In a mountain village lived a boy whose name was Prut.
He was going to the forest to fetch wood.
One evening he worked so hard that he didn't notice when it got dark, so he decided to stay and sleep in the mountains. He found a huge pine tree and took shelter for the night right under it.
In his sleep he dreamed of a beautiful girl all dressed in green approaching him and singing to him. The boy stretched out his hand towards her, but the girl immediately disappeared and he woke up. All he found was a green ribbon tied to a branch.
The boy felt that he was falling in love with the girl in green, so he decided to find her.
As the next evening approached, Prut hid himself under the tall pine but did not fall asleep. With the coming of night, the girl dressed in green also arrived. The boy suddenly jumped up and took her in his arms and asked her for her name. At first, the girl was scared, but then she smiled and answered: Hoverla. From that evening, Prut was never seen by the villagers again. He lived in the mountains with Hoverla, fulfilling his love.
However, Hoverla was the daughter of the mountain Tsar and thus was not allowed to descend from the mountains among mortals. When her father found out about her love for Prut, he cursed her. Hoverla felt that she could not live without her love so she threw herself off a high cliff. Immediately terror arose and destroyed everything in its path. The next morning, when the sun rose, a huge mountain appeared in place of the valley. For a long time Prut mourned Hoverla.
He fled to the mountains and never came back.
Since then, a river began to flow, making its way among the rocks.
And people called the river Prut, and the mountain Hoverla.