Daniel the Traveller, known also as Daniel the Pilgrim (), Daniel of Kiev, or Abbot Daniel, was the first travel writer from the

Kievan Rus' Kievan Rus', also known as Kyivan Rus,. * was the first East Slavs, East Slavic state and later an amalgam of principalities in Eastern Europe from the late 9th to the mid-13th century.John Channon & Robert Hudson, ''Penguin Historical At ...

.Anzovin, p. 201, item 3391: "The first Russian travel-writer was Daniel of Kiev, called in Russian Daniel Kievsky." "Daniel is the earliest Russian author, sacred or secular, who has described a journey from his country to any other part of the outer world." He is known for travelling to the

Holy Land The term "Holy Land" is used to collectively denote areas of the Southern Levant that hold great significance in the Abrahamic religions, primarily because of their association with people and events featured in the Bible. It is traditionall ...

in the aftermath of the

First Crusade The First Crusade (1096–1099) was the first of a series of religious wars, or Crusades, initiated, supported and at times directed by the Latin Church in the Middle Ages. The objective was the recovery of the Holy Land from Muslim conquest ...

and his descriptions are important records of the region during that time. Some have identified him with a certain Daniel, bishop of between 1115 and 1122.

Travels

Archimandrite The title archimandrite (; ), used in Eastern Christianity, originally referred to a superior abbot ('' hegumenos'', , present participle of the verb meaning "to lead") whom a bishop appointed to supervise several "ordinary" abbots and monaste ...

Daniel journeyed to the West from the Rus

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

where he lived as an

igumen Hegumen, hegumenos, or igumen (, trans. ), is the title for the head of a monastery in the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches, or an archpriest in the Coptic Orthodox Church, similar to the title of abbot. The head of a convent of nuns ...

. This monastery was probably near

Chernigov Chernihiv (, ; , ) is a city and municipality in northern Ukraine, which serves as the administrative center of Chernihiv Oblast and Chernihiv Raion within the oblast. Chernihiv's population is The city was designated as a Hero City of Ukrain ...

. Daniel's narratives begin at Constantinople. He began his travels in the early 12th century and was likely in

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

around 1106 to 1108.Merriam-Webster, p. 298Anzovin, p. 201, item 3391 Daniel stayed in the

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

area for over a year and took various trips around

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

and

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

. During this time he explored the

Dead Sea The Dead Sea (; or ; ), also known by #Names, other names, is a landlocked salt lake bordered by Jordan to the east, the Israeli-occupied West Bank to the west and Israel to the southwest. It lies in the endorheic basin of the Jordan Rift Valle ...

Hebron Hebron (; , or ; , ) is a Palestinian city in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Hebron is capital of the Hebron Governorate, the largest Governorates of Palestine, governorate in the West Bank. With a population of 201,063 in ...

, and

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

. He learned much of the regions from his three major excursions to the Dead Sea and Lower Jordan (which he compares to the

Snov River The Snov (; ) is a river in Bryansk Oblast in Russia and Chernihiv Oblast in Ukraine, right tributary of the Desna River (Dnieper basin). The length of the river is 253 km. The area of its drainage basin is 8,700 km2.Bethlehem Bethlehem is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, located about south of Jerusalem, and the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate. It had a population of people, as of . The city's economy is strongly linked to Tourism in the State of Palesti ...

and Hebron, and

. Daniel wrote his journeys in narratives he titled ''Puteshestive igumena Daniila'' ("Pilgrimage of Daniel"). When coming to Jerusalem from Jaffa, he mentions that this was where ‘Saracens sally forth and kill travellers’, he also attested to several venerable sites that was ‘destroyed by the pagans’. When going to

Lake Tiberias The Sea of Galilee (, Judeo-Aramaic: יַמּא דטבריא, גִּנֵּיסַר, ), also called Lake Tiberias, Genezareth Lake or Kinneret, is a freshwater lake in Israel. It is the lowest freshwater lake on Earth and the second-lowest lak ...

, he dodged ‘fierce pagans who attack travellers at the river-fords’ and lions that roamed the countryside in ‘great numbers’. He prayed for his life when he walked unescorted on the narrow pass between

Mount Tabor Mount Tabor ( ; ; ), sometimes spelled Mount Thabor, is a large hill of biblical significance in Lower Galilee, Northern District (Israel), northern Israel, at the eastern end of the Jezreel Valley, west of the Sea of Galilee. In the Hebrew Bi ...

and

Nazareth Nazareth is the largest Cities in Israel, city in the Northern District (Israel), Northern District of Israel. In its population was . Known as "the Arab capital of Israel", Nazareth serves as a cultural, political, religious, economic and ...

as he was warned that local villagers do ‘kill travellers in those terrible mountains’. He survived the trip, returning to

Kiev Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

with a small piece of the rock from Christ’s tomb kept by him as a relic. Daniel's description of the Holy Land preserves a record of conditions that are peculiarly characteristic of the time. He describes the

Saracen upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens ''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Rom ...

raiding almost up to the walls of Christian Jerusalem and the friendly relations between Roman and Eastern churches in

. Daniel visited Palestine in the reign of

Baldwin I of Jerusalem Baldwin I (1060s – 2 April 1118) was the first count of Edessa from 1098 to 1100 and king of Jerusalem from 1100 to his death in 1118. He was the youngest son of Eustace II, Count of Boulogne, and Ida of Lorraine and married a Norman noblew ...

and apparently soon after the crusader capture of

Acre The acre ( ) is a Unit of measurement, unit of land area used in the Imperial units, British imperial and the United States customary units#Area, United States customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one Chain (unit), ch ...

in 1104. He claims to have accompanied Baldwin on an expedition against Damascus (c. 1107). Daniel's narratives show that Baldwin treated him with much friendliness. Daniel records that several of his friends from Kiev and

Novgorod Veliky Novgorod ( ; , ; ), also known simply as Novgorod (), is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It is one of the oldest cities in Russia, being first mentioned in the 9th century. The city lies along the V ...

were present with him at the Easter Eve miracle in the

Church of the Holy Sepulchre The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, also known as the Church of the Resurrection, is a fourth-century church in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, Old City of Jerusalem. The church is the seat of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchat ...

Significance

Daniel's account of

is descriptive and accurate. His observant and detailed record of Palestine is one of the most valuable medieval documents that exist. Daniel had some knowledge of both Greek and Latin and so was able to use interpreters. He writes, ''It is impossible to come to know all the holy places without guides and interpreters.'' He writes of a holy man of great learning, well advanced in years, who had lived in the Galilee for thirty years and had accompanied him in Palestine, however he made some major mistakes in topography and history. Daniel visited about sixty places in the area. While Daniel was not the first traveller to leave the Rus, his travels were the first which there are written records of. There were warriors, merchants, and earlier pilgrims who had travelled from the

to the outside world before the twelfth century; however, none left written records that have come down to the present day. Daniel was one of the first European travellers to travel long distances on foot and keep a written account of his travels – a

travelog The genre of travel literature or travelogue encompasses outdoor literature, guide books, nature writing, and travel memoirs. History Early examples of travel literature include the ''Periplus of the Erythraean Sea'' (generally considered a 1s ...

. Daniel's narratives are also important in the history of the

Old East Slavic Old East Slavic (traditionally also Old Russian) was a language (or a group of dialects) used by the East Slavs from the 7th or 8th century to the 13th or 14th century, until it diverged into the Russian language, Russian and Ruthenian language ...

language and in the study of

ritual A ritual is a repeated, structured sequence of actions or behaviors that alters the internal or external state of an individual, group, or environment, regardless of conscious understanding, emotional context, or symbolic meaning. Traditionally ...

and

liturgy Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and participation in the sacred through activities reflecting praise, thanksgiving, remembra ...

of the time (i.e. description of the Easter services in Jerusalem and the Descent of the

Holy Fire The Holy Fire (, "Holy Light") is a ceremony that occurs every year at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem on Great Saturday, the day before Orthodox Easter. During the ceremony, a prayer is performed after which a fire is lit inside ...

Manuscripts

There are seventy-six manuscripts of Daniel's narratives of which only five are before the year 1500. The oldest of his narratives is dated 1475 of which three editions still exist in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

at the Library of Ecclesiastical History.

Notes

Bibliography

Daniel's text

*Mme B. de Khitrovo, ''Itineraires russes en orient'', (Geneva, 1889) (Societe de l'orient Latin); in French. *

Charles William Wilson Major general (United Kingdom), Major-General Sir Charles William Wilson (14 March 183625 October 1905) was a British Army officer, geographer and archaeologist. Early life and career He was born in Liverpool on 14 March 1836. He was educat ...

C.W. Wilson's edition
(Palestine Pilgrims' Text Society, London, 1895) at holyfire.org. Accessed 6 September 2020.

from Colorado State University - Pueblo *

Nasir Khusraw's text

Nasir Khusraw Nasir Khusraw (; 1004 – between 1072–1088) was an Isma'ili poet, philosopher, traveler, and missionary () for the Isma'ili Fatimid Caliphate. Despite being one of the most prominent Isma'ili philosophers and theologians of the Fatimids and ...

(1004–1088)
''A Journey through Syria and Palestine''
translated and annotated by

Guy Le Strange Guy Le Strange (24 July 1854 – 24 December 1933) was a British Orientalist noted especially for his work in the field of the historical geography of the pre-modern Middle Eastern and Eastern Islamic lands, and his editing of Persian geographic ...

(1888).

Palestine Pilgrims' Text Society __NOTOC__ The Palestine Pilgrims' Text Society (PPTS) was a text publication society based in London, which specialised in publishing editions and translations of medieval texts relevant to the history of pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Particular ...

, Vol IV.

Secondary literature

*Anzovin, Steven, ''Famous First Facts, H. W. Wilson Company (2000), * C. R. Beazley, ''Dawn of Modern Geography'', ii. 155–174. (C. R. B.), has the account of Daniel. *I. P. Sakharov's (St Petersburg, 1849), ''Narratives of the Russian People'', vol. ii. bk. viii. pp. 1–45. *''Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature'', Merriam-Webster (1995), *C.W. Wilson, ed., ''The Pilgrimage of the Russian Abbot Daniel to the Holy Land, 1106-1107 A.D.'' (London, 1895).

External links

Danylo, the Ukrainian 12th-century pilgrim
with details and map of his travels. {{Medieval travelogues of Palestine Ukrainian male writers Russian male writers Russian explorers Russian travel writers Pilgrimage accounts Year of death unknown Year of birth unknown 12th-century people from Kievan Rus' Writers from Kievan Rus'