Abstract
The noun gridʼ (“member of the prince ’s retinue”) and its derivatives are an example of Old East Slavic words of Scandinavian origin, whose life within the active East Slavic lexicon seems to be limited to a quite short period of time. The article contributes to the discussion about its etymology and fills in a new semantic link to the Old Norse noun grið (“security guarantee”).
Besides, it describes the use of the word group in Old Russian documents, that have not been dealt with before too closely or at all: the medieval birch bark manuscripts, legal codes and charters. The semantic changes and development of the word group are further investigated in the ancient East Slavic oral epic poems (byliny songs) and in both Slavic and Baltic dialects.