Grodno

Grodno or Hrodna is a city in western Belarus. It is located on the Neman close to the borders of Poland and Lithuania (about 20km and 30km away respectively). It has 365,610 inhabitants (2016 census). It is the capital of Grodno Region and Grodno District.Alternative namesIn Belarusian, the city is sometimes referred to as Го́радня or Гаро́дня. In Latin it was known as Grodna (-ae), in Polish as Grodno and in Yiddish as גראָדנע. The Lithuanian name of the city is Gardinas.HistoryThe modern city of Grodno originated as a small fortress and a fortified trading outpost maintained by the Rurikid princes on the border with the lands of the Baltic tribal union of the Yotvingians. The first reference to Grodno dates to 1005.<ref name="USSR/1965">Археографический ежегодник за 1964 год. The Academy of Sciences of the USSR, 1965, p.271. Name derives from the Old East Slavic verb gorodit, i.e., to enclose, to fence (see "grad" for details).The official foundation year is 1127. At this year Grodno was mentioned in the Primary Chronicle as Goroden' and located at a crossing of numerous trading routes, this Slavic settlement, possibly originating as far as the late 10th century, became the capital of a poorly attested but separate principality, ruled by Yaroslav the Wise's grandson and his descendants.

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