Boyar
A
boyar (also spelled
bojar) or
bolyarin was a member of the highest rank of the
feudal Russian,
Romanian and
Bulgarian
aristocracy, second only to the ruling
princes, from the
10th through the
17th century.
The word
boyar is most probably originated from old-
Turkic bai (rich, noble) and
är giving (noble man), compare also with modern
Azeri or
Turkmen bajar (noble man, administrator); the word can also be connected to the old-Turkic/Bulgar
boila meaning noble and middle-
Greek βοιλᾶς [
1].
The oldest
Slavic form of boyar "
bolyarin (
Bulgarian: болярин) " is found in Bulgaria, where it might be related to the old
Bulgar title
boila, which denoted a high aristocratic status among the Bulgars. It was probably transformed through
boilar or
bilyar to
bolyar and
bolyarin. A member of the nobility during the
First Bulgarian Empire was called a
boila, while in the
Second Bulgarian Empire the corresponding title became
bolyar or
bolyarin.
Bolyar, as well as its predecessor,
boila, was a hereditary title.
The bolyars were divided into
veliki (great) and
mali (small). In Bulgaria at present the word
bolyari is used as a nickname for the inhabitants of
Veliko Tarnovo " the former capital of the
Second Bulgarian Empire.
|
A Muscovite boyar visiting his family minster (1912), painting by Ivan Goryushkin-Skoropudov. The domestic life of Muscovite boyars was regulated by a special codex, known as Domostroy. |
In the
Russian language, the singular is
boyarin (боярин,
IPA: ), the plural is
boyare and the feminine form is
boyarynya.
Boyars wielded considerable power through their military support of the
Kievan princes. Power and prestige of many of them, however, soon came to depend almost completely on service to the state, family history of service and to a lesser extent, landownership.
The boyars occupied the highest state offices and through a council (
Duma) advised the prince. They received extensive grants of land and, as members of the Boyars' Duma, were the major legislators of
Kievan Rus'.
After the Mongol invasion in the 13th century, the boyars from central and southern provinces of Rus' (modern Belarus and Ukraine) were partialy incorporated into Lithuanian and Polish nobility. In the 14-15th centuries many of those boyars who failed to get the status of a nobleman actively participated in the formation of
Cossack military organizations on the southern borders of the Polish-Lithuanian state. Also, some boyars who could not adapt themselves to the historical and social changes moved to Moscow and reveived high positions among the local aristocracy.
In
Moscow in the
14th and
15th centuries, the boyars retained their influence. However, as the
Grand Dukes of
Muscovy consolidated their power, the influence of the boyars was gradually eroded, particularly under
Ivan III and
Ivan IV.
Tsar Ivan IV "
Ivan the Terrible" severely restricted the
Knyaz powers during the
16th century. Their ancient right to leave the service of one prince for another was curtailed, as was their right to hold land without giving obligatory service to the
tsar.
The
Boyar Duma expanded from around 30 people to around 100 in the 17th century and was finally abolished by Tsar
Peter the Great in
1711 in his extensive reforms of government and administration.
In the Balkan regions inhabited by Romanians, the boyar (
Romanianboier) class emerged from the chiefs (named
cneaz or
jude in the areas north of the
Danube and
celnic south of the river) of rural communities in the
early Middle Ages, initially elected, who later made their judicial and administrative attributions hereditary and gradually expanded them upon other communities. After the apparition of more advanced political structures in the area their privileged status had to be confirmed by the central power, which used this prerogative to include in the boyar class individuals that distinguished themselves in the military or civilian functions they performed (by allocating them lands from the princely domains).
The boyars progressively differentiated themselves into ‘great' boyars (who owned numerous, large domains and held important functions in the central administration) and ‘small' boyars (who owned small estates and held less important functions).Starting with the first half of the
15th century they became the most important political force in
Wallachia and
Moldavia. In
Transylvania they were either assimilated by the Hungarian nobility or lost their status, becoming simple peasants.
A number of
Historical Romanian ranks and titles were reserved for Boiers, notably
Medelnicer,
Postelnic and (Mare)
Stolnic.
Although over the centuries their influence alternated with periods of centralism the boyars of
Wallachia and
Moldavia increased their privileges (they had absolute control over the inhabitants of their domains, full tax exemptions and only boyars could hold offices). Divided into numerous factions they frequently attempted to remove or replace the princes of those two countries, a process usually accompanied by crimes and atrocities from both sides. Since the
16th century members of the great boyar families replaced the traditional princes from the
Basarab and
Muşat dynasties on the thrones of Wallachia and Moldavia.
In the
17th and
18th centuries the Romanian boyars became increasingly influenced by
Greek culture, adopting its institutions and way of life; during this time rich people of common origin became boyars by simply buying the rank from the prince, in order to have access to important public functions. However, in the early 1800s many boyars (especially the foreign-educated ones) became advocates of change and modernization, being very active in the process of Romanian national awakening that culminated with the union of Wallachia and Moldavia in
1859. In the newly-created state the boyars remained a very important factor (even though their privileges had been gradually abolished since the 1830s) as they owned most of the land, thus controlling agriculture, the country's most important activity. The boyars also had strong political representation, especially in the Conservative Party.
In the rapidly-changing economy of contemporary Romania, the boyars' medieval domains were practically converted into colonial plantations. This situation led to large peasant uprisings and was generally disapproved, but only in the dramatic circumstances of the post-WWI period did the Romanian government agree to carry out a significant land ownership reform. Between
1918 and
1921, 60,000
square kilometres of land were transferred to 1.4 million peasants, effectively ending the economic prominence of the boyars.
*
Okolnichy*
Dvoryanstvo*
9th century stone inscription from Bulgaria mentioning boyars (boil)
