At the moment there is no unambiguous interpretation of the name of the city of Kostroma . Among the scientists the most popular are two versions . According to the first, the name originated from the owl "kostrum", which in the translation from Finno-Ugric means "fortress" . The second connects it with the name of the ancient pagan holiday Kostroma . The holiday was an important event during the cycle of summer rituals arranged in honor of the sun god Yarilo . For the holiday a straw doll was used, which was carried by girls singing ritual songs . Then the doll filed in the river or burned . The doll, as well as the holiday, was called Kostroma . After the baptism of Rus, the church brutally suppressed such events, but the holidays that praised Yarilo were held in Kostroma until 1771, and some of their elements were preserved almost to the present day .

The city's foundation date is 1152, however, there are no exact indications to this either in the annals or elsewhere. The first mention of Kostroma is dated 1213 and concerns the ruin of the city by the troops of Prince Constantine of Rostov.

In Kostroma, no important events took place for a long time - apart from numerous fires and devastation. But it was there that the lands that had not yet played any role in the life of the country were boyars of the Romanovs. In 1613, the Moscow embassy arrived in Kostroma to persuade Mikhail Romanov to take the throne. This largely predetermined the future fate of the city, which since then became known primarily as the birthplace of the royal dynasty.

Since then, the city began to thrive. The royal family, who had not forgotten their roots, sent generous donations to monasteries and temples, built defensive fortifications around the city and invited the best craftsmen around there, thanks to which a large trade and craft settlement stretched around Kostroma.