Fairy Tales

Konstantin Dmitrievich Balmont (born on 3(15) June 1867; date of death to be clarified—1942). Like many others, I was surprised by the surname Balmont, where it’s unclear where to put the stress and even what to make of it. “Is he a foreigner then?” — No, not a foreigner. At the same time, there is the poet’s personal statement that he considers himself a descendant of either the Scots or the Scandinavians. There are also more scholarly, historical approaches to studying this—essentially insignificant—matter. A sergeant who was given the surname Balamut stood out for his achievements in historical chronicles; later on, including due to his ancestor’s fame and merits, the descendants ennobled themselves up to Balmont. “Who wants to, believes.” After all, there’s that verse without requiring proof, written by a poet revered by many about himself, as he writes:

A sudden line is born,

Then another rises at once,

A third flashes far away,

The fourth comes laughing, running in.

And the fifth, and after, and then,

Where, how many— I don’t know myself,

But I don’t ponder the verse,

And, truth be told, never— I compose.

Which reinforces belief in one origin variant or another for the surname Balmont.

This poem is also included in the distributed collection of fairy tales.