Literacy in princely towns

Literacy and education in princely towns developed after the adoption of Christianity, which introduced the Cyrillic script and stimulated the organization of schools within churches and monasteries. The schools taught the basics of writing, reading, arithmetic, and church singing. To continue and deepen education, scriptoria, where books were copied, were established at churches, monasteries, and princes’ courts, along with libraries to store the books.

A vivid demonstration of school activity in towns is a fragment of a windowsill from Zvenyhorod, which was used by one boy to do his grammar exercises. Among nicely (and not very nicely) drawn letters, presented in different directions, he drew two anthropomorphic figures and placed the word “LIETS” (probably, his name) near them.

Special metallic (iron or bronze) bars, styluses, were used to draw letters. One end of the stylus was pointed (to incise the letters), and the other was made into a flat spatula to erase and level the surface. This wider part (spatula) was often decorated very nicely. Numerous styluses were found in the cultural layers of many chronicle princely towns.

Fragments of inscriptions and separate letters are also found on the pieces of amphorae, spinning wheels, as well as stone blocks and plaster on the walls of churches. However, the question of whether the entire population of princely towns was literate is yet to be answered.

The representatives of nobility and merchants had private communication, as evidenced by three records from Zvenyhorod, written on birch bark, which are unique to Ukraine. One record is preserved well, and two others are fragments. What is written on this birch bark record? A widow of Hovin is dictating to the writer, who is a priest, a legal demand to the buyer of the goods to pay his debt. According to the conclusions of historians and linguists, the text should be translated as follows,

“From Hovin’s widow to Nizhenets. Give sixty kunas in lodia tribute. Hovin said as he was going to the [God’s] judgement, and a priest was writing it down. And give it to Luka. If you don’t give it, I will take a boy from the prince and come fast, and you will find it more expensive.” 

Yet, letters were written not only on birch bark at the time, but also on wooden and lead plates, which is confirmed by modern archaeological findings around Ukraine.

The documents of the prince’s and bishop’s courts had lead seals, depicting the saints.

Not only merchants, but craftsmen of some specialities could write and count, which is evidenced by the findings of weights and scales, and numerous pottery marks in the form of letters.

As we can see, the towns of those times accumulated active and educated people – from higher clergy to servants, and letters were one of the essential ways of communication.