A bylina (Russian: былина, IPA: [bɨˈlʲinə]; pl. былины, byliny), also popularly known as a starina (Russian: старина), is a type of Russian oral epic poem.
Byliny deal with all periods of Russian history. Byliny narratives are loosely based on historical fact, but greatly embellished with fantasy or hyperbole. Byliny originate from the times of Kievan Rus', but had only survived in northern Russia by the time they were collected.
The Russian folklore, i.e., the folklore of Russian people, takes its roots in the pagan beliefs of ancient Slavs and now is represented in the Russian fairy tales. Epic Russian bylinas are also an important part of Slavic paganism. The oldest bylinas of Kievan cycle were recorded in the Russian North, especially in Karelia, where most of the Finnish national epic Kalevala was recorded as well.
In the late 19th-century Russian fairy tales began being translated into English, with Russian Folk Tales (1873) by William Ralston, and Tales and Legends from the Land of the Tzar (1890) by Edith Hodgetts.
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