Gediminids

The Gediminids (Lithuanian: "Gediminaičiai", singular: "Gediminaitis") were a dynasty of monarchs of the medieval Lithuania that reigned from the 14th to the 16th century. They were rulers of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which realm chiefly meant that of Lithuanians and Ruthenians, this area being at least half-Slavic. One branch of this dynasty, known as the family of Jagiellons, reigned also in Poland, Hungary and Bohemia. Several other branches ranked among the leading aristocratic dynasties of Russia and Poland into recent times.

Their monarchical title in Lithuanian primarily was, by some folkloristic data, "kunigų kunigas" ("Duke of Dukes"), and later on, "didysis kunigas" ("Great/High Duke") or, in a simple manner, "kunigaikštis". In the 18th century the latter form was changed (maybe, by polonised clerks) into tautological "didysis kunigaikštis", which nevertheless would be translated as "Grand Duke" (for its etymology, see Grand Prince).

Their origin

The origin of Gediminas himself is much debated. Some sources say he was Vytenis' ostler, others that he was of peasant stock, some historians consider him as the son or grandson of Lithuanian or Yatvingian duke Skalmantas. Most of scholars agree, however, that Gediminas was Vytenis' brother (the parentage of Vytenis is explained differently in various fake genealogies, compiled from the 16th century onwards; according to the latest Polish research, his parentage cannot be established. [Jan Tęgowski, "Pierwsze pokolenia Gedyminowiczów", 1999]

There is currently a project underway, that seeks to discover the origins of Rurikid dynasty by using DNA testing of male descendants. This is the Rurikid Dynasty DNA Project: www.familytreedna.com/public/rurikid. Many of the assumptions and conclussions of the project manager are doubtfull.

List of (undoubted) Gediminids who ruled in Lithuania

* Gediminas
* Jaunutis
* Algirdas
* Jogaila
* Kęstutis
* Vytautas
* Švitrigaila
* Žygimantas Kęstutaitis
* Kazimieras Jogailaitis
* Aleksandras
* Žygimantas Senasis
* Žygimantas Augustas

Branches of the dynasty

The Eastern Orthodox branches of the family were mostly Ruthenian, which also was the one of the two main languages of their established state. Some of these families (e.g., Czartoryski) later converted to Roman Catholicism and became thoroughly Polonized. Others (e.g., Galitzine) moved to Muscovy and became thoroughly Russified.

Some of the noblest princely families of Russia and Poland belong to the Gediminid stock. In Belarusian the Gediminids are known as Гедзімінавічы ("Giedziminavičy", sing.: Гедзімінавіч, "Giedziminavič"), in Polish — as Giedyminowicze (sing.: Giedyminowicz), in Ukrainian - as Гедиміновичі (Hedyminovychi, sing. Гедимінович Hedyminovych), and in Russian — as Gediminovichi (sing.: Гедиминович).

In Poland, most Gediminid families (such as Korecki, Olelkowicz-Słucki, Wiśniowiecki, Zbaraski, Jagiellons) are extinct, but at least three families survive to the present: Czartoryski, Sanguszko, and Koriatowicz-Kurcewicz.

The Russian Gediminid families include Bulgakov, Golitsin, Kurakin, Khovansky, Trubetskoy, Mstislavsky, Belsky, and Volynsky.

See also

* House of Gediminas
* List of Belarusian rulers
* List of Lithuanian rulers
* Columns of Gediminas
* Galitzine family
* Palemonids

Notes

External links

* [http://genealogy.euweb.cz/jagelo/jagelo.html Genealogy of the House of Gediminas]