The area of today's Minsk had been…

The area of today's Minsk had been settled by the Early East Slavs by the ninth century CE.

The Svislach River valley was the settlement boundary between two Early East Slav tribes – the Krivichs and Dregovichs.

By 980, the area had been incorporated into the early medieval Principality of Polatsk, one of the earliest East Slav states.

Minsk was first mentioned in the Primary Chronicle for the year 1067 in association with the Battle on the river Nemiga.

1067 is now widely accepted as the founding year of Minsk.

City authorities consider the date of September 2, 1067, to be the exact founding date of the city, though the town (by then fortified by wooden walls) had certainly existed for some time by then.

The origin of the name is unknown but there are several theories.