The Birthday of Boris Godunov

Abstract

The life story of Tsar Boris Godunov, one of the most intriguing characters of Late Medieval Rus’, is still surrounded by unsolved enigmas, obscure gaps, and omissions. The date of his birth is to yet be verified and introduced into scholarly discourse. This paper presents evidence that, if interpreted appropriately, we argue it enables us to estimate Godunov’s  birthday. Accurate dating is important for many reasons, for instance it helps us to contextualize and broaden our understanding of everyday life at the ruling house, the cult of personal patron saints, and aristocratic naming conventions in Rus’ between the 14th and the 17thcenturies.