Ivyanets is located in a hilly forested area on the Volma River, and its origins can be traced to the end of the 15th century in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Originally known as Givenech, presumably derived from Lithuanian "gyventi" – "to live", it was founded in 1444 as a privately owned settlement of the Sologub family, and by 1522 it was listed as a town within Minsk County of the Vilnius Voivodeship. Ivyanets was home to a primarily Protestant Calvinist community, and saw rapid growth with schools and a hospital. In 1606, a wooden church was built, and in 1640 the town was composed of 27 lots. During the Russo-Polish War (1654–1667), Ivyanets was severely damaged by Russian forces, and slowly recovered over the next century. At the beginning of the 18th century Ivyanets County was formed, with its administrative center located in the town, and in 1702 a Franciscan monastery was built by Theodore Vankovich. In 1745, Jan Michal Sologub built a stone church in the town. Sologub was the current Podskarby, the chief financial manager of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and a member of the Senate, and the owner of the town. By 1780, Ivyanets was composed of 7 streets, a market, and 174 lots.