Black Ruthenia

Schwarzruthenien (also Schwarzreußen or Black Russia) is the German name of a historic landscape in the southwest of present-day Belarus. The name was set for the region from about the 13th until the 19th century, in common use, today its use is, however, unusual.

Demarcation and geography

At the time of first naming opportunities in the High Middle Ages, the exact expansion was initially little set.

From the 14th century were considered limits Schwarzrutheniens the upper reaches of the Niemen in the north, the Ptich in the east, the Prypjatsümpfe in the south and the forested headwaters of the Narew (east of Białystok ).

The area is the western part of the Belarusian land back covers substantially, which falls in the north to the lowlands of the Memel and in the south to the lowlands of Polesia.

Major cities: Centrally located and largest city in the area of the old Schwarzruthenien is Baranowitschi, that was totally insignificant but before the end of the 19th century. Important in the Middle Ages were Nawahradak, Wolkowysk, Slonim, Sluzk, Nyasvizh.

The name

The name " Schwarzruthenien " is derived from the Polish name Ruś Czarna ( Belarusian: Чорная Русь ) and its Latin translation Ruthenia Nigra. The alternative Latinization Russia Nigra led to the equally common in the German forms Schwarzreußen and Black Russia.

The translation "Black Rus" came the Slavic closest, but was ( until now ) hardly used in the past. There is also a likelihood of confusion with the Kievan Rus, which is occasionally occupied by the same name and was one of their dominion Schwarzruthenien in the High Middle Ages.

History

In the High Middle Ages, the name appears for the first time, its meaning is disputed.

Beginning of the 13th century belonged Schwarzruthenien mainly to the principalities Polotsk and Turov - Pinsk. Around 1220 /40 of the Lithuanian prince Mindaugas I. conquered the country and could hold its own against attacks of Halych - Volhynia Daniels. By no later than 1300 was Schwarzruthenien for half a millennium as an integral part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

In the 14th century, the province was Nowogródek ( weißruss. Nawahradak, with capital of the same ) formed within the limits mentioned above, often called the " Province Schwarzruthenien ". Thus, the landscape was spatially well defined. The seat of parliament was Slonim.

In the course of partitions of Poland-Lithuania was the 1793 East Schwarzrutheniens to Sluzk to the Russian Empire and then became part of the Minsk province, the residual area followed in 1795 and was assigned to the Grodno. This classification should endure for 130 years.

As the landscape Schwarzruthenien was the new administrative basis, the use of the name in the 19th century became increasingly less common and finally in the 20th century that uncommon (except in historical treatises ).

1921 came the bulk of the black Ruthenian territories to the resurrected Poland, the East by Sluzk at the Byelorussian SSR as part of the Soviet Union. 1939, finally in 1945, the West was to hit.

As part of the independent Belarus since 1991, the black Ruthenian areas are distributed on the Woblasze Hrodna, Brest and Minsk.