The Ukrainian professor-linguist Konstantin Tishchenko, who in the course of many years is engaged in researches in linguistics and toponymy, considers that numerous place names in Ukraine testify to long Arabian presence.
Vladimir ILCHENKO. On the materials of the article “Discovering of Professor Tishchenko: our Ancestors Knew Zarathustra”. Given in reduction.
In the Kiev National University the Ukrainian professor-linguist Konstantin Tishchenko at the conference on problems of the ancient world gave an unusual report. Long-term researches in branch of linguistics and toponymy led the scholar to the following conclusion: Europe and Ukraine in particular, during early medieval times became struggle arena between carriers of three big religions – Christianity, Islam and Zoroastrianism.
Investigating “Zoroastrian toponymy”, professor Tishchenko found out hundreds names with the root gabr, gavr (a variant – gavl in the Alanian dialect). Persian Muslims called unbelievers as gabrs (from the Arabic word kafr), especially Zoroastrians. In Ukraine, apparently, up to now preserved the following Slavic forms of these names: Gavronshina, Gayvoron, Govory, Gavarechchina, Gavrishi, Gavrishevka, Gavriki, and... Goverla. In Russia these are the names such as Gavrino, Kabardinovo, Kovardy. Here, under the assumption of the professor, it is possible to attribute a surname Gavel and the name of the whole people – Kabarda, Kabardians...
Whence in Ukraine appeared the Muslim name of "unbelievers"?
RUS AND ARABIAN RUSAFA
- Numerous place names in Ukraine testify to long Arabian presence in Ukraine, - the professor explained. - Despite leveling of these names as a result of natural process of national etymologization, or their adaptations to ostensibly Ukrainian words, they give a bright picture.
- About what period of history there is a speech?
- From the seventh to the thirteenth century. That is from the time of appearing of Islam to its replacement... by the Tataro-Mongols. Probably, if not them, the dominating religion here would be Islam. Five hundred years could not pass without leaving a trace.
- What nations were the carriers of faith in Allah?
- Different. Partially, the same "alien" Iranians from Persia, local Polovians of the Iranian origin, too.
And whence the Arabic language appeared here?-
- We consider that every Polovian tribe had a Mullah – the carrier of the Arabic language. The holy language of Muslims was (and remains until now) Arabic.
- The Arabic language influenced the pre-Ukrainian only through the intermediary of Islam?
- This influence started much earlier, as a result of active trade which was conducted by Arabs with the people of Europe. Some names of Eastern cities were brought to Naddnepryanchshina by the first missionaries-Christians of Persian origin.
So, under the assumption of Tishchenko, names of Caliphs and Caliphates of that time, realities of the early Islamic world gave numerous names in Ukraine, for example: the village of Koran' in Zhitomir region – from the Koran, the villages of Arabka, Arapovka, and also Voropay, Voropai, Voropayev, Voropaevka – from the Arab, the village of Khalepya in the Kiev region derives from the Syrian city of Khalib, Tripolye – from the Lebanese city of Tripoli, the village of Damaski, Demeshkivtsy – from the capital of Syria Damascus, the town of Surozh – from Syria, the villages of Medyn, Medinshchina, Medynya – from Medina, Bogdanovka – from the city of Bagdad (“given by God”), Lubny – from the name of Lebanon (Lubnan in Arabic). Kolomiya stems from the Arabic word "kalami" - the Muslim dogmatic person, Tarashcha – from the historical name of Tarak (Ibn Ziyad). The Arabic name of Egypt – Misr – gave well-known "Slavic" roots in the names Pere-myshl, Rado-myshl, Drogo-myshl, and even Myshelovka in Kiev. The Slavs called Egypt by the old name of Kopt, from here stem the names of the villages Kopty, Koptivshchina, Koptiv etc.
- But why the Arabs are not present in the annals?
- Why not? The Arabs, as well as the Pechenegs, the Polovians, and later, the Tatars, are the annalistic Agaryans. And more - the Saracinians, "basurmans". There were also the Ismailtans- in such a way the Druze were called – a Muslim sect, nowadays existing in Lebanon and Syria.
- And how all of them got on in the ancient Rus?
- By the way, what concerns the ancient Rus; it was considered that this name is of the German origin. But near Amman in Jordan there is a city of Rusafa. There in the eighth century was transferred the capital of the Umayyad dynasty. The name of this city known among of Muslims of that time can offer an adequate explanation of the Ukrainian names of two villages of Vinnitsa region - Rusava, the rivers Rosava, Rostavitsa and, at last, Rus. The matter is that the letter of the Pope from 802 years "To clergymen of Rus", addressed to the priests of Naddnepryanshchna, when the Varangians were not present here yet, is preserved. Ostensibly Slavic names in Germany, such as Russdorf, Rossbah, actually can be of Arabic origin, too, since there never were present any Slavic regiments of the princely Rus. These names appeared there at the time of the Avars.
As toponymy research of archeological excavations show, in the middle ages the Naddnepryanshchina represented a conglomerate of various ethnoses, religions, and state formations. Here co-existed, fought and traded with each other Slavic, Iranian, Celtic, Gothic tribes, the Khazars, the Avars, the Gunns, the Arabs... Later the Slavs "won", probably due to the fact, the professor considers, that they most of all were attached to the land, to agriculture. But each of these people left a noticeable trace in culture, traditions and language of Ukrainians. It is necessary just to open a map and to get a grasp of names of our villages, cities, rivers and mountains.
By UNIAN
Related Links:
Islam in Ukraine: Basic Stages of History
