Raskovnik

The raskovnik or razkovniche (Serbian Cyrillic and Macedonian: расковник, Bulgarian: разковниче, pronounced [rɐsˈkɔvnitʃɛ], Russian: разрыв-трава, Polish: rozryw) is a magical herb in Slavic (Bosnian, Bulgarian, Croatian, Macedonian, Montenegrin, Serbian, Slovene, Russian) and Romanian (iarba fiarelor) mythology. According to lore, the raskovnik has the magical property to unlock or uncover anything that is locked or closed. However, legends claim it is notoriously difficult to recognize the herb, and reputedly only certain chthonic animals are able to identify it.

Names

The herb is known by a multitude of names among the South Slavs, and the names vary significantly by region. While razkovniche and raskovnik are the customary names in Bulgarian and Serbian respectively and the root is also preserved in the Leskovac dialect as raskov, in some parts of Macedonia it is known as ež trava ("hedgehog grass"). In the vicinity of Bar (southeastern Montenegro), the term is demir-bozan, a Turkish borrowing meaning "iron breaker". In Syrmia, the plant is referred to as špirgasta trava (a hapax legomenon), in Slavonia it is known as zemaljski ključ ("earth key"), and in Slovenia's Savinja Valley as mavričin koren ("rainbow root").