Kyi, Shchek and Khoryv

Lore & Background

According to the Primary Chronicle (c. 1110s), written by a monk of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra traditionally attributed to Nestor, the three brothers and their sister founded Kiev. Nestor places the brothers onto various hills of Kyiv. The Chronicle states that some people considered Kyi a mere ferryman, but it later claims Kyi, as a prince of his gens, visited Czargrad and received great honors from the Emperor. Dmitry Likhachov combined attestations of the Nikon Chronicle, which also recounts that Kyi with a great army marched onto Czargrad and received great honors from the Emperor. During his expedition to Constantinople, Kyi also founded a city of Kyivets on the Danube.

The Chronicle does not indicate the date of Kyi's death nor the existence or absence of heirs. It mentions a meeting between local residents with Askold and Dir who asked whose city Kjiv was, and received the answer that the three brothers who built it were long dead and the residents paid tribute to the Khazars. However, the Polish historian Jan Długosz points out the Przemysł Chronicle that asserts, 'after the death of Kyi, Shchek and Khoryv, their children and grandchildren who descended from them by direct lineage ruled for many years.'

Reader's Guide

The legend of Kyi, Shchek and Khoryv is central to the foundation myth of Kyiv, as recorded in the Primary Chronicle. While many 20th-century Soviet historians considered Kyi and his rule circa the 6th century to be actual history, modern scholars like Serhii Plokhy (in his 2017 book) relegate them to the realm of legend, as little reliable information is known about Slavs in Ukraine prior to the 10th century. Roman Adrian Cybriwsky (2016) called the founding story 'dubious.' The names have equivalents in a 7th-century Armenian chronicle and parallels in Croatian and Bulgarian origin legends. Archaeological excavations show an ancient settlement starting with the 6th century, and some speculate Kyi was a real Polianian prince. The legacy includes modern tributes such as streets named Shchekavytska and Khoryva in Kyiv's Podil neighborhood, and a 1982 sculpture called the Monument to the Founders of Kyiv depicting the four siblings.

Did You Know?

• The Primary Chronicle places the brothers onto various hills of Kyiv.
• Kyi was said to have founded a city of Kyivets on the Danube during an expedition to Constantinople.
• The names of Kyi and his brothers have equivalents in a 7th-century Armenian chronicle, History of Taron.
• In 1982, a sculpture called the Monument to the Founders of Kyiv depicted Kyi, Shchek, Khoryv and Lybid.