SLAV2360: DraculaSlavic PrehistorySlavs= ethnolinguistic groupo“Slav” means “people of the word”oThey thought they spoke the only true languageoHad no writing system for 2000-3000 years (so no direct interpretation of Slavicprehistory)oSlavic languages all used to be all 1 language–they were intertwinedso it’s verycomplicatedoRussians love poets so spoken word was very important to themSources of study for Slavic prehistory1.Historical sources: mostly from non-Slavs so they were sometimes racist2.Archaeology: gravesites especially (they worshipped ancestors)3.Ethnography: national costumes, crafts, food traditions4.Linguistics: looking at older forms of language–for example, it is believed that theoriginal homeland was near Poland because “beach trees” (like the word theyused for home) is abundant near the Carpathian Mountains at the border ofPoland and UkraineLifestyle of early Slavso3000–2000 BC: hunter gatherers & migrationo2000–500 BC: settle into the region between Poland & Ukraine with CarpathianMountain border with rich black soilo500 BC–20 AD: more settled societyPrimary building material was wood (they worship trees/nature)Lived in a matriarchal “utopian” societySlavic settlementsooPersonal level: very extended family lifeLong house for communityHomes for extended familiesaround the long houseWooden walls around societyNear a river
Elder female (and male but less so) was in poweroTerritorial level: everything was held and used in common/sharedoEconomic level: everything was for the benefit of the wholeFirst Slavic Migration: 476 ADoNo evidence of weapons until this time periodoIn 476 AD = fall of Rome (power source of whole Europe)1.Collapse of Roman Empire (strained by constant attacks from German tribes)2.Germanic tribes move west3.Slavs became aware of better areas (more advanced societies that hadadvances such as cement)4.Became armed (and patriarchal societies because of warfare)5.Possible climate change (volcanic eruption in 535 AD) but this is debatedFirst Slavic Migration: 476 AD1.Urbanization (immigrants)2.Cultural shift furthered altered identity3.Populated several areas: Bulgaria, Kiev, Moraviaa.Proto-Bulgars were Turkish & muslimsb.In Kiev (Ukraine) they were Vikingsc.In Moravia (Prague) they were Christian (Charlemagne) and GermanFranksSlavs were originally paganoHunter gatherers usually practiceanimismAnimism (belief that places and natural things have spirits) was common forpeople on the moveAfter settling down, animism transitions toshamanismwith priests/soothsayersoPaganpractices1.Numinous placea.Numinous place is seen as supernatural because science can’t explainwhat happened there so place becomes specialb.Example: Delphic Oracle (Greek) had fissure in rocks that let off naturalgas–oracle/priest huffed gas & babbled horoscopes (oracle was asoothsayer)2.Soothsayera.AKA shaman or oracleb.
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