The
Lovat River was a part of the
trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks, one of the oldest trading routes passing through
Rus'. Specifically, the village of
Nalyuchi was mentioned in the chronicles in 1200. Many villages were first mentioned in 1495. The area was a part of the
Novgorod Republic, and after the fall of Novgorod, it was annexed by the
Grand Duchy of Moscow. In the course of the
administrative reform carried out in 1708 by
Peter the Great, the area was included into Ingermanland Governorate (known since 1710 as
Saint Petersburg Governorate). In 1727, separate
Novgorod Governorate was split off. The current territory of Parfinsky District was a part of
Starorussky Uyezd. After the uyezds were abolished in 1927, the territory was split between
Starorussky and
Polskoy Districts which were a part of
Novgorod Okrug of
Leningrad Oblast. The administrative center of Polskoy District was in the settlement of
Pola. On July 23, 1930, the okrugs were abolished, and the districts were directly subordinated to the oblast. On January 1, 1932, Polskoy District was abolished and merged into
Lychkovsky District. On August 3, 1939, the district was re-established under the name of Polavsky District. In 1910, a
plywood factory was founded in what later became the settlement of Parfino. In 1933, Parfino was granted urban-type settlement status. The area was occupied by
German troops between August 1941 and 1943. The battles over the
Demyansk Pocket took place here. On July 5, 1944, Starorussky and Polavsky Districts were transferred to newly established Novgorod Oblast. In the early 1960s, after a series of reforms, Polavsky District was abolished and split between Demyansky and Starorussky Districts. On December 13, 1968, Parfinsky District was established by splitting it from Starorussky District. On December 23, 1968, additional territories from Starorussky District were appended to it. ==Economy==