Balto-slavic theory of origin of Rus: historiography of the problem

The article is devoted to the complex analysis of research on the Balto-Slavic origin of Rus in the context of the development of the historical thought of the ХVІІІ – the beginning of the XXI century. This publication reveals the preconditions for the Balto-Slavic theory. The focus is on the first scientific works in which the Baltic origin of the first Rus princes and the bringing of statehood from the south-Baltic region were proved. The main attention is paid to thehistoriographic works of G. Miller, M. Lomonosov, M. Maksymovych, S. Rusov and I. Borichevsky, S. Gedeonov, Yu. Venelin, who assumed that the Rus' people in the north could be called Varangians, but not belonged to their tribe, rather were closely associatedwith the tribes of the Pomeranian Slavs. The author analyzes views of M. Kostomarov, the's direct associate of M. Lomonosov, who was looking for Rus on the Baltic coast at the mouth of the Neman River, which is called "Rus" in the Lithuanian language. It was the right bank of the river, according to the scientist's conviction, that was called Rus or Rusia, and the peoplethat lived there, were called Rus’ people or Rusius and belonged to the Lithuanian tribe Zhmud. The publication also emphasizes a significant contribution of the Soviet scientists to the development of that theory, because despite official Marxist-Soviet doctrines, contrary to the dictates of B. Rybakov they dared to express an opinion on the South-Baltic origin of Rus. In particular, Soviet historians Pashuto and Lebedev initiated the so-called "circum-Baltic" theory. The article also analyzes the views of contemporary historians such as V. Villinbakhov, M. Trukhachev, A. Kuzmin, V. Fomin, who critisize neonormanism and thusraise the development of the Varangian-Rus issue to a completely different scientific level. It was precisely their efforts that laid the theory of multicentre Rus.