“Novgorod's sovereign political community, whose will the veche expressed, was in effect its boyars, so that Novgorod is best called a 'boyar republic'.”

Context. Valentin Ianin equated 'Great Novgorod' in this political sense with the boyars (Aktovye pechati, 1970, p. 150, as cited by Lukin). Lukin rejects the 'boyar republic' label and argues the sources show all full citizens, organised in ends and streets, as the political community. Boyar families did dominate office.