In historical texts, names and geographical names are often found that are not known in the modern language. For example, the question often arises: "What river did the ancient Greeks call Borisfen?" This article provides information about this ancient river, as well as the origin of the word itself.
Ancient river
Let us give a general answer to the question of which river the ancient Greeks called Borisfen. This is the ancient Greek name for the Dnieper River.
For the first time this name (Βορυσθεvης) was mentioned in the books of Ancient Greece in the 5th century BC - the great historian Herodotus called the Dnieper, who described it as a Scythian “river from the north”.
Roman historians gave their name - the name "Danapris" (Danapris), and the Slavs in the period of Ancient Russia called this river "Slavutich".
Description of Ancient Borisfen
Herodotus writes about Borisfen in the country of the Scythians as one of the greatest rivers known in the ancient world. In terms of fullness, it is second only to the Egyptian Nile, the water is very clean and tastes good. On the banks of the ancient Dnieper there were a huge number of beautiful meadows and pastures, and a lot of fish were found in the river itself - the “antakai” (sturgeon) were especially tasty, which were caught near the mouth, where salt was also mined.
The origins of the Dnieper were unknown to ancient historians, and in its lower reaches Borisfen connected with the Gipanis (Bug) river and flowed into the Black Sea (“Euxinus Pontus”), and in this place in the 6th century BC the Greeks built the city of Olbia (“happy” ), and the inhabitants of the city were called "borisphenites."
Borisfen is part of the Dnieper
All that is said above is just a general answer. More specific information about what river the ancient Greeks called Borisfen, allows us to conclude that the modern Dnieper does not quite correspond to the information recorded by Herodotus.
The fact is that in ancient times the Dnieper had a different course. Herodotus reports that this river branches into two branches (actually Borisfen and Gerr), which flow into the Black Sea, diverging south and east and forming between themselves a large island, where Olbia was located.
Modern scientists believe that the ancient river was divided into two branches (southern and eastern) in the area of present-day Cherkasy.
Thus, answering the question about which river the ancient Greeks called Borisfen, we can say that only the upper part of the existing Dnieper belongs to the ancient Borisfen (approximately to Cherkasy).
The lower part of the Dnieper, which goes east to Dnepropetrovsk, is the ancient Herr. And the southern arm, which was called Borisfen, does not exist today.
The origin of the name of the river
Talking about what river in ancient times was called Borisfen, the meaning of this word should be explained.
The Dnieper was the main river of Scythia, and the ancient peoples inhabiting its banks worshiped the spirit of the great river.
Herodotus writes that the Scythians considered themselves the descendants of Targytai, who was the son of Zeus and the daughter of the Borisfen River.
This means that the Borisfen River gave birth to Scythian peoples, they considered it their ancestor. But Herodotus does not explain the meaning of the word itself, and the origin of the word “Borisphen” has not yet been precisely established.
Modern river
Now the Dnieper is the fourth largest river in Europe and the largest river in Ukraine.
Currently, the length of the Dnieper (after the construction of reservoirs and straightening the channel) is 2201 km.
The Dnieper begins its course on the Valdai Upland and ends in the estuary of the Black Sea, where the river flows after merging with the Bug.
Knowing which river the Greeks called Borisfen, we can say that the Dnieper is now a great river that flows through the lands of three countries - Ukraine, Belarus and Russia, and on its banks are more than 50 cities, including Kiev - the capital of Ukraine and "mother of cities Russians. "