A biritch (also birich or biryuch; Russian: бирич, бирюч) in Kievan Rus' was a herald, an announcer of the will of a knyaz, sometimes his deputy in police or diplomatic affairs, or tax collector. A birich travelled to settlements, played bugle or horn in the center of a town square or yard to gather people and read the announcement.
The word is thought to be derived from a Turkic word for "bugler", "hornist" (in modern Turkish: borucu, borazancı). Other hypotheses try to base the meanings on interpretations of the root bir-, meaning "to take" in Slavic languages, deriving the meaning "tax collector".
Birich is mentioned in manuscripts since the 10th century and until the end of the 17th century. [1] The Laurentian Codex mentions under the year of 992 that Vladimir the Great, when looking for a volunteer to fight a Pecheneg baghatur have sent a birich in regiments. Later, the Muscovite tsars announced various ukases via biriches. Heads of the Eastern Orthodox Church also used biriches to announce their decrees. A birich was supposed to make an announcement in market place, not once but many times, sometimes during several months. Later other administrators ( namestniks, voyevodas, etc.) had biriches in their staff, as mentioned in payrolls.
The word biritch is the name of a 19th-century card game. It is said to have originated in Russia, but satisfactory evidence of this has not been discovered. It is considered to be a precursor of contract bridge.
See also
References
- ^ Richard L. Frey, Alan F. Truscott, Amalya Kearse The official encyclopedia of bridge pg. 178 Crown (1988) ISBN 0-12-240761-X
Bibliography
- . Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary (in Russian). 1906.
A biritch (also birich or biryuch; Russian: бирич, бирюч) in Kievan Rus' was a herald, an announcer of the will of a knyaz, sometimes his deputy in police or diplomatic affairs, or tax collector. A birich travelled to settlements, played bugle or horn in the center of a town square or yard to gather people and read the announcement.
The word is thought to be derived from a Turkic word for "bugler", "hornist" (in modern Turkish: borucu, borazancı). Other hypotheses try to base the meanings on interpretations of the root bir-, meaning "to take" in Slavic languages, deriving the meaning "tax collector".
Birich is mentioned in manuscripts since the 10th century and until the end of the 17th century. [1] The Laurentian Codex mentions under the year of 992 that Vladimir the Great, when looking for a volunteer to fight a Pecheneg baghatur have sent a birich in regiments. Later, the Muscovite tsars announced various ukases via biriches. Heads of the Eastern Orthodox Church also used biriches to announce their decrees. A birich was supposed to make an announcement in market place, not once but many times, sometimes during several months. Later other administrators ( namestniks, voyevodas, etc.) had biriches in their staff, as mentioned in payrolls.
The word biritch is the name of a 19th-century card game. It is said to have originated in Russia, but satisfactory evidence of this has not been discovered. It is considered to be a precursor of contract bridge.
See also
References
- ^ Richard L. Frey, Alan F. Truscott, Amalya Kearse The official encyclopedia of bridge pg. 178 Crown (1988) ISBN 0-12-240761-X
Bibliography
- . Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary (in Russian). 1906.