Legend about Panianka Hill
A legend related to the name of Panianka Hill that was a suburb long ago and stretched as far as the Cherkasy bastion, one of major defensive facilities of Poltava fortress has survived till now.
It happened 1710. A pest epidemic began within Poltava land, and a cloud of locusts overran from Persia, while devastating the crops. And then, according to the legend, some Poltava girl advised the town dwellers to dig a well at the foot of the hill with bastion and to drink water from it. The well was dug up, a spring with clear tasty water was found, and the pest shortly went off. Therefore the grateful Poltava people called that hill Panianka because they didn’t know the girl’s name, and at that time any girl in Ukrainian towns was called panianka (in Ukrainian, a young lady). That was how a mention about the wise Poltava girl remained in the name of that picturesque suburb of the town for ages.
A piece of fiction certainly sounds in the legend. But there are historical details that can partially confirm that event. The fact was that there was lack of sources of drinkable water in that stronghold of the fortress in that distant time. It was even taken into consideration by the Swedish general Gyllenkrok, who led the siege of Poltava in April to June 1709 and first intended to capture the town trading quarter, there were a lot of wells and
sources of drinkable water in. They survived in some places even till this day.
It’s natural that scarcity of wells that healthy and ill town inhabitants drew water in that hard time from, could cause the infection to spread out. And on the contrary, discoveries of other auxiliary sources of clean water, furthermore not only at the foot of the hill as stated in the legend but also in other town districts, could improve sanitary conditions and alongside with other means of struggle against the disease promoted cessation of the infection.
In early 19th century the Russian painter Stadler made several engravings that outskirts of Poltava of that time were depicted on. One of those engravings dated back to 1804 represents both Panianka Hill and the well at a way. Is this not that well the legend tells about? There is nothing left to do but guess about it. Nowadays, the cozy Poltava street named Panianka leads to the sources of the legendary past.
