The Novgorod Republic () was a medieval state that existed from the 12th to 15th centuries, stretching from the Gulf of Finland in the west to the northern Ural Mountains in the east, including the city of Novgorod and the Lake Ladoga regions of modern Russia. The Republic prospered as the easternmost trading post of the Hanseatic League and its Slavic, Baltic and Finnic people were much influenced by the culture of the Viking-Varangians and Byzantine people. Name The state was called "Novgorod" and "Novgorod the Great" (Veliky Novgorod, ) with the form "Sovereign Lord Novgorod the Great" (Gosudar Gospodin Veliky Novgorod, ) becoming common in the 15th century. Novgorod Land and Novgorod volost''' usually referred to the land belonging to Novgorod. Novgorod Republic itself is a much later term, although the polity was described as a republic as early as in the beginning of the 16th century. The Soviet historians frequently used the terms Novgorod Feudal Republic and Novgorod Boyar Republic. History Novgorod was populated by various Slavic, Finnic and Baltic tribes that were constantly at war with one another for supremacy. However, these tribes came together during the beginning of the 9th century to try to form a negotiated settlement to end military aggression amongst each other. The Novgorod First Chronicle, a collection of writings depicting the history of Novgorod from 1016 to 1471, states that these tribes wanted to "Seek a prince who may rule over us and judge us according to law." Novgorodian Rus' and its inhabitants were much influenced by the Viking culture and people. Novgorod Republic From the late 11th century Novgorodians asserted greater control over the determination of their rules and rejected a politically dependent relationship to Kiev. Among the Rus, the Novgorodians were the first to reach the regions between the Arctic Ocean and Lake Onega. Even though there is no definitive account of the precise timing of their arrival at the northern rivers that flowed into the Arctic, there are chronicles which mention that one expedition reached the Pechora River in 1032, and trading was established as early as in 1096 with the Yugra tribe. Chronicles also stated that the Novgorodians paid tribute to the Prince of Kiev by 1113. Some time after this, the administration of the principality seemed to have matured. The Novgorod tysiatskii and posadniki appointed boyars from the cities and collected revenues for administration in the territories