Not a Russian speaker, but I believe the writing to be a name, most likely of the manufacturer: "Nikitin Molev". It is possible that these are two separate last names, perhaps the names of two people who had a knife factory. The "ъ" at the end of Molev, if I am not mistaken, signifies pre-Communist spelling, which would date the kindjal to the beginning of the 19th century.
Regards,
Teodor
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