Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word Київ. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word Київ, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say Київ in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word Київ you have here. The definition of the word Київ will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition ofКиїв, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
The traditional etymology is from the name of a legendary founder, Kyi. However, historian Mykhailo Hrushevsky warned that this was an “etymological myth”.
A proposal by linguist Jaroslav Rudnyckyj, accepted by several linguists and supported by multiple lines of evidence, holds that Київ(Kyjiv) comes rather from Proto-Slavic*kyjь(“stick, club, hammer”) (compare to Ukrainianкий(kyj)), in that case meaning a settlement palisaded by poles. See also Кꙑевъ(Kyjevŭ).
Rudnyc'kyj, Ja. (1972–1982) “Ки́їв”, in An Etymological Dictionary of the Ukrainian Language, volumes 2 (Д – Ь), Ottawa: Ukrainian Mohylo-Mazepian Academy of Sciences; Ukrainian Language Association, →LCCN, page 660
Melnychuk, O. S., editor (1985), “кий”, in Етимологічний словник української мови [Etymological Dictionary of the Ukrainian Language] (in Ukrainian), volume 2 (Д – Копці), Kyiv: Naukova Dumka, page 430