DISSECTING THE LEGENDS: SMILA, YUROVA HORA AND MOTRONYNSKYI MONASTERY
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.37445/adiu.2026.03.15Keywords:
Smila, Yurova Hora, Motronynskyi monastery, mythmaking, migrating plot, folklore, history, archaeology.Abstract
The cycle of legends and folk tales related to the history of the city of Smila (Cherkasy region) as well as the origin of local toponyms ‘Yurova hora’ (Yurova hill) and « Motronynskyi monastery» are examined in the paper. These legends and retellings are reviewed with the critical analysis of folklore and historical records supplemented by archaeological data. Fiction on «annalistic Kulduriv», which allegedly preceded Smila, is a complete mystification that is entirely inconsistent with the logic of historical processes in the region and the results of archaeological research. Toponymic legends attributing the origin of the name Smila to a brave girl-savior are vivid examples of folk etymology. Narratives about a girl who saved local residents from invaders or oppressors at the cost of her own life were formed during the Soviet era, influenced by the pathetic stories of Joan of Arc and Ivan Susanin. The Smila legend concerning Yurova Hora (Yura’s Mountain) is of particular interest. In this narrative, a local prince departs on a military campaign; upon his victorious return, his wife, the princess, mistakenly kills him, having perceived him as an enemy. This folkloric motif is not unique but rather a «wandering plot». This story represents a later folk adaptation of the legend «The Barrow of Perepyat and Perepyatykha», which is associated with the neighboring Kyiv region (Fastiv district). The tale of Perepyat and Perepyatykha was well-known and popular since at least the mid-19th century, thus serving as the base for this new compilation. Furthermore, the legend of Yurova Hora represents several layers of the other plots, i.e. Classic time myths, Medieval chivalric novels, and Rus’ epics. At the Motryninskyi Monastery, monks fabricated entirely fantastical «annals» regarding the history of the cloister itself and the surrounding area, Kholodnyi Yar. To assert the monastery’s exceptional «holiness», they groundlessly backdated its history, incorporating both legendary figures and real historical personas who had no actual connection to the monastery. One of these newly created foundation legends is yet another compilation, fundamentally based on the same «Barrow of Perepyat and Perepyatykha» legend.
References
Andreev, Iu. V. 1990. Poeziia mifa i proza istorii. Leningrad: Lenizdat.
Andrievskii, M. 1882. Perepetovskoe pole (Razyskanie v oblasti letopisnoi topografii, s prilozheniem karty). Kievskaia starina, ІІІ (sentiabr), s. 436-456.
Apollodor. 1972. Mifologicheskaia biblioteka. Perevod, st. i prim. V. G. Borukhovich. Literaturnye pamiatniki, 167. Leningrad: Nauka.
Bedie, Zh. 1972. Roman pro Tristana ta Izoldu. Pereklad M. Rylskoho. Kyiv: Molod.
Bessonova, S. S., Skoryi, S. A., Romaniuk, V. V. 1997. Raboty na Motroninskom gorodishche v 1993 g. Arkheolohichni doslidzhennia v Ukraini 1993 r., s. 10-12.
Bobrinskii, A. A. 1887. Kurgany i sluchainye nakhodki bliz mestechka Smely. І: Dnevniki piatiletnikh raskopok. Sankt-Peterburg: M. M. Stasiulevich.
Bobrinskii, A. A. 1894. Kurgany i sluchainye arkheologicheskie nakhodki bliz mestechka Smely. II: Dnevniki raskopok 1887—1889 gg. Sankt-Peterburg: V. S. Balashev i Ko.
Bobrinskii, A. A. 1901. Kurgany i sluchainye nakhodki bliz mestechka Smely. III: Dnevniki raskopok 1889—1897 gg. Sankt-Peterburg: Glavnoe upravlenie udelov.
Haivan, S. Ye. 1992. Smila. Putivnyk. Smila: Reklama.
Herodot. 1993. Istorii v dev’iaty knyhakh. Pereklad, peredmova ta prymitky A. O. Biletskoho. Kyiv: Naukova dumka.
Honcharenko, V. 2006. Cherkashchyna v lehendakh ta perekazakh. Kraieznavchyi dovidnyk. Cherkasy: Yu. A. Chabanenko.
Davydenko, O. 2002—2015. Vulytsiamy ridnoho mista: istorychnyi narys (iz zminamy ta dopovnenniamy 2015 roku). Smila.
Dashkevich, M. 1847. Neskolko zamechanii po povodu stati o mogilakh Perepiate i Perepiatikhe. Kievskie gubernskie vedomosti (otdel vtoroi, chast neofitsialnaia), 5 (piatnitsa, 31 ianvaria), s. 44-46.
Dmytruk, P. (red.). 2004. Neskorenyi velet. Storinky z istorii Motronynskoho Sviato-Troitskoho monastyria. Cherkasy: Drukarnia «Dia-plius» VAT «OFDP»; Smilianske DVPP «Tiasmyn».
Drevnosti… 1846. Drevnosti, izdannye Vremennoi komissiei dlia razbora drevnikh aktov. Sankt-Peterburg.
Evripid. 1993. Trahedii. Pereklad A. Sodomory ta B. Tena. Kyiv: Osnovy.
Zalizniak, L. L. 2004. Mezolit lisostepu Tsentralnoi Ukrainy. Arkheolohiia, 4, s. 3-16.
Istoricheskoe… 1846. Istoricheskoe obozrenie gorodov Kievskoi gubernii s ikh okrestnostiami. Gorod Vasilkov (Prodolzhenie). Kievskie gubernskie vedomosti (otdel vtoroi, chast neofitsialnaia), 37 (piatnitsa, 13 sentiabria), s. 357-358.
Ioanidi, A. L. (upor.). 1985. Lehendy ta perekazy. Ukrainska narodna tvorchist. Kyiv: Naukova dumka.
Klepatskii, P. 2007. Ocherki po istorii Kievskoi zemli. Litovskii period. Bila Tserkva: O. Pshonkivskyi.
Kozovyk, I. Ya., Ponomariv, O. D. (uklad.). 1989. Slovnyk antychnoi mifolohii. Kyiv: Naukova dumka.
Koziatynska, D., Tsapenko, H. 2010. Yurova hora ta Irdynski bolota Smily. In: Lavrinenko, N. P. (red.). Zalizniakovi chytannia. Materialy Druhoi uchnivskoi kraieznavchoi konferentsii. Cherkasy: Yu. Chabanenko, s. 126- 130.
Kulish, P. 1856. Zapiski o Iuzhnoi Rusi. І. Sankt-Peterburg: A. Iakobson.
Kushtan, D. 2025. Mify mista na Che. Vyhadky y khybni stereotypy, pov’iazani z pokhodzhenniam i rannoiu istoriieiu Cherkas. Kyiv; Cherkasy: IA NAN Ukrainy; IntrolihaTOR.
Lastovskyi, V. 2006. Chernetstvo Yuriia Khmelnytskoho. Heneza, 1 (11), s. 64-75.
Lastovskyi, V. 2010. Pechery Uspenskoho Vynohradskoho (Irdynskoho) monastyria. Lavrskyi almanakh, 9: Doslidzhennia monastyrskykh pechernykh kompleksiv, s. 102- 108.
Lastovskyi, V. 2020. Dvi vizantiiskykh monety z terytorii Motronynskoho monastyria ta lehenda pro yoho zasnuvannia kniahyneiu Motronoiu. Ukrainskyi numizmatychnyi shchorichnyk, 4, s. 50-57.
Maksymov, Ye. V., Maksymov, S. Ye. 1989. Litopysne misto Zarub za danymy arkheolohii, istorii ta linhvistyky. Arkheolohiia, 1, s. 114-119.
Maksimovich, M. A. 1876. Sobranie sochinenii. І: Otdel istoricheskii. Kiev: M. P. Frits.
Marynovskyi, Yu. 1997. Cherkaska mynuvshyna. I: Pravoslavni monastyri na tereni suchasnoi Cherkaskoi oblasti do 1917 roku. Cherkasy: Vidlunnia.
Masnenko, V. V., Polishchuk, V. T. (red.). 2017. Cherkashchyna: istoriia kraiu ta yoho liudnosti. Cherkasy: Yu. A. Chabanenko.
Melnyk, V. M. 1968. Istorychna pravdyvist folkloru (VI—XVIII st.). Lviv: Lvivskyi universytet.
Mikhailov, A. D. (sost.). 1976. Legenda o Tristane i Izolde. Literaturnye pamiatniki, 209. Moskva: Nauka.
Myshanych, O. V. (red.). 1989. Litopys ruskyi za Ipatskym spyskom. Pereklad L. Ye. Makhnovtsia. Kyiv: Dnipro.
Nikiforov, V. I. 2004. Poshuky vytokiv Smily. In: Melnychenko, V. M. (red.). Cherkashchyna v konteksti istorii Ukrainy. Materialy Pershoi naukovo-kraieznavchoi konferentsii Cherkashchyny, prysviachenoi 50-richchiu utvorennia Cherkaskoi oblasti. Cherkasy: Vash Dim, s. 319-323.
Pletneva, S. A. 1973. Drevnosti Chernykh Klobukov. Svod arkheologicheskikh istochnikov, E1-19. Moskva: Nauka.
Pohrebniak, V. 2002. Folkloryzm ukrainskoi poezii (ostannia tretyna XIX — pershi desiatylittia XX stolittia). Kyiv: Yunivers.
Pokhilevich, L. 1864. Skazaniia o naselennykh mestnostiakh Kievskoi gubernii ili statisticheskie, istoricheskie i tserkovnye zametki o vsekh derevniakh, selakh, mestechkakh i gorodakh, v predelakh gubernii nakhodiashchikhsia. Kiev: Kievo-Pecherskaia lavra.
Propp, V. Ia., Putilov, B. N. (sost.). 1958. Byliny v dvukh tomakh. 1. Moskva: Gosudarstvennoe izdatelstvo khudozhestvennoi literatury.
Rybakov, B. A. 1987. Iazychestvo Drevnei Rusi. Moskva: Nauka.
Senko, I. M. (upor.). 1988. Charivna torba: Ukrainski narodni kazky, prytchi, lehendy, perekazy, pisni ta prysliv’ia, zapysani vid M. I. Shopliaka-Kozaka. Uzhhorod: Karpaty.
Syvolap, M. P. 2001. Ekspedytsiia «Smila-87». In: Nikiforov, V. I., Kryvosheia, Ya. P., Yaroshenko, V. V. (upor.). Smila — ridne misto moie. Zbirnyk istorychnykh ta kraieznavchykh materialiv. Smila: Tiasmyn, s. 12- 13.
Skoryi, S. A. 1990. Kurhan Perep’iatykha (do etnokulturnoi istorii Dniprovskoho Lisostepovoho Pravoberezhzhia). Kyiv: Naukova dumka.
Skorobohatov, V. P. 1976. Smila. Istoryko-kraieznavchyi narys. Dnipropetrovsk: Promin.
Snizhko, M. 2012. Poema pro ukrainsku Zhannu d’Ark. In: Tkachenko, A., Tkachenko, D. (upor.). Vasyl Symonenko. Vybrani tvory. Shistdesiatnyky. Kyiv: Smoloskyp, s. 736-748.
Sosa, P. P., Ponomarenko, M. F. 2001. Rozvidky i poshuky ekspedytsii «Smila-92». In: Nikiforov, V. I., Kryvosheia, Ya. P., Yaroshenko, V. V. (upor.). Smila — ridne misto moie. Zbirnyk istorychnykh ta kraieznavchykh materialiv. Smila: Tiasmyn, s. 14.
Stryzhak, O. S. (red.). 1985. Etymolohichnyi slovnyk litopysnykh heohrafichnykh nazv Pivdennoi Rusi. Kyiv: Naukova dumka.
Tolkushyn, O. 2002. Smila. Storinky istorii. Do 460-richchia zasnuvannia mista. Cherkasy: Konyk V. A.
Tretiakov, P. 1947. Zvit pro arkheolohichne doslidzhennia 1946 r. v baseini richok Rosi i Tiasmynu. Arkheolohichni pam’iatky URSR, I, s. 223- 236.
Ukrainka, L. 1975. Zibrannia tvoriv u dvanadtsiaty tomakh. 2: Poemy. Poetychni pereklady. Kyiv: Naukova dumka.
Funduklei, I. 1852. Statisticheskoe opisanie Kievskoi gubernii. І. Sankt-Peterburg: Ministerstvo vnutrennikh del.
Chaban, A. 2011. Istoriia Serednoi Naddniprianshchyny (z naidavnishykh chasiv do kintsia XVII st.): Navchalnyi posibnyk. Cherkasy: Vertykal.
Chubinskii, P. P. 1873. Neskolko narodnykh istoricheskikh predanii zapisannykh P. P. Chubinskim. Kiev: Universitetskaia tipografiia.
Shovkoplias, H. M. 1957. Keramichnyi kompleks epokhy bronzy ta rannoslov’ianskoho chasu z Yur’ievoi hory poblyzu m. Cmily. Arkheolohiia, XI, s. 145-147.
Shcherbyna, M. M. 2007. Istoriia u folklori. Toponimichni lehendy i perekazy Cherkaskoho kraiu. Cherkasy.
Yakovenko, N. M. 2001. Pro chas vynyknennia mista. In: Nikiforov, V. I., Kryvosheia, Ya. P., Yaroshenko, V. V. (upor.). Smila — ridne misto moie. Zbirnyk istorychnykh ta kraieznavchykh materialiv. Smila: Tiasmyn, s. 8-9.
Boniecki, A. 1912. Herbarz Polski. Wiadomości historyczno-genealogiczne o rodach szlacheckich. XV: Liwscy — Łopuscy. Warszawa: Gebethner i Wolff.
Jabłonowski, A. (ed.). 1877. Lustracye królewszczyzn ziem ruskich Wołynia, Podola i Ukrainy z pierwszej połowy XVII wieku. Źródła dziejowe, V. Warszawa: Gebethner i Wolff.
Jabłonowski, A. (ed.). 1894. Polska XVI wieku pod względem geograficznostatystycznym. IX: Ziemie ruskie. Ukraina (Kijów — Bracław), I. Źródła dziejowe, XX. Warszawa: Gebethner i Wolff.
Oświęcim, S. 1907. Dyariusz 1643—1651. Wyd. W. Czermak. Scriptores Rerum Polonicarum, XIX. Kraków: Akademia Umiejętności.
Rulikowski, E. 1885. Motrenin las. In: Sulimirski, F., Chlebowski, B., Walewski, W. (eds.). Słownik geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i innych krajów słowiańskich. VI: Malczyce — Netreba. Warszawa: Wieku, s. 749.
Rulikowski, E. 1889. Smiła. In: Sulimirski, F., Chlebowski, B., Walewski, W. (eds.). Słownik geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i innych krajów słowiańskich. X: Rukszenice — Sochaczew. Warszawa: Wieku, s. 880-884.
