Volkhv

Volkhv. A pagan priest in pre-Christian Rus’. Volkhvy were believed to possess mystical powers, particularly the ability to predict the future. The first literary reference to a volkhv occurs in the Primary Chronicle under the year 912; there, the priest-soothsayer predicts Prince Oleh's death. With the adoption of Christianity (see Christianization of Ukraine) the pagan priests came under persecution and sometimes tried to channel social discontent against the church.