«Svyatoslaviada», or what is common between the knyaz Svyatoslav Igorevich and the “heroes of poet Homer?”

Abstract

The epic-heroic image of knyaz Svyatoslav Igorevich stored in the Byzantine and Old Russian historical traditions, is explained through the folklore origin of tales about him, that form the basis of these texts. Based on the Primary Chronicle’s narratives, we put forward the hypothesis of the existence in Old Rus’ a cycle of tales about Svyatoslav, that existed in the form of songs-slava like chansons de geste, glorifying the deeds of knyaz-warrior. The epic tales about Svyatoslav circulated not only in Old Russian, but also in the Turk-nomadic and Byzantine traditions. The variability of parallel episodes by Leo the Deacon and John Scylitzas celebrated the same heroes and events of the Balkan campaign of Svyatoslav, suggests the existence in the byzantine folklore a cycle of heroic songs about the Rus’-Byzantine war.