' territories *** Kievan ...

at the time, Malk should be considered either a

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""Th ...

or a

Khazar The Khazars ; he, כּוּזָרִים, Kūzārīm; la, Gazari, or ; zh, 突厥曷薩 ; 突厥可薩 ''Tūjué Kěsà'', () were a semi-nomadic Turkic people that in the late 6th-century CE established a major commercial empire coverin ...

Judaist Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in the ...

in the historical context. ''Primary Chronicle'' records that a certain Malusha died in 1000. This record follows that of

Rogneda Rogneda of Polotsk (962–1002) is the Slavic name for Ragnheiðr, a Princess consort of Rus'. She was the daughter of Ragnvald (Slavic: Rogvolod) who came from Scandinavia and established himself at Polotsk in the mid-10th century. Life It ...

's death. Since Rogneda was Vladimir's wife, historians assume that Malusha was another close relative of the ruling prince, preferably his wife or mother. The anti-Normanist historian

Dmitry Ilovaisky Dmitry Ivanovich Ilovaysky (; February 11/23, 1832, Ranenburg - February 15, 1920) was an anti-Normanist conservative Russian historian who penned a number of standard history textbooks. Ilovaysky graduated from the Moscow University in 1854 a ...

managed to draw an opposite conclusion: that the Slavic name Malusha was turned into a Scandinavian Malfried. This claim received no wider support.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Malusha 10th-century women Prophets Kievan Rus' princesses Concubines 10th-century Rus' people 10th-century Rus' women