Malusha Malkovna () was allegedly a servant ('' kholopka'') for Olga of Kiev and a concubine of Sviatoslav I of Kiev. According to chronicles, she was the mother of

Vladimir the Great Vladimir I Sviatoslavich or Volodymyr I Sviatoslavych (; Christian name: ''Basil''; 15 July 1015), given the epithet "the Great", was Prince of Novgorod from 970 and Grand Prince of Kiev from 978 until his death in 1015. The Eastern Orthodox ...

and sister of Dobrynya. The

Norse saga Sagas are prose stories and histories, composed in Iceland and to a lesser extent elsewhere in Scandinavia. The most famous saga-genre is the (sagas concerning Icelanders), which feature Viking voyages, migration to Iceland, and feuds between ...

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.

Origin

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

Liubech Liubech ( Ukrainian and Russian: ; ) is a rural settlement in Chernihiv Oblast, northern Ukraine. Liubech is located north of the capital of Ukraine, Kyiv, and located near the border with Belarus. It hosts the administration of Liubech settl ...

, prince of the

Drevlians The Drevlians, Derevlians or Derevlianians ( or , ) were a tribe of East Slavs between the 6th and the 10th centuries, which inhabited the territories of Polesia and right-bank Ukraine, west of the Polans (eastern), eastern Polans and along the ...

. The same one that wanted to marry Olga of Kiev 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 ''Primary Chronicle'', shortened from the common ''Russian Primary Chronicle'' (, commonly transcribed ''Povest' vremennykh let'' (PVL), ), is a Rus' chronicle, chronicle of Kievan Rus' from about 850 to 1110. It is believed to have been or ...

'' only mentions his name as 'Malk Lyubechinin' or 'Malk of Lyubech' and that "there is not the faintest indication that Malyusha's father was a prince". Loewenson further notes that Lyubech "was a town of the Severians not the Drevlians". Dmitry Prozorovsky believed that Malusha was the daughter of Mal, a Drevlyan leader. The same one that wanted to marry Olga of Kiev after she became a widow. The ''Primary Chronicle'' records that a certain " Malfrid" died in 1000. This record follows that of Rogneda'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 managed to draw an opposite conclusion: that the Slavic name Malusha was turned into a Scandinavian Malfried. This claim received no wider support.

Legacy

There are monuments of Malusha with her young son, Vladimir, in

Korosten Korosten (, ), also historically known as Iskorosten (), is a historic city and a large transport hub in Zhytomyr Oblast, northern Ukraine. It is located on the Uzh (Pripyat), Uzh River. Korosten serves as the Capital city, administrative center ...

, Ukraine.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Malusha Prophets Family of Vladimir the Great Concubines 10th-century people from Kievan Rus' 10th-century women from Kievan Rus'