Instant Access To 100,000+ Essays!

The Origin of the Rus. There are three theories discussed in the textbook on the origin of the people of Kievan Rus. The Norman theory (Scandinavian), dealing with the Varangians , the Soviet anti-Normanist theory, dealing with the Slavics, and the middle of the road theory which blends the first two with some other facts theorized by Western Europeans. There are as many theories as there are people to listen to them. One would be led to believe that, due to the fact of very few confirmed historical documents of the Kievan Rus period and the fact that Leninist, Stalinist and the later communist party historians did not nor would not believe that Russia developed so late in the known world history of the time, perhaps a blend of many different opinions would be the best theory. The Soviets of the early twentieth century, until the end of the cold war, could