Kyi dynasty
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Kyi dynasty, also known as the Kyivites (Ukrainian: Києвичі, romanized: Kyievychi) was allegedly a dynasty of early medieval Polans rulers of Kyiv. According to page 10.15–16 of the Primary Chronicle, after the deaths of the legendary founders of Kyiv – Kyi, Shchek, Khoryv and their sister Lybid' – their родъ (rodŭ; "clan" or "gens") 'assumed the supremacy among the Polyanians'.[lower-alpha 1][2] However, this is directly contradicted by pages 16.21–17.3, which say: 'After this time, and subsequent to the death of the three brothers in Kyiv, the Polyanians were oppressed by the Derevlians and other neighbors of theirs. Then the Khazars came upon them as they lived in the hills and forests, and demanded tribute from them'[lower-alpha 2].[4] In pages 20.24–21.3, Askold and Dir are told by the inhabitants: "There were three brothers, Kyi, Shchek, and Khoriv, who had once built this city. They died, and we, their descendants, are living here, and paying tribute to the Khazars.'[5][6]
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Several hypotheses have been made about Kyi and the dynasty he might have founded. According to the most common, Kyi was a Slavic prince of the 5th to 6th centuries, and his descendants were the leaders of the East Slavic tribe Polyany.[citation needed] The name of the family came from Kyi, the name of the eldest of the brothers. The etymology of the anthroponym Kyi, after which the dynasty is named, is quite confidently associated with the Iranian languages: Kyi < іран. Kūya < авест. *kaoya.[citation needed] Currently, the limited extant sources do not give an abundance of firm archeological or documentary sources as grounds of the dynasty's historicity, nor is there any strong reason to believe that Askold and Dir belonged to it.[citation needed]