50 Acta Linguistica Lithuanica LXXXI VÁCLAV BLAŽEK Masaryk University Fields of research: Indo-European studies, especially Slavic, Baltic, Celtic, Anatolian, Tocharian, Indo-Iranian languages; Fenno-Ugric; Afro-Asiatic; etymology; genetic classification; mathematic models in historical linguistics. DOI: https://doi.org/10.35321/all81-03 VOLGA – THE FIRST RIVER OF EUROPE Volga – pirmoji Europos upė Чтобы не было раздора Между вольными людьми, Волга, Волга, мать родная, На, красавицу возьми! “So that peace may reign for ever In this band so free and brave, Volga, Volga, Mother Volga, Make this lovely girl a grave!ˮ Дмитрий Николаевич Садовников 1 in 1883 ANNOTATION The present study summarizes all designations of the Volga River and when it is possi- ble, in wider context of primary texts, arranged in Appendix. The second task is a survey and discussion of existing etymologies. The third goal consists in offer of new solutions, if those existing are not convincing enough. Finally, some general conclusions are formulated. KEYWORDS : River, Volga, hydronym, etymology. 1 Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stenka_Razin> [accessed 01.11.2019].