Izba

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Izba (Russian: изба) is a traditional Russian countryside house, a kind of log house. The word, which is common to many Slavic languages, is usually explained as an ancient loan from either Vulgar Latin (cf. French étuve) or Germanic languages (cf. Old High German stuba).[1]

Izba is the house of the conventional Russian farmstead, generally built close to the road, and in conjunction with a barn, kitchen garden, and hayshed. The surrounding outbuildings composed a yard, which would have been surrounded by a simple woven stick fence. Traditional, old-style Izba construction involved the use of simple tools, such as ropes, axes, knives, and spades. Nails were not generally used, as metal was relatively expensive, and neither were saws, a common construction tool. All of the building components were simply cut and fit together using a hand axe. Customarily, one would place coins, wool, and frankincense underneath the corners of the house, so that living there would be healthy and wealthy.