NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Prehistory of Poland (until 966)

The prehistory of Poland, or the history of Poland before 966 CE, is a period about which relatively little is known, especially when compared to the later eras. The available information is obtained mainly by archeological methods. Events April 14 or April 30 - Mieszko I, first duke of Poland, baptised a Christian Births Fujiwara no Michinaga, Japanese regent Deaths King Dubh I of Scotland Categories: 966 ... â€œBCEâ€ redirects here. ... For the magazine about archaeology, see Archaeology (magazine). ...

Prehistory of Polish lands from earliest human settlements through the Roman Empire times

From Homo erectus and then during the Stone, Bronze, and Iron Ages and throughout the Late Antiquity, the lands of present day Poland were populated by many different peoples, often known archeologically, but of uncertain ethnicity or linguistic affiliation. Celtic, Germanic and Baltic peoples were among the prominent groups. The most famous archeological finding is the Biskupin fortified settlement on the lake, of the Lusatian culture of the early Iron Age, by some past researchers considered to be a Proto-Slavic development. Binomial name (Dubois, 1892) Synonyms â€ Pithecanthropus erectus â€ Sinanthropus pekinensis â€ Javanthropus soloensis â€ Meganthropus paleojavanicus Homo erectus (Latin: upright man) is an extinct species of the genus Homo. ... Stone Age fishing hook. ... The Bronze Age is a period in a civilizations development when the most advanced metalworking has developed the techniques of smelting copper from natural outcroppings and alloys it to cast bronze. ... Iron Age Axe found on Gotland This article is about the archaeological period known as the Iron Age, for the mythological Iron Age see Iron Age (mythology). ... Late Antiquity is a rough periodization (c. ... Archaeology or sometimes in American English archeology (from the Greek words αρχαίος = ancient and λόγος = word/speech) is the study of human cultures through the recovery, documentation and analysis of material remains, including architecture, artefacts, biofacts, human remains, and landscapes. ... An ethnic group or ethnicity is a population of human beings whose members identify with each other, either on the basis of a presumed common genealogy or ancestry[1], or recognition by others as a distinct group[2], or by common cultural, linguistic, religious, or territorial traits. ... Linguistics is the scientific study of language, which can be theoretical or applied. ... Celts, normally pronounced // (see article on pronunciation), refers primarily to the members of any of a number of peoples in Europe using the Celtic languages or descended from those who did. ... http://www. ... Gate to the reconstructed settlement Biskupin is an archaeological site and a life-size model of an Iron Age fortified settlement (grÃ³d) in Poland, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodship. ... A simplified map of the central European cultures, ca 1200 BC. The purple area is the Lusatian culture, the central blue area is the Knoviz culture, the red area is the central urnfield culture, and the orange area is the northern urnfield culture. ...

Homo erectus

Human settlements on Polish lands occurred later than in the more climatically hospitable regions of southern and western Europe and were dependent on the recurring episodes of glaciation. The earliest remnants of the Homo genus campsites, together with their inhabitants' primitive stone tools, bones of the animals they hunted and of the fish they caught, were found below the San River glaciation period sediments in Trzebnica and are about 500 thousand years old. Younger Homo erectus sites were found at Rusko near Strzegom, located, like Trzebnica, in the Lower Silesia region. This archeologically represents the microlithic complexes of the Lower Paleolithic period, but biologically Homo erectus was a separate species of early humans.^[1]^[2] For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... A glaciation (a created composite term meaning Glacial Period, referring to the Period or Era of, as well as the process of High Glacial Activity), often called an ice age, is a geological phenomenon in which massive ice sheets form in the Arctic and Antarctic and advance toward the equator. ... Species Homo sapiens See text for extinct species. ... For other uses, see Genus (disambiguation). ... Length 433 km Basin area 16,861 kmÂ² Origin Carpathian Mountains Tributary of Vistula River Countries Poland, Ukraine San River. ... Trzebnica is a city near Wroclaw in Silesia, capital of Trzebnica County. ... Binomial name (Dubois, 1892) Synonyms â€ Pithecanthropus erectus â€ Sinanthropus pekinensis â€ Javanthropus soloensis â€ Meganthropus paleojavanicus Homo erectus (Latin: upright man) is an extinct species of the genus Homo. ... Parish church in Strzegom Strzegom (German: ) is a town in Poland, in Lower Silesia, in Åšwidnica County. ... Lower Silesia (German: ; Polish: ; Latin: Silesia Inferior) is the northwestern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia. ... A microlith is a small stone tool, typically knapped of flint or chert, usually about three centimetres long or less. ... The Lower Paleolithic (or Lower Palaeolithic) is the earliest subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. ... Biology studies the variety of life (clockwise from top-left) E. coli, tree fern, gazelle, Goliath beetle Biology (from Greek: Î²Î¯Î¿Ï‚, bio, life; and Î»ÏŒÎ³Î¿Ï‚, logos, knowledge), also referred to as the biological sciences, is the study of living organisms utilizing the scientific method. ... For other uses, see Species (disambiguation). ...

Homo neanderthalensis

Now often also considered a distinct species, Homo neanderthalensis (otherwise known as Homo sapiens neanderthalensis) lived in the southern half of Poland during the Middle Paleolithic, that is between 300,000 and 40,000 BC. Various relics were found and different Neanderthal cultures are distinguished, even though no actual human bones from this period have been identified. Examination of the Micoquien-Prądnik culture sites in the Prądnik River Valley north of Kraków and in Zwoleń near Radom from about 85,000 to 70,000 BC (early phase of the Vistula River glaciation period) shows that some Neanderthals were skilled collective hunters, able to kill numerous large mammals characteristic of the cold Paleolithic climate and process the meat, skin and bones using specialized tools.^[1] For other uses, see Neanderthal (disambiguation). ... The Middle Paleolithic (or Middle Palaeolithic) is the second subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age as it is understood in Europe, Africa and Asia. ... For other uses, see Krakow (disambiguation). ... ZwoleÅ„ is a town in Poland, in Mazowsze Voivodship, about 30 km east of Radom. ... Radom (pronounce: [radÉ”m]) is a city in central Poland with 227 309 inhabitants. ... Vistula river basin Vistula (Polish Wisła), is the longest river in Poland. ... Subclasses & Infraclasses Subclass â€ Allotheria* Subclass Prototheria Subclass Theria Infraclass â€ Trituberculata Infraclass Metatheria Infraclass Eutheria Mammals (class Mammalia) are warm-blooded, vertebrate animals characterized by the presence of sweat glands, including those that produce milk, and by the presence of: hair, three middle ear bones used in hearing, and a neocortex...

Homo sapiens

Homo sapiens proper (Homo sapiens sapiens, the Cro-Magnon type) appears beginning with the Upper Paleolithic, which lasted from 40,000 to 9,000 BC. Upper Paleolithic in Poland was not continuous in terms of human inhabitation, because during the coldest part of this Ice Age period, 20,000 to 15,000 BC, the humans were absent. During the earlier part the Neanderthal probably still existed and coexisted with the modern man. The latter, warmer part, after the climatic discontinuity and the reappearance of humans, is therefore considered the Late Paleolithic. Homo sapiens (Latin: wise man) is the scientific name for the human species. ... For the avant garde collective, see Cromagnon (band). ... The Upper Paleolithic (or Upper Palaeolithic) is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age as it is understood in Europe, Africa and Asia. ... Variations in CO2, temperature and dust from the Vostok ice core over the last 400 000 years For the animated movie, see Ice Age (movie). ...

Upper Paleolithic people were specialized in group big game hunting, sometimes pursuing and driving into traps entire herds. Their nutritional needs were met, over the many thousand years when the vegetation was limited to tundra and steppe and the land was covered by ice and snow for long periods, largely by meat consumption. More sophisticated tool making methods resulted in the production of long (even over two feet), narrow and sharp flintstone splits. In a cave near Nowy Targ a 30,000 years old (world's oldest) boomerang was found - a crescent-shaped 70 cm long object with fine finish, made of mammoth tusk. For other uses, see Tundra (disambiguation). ... A steppe in Western Kazakhstan in early spring In physical geography, a steppe (Russian: - , Ukrainian: - , Kazakh: - ), pronounced in English as , is a plain without trees (apart from those near rivers and lakes); it is similar to a prairie, although a prairie is generally considered as being dominated by tall grasses... This article is about the sedimentary rock. ... Nowy Targ is a town in southern Poland with 34,000 inhabitants (2006). ... This article is about the wooden implement. ... This article is about the genus Mammuthus. ... Pacific Walrus at Cape Peirce A tusk is an extremely long tooth of certain mammals that protrudes when the mouth is closed. ...

A rich source of Late Paleolithic sites and artifacts (the Magdalenian culture of 14,500 BC) is again the Prądnik River Valley.^[1] Magdalenian horse head carving Magdalenian people dwelt not just in caves but also used tents like this one of Pincevent (France) Magdalenian weapons of bone The Magdalenian, also spelled MagdalÃ©nien, refers to one of the later cultures of the Upper Palaeolithic in western Europe. ...

Mesolithic hunters and gatherers

The Mesolithic lasted from 9000 BC (rapid climate warming) to 5500 BC (arrival of first farmers from the Danube River area). It was the last period when the food production economy was entirely opportunistic, based on assimilation of plant and animal material found in nature, that is gathering and hunting. Because of warmer temperatures, complex forest ecosystems and wetlands developed and this natural diversity necessitated new hunting and fishing strategies. Hunters and fishermen working individually or in small groups had to pursue single large and small animals using traps, javelins, bows and arrows, boats and fishing equipment, and utilizing dogs. Women engaged in gathering of such products as roots, herbs, nuts, bird eggs, mollusks, fruit or honey, which possibly was even more important than hunting. Mesolithic human settlements became quite numerous and by the end of this period the economy of harvesting nature became very highly developed. Tools and devices were made of materials such as stone (flint strip mines have been found at the northern edge of Świętokrzyskie Mountains), bone, wood, horn, or plant material for rope and baskets, and included such fine utensils as fishing hooks and sewing needles. Animal figurines were made of amber. At least during the later Mesolithic, the dead were placed in graves and outfitted with familiar objects of their surroundings. One such well preserved grave of an apparent tool-maker, together with his tools and other items was found in Janisławice near Skierniewice and dated 5500 BC.^[3] The Mesolithic (Greek mesos=middle and lithos=stone or the Middle Stone Age[1]) was a period in the development of human technology between the Paleolithic and Neolithic periods of the Stone Age. ... Length 2,888 km Elevation of the source 1,078 m Average discharge 30 km before Passau: 580 m³/s Vienna: 1,900 m³/s Budapest: 2,350 m³/s just before Delta: 6,500 m³/s Area watershed 817,000 km² Origin Black Forest (Schwarzwald-Baar, Baden- Württemberg... Trinomial name Canis lupus familiaris The dog (Canis lupus familiaris) is a domestic subspecies of the wolf, a mammal of the Canidae family of the order Carnivora. ... ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyskie Mountain landscape ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyskie Mountains (sometimes also known as the Holy Cross Mountains, Polish GÃ³ry ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyskie?) are a mountain range in central Poland, in the vicinity of the city of Kielce. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Skierniewice - a town in central Poland with 47,900 inhabitants (1995). ...

Introduction of agriculture - Danubian cultures of farming communities

Early Neolithic era begins around 5500 BC with the arrival from the Danube area of people (their land tilling predecessors had been coming into the Balkans and then the Danube region from Anatolia beginning a thousand years earlier) who kept livestock, cultivated crops and made pottery. They formed the first settled rural communities, thus forging the most fundamental civilizational advance. An array of Neolithic artifacts, including bracelets, axe heads, chisels, and polishing tools. ... This article is about the Danube River. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Anatolia and Europe Anatolia (Turkish: from Greek: Î‘Î½Î±Ï„Î¿Î»Î¯Î± - Anatolia) is a peninsula of Western Asia which forms the greater part of the Asian portion of Turkey, as opposed to the European portion (Thrace, or traditionally Rumelia). ...

The original newcomers are referred to as the Linear Pottery culture - their uniform culture survived in Poland in its original form until about 4600 BC. Despite the big impact they made, the first waves came in small numbers - hundreds, or at most a few thousand people, judging by the sizes of the known settlements. They populated mainly fertile soils of southern highlands and river valleys further north, all the way to the Baltic Sea. They lived alongside the more numerous native people who were still pursuing the Mesolithic lifestyle, but during the Linear Pottery culture times there wasn't much interaction, as the two groups inhabited different environments. Their villages consisted of several or more long (even over 30 meters) rectangular homes supported by wooden posts, the oldest of which come from the Lower Silesia region. One such location from about 5000 BC was also unearthed at Olszanica, which is now at the west end of Kraków just within the city limits. Plants were cultivated mostly in small nearby gardens, but wheat and barley were also grown on small fields obtained by burning the forest. Further out were the pastures, the entire area utilized by a single settlement having a radius of about 5 km. Cattle, sheep and goats were even more numerous in the northern flatlands, where the land was less fertile. The Danubian people communities kept in touch and exchanged goods over large areas, all the way to their regions of origin beyond the Carpathian Mountains. // Linear pottery. ... The Baltic Sea is located in Northern Europe, from 53Â°N to 66Â°N latitude and from 20Â°E to 26Â°E longitude. ... For other uses, see Krakow (disambiguation). ... Satellite image of the Carpathians. ...

After 5000 BC new waves of immigrants arrived from the south again, which accelerated the process of differentiation of the agrarian society into several distinct cultures during the first half of 5th millennium BC and afterwards. In the Oder River basin mostly there was the culture named after the punctured variety of Linear Band pottery - Stroked Pottery culture, while in the Vistula River basin the Lengyel and Polgár cultures appeared. The two regions developed in some separation, but within them the different cultural traditions of the younger Danubian circle often overlapped. The houses were now of an elongated trapezoidal shape, up to 40 meters long, grouped in larger complexes, often protected by beam and earth walls, moats and other fortifications, as such defensive measures apparently became necessary against people from the still Mesolithic native population or other Danubian settlements. The complicated, time and resources consuming defensive structures were being built beginning in mid 5th millennium BC. Their design followed that of the similar construction that was taking place in the Danube River areas, starting in the early part of this millennium. Large cemeteries and graves supplied with fancier objects such as jewelry, including the first so-called "princely" graves (the princesses had imported copper necklaces, earrings and diadems in addition to locally made decorations), testify to the emergence of a relatively more affluent society. Cattle husbandry and trading (large varieties resulted from cross-breeding with the aurochs) and land tillage provided basic sustenance. Salt was obtained and traded and became a much sought after commodity, at first probably to help preserve stored food. The Danubian people produced many richly decorated objects, including clay vessels with animal head ornaments and figurines of women. Among the large explored settlements of the Lengyel culture from the 4400-4000 BC period, there is one in Brześć Kujawski, and another one in Osłonki, solidly fortified about 4200 BC after an assault incident involving arson and murder, both located in the Kujawy region. The Oder (known in Czech, Slovak and Polish as Odra) is a river in Central Europe. ... // Linear pottery. ... Stroke-ornamented ware is a kind of zig-zag decorated Neolithic pottery found in central and eastern Europe. ... Vistula river basin Vistula (Polish Wisła), is the longest river in Poland. ... Map of European Neolithic at the apogee of Danubian expansion, c. ... PolgÃ¡r (burger in Hungarian language) refers to: PolgÃ¡r (city) is a city in Hungary. ... Length 2,888 km Elevation of the source 1,078 m Average discharge 30 km before Passau: 580 m³/s Vienna: 1,900 m³/s Budapest: 2,350 m³/s just before Delta: 6,500 m³/s Area watershed 817,000 km² Origin Black Forest (Schwarzwald-Baar, Baden- Württemberg... Binomial name Subspecies Bos primigenius primigenius (Bojanus, 1827) Bos primigenius namadicus (Falconer, 1859) Bos primigenius mauretanicus (Thomas, 1881) See Ur (rune) for the rune. ... Kuyavia (sometimes spelt Cuyavia, Polish Kujawy) is a historical region of Poland, between the Vistula to the east and Noteć river to the west and between Noteć and Krówka river to the south. ...

The Malice farming culture of southern Poland (5th millennium and until 3800 BC, named after a site in Malice near Sandomierz^[4]) was the first Neolithic culture to originate north of the Carpathian Mountains and spread south.^[5] Flag of Sandomierz Sandomierz Coat of Arms Sandomierz(Sandomir) ( listen) is a city in south-eastern Poland with 25,714 inhabitants (2006). ...

Neolithic cultures developed by native populations

After 4500 BC the Ertebølle culture of northwestern origin entered a ceramic phase with its own forms of pottery. They lived by the Baltic Sea shores and were specialized in utilizing the resources of the sea, thus still representing the Mesolithic ways of life. At their settlement in Dąbki near Koszalin Stroke-ornamented pottery was found, obtained probably through trade with the Danubian people. Map of European Neolithic at the apogee of Danubian expansion, c. ... The Baltic Sea is located in Northern Europe, from 53Â°N to 66Â°N latitude and from 20Â°E to 26Â°E longitude. ... Coordinates: , Country Poland Voivodeship West Pomeranian Powiat City County Gmina Koszalin Estabilished 11th century City Rights 1266 Government - Mayor MirosÅ‚aw MikietyÅ„ski Area - City 83 kmÂ² (32 sq mi) Population (2006) - City 106,125 - Density 1,265/kmÂ² (3,276. ... Stroke-ornamented ware is a kind of zig-zag decorated Neolithic pottery found in central and eastern Europe. ...

The native Mesolithic populations were slow in gradually assimilating the agricultural way of life, beginning with just the use of ceramics. It took a thousand years into the Neolithic period before they adopted animal husbandry (which became especially important to them) and plant cultivation to any appreciable degree. When they eventually developed interest in the more fertile areas utilized by the late Danubian cultures, they became the threat that compelled the Danubian farmers to fortify their settlements.

The first truly native Neolithic culture was the Funnelbeaker culture named after the shape of their typical clay vessels, which developed starting around 4400 BC and lasted some two thousand years. Like other post-Mesolithic cultures the Funnelbeaker culture was Megalithic - they built tombs of large stones, some of them huge and resembling pyramids. Few survived till now because of the demand for stone as building material, but a well-preserved one from the first half of 4th millennium BC was found in Wietrzychowice near Włocławek. From this place and period comes the skull, on which the trepanation procedure was performed for medical or magic reasons. Timewise the beginnings of the post-Mesolithic cultures in Poland coincide with the beginnings of the Eneolithic period in the Balkans. Copper objects, mostly ornamental or luxurious items, were traded and then developed locally, first by the Danubian and then by the indigenous people. Copper metallurgy facilities were identified in Złota near Sandomierz. Clay decorative objects include realistic representations of animals and containers with images engraved on them - a pot from Bronocice, Pińczów County (3400 BC) has a unique narrative scene and the world's oldest semblance of a four-wheeled cart drawn on its surface. Stone tools became most highly developed and acquired their then characteristic smooth surfaces. Well preserved settlements with rectangular buildings were unearthed in Gródek Nadbużny near Hrubieszów (where remnants of a vertical loom for weaving were found) and in Niedźwiedź near Kraków. Originating from central European lowlands, the Funnelbeaker people moved south into the regions previously developed by the Danubian cultures, all the way to Bohemia and Moravia. Being more numerous, better fit for the environment, organized and economically more productive the Funnelbeaker culture people replaced the Danubian cultures in their late phase, and themselves lasted a long time^[6]. The Funnelbeaker culture is the archeological designation for a late Neolithic culture in what is now northern Germany, the Netherlands, southern Scandinavia and Poland. ... Megalithic tomb, Mane Braz, Brittany Bronze age wedge tomb in the Burren area of Ireland For the record label, see Megalith Records. ... WÅ‚ocÅ‚awek (pronounce: [vÈ—oÊ¦wavek]) is a town in central Poland on the Vistula river, with population of approximately 123 000. ... 18th century French illustration of trepanation Trepanation (also known as trepanning, trephination, trephining or burr hole) is a form of surgery in which a hole is drilled or scraped into the skull, thus exposing the dura mater in order to treat health problems related to intracranial diseases, though in the... The Chalcolithic (Greek khalkos + lithos copper stone) period or Copper Age period (also known as the Eneolithic (Aeneolithic)), is a phase in the development of human culture in which the use of early metal tools appeared alongside the use of stone tools. ... Flag of Sandomierz Sandomierz Coat of Arms Sandomierz(Sandomir) ( listen) is a city in south-eastern Poland with 25,714 inhabitants (2006). ... PiÅ„czÃ³w is a town in Poland, in ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyskie Voivodship, about 40 km south of Kielce. ... HrubieszÃ³w is a town in south-eastern Poland with 20,200 inhabitants (1995). ... Flag of Bohemia Bohemia (Czech: ; German: ) is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western and middle thirds of the Czech Republic. ... Flag of Moravia Moravia (Czech and Slovak: Morava; German: ; Hungarian: ; Polish: ) is a historical region in the east of the Czech RepublicCzechia. ...

Globular Amphora culture was the next major Neolithic culture. It originated in the Polish lowlands during the first half of 4th millennium BC, lasted to about 2400 BC and is named after the bulging shape of its representative pottery. They specialized in breeding domestic animals and lived in a semi-settled state, seeking optimal pastures and moving as needed. This semi-nomadic lifestyle was probably necessitated by the poor condition of the soils, by that time depleted and rendered infertile because of the preceding centuries of forest burning and extensive exploitation. Globular Amphora were the first culture in Poland known for utilizing the domesticated horse and swine became important as the source of food. Ritual animal, especially cattle burial sites, often with two or more individuals buried together and supplied with objects as strange as drums have been discovered, but their role is not well understood. Approximate extent of the Corded Ware horizon with adjacent 3rd millennium cultures (after EIEC). ...

The Baden culture in southern Poland was the latest of the Danubian ancestry cultures and continued between 3200 and 2600 BC. They made vessels with characteristic protruding radial ornaments. A large fortified Baden culture settlement of around 3000 BC was found in Bronocice near Pińczów. Approximate extent of the Corded Ware horizon with adjacent 3rd millennium cultures (after EIEC). ... PiÅ„czÃ³w is a town in Poland, in ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyskie Voivodship, about 40 km south of Kielce. ...

Finally there were still in existence the Forest Zone cultures, representing the ceramic phase of hunting and gathering communities. Some of them lasted into the early Bronze Age. The Bronze Age is a period in a civilizations development when the most advanced metalworking has developed the techniques of smelting copper from natural outcroppings and alloys it to cast bronze. ...

The major industry of this period was flintstone mining. One of the largest such mines with preserved underground passages is located in Krzemionki Opatowskie near Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski.^[7] Krzeminki - archeological museum and reserve near Ostrowiec ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyski, Poland. ... Ostrowiec ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyski is a town in central Poland with 79,200 inhabitants (1995). ...

Late Neolithic arrivals from eastern and western regions of Europe

The Corded Ware culture, in existence in central Europe between 3000 and 2000 BC, originated most likely from Proto-Indo-European nomadic people of the Black Sea steppes. It was a pastoral culture at least in its early stages, lacking permanent settlements and known primarily from the burial grounds (a large one with many richly furnished graves was discovered in Złota near Sandomierz). They moved together with their herds of cattle, sheep and goats along the river valleys of southern Poland, but also engaged in flint mining and manufacturing of tools and weapons for their own use and trade. Approximate extent of the Corded Ware horizon with adjacent 3rd millennium cultures (after EIEC). ... Proto-Indo-European (PIE) may refer to: Proto-Indo-European language the hypothetical common ancestor of the Indo-European languages Proto-Indo-Europeans, the hypothetical speakers of the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European language Proto-Indo-European roots, A list of reconstructed Proto-Indo-European roots Categories: | ... For other uses, see Black Sea (disambiguation). ... Flag of Sandomierz Sandomierz Coat of Arms Sandomierz(Sandomir) ( listen) is a city in south-eastern Poland with 25,714 inhabitants (2006). ...

The Rzucewo culture (named after the village near Puck where the discoveries took place) developed from northern populations of the Corded Ware culture as an offshoot specialized in exploitation of the sea resources and lasted in parallel with their mother culture for a comparable period of time. Their settlements consisting of characteristic sea erosion reinforced houses were located along the Bay of Gdańsk and east of there. They engaged in fishery and hunting, especially of seals, then numerous along the Baltic coast. The Rzucewo culture people produced in special shops the widely used and traded amber decorative items. Look up puck in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The Bay of GdaÅ„sk (also known as the GdaÅ„sk Bay or Gulf of GdaÅ„sk; in Polish Zatoka GdaÅ„ska; in Kashubian/Pomeranian GduÅ„skÃ´ HÃ´winga; in German Danziger Bucht) is a southeastern bay of the Baltic sea enclosed by a large curve of the shores of... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...

From the opposite end of Europe (the Iberian Peninsula) came the few people who formed during the 2500-1900 BC period the Bell-Beaker culture, named after the shape of their typical, carefully finished and precisely ornamented pottery - southwestern Poland was at the eastern edge of their range. Because of their mobility, they helped spread new inventions, including developing metallurgy, over large areas of Europe.^[8] The Iberian Peninsula, or Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe, and includes modern day Spain, Portugal, Andorra and Gibraltar. ... approximate extent of the Beaker culture The Bell-Beaker culture (sometimes shortened to Beaker culture, Beaker people, or Beaker folk; German: ), ca. ...

Unetice and other Bronze Age cultures

The Bronze Age in Poland, as well as elsewhere in central Europe, begins with the innovative Unetice culture, in existence in western Poland during the first period of this era, that is from before 2200 to 1600 BC. This fundamentally settled agricultural society originated from the Corded Ware populations influenced by the Bell-Beaker people, kept in touch with the highly developed cultures south of the Carpathian Mountains, had trade links with the cultures of early Greece and echoes influence coming all the way from the highly developed civilizations of the Middle East. Characteristic of the Unetice societies was greater general affluence and developed social stratification. Objects made of bronze, often of luxurious or prestigious nature, were in high demand as symbols of power and importance and are typically found in the graves of "princes". 14 such burial sites, mounds of earth material heaped up on top of wooden, clay and stone structures, some as large as 30 meters in diameter, were found in Łęki Małe near Grodzisk Wielkopolski, erected 2000-1800 BC, suggesting the existence of a local dynasty. Proliferation of bronze items (Uneticean daggers were in high demand all over Europe and in Anatolia) far from the centers of ore mining or bronze craftsmanship shows that the elites were able to control the trade routes, which involved also the transportation of amber from the Baltic Sea shores to the Aegean Sea area artisans. Many concealed (for unknown reasons) bronze treasures have been found, including a fine one from Pilszcz near Głubczyce. Stylistically refined Uneticean ceramics shows inspiration by the Achaean vessels. Fortified settlements were built (one actively researched site, that was utilized and went through a number of phases during the 2000-1500 BC period^[9], is in Bruszczewo in Kościan County), which together with the nature of the weapons and other items found suggests a chronic state of warfare and the emergence of the warrior class. In civilizational forefront of its time and place, the Unetice culture eventually succumbed to internal deterioration of its social and economic structure; its demise may had been hastened by destructive raids waged by the warriors of the belligerent Burial Mound culture, which in the end replaced it. The Bronze Age is a period in a civilizations development when the most advanced metalworking has developed the techniques of smelting copper from natural outcroppings and alloys it to cast bronze. ... Unetice, or more properly UÌnÄ›tice, culture, (German: Aunjetitz) is the name given to an early Bronze Age culture, preceded by the Beaker culture and followed by the Tumulus culture. ... A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ... Grodzisk Wielkopolski is a town in central Poland, situated in the Greater Poland Voivodship (since 1999), previously in Poznan Voivodship (1975-1998). ... Anatolia and Europe Anatolia (Turkish: from Greek: Î‘Î½Î±Ï„Î¿Î»Î¯Î± - Anatolia) is a peninsula of Western Asia which forms the greater part of the Asian portion of Turkey, as opposed to the European portion (Thrace, or traditionally Rumelia). ... Look up Aegean Sea in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Coordinates: , Country Voivodeship Powiat GÅ‚ubczyce County Gmina GÅ‚ubczyce Estabilshed 12th century City Rights 13th century Government - Mayor Adam Krupa Area - Town 12. ... This article is about the ancient people of the Achaeans. ... KoÅ›cian is a town on Obra canal in central Poland with 24,600 inhabitants (1995). ... The Tumulus culture which followed the Únêtice, and from which they descended, dominated central Europe during much of the second part of the second millenium B.C.E.. As the name implies, the Tumulus culture is distinguished by the practice of burying the dead beneath burial mounds. ...

East of the Unetice culture, in Lesser Poland and further north to the Masovia region, during roughly the same span of time was the territory of the Mierzanowice culture, named after the village near Opatów. These descendants of the Corded Ware culture at first lived as mobile cattle breeders, but around 2200 BC started building permanent settlements and became preoccupied with plant cultivation as well. Mierzanowice culture was a conservative egalitarian society, frequently still using stone tools and copper decorations. Of the same cultural sphere, still further east was the Strzyżów culture, named after the village near Hrubieszów. KrakÃ³w Katowice WrocÅ‚aw ÅÃ³dÅº PoznaÅ„ Bydgoszcz Lublin BiaÅ‚ystok GdaÅ„sk Szczecin Warsaw M A S O V I A S I L E S I A G R E A T E R P O L A N D L E S S E R P O... Historical division of Masovia Masovia (Polish: Mazowsze) is a geographical and historical region situated in central Poland with its capital at Warsaw. ... Saint Martins Church in OpatÃ³w, a Romanesque church from the second half of the 12th century OpatÃ³w is a town in Poland, in ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyskie Voivodship. ... HrubieszÃ³w is a town in south-eastern Poland with 20,200 inhabitants (1995). ...

The above three cultures constitute the first (early) period of the Bronze Age, ca. 2300 to 1600 BC, according to the Polish chronology system.

Throughout their range and beyond the Mierzanowice and Strzyżów cultures were replaced by the Trzciniec culture. It was named after Trzciniec near Puławy and lasted from 1700 to 1100 BC, that is throughout the second and third period of the Bronze Age. It was probably made up of various and diverse Post-Neolithic populations, whose common characteristic was the type of pottery - large vessels with a thickened upper edge and a horizontal decorative protrusion around the neck, first found around northern Germany at the beginning of the millennium. Their own production of bronze objects came late and only in the western part of this culture's range. Trzciniec culture is an archaeological culture in Central Europe, that existed between 1700 BCE and 1200 BCE. Its remnants have been found in Kujawy, MaÅ‚opolska, Mazowsze, Podlasie and in western Ukraine. ... PuÅ‚awy is a city in eastern Poland, in Lublin Voivodeship (province), on the Vistula and KurÃ³wka Rivers. ...

Proto-Lusatian (on Polish lands) Burial Mound culture thrived in western Poland during the 1700-1400 BC period, contributed to the birth and rise of the Urnfield cultures, and around 1400 BC was replaced by the most important of them - the Lusatian culture. Burial Mound again was a complex of cultures, which replaced the Unetice culture and had an earth and stone mound grave as their common trait. The burials are skeletal, as opposed to the cremation practices of the later Urnfield cultures. There are no substantial settlements left by the Burial Mound people, whose agricultural practices were apparently limited mostly to animal husbandry. They developed bronze metallurgy to a large extend, to satisfy their own needs for weapons and richly designed and executed decorations. Their dominant social class were the warriors, who were equal and were the only men entitled to a burial under the mound. The Tumulus culture which followed the Únêtice, and from which they descended, dominated central Europe during much of the second part of the second millenium B.C.E.. As the name implies, the Tumulus culture is distinguished by the practice of burying the dead beneath burial mounds. ... The Urnfield culture of central European culture is dated roughly between 1300 BC and 750 BC. The name describes the custom of cremating the dead and placing them in cemeteries. ... A simplified map of the central European cultures, ca 1200 BC. The purple area is the Lusatian culture, the central blue area is the Knoviz culture, the red area is the central urnfield culture, and the orange area is the northern urnfield culture. ...

The Piliny culture (1500-1200 BC, roughly the third or middle period of the Bronze Age) of Hungary and Slovakia, but also southern Lesser Poland, where like others they left bronze treasures, is an early example of the Urnfield cultures. These cultures' burial customs involved cremation of bodies and placing the ashes in urns (often with small apertures, presumably for the soul to escape). The urns were buried without a mound, sometimes forming huge cemeteries with thousands of such graves.^[10] ^[11] KrakÃ³w Katowice WrocÅ‚aw ÅÃ³dÅº PoznaÅ„ Bydgoszcz Lublin BiaÅ‚ystok GdaÅ„sk Szczecin Warsaw M A S O V I A S I L E S I A G R E A T E R P O L A N D L E S S E R P O...

Lusatian culture of the later Bronze Age

The Lusatian culture lasted on Polish lands from 1450 to 250 BC, through the remainder of the Bronze Age (middle and beginning ca. 1150 BC late periods) and then into the Iron Age, from 750 BC on. Although archeologically it presents itself in a fairly uniform way, it is believed to had been ethnically nonhomogeneous, originating from groups arriving from outside, as well as from populations in existence in Poland adopting new cultural patterns. This manifests itself in the continuation of the east-west cultural disparity. For example the use of metal objects was less common in the eastern regions, while in the western zone besides the urns the burials contained often many other vessels. The western zone ceramics of the early Lusatian period had very prominent protuberances around the lower part of the container. Not only these regional differences didn't disappear, they became even more pronounced with time. In addition a number of smaller subcultures are distinguished, such as the one in Upper Silesia, where after a 250 year hiatus, beginning at about 900 BC, atypically for the Urnfield cultural sphere, skeletal burials are found again. A simplified map of the central European cultures, ca 1200 BC. The purple area is the Lusatian culture, the central blue area is the Knoviz culture, the red area is the central urnfield culture, and the orange area is the northern urnfield culture. ... Iron Age Axe found on Gotland This article is about the archaeological period known as the Iron Age, for the mythological Iron Age see Iron Age (mythology). ... Map of Upper Silesia, 1746 Upper Silesia (Polish: GÃ³rny ÅšlÄ…sk, German: Oberschlesien, Czech: HornÃ Slezsko) is the south-eastern part of Silesia, a historical and geographical region of Poland (Opole Voivodship and Silesian Voivodship) and of the Czech Republic (Silesian-Moravian Region). ...

Bronze Age Lusatian rural settlements were limited to low-lying areas and (until late in this period) lacked fortifications or other defensive measures - during these more peaceful times protection was not as essential as in the centuries to follow. The houses were made of beams insulated by clay or moss, supported by poles, with slanting roofs covered by straw or reed. Inside there were hearths, stools, beds, places for economic activity such as metallurgical production shops, vertical looms and hand operated mills. Some livestock were also kept inside, and some were culled before winter because of insufficient ability to store feed.

The materials used were still wood, horn and bone, and, especially in the eastern zone - stone. Women were commonly engaged in spinning and weaving. Pottery was being produced still without the potter's wheel and furnaces for burning or baking pots were just making their first appearance. During the late bronze periods specialized centers manufactured beautifully painted ceramics, much of it for sale. Bronze metallurgy and craftsmanship became also highly developed and acquired locally different styles - luxurious decorative items, tools and arms were made around Legnica and elsewhere in western and southern Poland. Legnica ( , formerly Lignica; German: ) is a town in Silesia in southwestern Poland. ...

Lusatian social organization was based on the family and extended family, although early tribal communities may had also been developing. Social, professional and trade groups were gradually forming, including warriors, priests and metallurgists, but there is no evidence of hereditary ruling class or other social elites.

Many objects recovered by archeologists are believed to be related to a cult of the sun and the solar deity. Those include ceramics with painted solar images and molded into bird figures, bronze wheeled mini-carts with animal ornaments and bronze clasps with bird images, probably worn as parts of a ceremonial robe by priests-sorcerers. Anthropomorphic figurines and zoomorphic containers and plates related to solar or other forms of cult are found in the Lusatian western zone; they come from the last centuries of the Bronze Age and continue into the Iron Age. Engraved on a vase-urn found in Łazy in Milicz County and dated 850-650 BC are representations of mythical deer-man figures^[12]. Some such vessels, jewelry and drawings are similar to the contemporary ones found in Syria, Palestine, Greece and Italy. A panpipe (syrinx), a musical instrument of the type popular in northern Italy and eastern Hallstatt circles, was found in a grave in Przeczyce near Zawiercie from the late bronze or early iron periods.^[13] Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... This article is about the geographical area known as Palestine. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Zawiercie is a town in Silesian Voivodship, south Poland with 55,800 inhabitants (2005). ...

Lusatian culture of the early Iron Age

Several factors destabilized the situation at the outset of the Iron Age. The climate cooling caused a degradation of the Asian steppes which forced the nomadic people who lived there to move out and started a chain of consequences - horsemen from Asia armed with iron weapons were able to penetrate large areas of Europe. The Europeans responded by building large fortified settlements, adopting the warring methods of the Asian invaders, developing a specialized military caste and a strong power system based on a prince-ruler. The Hallstatt culture, which developed west and south of Poland, itself imitating the Mediterranean civilizations and cultivating close contacts with them, turned out to be a major influence on the Lusatian people on Polish lands, whose culture reached its peak during the 750-550 BC period. The Hallstatt culture was the predominant Central European culture during the local Bronze Age, and introduced the Iron Age. ... The Mediterranean Sea is an intercontinental sea positioned between Europe to the north, Africa to the south and Asia to the east, covering an approximate area of 2. ...

Baltic amber was traded in return for weapons and luxurious objects from southern Europe, including fancy personal grooming items such as nail clipping devices, and trade relations with the Nordic area peoples were similarly well developed. The latter factor was especially true in the case of the western Pomerania region, which had increasingly been falling under the Nordic cultural zone (southern Scandinavian Peninsula, Denmark and northern Germany) influence throughout the later bronze periods, with its artisans imitating the Nordic imports. The Lusatian culture of the Hallstatt periods included most lands of present day Poland, including the related ^[14] Białowice culture (Zielona Góra County) in some of the westernmost parts, in existence during the Hallstatt periods C, D and beyond and credited with the passing of a "cist" (rock encasement) grave type to the Pomeranian culture. Western Poland was more highly developed, with local manufacturing - jewelry and other decorative products made of iron, bronze, glass, amber and other materials as well as luxurious painted ceramics were patterned after the Hallstatt craft. In many graveyards the dead were buried in wooden chambers. The burials found in Gorszewice (Szamotuły County) in Greater Poland (650-550 BC) are supplied with fancy equipment and resemble the graves of the Hallstatt tribal chiefs, and similarly there are other treasures of luxurious and prestigious objects. But despite this apparent fascination with the lifestyles of the western elites (and to some degree creation of their own), the Lusatian people never acquired a comparable level of social stratification and there were no hereditary "princes". Political map of the Nordic countries and associated territories. ... Pommern redirects here. ... For other uses, see Scandinavia (disambiguation). ... Motto: Miasto przyszÅ‚oÅ›ci City of future Coordinates: , Country Poland Voivodeship Lubusz Powiat city county Gmina Zielona GÃ³ra Estabilished 13th century City Rights 1323 Government - Mayor Janusz Kubicki Area - City 58. ... SzamotuÅ‚y - town in Poland, in Greater Poland Voivodship, about 30 km northwest of PoznaÅ„. It is the capital of SzamotuÅ‚y County. ... Voivodship wielkopolskie since 1999 Coat of Arms for voivodship wielkopolskie Greater Poland (also Great Poland; Polish: , German: GroÃŸpolen, Latin: Polonia Maior) is a historical region of west-central Poland. ...

Agricultural activities were the mainstay of the economy, supplemented as before by hunting and gathering. Simple butting plows were already used, pulled by oxen. Millet, wheat, rye, oat and barley were grown in the fields, while in the gardens bean and lentil were cultivated, as well as oil producing poppy, turnip and flax, which was also used to obtain fiber used to make yarn. Animal husbandry methods improved when iron utensils became more common, that is beginning in 6th century BC. Horses were bred and utilized more often, in addition to the traditionally kept cattle, swine, sheep and goats and improved feed storage allowed keeping the herds throughout the winter season. Salt springs were used for salt production and in southern Poland the Lusatians tried to exploit the locally available metal ores.

Beginning around 900 BC the Lusatian people gradually fortified more and more of their settlements, first in the Silesia region. By 650-600 BC there were quite a few of them there and all over the western zone. Often built in locations naturally easy to defend, they were surrounded by walls built of earth, stone and wood, and moats, and could cover anywhere from 0.5 to 20 hectares. Smaller strongholds were built at strategic locations such as mountain passes and trade routes, from where the residents could control and police the area, but also functioned as industrial centers. A good example of a trade-manufacturing fortified settlement is the one in Komorów, located near the Gorszewice cemetery. Some of the large fortified areas didn't have many structures inside and served probably as temporary sanctuaries for the local population at times of danger, and there was no shortage of danger. Beginning in 6th century BC several waves of Scythian invasions went through the Polish lands. The routes they traveled can be seen from the trail they left: The burnt out settlements of the Lusatian people. Dramatic material testimony of violent death and destruction was found among the ashes of a perished fortified settlement in Wicina near Nowogród Bobrzański. On the other hand a golden Scythian treasure was discovered near a Lusatian settlement in Witaszkowo near Gubin - elements of arms and decorations patterned after zoomorphic Greek art motifs and dated 550 BC, probably a booty seized from a wounded Scythian chief. Silesia (English pronunciation [], Czech: ; German: ; Latin: ; Polish: ; Silesian: ÅšlÅ¯nsk) is a historical region in central Europe, located along the upper and middle Oder River, upper Vistula River, and along the Sudetes, Carpathian (Silesian Beskids) mountain range. ... The Scythians (, also ) or Scyths ([1]; from Greek ), a nation of horse-riding nomadic pastoralists who spoke an Iranian language[2], dominated the Pontic steppe throughout Classical Antiquity. ... Coordinates: , Country Voivodeship Powiat Zielona GÃ³ra County Gmina NowogrÃ³d BobrzaÅ„ski City rights 13th century - 1945 1988 - Government - Mayor Grzegorz Ludwik Jankowski Area - Town 14. ... Gubin is a town in Krosno OdrzaÅ„skie County, southwestern Poland. ...

Of a different and far less common type is the famous, very well preserved Biskupin wooden fortress on the lake, built from 738 BC. The houses (almost a hundred) inside the walls were densely and regularly arranged and the streets were covered by wood, which some see as a proto-urban imitation of the Mediterranean cities. But they were all alike, so the chieftain, if the community had one, lived like everybody else. This central to Polish archeology site has been under active and intense research since 1934. Gate to the reconstructed settlement Biskupin is an archaeological site and a life-size model of an Iron Age fortified settlement (grÃ³d) in Poland, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodship. ... Year 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display full 1934 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The descendants of the Biskupin dwellers, like of most Lusatian people, were very likely incorporated into the Pomeranian culture, and with it eventually into the Germanic mainstream.

In 5th century BC the Lusatians stopped building fortified settlements. The Scythian expansion severed their trade links with the Hallstatt societies, while climatic changes damaged their agriculture. All this forced them to disperse and caused disintegration of their social structures. Less developed population from the eastern zone migrated west, highly developed ceramic and metallurgic industries waned, the Pomeranian culture expanded into the previously Lusatian areas. By 4th century BC the Lusatian culture was for the most part gone, with the last, small populations surviving in western and southern Poland.^[15]

Pomeranian culture, Western Baltic Kurgans culture

The last major extinct culture covering most Polish lands, the Pomeranian culture, developed in 7th century BC in eastern Pomerania. This region had preserved a distinct cultural identity throughout the middle and late bronze periods - unlike the rest of the Lusatian lands they kept the custom of raising burial mounds or barrows above the graves. Those were covered by a layer of stones and the urns were placed in a chest, or cist built of rock pieces. The Pommeranian culture is an Iron Age culture in Poland. ... Pommern redirects here. ... A cist (IPA ) is a small stone-built coffin-like box used to hold the bodies of the dead (notably during the Bronze Age in Britain and occasionally in Native American burials). ...

At the outset of the Iron Age the eastern Pomeranians became involved in long distance amber trade that ranged from the Sambian Peninsula, through Pomerania, the Lusatian and Hallstatt lands all the way to Italy and which gave them access to imported products. At roughly the same time climatic changes favored a rural economy different from that typical of the Lusatian societies - animal husbandry and the less demanding cereals (rye and barley) became more important, as the villages had to be built at higher altitudes. This in turn favored small communities based on the family and extended family, flexible and capable of greater mobility - all such factors gave the Pomeranian people a competitive advantage over the traditional Lusatian settlements. Sambia (German: ; Polish: ; Russian: ) is a peninsula in the Kaliningrad Oblast of Russia, on the south-eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. ...

Accordingly the Lusatian large urn fields were replaced by small, family size burial sites with several or more urns. The cist graves were now mostly flat, without mounds, forming a rectangle with up to two meter long sides built of vertical slabs, containing the urns (sometimes as many as thirty and in separate compartments) inside and covered with another plate. Further south and east, as the Pomeranian culture expanded into central and southeastern Poland, there were also burials where the urn was placed under a "globe", that is inside a large, spherical ceramic container, itself sometimes placed in a cist (areas with this arrangement are sometimes recognized a distinct subculture). The Pomeranians left two peculiar types of urns, house-urns and face-urns. House-urns stand on several legs, have a large opening in front, come from an earlier period, 7-6th century BC and mostly from the Lębork region. Face-urns from the same period are round, bulging containers with a unique and often realistic image of a face around the neck area and a hat-like lid, while the younger ones tend to be less elaborate. Sometimes on the outside they were variously decorated, with tools and toilet accessories placed inside. Face-urns from the 650-450 BC period unearthed in Borucino, Kartuzy County and elsewhere present a rich assortment of engraved narrative scenes. Those include horse drawn chariots that apparently depict the nightly trips of the sun-god through the underworlds, which symbolically represents the cyclical renewal of life; carts pulled by oxen and representing lunar symbolism are also present. Solar images were placed on the lids^[16]. House- and face-urns are believed to represent Etruscan influence. LÄ™bork (Kashubian/Pomeranian: LÃ£bÃ³rg; German Lauenburg) is a town (town 1341) on the rivers Leba and Okalica in Middle Pomerania region, north-western Poland with some 37,000 inhabitants. ... Kartuzy (Kashubian/Pomeranian: KartuzÃ«; see also Cities alternative names) is a town in the Kashubia or Eastern Pomerania region, northwestern Poland, with some 16,000 inhabitants. ... Extent of Etruscan civilization and the twelve Etruscan League cities. ...

Pomeranian rural economy was based on small, open settlements. Their livestock included horses and many dogs. Plowing was done with all wooden (bare) spatula-plows, which required multiple runs. The Pomeranians cultivated several different grains and practiced fishery. Bronze and iron processing became very highly developed. Of the weapons, tools, decorative items and jewelry manufactured, the large bronze necklaces made of many rigs, running around the neck and upper chest area, connected by a latticed buckle in the back (600-450 BC) are especially impressive. Advanced bronze metallurgy facilities were found at Juszkowo near Pruszcz Gdański. At Pruszcz itself an amber processing workshop was found - the material used was imported from Sambia. At the iron works material obtained from the local ore deposits (Góry Świętokrzyskie) was most likely used. Another highly developed craft was pottery, which found its highest expression in the above described face-urns. Pruszcz GdaÅ„ski (Kashubian/Pomeranian: Pruszcz GduÅ„sczi, German: Praust) is a town in Eastern Pomerania, northwestern Poland with some 21,200 inhabitants (1995). ... ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyskie Mountains chain Mountain rock rubble (GoÅ‚oborze) ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyskie Mountains (Holy Cross Mountains), (Polish, IPA: ) are a mountain range in central Poland, in the vicinity of the city of Kielce. ...

The already existing Pomeranian culture expanded further when the Lusatian culture entered the crisis stage. In 5th century BC major acquisitions took place in the western and southern directions, when northern Silesia and Lesser Poland were taken over. The older Lusatian populations were pushed out or assimilated. The Pomeranians themselves were changing in the process, either as a result of encountering new environmental conditions, or because of being influenced by the Lusatian people (face-urns for example disappeared here). In 3rd century BC the Pomeranian culture in its original form mostly vanished, with regional enclaves only surviving till the middle of 2nd century BC.^[17]

The Western Baltic Kurgans culture existed in Masuria, Warmia, Sambia and northern Masovia during the 650-50 BC period. It originated partially from the people who migrated there from the Dnieper River area and assimilated elements of the Warmian-Masurian Lusatian branches (themselves preceded by the middle Bronze Age Sambian Kurgans culture) as well as of the old Forest Zone cultures. They were related in a number of ways, including funeral vessels, to their contemporary, the Pomeranian culture. Upon radial stone structures they built burial mounds - kurgans, or barrows, some of them quite large and containing a number of individual burials. A large kurgan site from 3rd century BC was located and investigated in Piórkowo in Braniewo County. The dead were cremated and the ashes placed in urns. They built small fortified settlements at naturally suitable places, such as hilltops, and characteristically, within shallow bodies of water, which involved sinking logs and special pile construction. Underwater exploration allowed a conceptual reconstruction of such settlement (3rd-2nd century BC) on Orzysz Lake near Orzysz in Pisz County. The Western Baltic Kurgans economy was traditional, based on animal husbandry (herds kept in a semi-wild state). Land tilling was done to a lesser extend and only later in this culture's history. Hunting, fishing and gathering were also important. Tool manufacturing was old-fashioned, mostly non-metallic. Ceramic containers often had round (semi-spherical) bottoms and modest punctured or engraved ornamentation. The Western Baltic Kurgans culture is the predecessor culture of the Western Baltic culture (cultural sphere of Western Baltic tribes), which developed during the first several centuries CE.^[18]^[19]^[20] Sailing on Lake MikoÅ‚ajki. ... Warmia in 1547 Warmia (Polish: , German: , Latin: Varmia, also historically known as Ermeland) is a region between Pomerania and Masuria in northeastern Poland. ... Sambia (German: ; Polish: ; Russian: ) is a peninsula in the Kaliningrad Oblast of Russia, on the south-eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. ... Historical division of Masovia Masovia (Polish: Mazowsze) is a geographical and historical region situated in central Poland with its capital at Warsaw. ... The Dnieper River (Russian: , Dnepr; Belarusian: , Dniapro; Ukrainian: , Dnipro) is a river which flows from Russia, through Belarus and Ukraine, ending its flow in the Black Sea. ... Sarmatian Kurgan 4th c. ... Braniewo (until 1945 Polish: ; German: ) is a city in northeastern Poland, in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, with a population of 18,068 (2004). ... Pisz is a town in the Masuria province of Poland. ... http://www. ...

Celtic peoples

The first Celtic people arrived in Poland, coming from Bohemia and Moravia, around or after 400 BC, just a few decades after their La Tène culture was born. They formed several enclaves mostly in the southern part of the country, within the Pomeranian or Lusatian populations. The cultures or groups that were Celtic, or had a Celtic element in them (mixed Celtic and autochthonous), lasted at their furthest extend to 170 CE (the Púchov culture). After the Celts moved in and during their tenure (they had always remained only a small minority), the bulk of the population had begun acquiring the Germanic cultural traits. The Germanic pressure checked and reversed the Celtic expansion. Celts, normally pronounced // (see article on pronunciation), refers primarily to the members of any of a number of peoples in Europe using the Celtic languages or descended from those who did. ... Flag of Bohemia Bohemia (Czech: ; German: ) is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western and middle thirds of the Czech Republic. ... Flag of Moravia Moravia (Czech and Slovak: Morava; German: ; Hungarian: ; Polish: ) is a historical region in the east of the Czech RepublicCzechia. ... The La TÃ¨ne culture was an Iron Age culture named after the archaeological site of La TÃ¨ne on the north side of Lake Neuchatel in Switzerland, where a rich trove of artifacts was discovered by Hansli Kopp in 1857. ... PÃºchov (Hungarian: PuhÃ³, German: Puchau) is an industrial town in the centre of PÃºchov district in Slovakia, with a population close to 20,000. ...

At first two groups established themselves in Silesia: One on the left bank of the Oder River south of Wrocław, in the area that included Mount Ślęża, and one around the Głubczyce fertile highlands; both stayed in their respective regions during the 400-120 BC period. Burial and other significant Celtic sites in Głubczyce County were investigated in Kietrz and Nowa Cerekiew. The Ślęża group disintegrated eventually within the local population, while the one at Głubczyce Highlands apparently migrated out in the southern direction. In another hundred years or more another two groups arrived and settled the upper San River basin (270-170 BC) and the Kraków area. This last one, together with the local population developing at about that time the Przeworsk culture characteristics (see the next section), formed the mixed Tyniec group, in existence 270-30 BC. In 1st century BC another small group settled probably much further north, in Kujawy. And finally there was the long-lasting (270 BC - 170 CE) mixed Púchov culture (associated based on Roman sources with the Kotins Celtic tribe^[21]), whose northern reaches included parts of the Beskids mountain range. The Celts practiced advanced agriculture and favored fertile lands; they brought with them and disseminated the inventions and other achievements of La Tène culture. Silesia (English pronunciation [], Czech: ; German: ; Latin: ; Polish: ; Silesian: ÅšlÅ¯nsk) is a historical region in central Europe, located along the upper and middle Oder River, upper Vistula River, and along the Sudetes, Carpathian (Silesian Beskids) mountain range. ... The Oder (known in Czech, Slovak and Polish as Odra) is a river in Central Europe. ... Motto: Miasto spotkaÅ„ (the meeting place) Coordinates: , Country Poland Voivodeship Lower Silesian Powiat city county Gmina WrocÅ‚aw Established 10th century City Rights 1262 Government - Mayor RafaÅ‚ Dutkiewicz Area - City 292. ... Mount ÅšlÄ™Å¼a is a mountain in the Sudetes Highlands (PogÃ³rze Sudeckie) in Lower Silesia, southern Poland. ... Coordinates: , Country Voivodeship Powiat GÅ‚ubczyce County Gmina GÅ‚ubczyce Estabilshed 12th century City Rights 13th century Government - Mayor Adam Krupa Area - Town 12. ... Length 433 km Basin area 16,861 kmÂ² Origin Carpathian Mountains Tributary of Vistula River Countries Poland, Ukraine San River. ... For other uses, see Krakow (disambiguation). ... The green area is the Przeworsk culture in the first half of the 3rd century. ... Tyniec - a historic village in Poland on Vistula river, today a borough of KrakÃ³w. ... Kuyavia (sometimes spelt Cuyavia, Polish Kujawy) is a historical region of Poland, between the Vistula to the east and Noteć river to the west and between Noteć and Krówka river to the south. ... Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew from a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula circa the 9th century BC to a massive empire straddling the Mediterranean Sea. ... Beskidy Mountains (Beskid Mountains, Beskidy, Beskydy, Beskids) is a series of Czech Republic, northwestern Slovakia, and southern Poland, along the border between Poland and the Czech Republic and Slovakia. ...

Celtic farmers used plows with iron blades and fertilized fields with animal manure. Their livestock consisted of selected breeds, especially sheep and large cattle. Rotational querns they invented had a stationary lower stone and an upper one rotated by a lever. Iron was obtained in greater quantities from locally available turf ores; its metallurgy and processing were improved, resulting in the manufacturing of stronger and more resistant tools and weapons. The ceramic shops used the potter's wheel and produced with great precision (especially the Tyniec group) baked, thin walled, painted vessels, one of the best in Europe. Domed bilevel furnaces were used, the pots being placed on a perforated clay shelf, with the hearth underneath. Glass and enamel were produced, gold and semi-precious stones were processed for jewelry.

The Celtic communities kept extensive trade contacts with the Greek cities, Etruria and then Rome. They were involved in the amber trade, whose route ran between the Baltic and Adriatic seas, but amber was also worked on in local shops. Metal coins were used and minted (made of gold and silver in addition to the more common metals) around Kraków in 1st century BC and elsewhere. In Gorzów near Oświęcim a whole treasure of Celtic coins was discovered. Original Celtic art found its expression in numerous decorations, where plant, animal and anthropomorphic motifs were used. The various Celtic achievements were adopted by the native populations, but usually with a considerable delay. For other uses, see Greece (disambiguation). ... The area covered by the Etruscan civilzation. ... Nickname: Motto: SPQR: Senatus Populusque Romanus Location of the city of Rome (yellow) within the Province of Rome (red) and region of Lazio (grey) Coordinates: Region Lazio Province Province of Rome Founded 21 April 753 BC Government - Mayor Walter Veltroni Area - City 1,285 kmÂ² (580 sq mi) - Urban 5... The Adriatic Sea is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea separating the Apennine peninsula (Italy) from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges. ... Coordinates: , Country Voivodeship Powiat OÅ›wiÄ™cim County Gmina OÅ›wiÄ™cim Established 12th century City Rights 1291 Government - Mayor Janusz Andrzej MarszaÅ‚ek Area - Town 30. ...

The settlement in Nowa Cerekiew functioned from 4th to 2nd century BC. One hundred people lived in twenty houses supported by pillars, with walls made of beams, finished with clay and painted. They were positioned on an elevated area, but the Celtic settlements in Poland had no defensive reinforcements.

Within the Celtic spiritual sphere there is considerable variation. 4th and early 3rd century burials in Wrocław and Ślęża region are skeletal. Sometimes a man and a woman were buried together, suggesting the known Celtic practice of killing the wife during her husband's funeral, but women were usually buried separately, with their jewelry. Some of the dead were given meat and a knife for cutting it. From 3rd century on the bodies were cremated, which was also the case in all of the Lesser Poland burials. There in Iwanowice the graves of Celtic warriors (3rd century BC) contain a very rich assortment of weapons and decorations.^[22] KrakÃ³w Katowice WrocÅ‚aw ÅÃ³dÅº PoznaÅ„ Bydgoszcz Lublin BiaÅ‚ystok GdaÅ„sk Szczecin Warsaw M A S O V I A S I L E S I A G R E A T E R P O L A N D L E S S E R P O...

Mount Ślęża formation is believed by many to have been a place of exceptional cult significance, over many centuries, possibly going back all the way to the Lusatian times, but especially for the Celts. Chronicler Thietmar of Merseburg mentions in early 11th century the mountain as a place surrounded by adoration because of its size and the "cursed" pagan ceremonies carried out there. The summits of this and of the neighboring mountains are circled by stone rings and monumental sculptures. Diagonalized cross signs found on many of the stone objects may have had their origin in the Hallstatt - Lusatian solar cult. Such signs can also be seen on the massive "monk" stone sculpture (actually looking more like a simple chess figure or a skittles pin) that was located inside the largest stone ring on Mount Ślęża itself and is therefore believed to originate from the Hallstatt cultural circles. The stone rings also contain fragments of Lusatian ceramics. The younger sculptures ("Maiden with a fish", "Mushroom" and the bear figures) have their distant counterparts in the Iberian Peninsula Celtic art and are thought to be the work of the Celtic people, who developed the Ślęża cult center further. After that the Mount Ślęża area cult was probably revived by the Slavs, who arrived here in early Middle Ages.^[23] Mount ÅšlÄ™Å¼a is a mountain in the Sudetes Highlands (PogÃ³rze Sudeckie) in Lower Silesia, southern Poland. ... Thietmar (Dietmar or Dithmar) of Merseburg (July 25, 975 - December 1, 1018), German chronicler, was a son of Siegfried, count of Walbeck, and was related to the family of the emperor Otto the Great. ... The Iberian Peninsula, or Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe, and includes modern day Spain, Portugal, Andorra and Gibraltar. ... The Slavic peoples are the most numerous ethnic and linguistic body of peoples in Europe. ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ...

Early Germanic peoples

The Germanic culture on Polish lands developed gradually and in a diverse way, beginning with the old local Lusatian and Pomeranian stock^[24], influenced and augmented first by La Tène culture and the Celtic people, and then by the Jastorf culture and its tribes, which settled northwestern Poland beginning in 4th century BC, and later migrated in the southeastern direction through and past the main stretch of Polish lands (mid 3rd century BC and afterwards). While the cultural legacy and impact of the disappearing Celtic people are easy to see, the beginnings of the powerful ascent of the Germanic people are more difficult to discern (e.g. to what degree the Pomeranian culture lands became the Przeworsk culture lands by internal evolution, external population influx or just permeation by the new regional cultural trends)^[25]^[26]^[27]. A map of the area covered by the Pre-Roman Iron Age, ca 500 BC-1 AD The Pre-Roman Iron Age (also called the Celtic Iron Age) (ca 600 BC or 500 BC - ca 1 AD) designates the earliest part (i. ... The green area is the Przeworsk culture in the first half of the 3rd century. ...

The early Germanic Jastorf cultural sphere was in the beginning an impoverished continuation of the North German Urnfield culture and the Nordic circle cultures. It formed around 700-550 BC in northern Germany and Jutland under the Hallstatt influence and in Jastorf's early stages its funeral customs resembled a lot those of the contemporary Pomeranian culture. From the Jastorf culture, which rapidly expanded from around 500 BC on, two groups sprang and settled the western peripheries of Poland during the 300-100 BC period: The Oder group in western Pomerania and the Gubin group further south. Jastorf communities established large burial grounds, separate for men and women. The dead were cremated and the ashes placed in urns, which were covered by bowls turned upside down. Funeral gifts were modest and rather uniform, indicating a society that was neither affluent nor socially diversified. The Urnfield culture of central European culture is dated roughly between 1300 BC and 750 BC. The name describes the custom of cremating the dead and placing them in cemeteries. ... Map of the Nordic Bronze Age culture, ca 1200 BC The Nordic Bronze Age (also Northern Bronze Age) is the name given by Oscar Montelius (1843-1921) to a period and a Bronze Age culture in Scandinavian pre-history, ca 1800 BC - 600 BC, with sites that reached as far... Jutland Peninsula Jutland (Danish: Jylland; German: JÃ¼tland; Frisian JutlÃ¢n; Low German JÃ¶tlann) is the western, continental part of Denmark as well as one of the three historical Lands of Denmark, dividing the North Sea from the Kattegat and the Baltic Sea. ... The Hallstatt culture was the predominant Central European culture during the local Bronze Age, and introduced the Iron Age. ... The Pommeranian culture is an Iron Age culture in Poland. ... Gubin is a town in Krosno OdrzaÅ„skie County, southwestern Poland. ...

The above mentioned migration was undertaken by a part of the Jastorf population, which probably included the tribes later called Bastarnae and Scirii in Greek written sources, noted because of their military exploits around Greece and Greek colonies in the later part of 3rd century BC. Their route went along the Warta and Noteć rivers, then crossed Kujawy and Masovia, turned south along the Bug river and continued on to what today is Moldavia. It is marked by archeological findings, especially the characteristic bronze crown-shaped necklaces. While it is not clear whether, and to what degree or for what duration some of the passing Jastorf culture people settled at that time on Polish lands^[28], their migration catalyzed, together with the accelerated at this point La Tène culture influence, the emergence of the Oksywie and Przeworsk cultures. Both new cultures were under a strong Jastorf circles influence. The increasingly common within the Przeworsk culture area presence of objects made by the Jastorf people reflects penetration by their population. Both the Oksywie and Przeworsk cultures fully utilized iron processing technologies, and, unlike their predecessor cultures, they show no regional differentiation. The Bastarnae were a Celtic or mixed Germanic-Celtic tribe who lived in the Danube estuary and western Balkans during the last centuries BC and early centuries AD. The origin of their name is uncertain, but may mean mixed-bloods (compare bastard) as opposed to the neighbouring Germanic Skiri clean... The Scirii (also Skiri or Scirians) were a grouping of East Germanic peoples, attested in historical works between the 2nd century BC and 5th century AD. The etymology of their name is unclear, but may mean clean- or pure-bloods as opposed to the neighbouring tribe of Bastarnae mixed-bloods... Warta (Latin: Varta, German: Warthe) is a river in western-central Poland, a tributary of the Oder river. ... Kuyavia (sometimes spelt Cuyavia, Polish Kujawy) is a historical region of Poland, between the Vistula to the east and Noteć river to the west and between Noteć and Krówka river to the south. ... Historical division of Masovia Masovia (Polish: Mazowsze) is a geographical and historical region situated in central Poland with its capital at Warsaw. ... Bug at Wlodawa One of the two rivers called Bug (pronounced Boog), the Western Bug, or Buh (Belarusian: Захо́дні Буг; Russian: За́падный Буг; Ukrainian: Західн&#1080... For other uses of Moldavia or Moldova, see Moldova (disambiguation). ... The La TÃ¨ne culture was an Iron Age culture named after the archaeological site of La TÃ¨ne on the north side of Lake Neuchatel in Switzerland, where a rich trove of artifacts was discovered by Hansli Kopp in 1857. ... The Oksywie Culture, existed in the area of modern day Eastern Pomerania around the lower Vistula river, from the 2nd century BC to the early 1st century AD. The Oksywie culture is named after the village Oksywie, part of the city of Gdynia in northern Poland, where the first archaeological... The green area is the Przeworsk culture in the first half of the 3rd century. ...

The Oksywie culture, so named after a village (now within the city of Gdynia) where a burial site was found, lasted from 250 BC to 30 CE and originally occupied the Vistula delta region, then the rest of eastern Pomerania, expanded west up to the Jastorf Oder group area, in 1st century BC also including partially what was before that group's territory. It had basically, like other cultures of this period, La Tène cultural characteristics, with traits typical of the Baltic cultures. Oksywie culture's ceramics and burial customs indicate strong ties with the Przeworsk culture. Men only had their ashes placed in well made black urns with fine finish and a decorative band around. Their graves were supplied (unlike those of the Jastorf culture) with utensils and weapons, including typical for this culture swords with one-sided edge, and were often covered or marked by stones. Women's ashes were buried in hollows and supplied with feminine items. A clay vessel with relief animal images found in Gołębiowo Wielkie in Gdańsk County (2nd half of 1st century BC) is among the finest in all of the Germanic cultural zone. Gdynia (IPA: , German: (until 1939 and after 1945) / Gotenhafen (1939-1945); Kashubian: ) is a city in the Pomeranian Voivodeship of Poland and an important seaport at GdaÅ„sk Bay on the south coast of the Baltic Sea. ... For other uses, see Vistula (disambiguation). ...

The Przeworsk culture, named after a town in Lesser Poland, near which another burial ground was found, originated like the Oksywie culture around 250 BC, but lasted a long time. In its course it went through many changes, formed tribal and political structures, fought wars, also with the Romans, until in 5th century CE its highly developed society of farmers, artisans, warriors and chiefs left for the temptations of the fallen empire lands (for many of them it happened possibly rather quickly, during the first half of that century^[29]). The green area is the Przeworsk culture in the first half of the 3rd century. ... KrakÃ³w Katowice WrocÅ‚aw ÅÃ³dÅº PoznaÅ„ Bydgoszcz Lublin BiaÅ‚ystok GdaÅ„sk Szczecin Warsaw M A S O V I A S I L E S I A G R E A T E R P O L A N D L E S S E R P O... Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew from a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula circa the 9th century BC to a massive empire straddling the Mediterranean Sea. ...

The Przeworsk culture initially became established in Lower Silesia, Greater Poland, central Poland, and western Masovia and Lesser Poland, gradually replacing, moving eastbound, the Pomeranian culture, assimilating in process some of its characteristics. In 2nd and 1st century BC (late La Tène period) they followed the lead of the more advanced Celts, implementing their various achievements, to the point of sometimes forming with them mixed groups, cooperating within common settlements (e.g. the Tyniec group in Kraków region and another one in Kujawy). Arms, clothes and ornaments were patterned after the Celtic products. In the early stages the Przeworsk people displayed no social distinction, their graves were alike and flat, and ashes together with funeral gifts buried usually without urns. Religious practices of pagan Germanic people included offering ceremonies performed in swamp areas, involving man-made objects, produce, farm animals, or even human sacrifice, as was the case at a site near Słowikowo in Słupca County; another such investigated site is in Otalążka, Grójec County. Dog burials within or around a homestead were another form of protective offerings. Lower Silesia (German: ; Polish: ; Latin: Silesia Inferior) is the northwestern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia. ... Voivodship wielkopolskie since 1999 Coat of Arms for voivodship wielkopolskie Greater Poland (also Great Poland; Polish: , German: GroÃŸpolen, Latin: Polonia Maior) is a historical region of west-central Poland. ... Historical division of Masovia Masovia (Polish: Mazowsze) is a geographical and historical region situated in central Poland with its capital at Warsaw. ... La TÃ¨ne is a village near the Neuenburger See, also called Lac du NeuchÃ¢tel, a lake in Switzerland. ... For other uses, see Krakow (disambiguation). ... Kuyavia (sometimes spelt Cuyavia, Polish Kujawy) is a historical region of Poland, between the Vistula to the east and Noteć river to the west and between Noteć and Krówka river to the south. ... SÅ‚upca is a town in Greater Poland Voivodship, Poland, capital of SÅ‚upca district. ... GrÃ³jec is a town in Poland. ...

As the Celtic domination in this part of Europe was coming to an end and the borders of the Roman Empire had gotten much closer, the Przeworsk culture people were being subjected to the Greco-Roman world's influence with a rapidly growing intensity.^[30]

Germanic cultures and tribes in Roman times

Much circumstantial evidence points to the participation of Germanic people from Polish lands in the events that took place in the first half of 1st century BC and found their culmination in Gaul in 58 BC, as related in Caesar's Commentarii de Bello Gallico. At the time of the Suebi tribal confederation led by Ariovistus arrival in Gaul, a rapid decrease of the settlement density can be observed in the areas of the upper and middle Oder River basin. In fact the Gubin group of the Jastorf culture disappeared then entirely, which may indicate this group's identity with one of the Suebi tribes. The western regions of the Przeworsk culture were also vacated (Lower Silesia, Lubusz Land and western Greater Poland), which is where the tribes accompanying the Suebi tribes must had come from. Burial sites and artifacts characteristic of the Przeworsk culture have been found in Saxony, Thuringia and Hesse, on the route of the Suebi offensive. The above mentioned regions of western Poland had not become repopulated and economically developed again until in 2nd century CE. Gaul (Latin: ) was the name given,in ancient times, to the region of Western Europe comprising present-day northern Italy, France, Belgium, western Switzerland and the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the west bank of the Rhine river. ... For other uses, see Julius Caesar (disambiguation). ... Commentarii de Bello Gallico (literally Commentaries on the Gallic War in Latin) is an account written by Julius Caesar (in the third person) about his nine years of war in Gaul. ... Suebi - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Ariovistus was king of the germanic tribe of the Suebis, as described in Julius Caesars The Gallic Wars. ... Lubus Land, Lebus Land ( pol: Ziemia Lubuska ger: Land Lebus, czech: Lubušsko) on the Oder river. ... Location Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2) Administration Country NUTS Region DED Capital Dresden Minister-President Georg Milbradt (CDU) Governing parties CDU / SPD Votes in Bundesrat 4 (from 69) Basic statistics Area 18,416 kmÂ² (7,110 sq mi) Population 4,252,000 (11/2006)[1] - Density 231 /km... The Free State of Thuringia (German: Freistaat ThÃ¼ringen) is located in central Germany and is considered one of the smaller of Germanys sixteen BundeslÃ¤nder (federal states), with an area of 16,200 kmÂ² and 2. ... Location Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2) Administration Country NUTS Region DE7 Capital Wiesbaden Largest city Frankfurt Minister-President Roland Koch (CDU) Governing party CDU Votes in Bundesrat 5 (from 69) Basic statistics Area 21,100 kmÂ² (8,147 sq mi) Population 6,077,000 (08/2006)[1] - Density...

As a result of the consequent Roman efforts to subjugate all of Germania, the member tribes of the Suebi alliance became displaced, moved east, conquered the Celtic tribes that stood in their way and settled, the Quadi in Moravia, and the Marcomanni in Bohemia. The latter tribe, under Marbod, formed a quasi-state with a huge army and was able to conquer the Lugii tribal association among others. What archeologists see as the Przeworsk culture, by this period (early 1st century CE) is believed to consist first of all of the Lugii tribes. A Roman defeat known as the Teutoburg Forest Battle (9 CE) stabilized the situation at the peripheries of the Empire to some degree. The Lugii and other tribes on Polish lands were increasingly becoming involved in trade and other contacts, through the Marcomanni and Quadi intermediaries, with the Danubian provinces of Rome. The Lugii, according to Tacitus, was a very large union of tribes. In 50 CE they invaded and pillaged the Quadi state created by Vannius, contributing to its fall. The motivation for the expedition were the rumors of the enormous riches that Vannius had accumulated by plunder and charging duties. In 93 CE the Lugii, fighting a war with the Suebi, asked Emperor Domitian for help, and received one hundred mounted soldiers. Map of the Roman Empire and the free Germania, Magna Germania, in the early 2nd century For other uses, see Germania (disambiguation). ... The Quadi were a smaller Germanic tribe, about which little definitive information is known. ... Flag of Moravia Moravia (Czech and Slovak: Morava; German: ; Hungarian: ; Polish: ) is a historical region in the east of the Czech RepublicCzechia. ... The Marcomanni were a Germanic tribe, probably related to the Suebi or Suevi. ... Flag of Bohemia Bohemia (Czech: ; German: ) is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western and middle thirds of the Czech Republic. ... Marbod or Maroboduus (died in A.D. 37), was king of the Marcomanni. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... View over the Teutoburg Forest The Teutoburg Forest (German: Teutoburger Wald) is a range of low, forested mountains in the German states of Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia, which was believed to be the environ of a decisive battle in AD 9. ... For other uses, see Tacitus (disambiguation). ... Vannius was the king of the germanic tribe Quadi. ... Titus Flavius Domitianus (24 October 51 â€“ 18 September 96), commonly known as Domitian, was a Roman Emperor of the gens Flavia. ...

Operations of the ancient Amber Road - a trans-European, north-south amber trade route, continued and intensified during the Roman Empire times. From 1st century BC the Amber Road connected the Baltic Sea shores and Aquileia, an important amber processing center. This route was controlled first by the Celts, and later by the Romans south of the Danube, by Germanic tribes north of that river, and was used for transporting a variety of traded merchandise (and slaves) besides amber. During the reign of Nero an equestrian of unknown name led an expedition to the Baltic shorelines, from where he brought a huge quantity of amber, which was subsequently used for propaganda purposes during public games - gladiator fights^[31]. The infrastructure of the Amber Road was destroyed by Germanic and Sarmatian attacks in the second half of 3rd century CE; to a lesser degree it was still used intermittently until mid 6th century. The Przeworsk culture sites provide a rich assortment of Amber Road traded objects. The Amber Road (in Lithuanian: Gintaro kelias; Polish: Szlak Bursztynowy, Jantarowy Szlak; in German: BernsteinstraÃŸe; in Hungarian: BorostyÃ¡n Ãºt, in Russian: Ð¯Ð½Ñ‚Ð°Ñ€Ð½Ñ‹Ð¹ Ð¿ÑƒÑ‚ÑŒ) was an ancient trade route for the transfer of amber. ... Aquileia (Friulian Aquilee, Slovene Oglej) is an ancient Roman town of Italy, at the head of the Adriatic at the edge of the lagoons, about 10 km from the sea, on the river Natiso (modern Natisone), the course of which has changed somewhat since Roman times. ... This article is about the Danube River. ... For other uses, see Nero (disambiguation). ... An equestrian (Latin eques, plural equites - also known as a vir egregius, lit. ... Sarmatia Europea in Scythia map 1697 AD Sarmatia EuropÃ¦a separated from Sarmatia Asiatica by the Tanais (the River Don), based on Greek literary sources, in a map printed in London, ca 1770 Great steppe in early spring. ...

From the beginning of the new era until 140 CE two local groups existed in northwest Poland. The Gustow group (named after Gustow on Rügen) people lived in the area settled in the past by the Oder group, and south of there, by the middle section of the Oder River was the Lubusz group, in the area previously inhabited by the Gubin group. Those were of an intermediate character, between the Elbe cultural circle to the west, and the Przeworsk and Wielbark cultures to the east (the last one replaced the Oksywie culture after 30 CE). Map of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania highlighting the district RÃ¼gen RÃ¼gen (Polish: Rugia) is an island located off the coast of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania in the Baltic Sea. ... Lebus (-German, Polish: Lubusz) is a town in the southeast of the MÃ¤rkisch-Oderland District in Brandenburg, Germany. ... This article is about a river in Central Europe. ... Areas in the first half of the 3rd century: Wielbark culture (red) , Przeworsk culture (green), a Baltic culture (Aesti?, yellow), DÄ™bczyn culture (pink) and the Roman Empire (purple) Wielbark culture (German: , Polish: , Ukrainian Ukrainian: ) was an archaeological culture identified with the Goths which appeared during the first half of...

The Przeworsk culture people of the earlier Roman period lived in small, unprotected villages, populated each by a few dozen residents at the most, made up of several or more houses, usually set partially below the ground level, each covering an area of 8-22 square meters. They knew how to dig and build wells, so the settlements didn't have to be located near bodies of water. Fields were being used for crop cultivation for a while and then as pastures, when animal excrements helped the soil regain fertility. Afterwards, because of plows with iron blades they could be just plowed, rather than burned, and such tillage and grazing cycle was performed repeatedly, with the next field going through an alternate sequence. Several or more settlements made up a microregion, within which the residents cooperated economically and buried their dead in a common cemetery, but which was separated from other microregions by undeveloped areas. A number of such microregions could make up a tribe, with the tribes again separated by empty space, zones "of mutual fear", as Tacitus put it. The tribes in turn, especially if they were culturally closely related, would at times form larger structures, such as temporary alliances for waging wars, or even early statehood forms.

Examinations of the burial grounds, of which even the largest, used continuously over periods of up to several centuries, contain no more than several hundreds graves, shows that the overall population density was low^[32]. The dead were cremated and the ashes sometimes placed in urns, which had the mid-part in the form of an engraved bulge, in 1st century CE replaced with a sharp-profiled (with a horizontal ridge around the circumference) shape. The burials were richly appointed, with men and boys provided with weapons, tools and personal toilet items (including razors and scissors), while women were receiving numerous ornaments, bronze mirrors, jewelry pieces and cases, locks and keys, and toy-like miniature objects, some of which, dating from the first centuries CE, were found in Siemiechów in Łask Couty. Also in Siemiechów a grave of a warrior who must had taken part in the Ariovistus expedition during the 70-50 BC period was found; it contains Celtic weapons and an Alpine region manufactured helmet used as an urn, together with local ceramics. The burial gifts were often, for unknown reasons, bent or broken, and then burned with the body. The burials range from "poor" to "rich", the latter ones supplied with fancy Celtic and then Roman imports, reflecting a considerably by this time developed social stratification. Åask is a town in central Poland with 20,200 inhabitants (1995). ...

The Wielbark culture, named after Wielbark in Malbork County, where a large cemetery was found, replaced in Pomerania the Oksywie culture rather suddenly and lasted on Polish lands from 30 to 400 CE, although most of its people left Poland long before that last date. Some of this culture's burials are skeletal - the dead were inhumed in solid wood log coffins, while other crematory, with the remnants either placed in urns, or just buried in dents. No weapons were put there, but clay vessels, decorations, uniform parts and spurs, if the deceased was well-positioned enough to posses a horse. Those various items, and especially the 1st and 2nd century CE jewelry, made of bronze, silver and gold, are the works of highest quality and exceed the comparable products of the Przeworsk culture. This craftsmanship reached its apex in the 2nd century finesse of "baroque" jewelry, beautiful by any standards, placed in graves of women in (as the Wielbark culture expanded south) Poznań Szeląg and Kowalenko, Oborniki County, among other places. Areas in the first half of the 3rd century: Wielbark culture (red) , Przeworsk culture (green), a Baltic culture (Aesti?, yellow), DÄ™bczyn culture (pink) and the Roman Empire (purple) Wielbark culture (German: , Polish: , Ukrainian Ukrainian: ) was an archaeological culture identified with the Goths which appeared during the first half of... Wielbark (IPA: ; German: ) is a village in Poland, in the Pomeranian Voivodship, in Malbork County, in Malbork Commune, about 4 km south of Malbork. ... Malbork Castle 2003. ... Coordinates: , Country Voivodeship Powiat city county Gmina PoznaÅ„ Established 8th century City Rights 1253 Government - Mayor Ryszard Grobelny Area - City 261. ... Oborniki is a town in Poland, in Wielkopolska Voivodship, about 30 km north of PoznaÅ„. It is the capital of Oborniki County. ...

Many Wielbark graves were flat, but kurgans are also characteristic and common. The grave itself was in this case covered with stones, which were surrounded by a circle made of larger stones. More earth material was piled to cover all that, with a solitary stone, or stela often put on top. Such a kurgan could include one or several individual burials, have a diameter of up to a dozen or so meters and be up to one meter high. On some burial grounds large stone circles are found. These consist of massive boulders or rock pieces, up to 1.7 meters high, separated by several meters wide spaces, sometimes connected by smaller stones, the whole structure having a 10 to 40 meter diameter. In the middle of the circles one to four stelae were placed, and sometimes a single grave. The stone circles are believed to be the locations of meetings of Scandinavian (see below) tings - assemblies or courts. The single graves inside the circles are probably of people sacrificed and buried there - human offerings to the gods, to assure their support for the deliberations. A stone kurgans cemetery was found in Węsiory, Kartuzy County; another burial site with ten large stone circles was discovered in Odry, Chojnice County, both dated 2nd century CE. Sarmatian Kurgan 4th c. ... An Iron Age menhir Menhirs continued to be raised in Scandinavia during the Pre-Roman Iron Age and later, over the graves of deceased. ... A minor stone circle in Brändåsen, Hardemo parish, Närke. ... A thing or ting (Old Norse and Icelandic: Ã¾ing; other modern Scandinavian: ting) was the governing assembly in Germanic societies, made up of the free men of the community and presided by lawspeakers. ... Kartuzy (Kashubian/Pomeranian: KartuzÃ«; see also Cities alternative names) is a town in the Kashubia or Eastern Pomerania region, northwestern Poland, with some 16,000 inhabitants. ... Chojnice is a town in northern Poland with 40,600 inhabitants (2000), near famous Tuchola Forests, Lake Charzykowskie and many other water reservoirs. ...

This brings the issue of the mysterious origin of the Wielbark culture, and why it so immediately replaced the Oksywie culture. According to the legend quoted in The Origin and Deeds of the Goths by the 6th century Gothic historian Jordanes, the ancestors of that Germanic tribe arrived from Scandinavia (under King Berig) in two boatloads and landed on the South Baltic shores, followed by a third boat carrying the ancestors of the Gepids. Supposedly they conquered the native people of that region, and then, some years later (under King Filimer, the fifth one counting from Berig), continued their migration toward the Black Sea. This story, in the past dismissed, is now seen as containing basic elements of the true sequence of events and the Wielbark culture is identified with Germanic ancestors of the Goths indeed. The idea of an arrival in the mouth of the Vistula region of culturally different (although related) people, who mixed with the Oksywie culture population, and being more advanced possibly dominated it (at least culturally) to some degree, is not at odds with the state of archeological findings and may explain the change of cultures in Pomerania around 30 CE. The Origin and Deeds of the Goths (Latin: De origine actibusque Getarum), commonly referred to as Getica, was written by Jordanes, probably in Constantinople, and was published in AD 551. ... This article is about the Germanic tribes. ... Berig was according to Jordanes, the king who led the Goths from Scandza (Scandinavia) to Gothiscandza (the Vistula Basin). ... The Gepids (Latin Gepidae, A-S GifÃ°as (Beowulf, Widsith) possibly from *GibiÃ°os, givers [1] or gepanta, see below) were an East Germanic Gothic tribe most famous in history for defeating the Huns after the death of Attila. ... The red area is Gothiscandza (the Wielbark culture), and the orange area is the extent of Oium (the Chernyakhov Culture). ... For other uses, see Black Sea (disambiguation). ...

In the course of 1st and 2nd century CE the Wielbark culture expanded south, towards Greater Poland and Masovia, partially at the expense of the Przeworsk culture, while the Przeworsk culture itself also expanded in the southern, eastern and south-western directions.^[33]

"Barbarians", Late Roman Empire and the Great Migration of Peoples

The Marcomannic Wars fought during 166-180 CE were caused by the pressure exerted by the northern Germanic peoples (settled around the area of Poland) on the tribes located in the vicinity of Roman limes, the Empire's defended border. Expansion of the Proto-Gothic Wielbark culture displaced from northern Greater Poland and Masovia the Przeworsk culture people; they in turn, moving south and east, crossed during the third quarter of 2nd century the Carpathian Mountains. The ethnic composition of the Przeworsk population at this stage is not known, as the Lugii tribes no longer seem to be mentioned. Related to the Przeworsk culture was the Wietrzno-Solina type, a cultural unit with Celtic and then Dacian elements, situated within the more eastern part of the Beskids range (San River basin) during the 100-250 CE period^[34]^[35]. The Kotins tribe Celtic survivors with their Púchov culture disappeared now for good, as a result of their migration and involvement in the Marcomannic Wars. There were also changes in northwest Poland, on the border of the Elbe cultural sphere region. The Lubusz group there was absorbed by the new Luboszyce culture (Luboszyce, Krosno Odrzańskie County), that occupied the middle Oder basin during the 140-430 CE period. Its birth was related to the arrival from the east of population groups strongly influenced by the Przeworsk and Wielbark cultures. Gradually a new branch of Germanic people, the Burgundians, whose origins are traced back to Scandinavia and the Bornholm island in particular and whose ancestors then migrated to the northwest Przework culture area, developed and evolved under new favorable conditions here^[36]. On the other hand the Gustow group left western Pomerania, to be replaced after 70 years by the Dębczyn group (Dębczyn, Wschowa County), established by the arrivals from the Elbe cultures and lasting between 210 and 450 CE. Combatants Roman Empire Marcomanni, Quadi, other Germanic peoples along the Danube Commanders Marcus Aurelius The Marcomannic Wars were a series of wars lasting over thirty years during the reign of Marcus Aurelius from about AD 166 until 180, which pitted the Roman Empire against the Marcomanni, Quadi and other Germanic... The limes Germanicus, 2nd century. ... Satellite image of the Carpathians. ... Dacian kingdom during the reign of Burebista, 82 BC The Dacians (Lat. ... Beskidy Mountains (Beskid Mountains, Beskidy, Beskydy, Beskids) is a series of Czech Republic, northwestern Slovakia, and southern Poland, along the border between Poland and the Czech Republic and Slovakia. ... Length 433 km Basin area 16,861 kmÂ² Origin Carpathian Mountains Tributary of Vistula River Countries Poland, Ukraine San River. ... Krosno OdrzaÅ„skie (German: ) is a city in Western Poland with 12,500 inhabitants (2002), situated in the Lubusz Voivodeship (since 1999), previously part of Zielona GÃ³ra Voivodeship (1975-1998). ... This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Bornholm is a Danish island in the Baltic Sea. ... Coat of arms Wschowa (German: ) is a town in the Lubusz Voivodeship in Poland with 14,607 inhabitants (2004). ...

The economic development of what to the Romans were barbarian lands (also called "Barbaricum", regions populated mostly by Germanic peoples, north and northeast of the Empire) benefited greatly from the skills of the prisoners taken during the protracted Marcomannic Wars, Roman legionaries and craftsmen, some of whom undoubtedly stayed beyond the limes and made their contribution there. Contacts with the wealthy Danubian Roman provinces during the wars were also quite active and intensive. Because of all that, from the end of 2nd century CE on, the Roman-originated and based technical expertise and inventions were becoming increasingly widespread within the Germanic societies. For example besides traditional houses supported by pillars, framework houses were being built, lathe machines were used for amber and other jewelry work. The barbarian societies were getting more wealthy and, especially during the last centuries of imperial Rome, more socially polarized. barbarians is a mini-series on the history channel which tells the story of four of the most barbariac tribes of the early and late middle ages. ...

An estimated 70,000 Roman coins from all periods were found in Poland, starting with 2nd century BC silver denarii. A treasure of these and other coins, some as young as early 1st century CE, was found in Połaniec, Staszów County, probably a booty captured around 19 CE from King Marbod of the Marcomanni. Greater waves of Roman money found their way to Poland throughout 1st and 2nd centuries and then again during 4th and 5th centuries, this time as bronze and golden solidi. The barbarians did not use them for commerce; they were being accumulated in dynastic treasuries of rulers and occasionally used for ceremonial gift exchange. The chiefs also kept large golden Roman medallions or their local imitations. The largest barbarian medallion, an equivalent of 48 solidii, is a part of the gold and silver treasure found in Zagórzyn near Kalisz^[37]. First row : c. ... PoÅ‚aniec is a town in Poland, with 8,419 inhabitants (2004). ... StaszÃ³w coat of arms StaszÃ³w is a town in Poland, in ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyskie Voivodship, about 50 km southeast of Kielce. ... Marbod or Maroboduus (died in A.D. 37), was king of the Marcomanni. ... The Marcomanni were a Germanic tribe, probably related to the Suebi or Suevi. ... Julian solidus, ca. ... Kalisz (pronounce: [kaliÊƒ]) is a city in central Poland with 109,800 inhabitants (1995). ...

Th evolution of the power structure within the Germanic societies in Poland and elsewhere can be traced to some degree by examining the "princely" graves - burials of chiefs, and even hereditary princes, as the consolidation of power progressed. Those appear from the beginning of the Common Era and are located away from ordinary cemeteries, singly or in small groups. The bodies were inhumed in wooden coffins and covered with kurgans, or interred in wooden or stone chambers. Luxurious Roman-made gifts and fancy barbarian emulations (such as silver and gold clasps with springs, created with an unsurpassed attention to detail, dated 3rd century CE from Wrocław Zakrzów), but not weapons, were placed in the graves. 1st and 2nd century burials of this type, occurring all the way from Jutland to Lesser Poland, are referred to as princely graves Lubieszewo type, after Lubieszewo, Gryfice County in western Pomerania, where six such burials were found. On 3rd and 4th century sites two types of princely graves are distinguished. Zakrzów type, named after the location of three very rich stone chamber burials found in Wrocław Zakrzów occur in southern Poland, while in the northern and central parts of the country the Rostołty (Białystok County) type kurgans are rather common. At some sites, believed to be dynastic necropolises, the princes were buried in generation long time increments. During the late Roman period the princely burials are fewer in number, but they get increasingly more elaborate. Gryfice (Kashubian/Pomeranian: GrÃ«fice; German: Greiffenberg) is a town in Pomerania, north-western Poland with 13. ... Motto: Miasto spotkaÅ„ (the meeting place) Coordinates: , Country Poland Voivodeship Lower Silesian Powiat city county Gmina WrocÅ‚aw Established 10th century City Rights 1262 Government - Mayor RafaÅ‚ Dutkiewicz Area - City 292. ... Coordinates: , Country Poland Voivodeship Podlachian Powiat city county Gmina BiaÅ‚ystok Established 14th century City Rights 1692 Government - Mayor Tadeusz Truskolaski Area - City 102 kmÂ² (39. ...

The pottery as well as iron mining and processing industries kept developing in Poland throughout the Roman periods, until terminated in 5th century or so by the Great Migration. Clay pots were still often formed manually and these were more crude, while the better ones were made with the potter's wheel. Some have inscriptions engraved, but their meaning (if any) is not known. Wide-open, vase type Przeworsk culture urn from 2nd century CE found in Biała, Zgierz County is covered with representations from Celtic and Germanic mythology, such as deer, horse riders, crosses and swastikas. 3rd and 4th century buckets were made of wood and reinforced with bronze braces and sheets. Przeworsk culture's large globular clay storage containers from 3rd and 4th century were 60 cm to over one meter tall. 4th and 5th century ceramic specimens from the late phase of this culture include pitchers, clay pails, beakers and bowls. Human migration denotes any movement of groups of people from one locality to another, rather than of individual wanderers. ... Zgierz (pronounce: [zgjeÊ’]) is a suburban town in central Poland located in the Lodz Metropolitan Area. ...

Characteristic of the Roman times iron industry were huge centers of metallurgy. One such concentration of ironworks, in Świętokrzyskie Mountains, which already produced iron on an industrial scale in 1st century CE, in 2nd and 3rd centuries became Barbaricum's largest. It may had been responsible for the majority of the iron supplied for barbarian weapon production during the Marcomannic Wars. The iron product was obtained in rather small, single use smelting furnaces. One furnace's iron output was from a few to 20 kg, which required 10 to 200 kg of ore and the same amount of charcoal. The satisfaction of so much need for charcoal caused significant deforestation of the areas surrounding the iron centers. Not only turf, but also hematite ores were utilized, which involved building mines and shafts to provide access. The furnaces in Świętokrzyskie Mountains were grouped into large complexes, located in forested areas, away from human settlements. There could had been as many as 700,000 smelting furnaces built in that area; one big concentration of the Przeworsk culture's spent furnaces (2nd-3rd centuries) was located in Nowa Słupia, Kielce County. The second largest iron production center functioned at that time in Masovia, west of Warsaw, with the total number of furnaces there, in which only turf ores were used, estimated at up to 200,000. They were operated as very large complexes, with several thousand furnaces at a time located near populated areas, where intermediate products were processed further. Those two great concentrations of metallurgical industry produced iron largely for long distance trade; to fulfill local requirements and on smaller scale iron was obtained at a number of other locations. ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyskie Mountain landscape ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyskie Mountains (sometimes also known as the Holy Cross Mountains, Polish GÃ³ry ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyskie?) are a mountain range in central Poland, in the vicinity of the city of Kielce. ... Map of the centre of Kielce Monastery Exbud headquarters-symbol of todays Kielce City The monument to commemorate of tragedy in New York 11 September 2001 Bishops Palace Building of Stefan Å»eromski Theatre The new stadium in Kielce Bus Station in Kielce of characterisic shape of alien saucer Kielce... Historical division of Masovia Masovia (Polish: Mazowsze) is a geographical and historical region situated in central Poland with its capital at Warsaw. ... For other uses, see Warsaw (disambiguation) and Warszawa (disambiguation). ...

A set of iron carpenter's tools from 3rd-4th century, including a compass for marking circles, was found in Przywóz, Wieluń County, where there was a Przeworsk culture settlement and a 2nd/3rd century dynastic burial complex^[38]. The graves of Przeworsk men typically include substantial collections of arms, so that their warrior's battle equipment and its evolution are well known. Less wealthy warriors fought typically on foot, with spears (for close range combat) and javelins (for throwing), both with iron heads. The better off fighters used swords, first of the long Celtic kind, and then in 1st and 2nd century CE of the short and broad, Roman infantry type. Swords were kept in sheaths, some of them, depending on status, very ornate. The long and narrow swords, better suited for horseback combat, became popular again in 3rd century, but only the more wealthy warriors had horses, nor to mention iron helmets or ring armor. Round wooden shields had iron umbos in the middle, usually with a thorn for piercing the enemy. There were no saddles, but the richest of horsemen used silver spurs and bronze bridles with chain reins. WieluÅ„ is a town in central Poland with 25,500 inhabitants (1995). ...

In 2nd century CE the Proto-Gothic people of the Wielbark culture began their own great migration, moving east, south and south-east. They left most of Pomerania except for the lower Vistula region, where a small Wielbark population remained; most of Pomerania west of there became settled by the Dębczyn group, while the evacuated northern Greater Poland was retaken by the Przeworsk culture people. The Wielbark people successively took over eastern Masovia, Podlachia, Polesie and Volhynia. They settled in Ukraine, where they encountered other peoples, which resulted in early 3rd century CE in the rise of the Chernyakhov culture. This last culture, which in 4th century encompassed large areas of southeastern Europe^[39], was of a mixed ethnic composition; in the more western part it was made-up of the Wielbark culture people, as well as other Germanic people and the Dacians. It was within the Chernyakhov culture that the Gothic tribes assumed their mature form. This article is about the Germanic tribes. ... Old chapel Krzna river Potockis Palace i MiÄ™dzyrzec Podlaski Podlachia, Podlesia, or Podlasie is a historical region in the eastern part of Poland and western Belarus. ... Polesie is one of the largest European swampy areas, located in the South-Western part of the Eastern-European Lowland, mainly within the territories of Belarus, Ukraine and partly also within Poland and Russia. ... Volhynia (Ukrainian: , Polish: , Russian: ; also called Volynia) comprises the historic region in western Ukraine located between the rivers Prypiat and Western Bug -- to the north of Galicia and of Podolia. ... Chernyakhiv culture is shown in orange, the third-century Wielbark Culture in red. ... Dacian kingdom during the reign of Burebista, 82 BC The Dacians (Lat. ...

The Przeworsk culture populations were for the most part also moving (to a lesser extend) south and east, which by 4th century caused a lessening of the population density in northern and central Poland with a simultaneous settlement concentration increases in Lesser Poland and Silesia. The Przeworsk people there at this point in time are often identified with the Vandals Germanic tribe. The 4th and 5th century Przeworsk societies had to cope with a deterioration of their traditional tribal social structure, caused by the accumulation of wealth and influence in the hands of the rich, the warriors, the tribal elders and rulers, who controlled the trade, imposed contributions and plundered. During these two centuries the number of the Przeworsk culture settlements and cemeteries generally decreases^[40]. There are also clear signs of the environment being overly exploited, which provided another motivation for the population to gradually leave. Most burials were getting more poorly equipped, in comparison with the previous periods. Late Przeworsk culture ceramic materials from Greater Poland show impoverishment and lack of differentiation of form^[41], but on the other hand metal 5th century clasps, found at a variety of locations from eastern Lesser Poland, through eastern Greater Poland to Kujawy, demonstrate the usual for mature Germanic societies highest quality of workmanship. KrakÃ³w Katowice WrocÅ‚aw ÅÃ³dÅº PoznaÅ„ Bydgoszcz Lublin BiaÅ‚ystok GdaÅ„sk Szczecin Warsaw M A S O V I A S I L E S I A G R E A T E R P O L A N D L E S S E R P O... Silesia (English pronunciation [], Czech: ; German: ; Latin: ; Polish: ; Silesian: ÅšlÅ¯nsk) is a historical region in central Europe, located along the upper and middle Oder River, upper Vistula River, and along the Sudetes, Carpathian (Silesian Beskids) mountain range. ... Vandal and Vandali redirect here. ...

On top of the Przeworsk culture's internal crisis situation came external pressures, namely the massive migration of peoples. At around 370 CE the Huns crossed the Volga River, defeating the Alans and then the Ostrogoths, causing in 375 the fall of their state located in the Black Sea shores region. This unleashed a domino effect, as various Germanic peoples moved west and south to avoid the danger. The Visigoths and others retreated, forcing further migrations, while the weakness of the Roman Empire encouraged encroachments of its territory, the whole scenario resulting in the fall of its western part. The paths of this Great Migration of Peoples led in part through the Polish lands, and the Germanic tribes living here joined the movement themselves, with the result of an almost complete, in the course of 5th century, depopulation of Poland.^[42] The Huns were an early confederation of Central Asian equestrian nomads or semi-nomads. ... â€œVolgaâ€ redirects here. ... The Alans, Alani, Alauni or Halani were an Iranian nomadic group among the Sarmatian people, warlike nomadic pastoralists of varied backgrounds, who spoke an Iranian language and to a large extent shared a common culture. ... This article deals with the continental Ostrogoths. ... For other uses, see Black Sea (disambiguation). ... Migrations The Visigoths (Western Goths) were one of two main branches of the Goths, an East Germanic tribe (the Ostrogoths being the other). ... Human migration denotes any movement of groups of people from one locality to another, rather than of individual wanderers. ...

In the upper Vistula basin, where the Przeworsk culture settlements were still relatively dense in the first half of 5th century, they are markedly absent during the second half of it. This is also the case in Silesia - the depopulation pattern began there earlier and the latest finds are dated around 400 CE. All of it agrees well with the information given by Procopius of Caesarea, according to whom the Heruli returning to Scandinavia from the Carpathian Basin in 512, heading towards the Varni tribe area in Germany, crossed a large region devoid of human settlements - presumably Silesia and Lusatia. Likewise there are no settlements found in Masovia and Podlachia beyond the early part of 5th century. On the other hand in central Poland and Greater Poland isolated remnants from the Roman era cultures continue to be located through the end of 5th and even into the earlier parts of 6th century. Still further north, in Pomerania, such findings are actually quite numerous, including many cult coin deposit sites (Roman and then Byzantine golden solidi). That's where the Germanic groups lasted the longest (and kept up trade and other contacts with their brethren elsewhere).^[43] Procopius of Caesarea (in Greek Î ÏÎ¿ÎºÏŒÏ€Î¹Î¿Ï‚, c. ... The Heruli (spelled variously in Latin and Greek) were a nomadic Germanic people, who were subjugated by the Ostrogoths, Huns, and Byzantines in the 3rd to 5th centuries. ... A landscape from the Pannonian Basin - Farm on the HortobÃ¡gy, Hungary A landscape from the Pannonian Basin - Canal Danube-Tisa-Danube near the village of Rumenka, close to Novi Sad, Serbia The Pannonian Basin or Carpathian Basin is a large basin in Central Europe that remained when the Pliocene... Events Roman (Byzantine) Emperor Anastasius I ends a period of moderate ecclestical policy, and starts strongly favoring his own monophysitist beliefs. ... The Varni (Procopius), Varini (Tacitus), Varinnae (Pliny the Elder), WÃ¦rne/Werne (Widsith) and Warnii (the Thuringian Law) probably refer to a little known Germanic tribe. ... Silesia (English pronunciation [], Czech: ; German: ; Latin: ; Polish: ; Silesian: ÅšlÅ¯nsk) is a historical region in central Europe, located along the upper and middle Oder River, upper Vistula River, and along the Sudetes, Carpathian (Silesian Beskids) mountain range. ... Lusatia (German Lausitz, Upper Sorbian ÅuÅ¾ica, Lower Sorbian ÅuÅ¾yca, Polish ÅuÅ¼yce, Czech LuÅ¾ice) is a historical region between the BÃ³br and Kwisa rivers and the Elbe river in the eastern German states of Saxony and Brandenburg, south-western Poland (Lower Silesian Voivodeship) and the northern... Historical division of Masovia Masovia (Polish: Mazowsze) is a geographical and historical region situated in central Poland with its capital at Warsaw. ... Old chapel Krzna river Potockis Palace i MiÄ™dzyrzec Podlaski Podlachia, Podlesia, or Podlasie is a historical region in the eastern part of Poland and western Belarus. ... Voivodship wielkopolskie since 1999 Coat of Arms for voivodship wielkopolskie Greater Poland (also Great Poland; Polish: , German: GroÃŸpolen, Latin: Polonia Maior) is a historical region of west-central Poland. ... Pommern redirects here. ... â€œByzantineâ€ redirects here. ... Julian solidus, ca. ...

The territory of the powerful confederation of the Hun tribes included about 400 CE the lands of southern Poland, where burial and treasure sites have been investigated. A woman's grave in Jędrzychowice, Strzelin County contained fancy feminine ornaments and a nicely preserved bronze kettle, which gave a name ("Jędrzychowice") to one of the two basic Hun kettle types, while a burial of a young warrior-aristocrat including his horse and precious harness, attire and weaponry elements (gold sheet covered ritual bow and sword sheath) was found in Jakuszowice, Kazimierza Wielka County. Still further east, in Świlcza near Rzeszów a hidden Hun treasure was located; this last find dates from mid 5th century, when the Hun empire was about to crumble.^[44] Strzelin (German Strehlen) is a town in south-west Poland, in Lower Silesia voivodship, about 45 km south of WrocÅ‚aw. ... Kazimierza Wielka ( listen) is a town in Poland, in ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyskie Voivodship, about 45 km northeast of KrakÃ³w. ... RzeszÃ³w ( ) is a city in south-eastern Poland with a population of 164,000 (2005), granted a town charter in 1354, the capital of the Subcarpathian Voivodeship (since 1999), previously of RzeszÃ³w Voivodeship (1945-1998). ...

Baltic peoples

The Balts or Baltic peoples, or their Indo-European protoplasts, have settled (at different times different parts of) the territory of today's northeast Poland as well as the lands located further north and east, generally east of the lower Vistula River, the Baltic seashore north of there including and past the Sambian peninsula, and the inland area east of the above regions (some of their ancestors came from as far east as the upper Oka River), from the early Iron Age. The analysis of the Baltic historic range has been aided by the studies of their characteristic toponyms and hydronyms, in addition to the examination of the archeological record and the few ancient written sources. http://www. ... For the language group, see Indo-European languages. ... Sambia (German: ; Polish: ; Russian: ) is a peninsula in the Kaliningrad Oblast of Russia, on the south-eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. ... Oka (Russian: ÐžÐºÐ°Ì) is a great river in Russia, the biggest right confluent of the Volga. ... Iron Age Axe found on Gotland This article is about the archaeological period known as the Iron Age, for the mythological Iron Age see Iron Age (mythology). ... Toponymy is the taxonomic study of toponyms (place-names), their origins and their meanings. ... A hydronym (from Greek hudor, water and onuma, name) is a proper name of a body of water. ...

Of the Baltic tribes may had written Pliny the Elder and Ptolemy when they spoke of the Venedes people, whom they located east of the mouth of the Vistula^[45].Tacitus, describing the inhabitants of the south-eastern Baltic shores mentioned the Aesti people, involved in collecting amber not for their own use but for long distance trade in a raw state. Various versions of this name were used later for various purposes; in particular that's what in 9th century the Baltic Old Prussian people were called and their country was then referred to as Aestland. Ptolemy in Geographia gives the names of two Baltic tribes: "Galindai" and "Soudinoi", which he localized east of the lower Vistula, some distance from the sea, just about where the Baltic Galindians (in Masuria), and Sudovians or Yotvingians east of Galindians lived thousand years later. Pliny the Elder: an imaginative 19th Century portrait. ... This article is about the geographer, mathematician and astronomer Ptolemy. ... The Baltic Veneti (alternatively also called the Vistula Veneti) were an ancient Indo-European people living in contemporary Poland, along the rivers of Oder and the Vistula. ... For other uses, see Tacitus (disambiguation). ... The Roman historian Tacitus in his book Germania mentions a Aesti or Aestii people. ... Prussian tribes settlements. ... The Geographia is Ptolemys main work besides the Almagest. ... The Western Galindians in the context of the other Baltic tribes, circa 1200 CE. The Eastern Balts are shown in brown hues while the Western Balts are shown in green. ... Sailing on Lake MikoÅ‚ajki. ... Sudovian kurhan Sudovians are a subgroup of Baltic people, living at the left coast of river Nemunas, in the region known as Sudovia. ... Categories: Baltic peoples | Stub ...

According to linguistic sources, the Baltic tribes precursors appeared first inland, in forest zone regions far from the sea, and only later settled the near Baltic Sea areas, extending from the northeastern part of the Vistula basin to the Daugava River basin. This westbound expansion resulted in the establishment of the two main Baltic branches: The Western Balts, represented by the extinct Old Prussians and Yotvingians, and the Eastern Balts including the modern nations of Lithuanians and Latvians. Daugava sunset. ...

The Western Baltic Kurgans culture, which resulted from the interaction between groups arriving from the east and the people living in the Masuria-Sambia region (middle first millennium BC) is discussed in a previous section, within its time frame. The process of separation and differentiation of the eastern and western Baltic tribes deepened during the period of Roman influence, when the economy, culture and customs of the Western Balts became increasingly influenced by the more highly developed Przeworsk and Wielbark cultures people. From the beginning of the Common Era we can speak of the Western Baltic culture, which included several distinct groups of the Western Baltic cultural circle^[46]. The green area is the Przeworsk culture in the first half of the 3rd century. ... Areas in the first half of the 3rd century: Wielbark culture (red) , Przeworsk culture (green), a Baltic culture (Aesti?, yellow), DÄ™bczyn culture (pink) and the Roman Empire (purple) Wielbark culture (German: , Polish: , Ukrainian Ukrainian: ) was an archaeological culture identified with the Goths which appeared during the first half of...

Beginning in 1st century CE the Western Balts experienced their "golden" period - the times of economic expansion and increased affluence of their societies, all of which was based on the amber trade, but resulted in active and long term contacts with the lands of the Roman Empire. As late as in early 6th century an Aesti mission arrived in Italy at the court of King Theodoric the Great of the Ostrogoths with gifts of amber. As elsewhere, with wealth came imported and locally manufactured luxurious objects, social stratification and an emergence of the "princely" class, together with the appearance of their burials. Theodoric the Great (454 - August 30, 526), known to the Romans as Flavius Theodoricus, was king of the Ostrogoths (488-526), ruler of Italy (493-526), and regent of the Visigoths (511-526). ... This article deals with the continental Ostrogoths. ...

Despite the advent of iron reinforced plows and other improved methods of crop cultivation, the regional environmental conditions placed limits on the practicality and extend of land tillage, but various grains, beans and peas were grown. The dense forest coverage on the other hand facilitated gathering and was more amenable to the raising of farm animals, which involved all of the major species, including in particular the small, forest type horses. The horses constituted an important element of the Baltic tribes culture - men of the upper socioeconomic status were often buried with their horses and even together with their fancy horsemanship gear.

The settlements were small, forming family based communities, but some of them were more sizable and functioned over many generations. They lacked artificial fortifications, but natural factors facilitating self-defense were often utilized. Such settlements could form small clusters separated by uninhabited areas. One rather large dwelling place, which functioned from 2nd to 4th century, was discovered and investigated in Osowo near Suwałki. The living quarters consisted of pillar supported houses, while the farming infrastructure area included eighty grain storage caves. Small fortified refuge areas were built to a limited extend beginning at the end of 4th century, but on a larger scale fortified settlements were constructed by the Western Balts only during the Middle Ages. Motto: none Voivodship Podlaskie Municipal government Rada miejska w SuwaÅ‚kach Mayor JÃ³zef Gajewski Area 65. ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ...

The dominant burial customs involved cremation of bodies, with the ashes placed in urns that were either ceramic, or made from organic materials, such as fabric or leather. The flat graves, in seashore areas covered by a stone pavement, formed large cemeteries. Skeletal burials from 1st and 2nd centuries are found in Sambia, and later ones (3th-4th centuries) in Sudovia. In this case the usually single graves had stone structure and kurgans. From about 400 CE on cremation became the only form of burial and the "familiar" kurgans emerged - each grave contains the remnants of several persons. Sudovia (Lithuanian: SÅ«duva / Suvalkija, Polish: Suwalszczyzna), or Suvalkija (pronouncing soo-vul-kee-uh), is the name of one of ethnographic regions of Lithuania. ...

Samples of ancient Baltic mature craftsmanship (2nd-4th century) have been found in Żywa Woda and Szwajcaria, both in Suwałki County and in Augustów County among other places. The princely graves as usual also contain many imports from the southern and western parts of Europe. Baltic fine bronze ornamental items, such as thin, openworked plates for the attachment of necklaces, were typically coated with colored, often red enamel. Foreign influence can also be seen in the design of clay urns, such as the 3rd or 4th century Greek kernos type vessel with additional miniature urns attached, or the 5th century "window" container with a square opening from Olsztyn County, similar to the urns found in Denmark and northwestern Germany. Motto: none Voivodship Podlaskie Municipal government Rada miejska w SuwaÅ‚kach Mayor JÃ³zef Gajewski Area 65. ... Motto: none Voivodship Podlasie Municipal government UrzÄ…d Miasta AugustÃ³w Mayor Leszek Cieslik Area 80,9 kmÂ² Population - city - urban - density 30 870 - 387/kmÂ² Founded City rights - - Latitude Longitude 53Â°51 N 22Â°58 E Area code +48 87 Car plates BAU Twin towns - Municipal Website AugustÃ³w... Olsztyn ( ; German: ; Old Prussian: AlnÄsteini) is a city in northeast Poland, on the Åyna river. ...

The last mentioned specimen comes from the Olsztyn group burial ground in Tumiany. The Olsztyn group represents the late phase of the Western Baltic cultural circle, with the beginnings in the second half of 5th century and the developed stages in 6th and 7th centuries. It was located in Masuria, partially in areas vacated by the Wielbark culture people. The group is believed to had been established by branches of the Galindians tribe, including a part of it that migrated to southern Europe and then returned to the Baltic area. The Olsztyn group cemeteries contain horse burials and many sophisticated style plate clasps, buckles, connectors and other objects made of bronze, silver and gold, studded with semi-precious stones and decorated with engravings, which demonstrate its people's extensive interregional and far reaching trade and other relationships and contacts, that included Scandinavia, western, southern and southeastern Europe^[47]. The Western Galindians in the context of the other Baltic tribes, circa 1200 CE. The Eastern Balts are shown in brown hues while the Western Balts are shown in green. ...

The Baltic settlement patterns were being altered beginning in 5th century by the Migration Period population shifts and the pressure from the westbound movement of the Slavic peoples. The Western Balts took over the lands left by the Wielbark culture people and reached the eastern part of the mouth of the Vistula. A major trade route connecting the southeastern Baltic areas with the Black Sea shores went now through the regions controlled by the Balts. Expansion of the Old Prussian tribes, for example the previously mentioned Galindians and Yotvingians, encompassed today's northeast Poland and the adjacent territories further north. Galindia (today's western Masuria), including the Olsztyn group, became in 6th and 7th centuries the most affluent of the Baltic people settled lands, with highly developed local craftsmanship supplementing the wealth of items brought from distant countries. Human migration denotes any movement of groups of people from one locality to another, rather than of individual wanderers. ... Distribution of Slavic people by language The Slavic peoples are a linguistic and ethnic branch of Indo-European peoples, living mainly in Europe, where they constitute roughly a third of the population. ... Old Prussian is an extinct Baltic language, once spoken by the inhabitants of the area that later became East Prussia (now north-eastern Poland and the Kaliningrad Oblast of Russia) prior to the German colonization of the area which began in the 13th century. ... The Western Galindians in the context of the other Baltic tribes, circa 1200 CE. The Eastern Balts are shown in brown hues while the Western Balts are shown in green. ... Categories: Baltic peoples | Stub ... Image:Prussia. ...

This westbound expansion was accompanied by the regress at the southeastern bounds of the Baltic range caused by the advancing Slavs, the Balts' closest relatives. A majority of the Baltic peoples, whose population at the end of first millennium CE is estimated at about 480 thousand, became extinct during the later Middle Ages because of attempts of forced Christianisation, conquest and extermination, or assimilation, the Old Prussians being the primary example.^[48] The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ...

Slavic peoples - Polish myths and legends

According to a Polish myth, the Slavic nations trace their ancestry to three brothers, Lech, Czech and Rus, who parted in the forests of Central Europe, each moving in a different direction to found a family of distinct but related peoples (Lech founded Gniezno, the first capital of Poland, Czech founded Bohemia, and Rus founded Ruthenia). Polish mythology comprises certain beliefs and myths in Poland, including witchcraft and some paganistic elements. ... Distribution of Slavic people by language The Slavic peoples are a linguistic and ethnic branch of Indo-European peoples, living mainly in Europe, where they constitute roughly a third of the population. ... Lech by Walery Eljasz-Radzikowski (1841-1905) Duke Czech Lech, Czech and Rus oaks in Rogalin, Poland According to an old legend, Lech, Czech and Rus were eponymous brothers who founded the three Slavic nations: Poland (poetically also known as Lechia), Bohemia (ÄŒechy â€“ now the major part of the Czech... Central Europe The Alpine Countries and the VisegrÃ¡d Group (Political map, 2004) Central Europe is the region lying between the variously and vaguely defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe. ... Gniezno (pronounced: [gÉ²È‹ÎµznÉ”]) is a town in central-western Poland, some 50 km east of PoznaÅ„, inhabited by about 73,000 people. ... Flag of Bohemia Bohemia (Czech: ; German: ) is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western and middle thirds of the Czech Republic. ... Ruthenia is a name applied to parts of Eastern Europe which were populated by Eastern Slavic peoples, as well as to various states that existed in this territory in the past. ...

Conspicuous of the Slavic period (described below) is the lack of substantiated historic persons and their names. Those that we have are the stuff of legends, or come from chronicles written centuries later and for a purpose other than accurate recording of events.

And so the Vistulans were ruled by Krak or Krakus, the founder of Kraków and Wanda was his daughter. Ascribed to them are the two large mounds of early medieval origin in Kraków area, considered to be their burial places or memorial monuments, but it's not certain that they were actually built by the Slavs. In one of the very few written records mentioning the Vistulans, The Life of Saint Methodius speaks of a "very powerful" pagan prince of Vistulans who was forced to convert to Christianity, but gives neither his pagan nor Christian name. Vistulans (Polish: WiÅ›lanie) were a Lechitic tribe inhabiting, since at least 7th century, lands known today as Lesser Poland. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... For other uses, see Krakow (disambiguation). ... Wanda is the name of: Wanda in Minnesota, Wanda Township in Nebraska. ... Saint Methodius (Greek: ÎœÎµÎ¸ÏŒÎ´Î¹Î¿Ï‚; Church Slavonic ÐœÐµÑ„Ð¾Ð´Ð¸Ð¸) (b. ...

Up north the Polans were ruled by the wicked Popiel, the last of the dynasty that was replaced by the Piast dynasty. In a sequence given by the 12th century chronicler, Piast, Siemowit, Lestek, Siemomysł and Mieszko I would be the first "Piast" rulers beginning with Mieszko's great great grandfather, but whether the first four names refer to real people is anyone's guess. In the Early Middle Ages there were two separate Slavic tribes bearing the name of Polans: Polans, an Eastern Slavic tribe living in the area of Dnieper river Polans, an Western Slavic tribe living in the area of Warta. ... The tower where, according to legend, Popiel perished Prince Popiel (or Duke Popiel), legendary 9th century ruler of the Polanie or Goplanie tribe. ... This article is about a Polish dynasty. ... (11th century - 12th century - 13th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 12th century was that century which lasted from 1101 to 1200. ... Gallus Anonymus (Polish: Gall Anonim) living in 11th and 12th century was the first Polish historian, author of Cronicae et gesta ducum sive principum Polonorum (c. ... The Piast dynasty is a line of Kings and dukes that ruled Poland from its beginnings as an independent state up to 1370. ... Siemowit (also Ziemowit) was, according to the chronicles of Gallus Anonymus, the son of Piast and Rzepicha. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... SiemomysÅ‚ is the third legendary Polish duke, and said to be the father of Polands first historical ruler, Mieszko I. SiemomysÅ‚ is credited with leaving the lands known as Greater Poland to his son, who further expanded them during his reign. ... Reign ca. ...

Slavic origins of the Polish nation and state (5th - 10th century)

The tale of Lech, Czech and Rus, despite being of doubtful historicity, accurately describes the westward migration and gradual differentiation of the early Slavic tribes following the collapse of the Roman Empire. According to the currently predominant opinion, the Slavic tribes were not indigenous to the lands that were to become Poland^[49], but their first waves settled the area of the upper Vistula River and elsewhere in southeastern Poland and southern Masovia, coming from the upper and middle regions of the Dnepr River (West Slavs have come from the more western early Slavic branch called "Sclavi" by Jordanes in Getica, the eastern branch being "Antes"), beginning in the second half of 5th century^[50], some half century after these territories were vacated by Germanic tribes^[51]. This discontinuity (a period during which human settlements on most Polish lands were absent or rare) makes the moment of appearance of the Slavs in Poland at the outset of the Middle Ages distinct and clear. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Distribution of Slavic people by language The Slavic peoples are a linguistic and ethnic branch of Indo-European peoples, living mainly in Europe, where they constitute roughly a third of the population. ... For other uses, see Roman Empire (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Vistula (disambiguation). ... Historical division of Masovia Masovia (Polish: Mazowsze) is a geographical and historical region situated in central Poland with its capital at Warsaw. ... The Dnieper River (Belarusian: Дняпро/Dnyapro; Russian: Днепр/Dnepr; Ukrainian: Днiпро/Dnipro; Polish: Dniepr; Latin: Borysthenes, Danaper) is a river (2290 km length) which flows from Russia through Belarus and then Ukraine. ... Countries inhabited by West Slavs (in light green) Distribution of Slavic peoples by language Map showing an approximation location of Polish tribes West Slavs in 9th/10th century The West Slavs are Slavic peoples speaking West Slavic languages. ... Modern Istanbul, site of ancient Constantinople, capital of the eastern Roman Empire, where Jordanes was being detained when he wrote Getica. ... Europe in 450 The 5th century is the period from 401 to 500 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian Era. ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ...

From there the new population dispersed north and west during the course of 6th century. The incoming Slavic people were markedly less developed than their Germanic predecessors (the northeast corner of contemporary Poland's territory was and remained populated by Baltic tribes), which can be seen from the comparable quality of the pottery and other artifacts left by the two groups. They lived from cultivation of crops and were generally farmers, but also engaged in hunting and gathering. Their migration was probably caused by the pursuit of more fertile soils and persistent attacks on southeastern Europe by waves of people and armies from the East, such as Huns, Avars and Magyars. This westward movement of Slavic people was facilitated in part by the previous withdrawal of Germanic people and their own migration toward the safer and more attractive areas of western and southern Europe. The 6th century is the period from 501 - 600 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian Era. ... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... The Huns were an early confederation of Central Asian equestrian nomads or semi-nomads. ... Late Avar period Map showing the location of Avar Khaganate, c. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

A number of such Polish tribes formed small states beginning in 8th century, some of which coalesced later into larger ones. Among those were the Vistulans (Wiślanie) in southern Poland with Kraków and Wiślica as their main centers (major building of fortified centers and other developments in their country took place in 9th century; they have been the focus of much speculation), but later the Polans (Polanie, lit. "people of the plain") turned out to be of momentous historic importance. The tribal states built many fortified structures with primitive walls ("gród" is the name of such early town-fortress, of which the early ones date from 7th century); some of them had a very large area and may had served primarily as refuges in times of trouble. The Polans settled in the flatlands around Giecz, Poznań and Gniezno that eventually became the foundation and early center of Poland, lending their name to the country. They went through a period of accelerated building of fortified settlements and territorial expansion beginning in the first half of 10th century, and the Polish state developed from their tribal entity in the second half of it. Over time the modern Poles emerged as the largest of the West Slavic groupings, establishing themselves to the east of the Germanic regions of Europe, with their ethnic cousins, the Czechs and Slovaks, to the south. ... (7th century — 8th century — 9th century — other centuries) Events The Iberian peninsula is taken by Arab and Berber Muslims, thus ending the Visigothic rule, and starting almost 8 centuries of Muslim presence there. ... Vistulans (Polish: WiÅ›lanie) were a Lechitic tribe inhabiting, since at least 7th century, lands known today as Lesser Poland. ... For other uses, see Krakow (disambiguation). ... WiÅ›lica is a town on the Nida River in ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyskie Voivodship in Poland. ... As a means of recording the passage of time the 9th century was the century that lasted from 801 to 900. ... Poland 960-992 Polans (also Polanes, Polanians, or Polians; Polish: Polanie) were a West Slavic tribe inhabiting the Warta river basin in the 8th century. ... The 7th century is the period from 601 - 700 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian Era. ... Giecz is a small village in Poland, in the Greater Polish Voivodship, near Dominowo and Åšroda. ... Coordinates: , Country Voivodeship Powiat city county Gmina PoznaÅ„ Established 8th century City Rights 1253 Government - Mayor Ryszard Grobelny Area - City 261. ... Gniezno (pronounced: [gÉ²È‹ÎµznÉ”]) is a town in central-western Poland, some 50 km east of PoznaÅ„, inhabited by about 73,000 people. ... As a means of recording the passage of time, the 10th century was that century which lasted from 901 to 1000. ... The Slavic languages (also called Slavonic languages) comprise the languages of the Slavic peoples. ...

Early Slavic peoples

The origins of the Slavic peoples, who arrived on Polish lands at the outset of the Middle Ages, archeologically as the Prague culture, go back to the Kiev culture, which formed beginning in 3rd century CE, and which is genetically connected to the so-called Post-Zarubintsy cultural horizon (Rakhny-Ljutez-Pochep)^[52], and itself was one of the later Post-Zarubintsy culture groups^[53]. In the opposite time direction such genetic relationship is quite apparent between the large Kiev culture population and the early (6th-7th century) Slavic settlements in the Oder and Vistula basins, but lacking between these and the older local cultures there^[54], that expired rather rapidly beginning in the 400-450 CE period. Distribution of Slavic people by language The Slavic peoples are a linguistic and ethnic branch of Indo-European peoples, living mainly in Europe, where they constitute roughly a third of the population. ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ... The Kiev culture is an archaeological culture dating from about the third to fifth centuries AD, named after Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. ... The Zarubintsy culture was one of the major archaeological cultures which flourished in the area north of the Black Sea along the upper Dnieper and Pripyat Rivers, stretching west towards the Vistula Basin from the 3rd or 2nd centuries BC until the 2nd century AD. It was identified ca 1899... The Oder (or Odra) River (German: Oder, Polish/Czech: Odra, Ancient Latin: Viadua, Viadrus, Medieval Latin: Odera, Oddera) is a river in Central Europe (mostly in Poland). ... For other uses, see Vistula (disambiguation). ...

The Zarubintsy culture circle, in existence roughly from 200 BC to 150 CE, extended along the middle and upper Dnieper and its tributary the Pripyat River, but also left traces of settlements in parts of Polesie and the upper Bug River basin. The main distinguished local groups were the Polesie group, the Middle Dnieper group and the Upper Dnieper group. The Zarubintsy culture developed from the Milograd culture (which could possibly had been a seat of the early hypothetical Indo-European, Proto-Balto-Slavic society; such common ancestry is presumed for linguistic reasons) in the northern part of its range and from the local Scythian populations in the more southern part. The Polesie group's origin was also influenced by the Pomeranian and Jastorf cultures. The Zarubintsy culture and its beginnings were moderately affected by La Tène culture and the Black Sea area (trade with the Greek cities provided imported items) centers of civilization in the earlier stages, but not much by Roman influence later on, and accordingly its economic development was lagging behind that of other early Roman period cultures. Cremation of bodies was practiced, with the human remains and burial gifts including metal decorations, small in number and limited in variety, placed in pits.^[55] The Zarubintsy culture was one of the major archaeological cultures which flourished in the area north of the Black Sea along the upper Dnieper and Pripyat Rivers, stretching west towards the Vistula Basin from the 3rd or 2nd centuries BC until the 2nd century AD. It was identified ca 1899... This article is about the river. ... The Pripyat River (Ukrainian: Припять, Prýpyat; Belarusian: Прыпяць, Prýpyats, Polish Prypeć) is a river in Eastern Europe, of approximately 440 miles (710 km). ... Polesie is one of the largest European swampy areas, located in the South-Western part of the Eastern-European Lowland, mainly within the territories of Belarus, Ukraine and partly also within Poland and Russia. ... Bug at Wlodawa One of the two rivers called Bug (pronounced Boog), the Western Bug, or Buh (Belarusian: Захо́дні Буг; Russian: За́падный Буг; Ukrainian: Західн&#1080... The Milograd culture (also spelled Mylohrad, also known as Pidhirtsi culture on Ukrainian territory) is an archaeological culture, lasting from about the seventh century BC to the first century AD. Geographically, it corresponds to present day southern Belarus and northern Ukraine, in the area of the confluence of the Dnieper... For the language group, see Indo-European languages. ... The Balto-Slavic language group is a hypothetical language group consisting of the Baltic and Slavic language subgroups of the Indo-European family. ... The Scythians (, also ) or Scyths ([1]; from Greek ), a nation of horse-riding nomadic pastoralists who spoke an Iranian language[2], dominated the Pontic steppe throughout Classical Antiquity. ... The Pommeranian culture is an Iron Age culture in Poland. ... The Jastorf culture is an Iron Age material culture in northern Europe, dated from about 600 BC to 1. ... The La TÃ¨ne culture was an Iron Age culture named after the archaeological site of La TÃ¨ne on the north side of Lake Neuchatel in Switzerland, where a rich trove of artifacts was discovered by Hansli Kopp in 1857. ... For other uses, see Black Sea (disambiguation). ... Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew from a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula circa the 9th century BC to a massive empire straddling the Mediterranean Sea. ...

Originating from the Post-Zarubintsy cultures ad sometimes considered the first Slavic culture, the Kiev culture functioned during the later Roman periods (3rd through mid 5th century) north of the vast Chernyakhov culture territories, within the basins of the upper and middle Dnieper, Desna and Seym rivers. It is known mostly from settlements sites; the burial sites, involving pit graves, are few and poorly equipped. Not many metal objects have been found, despite the known native production of iron and processing of other metals, including enamel coating technology. Clay vessels were made without the potter's wheel. The Kiev culture represented an intermediate level of development, between that of the cultures of the Central European Barbaricum, and the forest zone societies of the eastern part of the continent. The Kiev culture consisted of four local formations: The Middle Dnieper group, the Desna group, the Upper Dnieper group and the Dnieper-Don group. The general model of the Kiev culture is quite compatible with that of the early Slavic cultures that were to follow and must had originated mainly from the Kiev groups, but evolved probably over a larger territory, stretching west to the base of the Eastern Carpathian Mountains, and from a broader Post-Zarubintsy foundation. The Kiev culture and related groups expanded considerably after 375 CE, when the Ostrogoth state, and more broadly speaking the Chernyakhov culture were destroyed by the Huns. This process was facilitated further and gained pace, involving at that time the Kiev's descendant cultures, when the Hun confederation itself broke down in mid 5th century.^[56]^[57] The Kiev culture is an archaeological culture dating from about the third to fifth centuries AD, named after Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. ... Chernyakhiv culture is shown in orange, the third-century Wielbark Culture in red. ... Desna (Десна́) is a river in Russia and Ukraine, left tributary of Dnepr. ... Seym (also transliterated as Seim and Sejm, in Russian and Ukrainian Ð¡ÐµÐ¹Ð¼) is a river in Russia and Ukraine. ... Satellite image of the Carpathians. ... This article deals with the continental Ostrogoths. ... Chernyakhiv culture is shown in orange, the third-century Wielbark Culture in red. ... The Huns were an early confederation of Central Asian equestrian nomads or semi-nomads. ...

The eastern cradle of the Slavs is also directly confirmed by a written source. The anonymous author of Cosmographer of Ravenna (7th/8th century) mentions Scythia, "where the generations of the Sclavi had their beginnings".^[58] Approximate extent of Scythia and Sarmatia in the 1st century BC (the orange background shows the spread of Eastern Iranian languages, among them Scytho-Sarmatian). ...

The final process of the differentiation of the cultures recognized as early Slavic, the Kolochino culture (over the Kiev culture's territory), the Penkovo culture and the Prague-Korchak culture took place during the end of 4th and in 5th century CE, probably with small participation of some elements from the Chernyakhov culture and the Dacian Carpathian Kurgans culture (the Slavs took over much of those cultures' territories). The Prague culture developed over the western part of the Slavic expansion, within the basins of the middle Dnieper, Pripyat, upper Dniester and in southeastern Poland (possibly corresponding to Jordanes' Sclavi, whose area extended west to the Vistula sources), the Penkovo culture the southeastern part, from Seversky Donets to the lower Danube (including the region where the Antes would be), and the Kolochino culture was located north of the more eastern area of the Penkovo culture (the upper Dnieper and Desna basins). The Korchak type designates the eastern part of the Prague-Korchak culture.^[59] In Poland the earliest archeological sites considered Slavic include a limited number of 6th century settlements and a few isolated burial sites. The material obtained there consists mostly of simple, manually formed ceramics, typical of the entire early Slavic area. It is on the basis of the different varieties of these basic clay pots and infrequent decorations that the three cultures are distinguished.^[60] The largest of the earliest Slavic (Prague culture) settlement sites in Poland that have been subjected to systematic research is located in Bachórz, Rzeszów County and dated the second half of 5th through 7th centuries. It consisted of 12 nearly square, partially dug out houses, each covering the area of 6.2 to 19.8 (14.0 on the average) square meters. A stone furnace was usually placed in one of the corners, which is typical for Slavic homesteads of that period. 45 younger, different type dwellings (7/8th to 9/10th century) have also been discovered in the vicinity.^[61]^[62] Chernyakhiv culture is shown in orange, the third-century Wielbark Culture in red. ... Dacia, in ancient geography the land of the Daci, named by the ancient Greeks Getae, was a large district of Southeastern Europe, bounded on the north by the Carpathians, on the south by the Danube, on the west by the Tisa, on the east by the Tyras or Nistru, now... The Dnieper River (Russian: , Dnepr; Belarusian: , Dniapro; Ukrainian: , Dnipro) is a river which flows from Russia, through Belarus and Ukraine, ending its flow in the Black Sea. ... The Pripyat River (Ukrainian: Припять, Prýpyat; Belarusian: Прыпяць, Prýpyats, Polish Prypeć) is a river in Eastern Europe, of approximately 440 miles (710 km). ... The Dniester (Ukrainian: translit. ... For other uses, see Vistula (disambiguation). ... Length 1,050 km Elevation of the source - m Average discharge - m³/s Area watershed - km² Origin Russia Mouth Don River Basin countries Russia, Ukraine Donets (Донец), is a tributary of Don River, Russia. ... This article is about the Danube River. ... The Dnieper River (Russian: , Dnepr; Belarusian: , Dniapro; Ukrainian: , Dnipro) is a river which flows from Russia, through Belarus and Ukraine, ending its flow in the Black Sea. ... Desna (Десна́) is a river in Russia and Ukraine, left tributary of Dnepr. ... RzeszÃ³w ( ) is a city in south-eastern Poland with a population of 164,000 (2005), granted a town charter in 1354, the capital of the Subcarpathian Voivodeship (since 1999), previously of RzeszÃ³w Voivodeship (1945-1998). ...

Characteristic of all early Slavic cultures are poorly developed handicraft and limited resources of their communities. There were no major iron production centers, but metal founding techniques were known; among metal objects occasionally found are iron knives and hooks, as well as bronze decorative items (7th century finds in Haćki, Bielsk Podlaski County, a site of one of the earliest fortified settlements). The inventories of the typical, rather small, open settlements include normally also various clay (including weights used for weaving), stone and horn utensils. The developments arranged as clusters of cabins along river or stream valleys, but above their flood levels, were usually irregular, and typically faced south. The wooden frame or pillar supported square houses covered with a straw roof had each side 2.5 to 4.5 meters long. Fertile lowlands were sought, but also forested areas with diversified plant and animal environment to provide additional sustenance. The settlements were self-sufficient - the early Slavs functioned without significant long-distance trade. The potter's wheel was being used from the turn of 6th century on. Some villages larger than a few homes have been investigated in the Kraków-Nowa Huta region (cottages for example from about 625), where, on the left bank of the Vistula, in the direction of Igołomia a complex of 11 settlements has been located. The original furnishings of Slavic huts are difficult to determine, because equipment was often made of perishable materials such as wood, leather or fabrics. Free standing clay dome stoves for bread baking were found on some locations.^[63]^[64] Bielsk Podlaski is a town in north-eastern Poland with 27,600 inhabitants (2004). ... For other uses, see Krakow (disambiguation). ...

Like others for many centuries in this part of the world, the Slavic people cremated their dead. The burials were usually single, the graves grouped in small cemeteries, with the ashes placed in simple urns more often than in ground indentations. The number of burial sites found is small in relation to the known settlement density. The food production economy was based on millet and wheat cultivation, cattle breeding (swine, sheep and goats to a lesser extend), hunting, fishing and gathering.^[65]

As the Slavs were arriving from the east beginning in the second half of 5th century, the earliest settlers reached southeastern Poland, that is the San River basin, then the upper Vistula regions including the Kraków area and Nowy Sącz Valley. Single early sites are also known around Sandomierz, Lublin, in Masovia and Upper Silesia. Somewhat younger settlements concentrations were discovered in Lower Silesia. In 6th century the above areas were settled. At the end of this century, or in early 7th century the Slavic newcomers reached Western Pomerania (according to Theophylact Simocatta, the Slavs captured in 592 at Constantinople named the Baltic Sea coastal area as the place they came from^[66]). As of that time this region, plus some of the Greater Poland, Lower Silesia and some areas west of the middle and lower Oder River make up the Sukow-Dziedzice group. Originating partially from the Prague culture, it shows significant idiosyncrasies, as no graves or (typical for the rest of the Slavic world) rectangular dwellings set partially below the ground level were found within its span. This particular pattern of expansion into the lands of Poland and then Germany (another, more southern 6th century route took the Prague culture Slavs through Slovakia, Moravia and Bohemia^[67]) was a part of the great Slavic migration, which took many of them (during this 5th - 7th century period) from the lands of their origin to the various countries of central and southeastern Europe.^[68]^[69] Length 433 km Basin area 16,861 kmÂ² Origin Carpathian Mountains Tributary of Vistula River Countries Poland, Ukraine San River. ... For other uses, see Vistula (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Krakow (disambiguation). ... Coordinates: , Country Poland Voivodeship Lesser Poland Powiat City County Gmina Nowy SÄ…cz Estabilished 1292 City Rights 1292 Government - Mayor Ryszard Nowak Area - Town 57 kmÂ² (22 sq mi) Population (2005) - Town 84,594 - Density 1,484. ... Flag of Sandomierz Sandomierz Coat of Arms Sandomierz(Sandomir) ( listen) is a city in south-eastern Poland with 25,714 inhabitants (2006). ... Panorama of Lublin form Trynitarska Tower Coordinates: , Country Voivodeship Powiat city county Gmina Lublin Established before 12th century City Rights 1317 Government - Mayor Adam Wasilewski Area - City 147. ... Historical division of Masovia Masovia (Polish: Mazowsze) is a geographical and historical region situated in central Poland with its capital at Warsaw. ... Map of Upper Silesia, 1746 Upper Silesia (Polish: GÃ³rny ÅšlÄ…sk, German: Oberschlesien, Czech: HornÃ Slezsko) is the south-eastern part of Silesia, a historical and geographical region of Poland (Opole Voivodship and Silesian Voivodship) and of the Czech Republic (Silesian-Moravian Region). ... Lower Silesia (German: ; Polish: ; Latin: Silesia Inferior) is the northwestern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia. ... Historic Western Pomerania (outlined in yellow) Western Pomerania (also West Pomerania, Polish: , German: ), is a geographical and historical region in the west of Pomerania in northern Poland and Germany. ... Theophylact Simocatta (Theophylaktos Simokates, also Simokattes) was an early 7th century Byzantine historiographer, arguably ranking as the last historian of Antiquity. ... This article is about the city before the Fall of Constantinople (1453). ... Voivodship wielkopolskie since 1999 Coat of Arms for voivodship wielkopolskie Greater Poland (also Great Poland; Polish: , German: GroÃŸpolen, Latin: Polonia Maior) is a historical region of west-central Poland. ... The Oder (known in Czech, Slovak and Polish as Odra) is a river in Central Europe. ... Flag of Moravia Moravia (Czech and Slovak: Morava; German: ; Hungarian: ; Polish: ) is a historical region in the east of the Czech RepublicCzechia. ... Flag of Bohemia Bohemia (Czech: ; German: ) is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western and middle thirds of the Czech Republic. ...

Besides the above mentioned Baltic Venedes, ancient and medieval authors speak of East European, or Slavic Venedes. It can be inferred from Tacitus' description in Germania that his Venethi lived possibly around the middle Dnieper basin^[70], which in his times would correspond to the Proto-Slavic Zarubintsy cultural sphere. Jordanes, to whom the Venedes meant his contemporary Slavs, wrote of past fighting between the Ostrogoths and the Venedes, which took place during the third quarter of 4th century in today's Ukraine^[71]. At that time the Venedes would therefore mean the Kiev culture people. Jordanes' 6th century description of the Slavic range includes the regions east of the northeastern slope of the Carpathian Mountains and stretching from there "almost endlessly" east, while in the western direction reaching the sources of the Vistula. Elsewhere being more specific he designates the area between the Vistula and the lower Danube as the Sclavi country, while the Antes would have settled the lands between the Dniester and the Dnieper rivers. The Venedes were the third Slavic branch of an unspecified location (the more distant from Jordanes' vantage and more ancestral in relation to the other two, the Kolochino culture comes to mind), as well as the overall designation for the totality of the Slavic peoples. Procopius located the "countless Antes tribes" even further east, beyond the Dnieper. Together with the Sclavi they spoke the same language, of an "unheard of barbarity". According to him the Heruli nation traveled in 512 across all of the Sclavi peoples territories, and then through a large expanse of unpopulated lands (the Slavs were about to settle the western and northern parts of Poland in the decades to follow). All of the above is in good accordance with the findings of today's archeology.^[72]^[73] The Baltic Veneti (alternatively also called the Vistula Veneti) were an ancient Indo-European people living in contemporary Poland, along the rivers of Oder and the Vistula. ... For other uses, see Tacitus (disambiguation). ... Map of the Roman Empire and Germania Magna in the early 2nd century, with the location of some Germanic tribes as described by Tacitus. ... This article is about the river. ... The Zarubintsy culture was one of the major archaeological cultures which flourished in the area north of the Black Sea along the upper Dnieper and Pripyat Rivers, stretching west towards the Vistula Basin from the 3rd or 2nd centuries BC until the 2nd century AD. It was identified ca 1899... This article deals with the continental Ostrogoths. ... The Kiev culture is an archaeological culture dating from about the third to fifth centuries AD, named after Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. ... This article is about the Danube River. ... The Dniester (Ukrainian: translit. ... This article is about the river. ... Procopius of Caesarea (in Greek Î ÏÎ¿ÎºÏŒÏ€Î¹Î¿Ï‚, c. ... The Heruli (spelled variously in Latin and Greek) were a nomadic Germanic people, who were subjugated by the Ostrogoths, Huns, and Byzantines in the 3rd to 5th centuries. ... Events Roman (Byzantine) Emperor Anastasius I ends a period of moderate ecclestical policy, and starts strongly favoring his own monophysitist beliefs. ...

Byzantine writers had the Slavs in low regard for the simple life they lived and supposedly also limited combat abilities, but in fact they were already in early 6th century a threat to the Danubian boundaries of the Empire, where they waged plundering expeditions. Procopius, the anonymous author of Strategikon known as Pseudo-Maurice and Theophylact Simocatta wrote at some length on how to deal with the Slavs militarily, which suggests that they had become a formidable adversary. John of Ephesus actually goes as far as saying (the eightieths decade of 6th century), that the Slavs had learned to conduct war better than the Byzantine army (!). The authors also provide various details on the character, lifestyle and living conditions, social structure and economic activities of the early Slavic people, some of which are confirmed by the archeological discoveries as far as in Poland, as the Slavic communities were quite similar all over their range.^[74] Their uniform Old Slavic language remained in use until, depending on the region, 9th to 12th century. For example the Greek missionaries Saints Cyril and Methodius from Thessaloniki, where "everybody fluently spoke Slavic", when sent in 863 by the Byzantine ruler to distant Moravia, were expected to be able to communicate there without any difficulty.^[75] Procopius of Caesarea (in Greek Î ÏÎ¿ÎºÏŒÏ€Î¹Î¿Ï‚, c. ... Strategikon (6th century) is a manual of war by Byzantine emperor Maurice I; it is moreover a practical manual, a rather modest elementary handbook, in the words of its introduction, for those devoting themselves to generalship. ... Theophylact Simocatta (Theophylaktos Simokates, also Simokattes) was an early 7th century Byzantine historiographer, arguably ranking as the last historian of Antiquity. ... John of Ephesus (or of Asia), a leader of the Monophysite Syriac-speaking Church in the 6th century, and one of the earliest and most important of historians who wrote in Syriac. ... Proto-Slavic is the proto-language from which Old Church Slavonic and other Slavic languages later emerged. ... Monument to Sts. ... Thessaloniki or Salonica (Greek: Î˜ÎµÏƒÏƒÎ±Î»Î¿Î½Î¯ÎºÎ·) is Greeces second-largest city. ... Flag of Moravia Moravia (Czech and Slovak: Morava; German: ; Hungarian: ; Polish: ) is a historical region in the east of the Czech RepublicCzechia. ...

In 6th century the Turkish speaking Avars moved into the middle Danube area. Twice (562 and 566-567) the Avars had undertaken military expeditions against the Franks and their routes went through the Polish lands. While the exact nature of their relations with the Slavs there is not known (the nomad envoys bribed Slavic chiefs from the lands they did not control, including Pomerania, to secure their participation in Avar raids), the Avars had some presence or contacts in Poland also in 7th and 8th centuries, where they left artifacts in the Kraków-Nowa Huta region and elsewhere, including a bronze fixture^[76] found in the Krakus Mound.^[77]^[78]^[79] Late Avar period Map showing the location of Avar Khaganate, c. ... This article is about the Frankish people and society. ... Pommern redirects here. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Polish tribes

With the major population shifts completed, 8th century brought a measure of stability to the Slavic people settled in Poland. About one million people actively developed and utilized no more than 20-25% of the land, the rest being forest. Normal settlements, with the exception of a few fortified and cult places, were limited to lowland areas, below 350 meters above the sea level. Most villages built without artificial defensive structures were located within valley areas of natural bodies of water. The Slavs were very familiar with the water environment and used it as natural defense.

The living and economic activity structures were either distributed rather randomly, or arranged in rows or around a central empty lot. The larger settlements could have over a dozen homesteads and be occupied by 50 to 80 residents, but more typically there were just several homes with no more that 30 inhabitants. From 7th century on the previously common semi-underground dwellings were being replaced by buildings located over most of their areas or wholly above the surface (pits were dug for storage and other uses), but still consisted of just one room. As the Germanic people before, the Slavs were leaving no man's land regions between developed areas, and especially along tribal "borders", for separation from strangers and to avoid conflicts.

The Polish tribes did however leave remnants of more imposing structures - fortified settlements and other reinforced enclosures of the gord (Polish "gród")^[80] type. Those were being established on naturally suitable, defense enhancing sites beginning in late 6th or 7th century (Szeligi near Płock and Haćki are the early examples^[81]), with a large scale building effort taking place in 8th century. The gords were differently designed and of various sizes, from small to impressively massive. Ditches, walls, palisades and embankments were used to strengthen the perimeter, which involved an often complicated earthwork, wood and stone construction. Gords of the tribal period were irregularly distributed across the country, could cover an area from 0.1 to 25 hectares, have a simple or multi-segment architecture, and be protected by fortifications of different types. Some were permanently occupied by a substantial number of people or by a chief and his cohort of armed men, while other were utilized as refuges to protect the local population in case of an external danger. The gords eventually (beginning in 9th century) became nuclei of future urban developments, attracting, especially in strategic locations, tradesmen of all kinds. Gords erected in 8th century have been investigated for instance in Międzyświeć (Cieszyn County, Gołęszyce tribe) and Naszacowice (Nowy Sącz County), which was destroyed and rebuilt four times, with the final reconstruction after 989. ... Reconstructed gord in Biskupin, Poland although this isnt a Slavonic gord (it is much older), it is a good illustration of what gords looked like The ancient Slavs were known for building wooden fortified settlements. ... Bridge across the Vistula at PÅ‚ock. ... A hectare (symbol ha) is a unit of area, equal to 10 000 square metres, commonly used for measuring land area. ... Divided city. ... Coordinates: , Country Poland Voivodeship Lesser Poland Powiat City County Gmina Nowy SÄ…cz Estabilished 1292 City Rights 1292 Government - Mayor Ryszard Nowak Area - Town 57 kmÂ² (22 sq mi) Population (2005) - Town 84,594 - Density 1,484. ...

The Slavs in Poland, from 8th century on increasingly often organized in so-called great tribes, either through voluntary or forced association, were primarily agricultural people. Fields were cultivated, as well as, within settlements, nearby gardens. Plowing was done using oxen and wooden, iron reinforced plows. Forest burning was used to increase the arable area, but also provided fertilizer, as the ashes lasted in that capacity for several seasons. Rotation of crops was practiced as well as the winter/spring crop system. After several seasons of exploitation the land was being left idle to regain fertility. Wheat, millet and rye were most important; other cultivated plant species included oat, barley, pea, broad bean, lentil, flax, hemp, as well as apple, pear, plum, peach and cherry trees in fruit orchards. Beginning in 8th century, swine gradually became economically more important than cattle; sheep, goats, horses, dogs, cats, chickens, geese and ducks were also kept. The Slavic agricultural practices are known from archeological research (which also shows progressive over time increases in arable area and resulting deforestation^[82]), but also from written reports provided by Ibrahim ibn Yaqub, a 10th century Jewish traveler. An anonymous Arab writer from the turn of 9th century mentions that the Slavic people made an alcoholic beverage out of honey and their celebrations were accompanied by music played on the lute, tambourines and wind instruments. Abraham ben Jacob, better known under his Arabic name of Ibrahim ibn Yaqub was a 10th century Sefardic traveller, merchant and chronicler from Moorish-ruled á¹¬urá¹Å«Å¡ah in Al-Andalus. ... For other uses, see Jew (disambiguation). ...

Gathering, hunting and fishing were still essential as sources of food and materials, such as hide or fur. The population was, until 9th century, separated from the main centers of civilization, self-sufficient with primitive, local community and household based manufacturing. Specialized craftsmen (of rather mediocre qualifications) existed only in the fields of iron extraction from ore and processing, and pottery; the few more luxurious items were being imported. From 7th century on modestly decorated ceramics was made with the potter's wheel. 7th-9th century collections of objects have been found in Bonikowo and Bruszczewo, Kościan County (iron spurs, knives, clay containers with some ornamentation) and in Kraków-Nowa Huta region (weapons and utensils in Pleszów and Mogiła, where the most substantial of iron treasures was located), among other places. Slavic warriors were traditionally armed with spears, bows and wooden shields; occasionally seen later axes and swords are of the types popular throughout 7th-9th century Europe. Independent of distant powers the Slavic tribes in Poland lived a relatively undisturbed life, but at the cost of some civilizational backwardness. A qualitative change took place in 9th century, when the Polish lands were crossed again by long-distance trade routes, with Pomerania becoming a part of the Baltic trade zone, while Lesser Poland participated in exchange centered in the Danubian countries. Oriental silver jewelry and Arab coins, often cut into pieces, "grzywna" iron coin equivalents (of the type used in Great Moravia) in the Upper Vistula basin and even linen cloths served as currency. KoÅ›cian is a town on Obra canal in central Poland with 24,600 inhabitants (1995). ... Pommern redirects here. ... KrakÃ³w Katowice WrocÅ‚aw ÅÃ³dÅº PoznaÅ„ Bydgoszcz Lublin BiaÅ‚ystok GdaÅ„sk Szczecin Warsaw M A S O V I A S I L E S I A G R E A T E R P O L A N D L E S S E R P O... Great Moravia was an empire existing in Central Europe between 833 and the early 10th century. ...

The basic social unit was the nuclear family, consisting of parents and their children, which had to fit in a dwelling area of several to 25 square meters. A patriarchal group of related families, kin or clan, was of declining during the discussed period importance. Several or more of clan territories were grouped into a neighborhood association, or "opole". A top level of this structure was the tribe, containing several opoles and controlling a region of up to 1500 square kilometers, where internal relationships were arbitrated and external defense organized. A general assembly of all tribesmen present took care of the most pressing of issues (Thietmar of Merseburg wrote in early 11th century of the Veleti, Polabian Slavs, that their assembly kept deliberating till everybody agreed), but this so-called "war democracy" was gradually being replaced by a government system in which the tribal elders and rulers had the upper hand. This may had been necessary to facilitate the coalescing of tribes into great tribes, some of which under favorable conditions would later become tribal states. Thietmar (Dietmar or Dithmar) of Merseburg (July 25, 975 - December 1, 1018), German chronicler, was a son of Siegfried, count of Walbeck, and was related to the family of the emperor Otto the Great. ... The Veleti are a group of the Polabian Slavs. ... Polabian Slavs is a collective term applied to a number of Slavic tribes living along the Elbe, between the Baltic Sea to the north, Solau to the west and Sudetes to the south. ...

The burial customs, at least in southern Poland, included raising kurgans. The urn with the ashes was placed on the mound or on a post thrust into the ground. In that position few such urns survived, which may be why Slavic burial sites in Poland are rare. All dead, regardless of social status, were cremated and afforded a burial, according to Arab testimonies (one from the end of 9th century and another one from about 930). A Slavic funeral feast practice was also mentioned earlier by Theophylact Simocatta.^[83] Languages Arabic and other minority languages Religions Islam, Christianity, Druzism and Judaism Arab woman from Ramallah wearing traditional dress in 1915. ... Theophylact Simocatta (Theophylaktos Simokates, also Simokattes) was an early 7th century Byzantine historiographer, arguably ranking as the last historian of Antiquity. ...

According to Procopius the Slavs believed in one god, creator of lightning and master of the entire universe, to whom all sacrificial animals (sometimes people) were offered. Natural objects such as rivers, groves or mountains were also worshiped, as well as nymphs, demons, ancestral and other spirits, who were all venerated and bought off with offering rituals, which also involved augury. Such beliefs and practices were later continued, developed further and individualized by the many Slavic tribes.^[84]^[85] Procopius of Caesarea (in Greek Î ÏÎ¿ÎºÏŒÏ€Î¹Î¿Ï‚, c. ...

The Slavs erected sanctuaries, created statues and other sculptures including the four-faced Svetovid (one 9th century specimen from the Zbruch River in today's Ukraine, found in 1848, is on display at the Archeological Museum in Kraków), whose carvings symbolize various aspects of the Slavic cosmology model. Many of the sacred locations and objects were identified outside of Poland, in northeastern Germany or Ukraine. In Poland religious activity sites have been investigated in northwestern Pomerania, including Szczecin, where a three-headed deity once stood and the Wolin island, where 9th-11th century cult figurines were found.^[86] The Zbruch idol, on display in the National Museum in KrakÃ³w, Poland Modern Svetovid statue in GÅ‚ogÃ³w, Poland Modern Svetovid statue in Otrebusy, Poland Sventevith, Svetovid, Suvid, Svantevit, Svantovit, SvantovÃt, SwantovÃt, Sventovit, Zvantevith, ÅšwiÄ™towit, Sutvid, Vid. ... Zbruch River (Ukrainian: Збруч) is a river in Western Ukraine (length: 247 km, basin: 3330 sq. ... For other uses, see Krakow (disambiguation). ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Wolin is the name shared by an island located in the Baltic Sea located just off the Polish coast, and a town located on the island. ...

The Magyars were at first still another wave of nomadic invaders. Of the Finno-Ugric languages family, coming from northwestern Siberia, they migrated south and west, occupying from the end of 9th century the Pannonian Basin. From there, until the second half of 10th century, when they were forced to settle, they raided and pillaged vast areas of Europe, including Poland. A Hungarian warrior's grave (first half of 10th century), saber and ornamental elements have been found in Przemyśl area.^[87] This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Approximate geographical distribution of areas where indigenous Finno-Ugric languages are spoken. ... This article is about Siberia as a whole. ... A landscape from the Pannonian Basin - Farm on the HortobÃ¡gy, Hungary A landscape from the Pannonian Basin - Canal Danube-Tisa-Danube near the village of Rumenka, close to Novi Sad, Serbia The Pannonian Basin or Carpathian Basin is a large basin in Central Europe that remained when the Pliocene... PrzemyÅ›l (pronounce: pÊƒÎµmiÉ•l, Ukrainian: ÐŸÐµÑ€ÐµÐ¼Ð¸ÑˆÐ»ÑŒ, Peremyshl) is a town in south-eastern Poland with 67,847 inhabitants (2005). ...

9th century

The first Slavic state-like entity, the so-called Samo's Realm of King Samo, originally a Frankish trader, was close to Poland (in Bohemia and Moravia) and existed during the 623-658 period. Samo became a Slavic leader by successfully helping the Slavs defend themselves against the Avar assailants. What Samo led was probably a loose alliance of tribes and it fell apart after his death. Slavic Karantania, centered on Krnski Grad (now Karnburg in Austria), was more of a real state, developed possibly from one part of the disintegrating Samo's kingdom, but lasted under a native dynasty throughout 8th century and became Christianized. This biography does not cite any references or sources. ... This article is about the Frankish people and society. ... Flag of Bohemia Bohemia (Czech: ; German: ) is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western and middle thirds of the Czech Republic. ... Flag of Moravia Moravia (Czech and Slovak: Morava; German: ; Hungarian: ; Polish: ) is a historical region in the east of the Czech RepublicCzechia. ... Late Avar period Map showing the location of Avar Khaganate, c. ... Karantania (also Carantania, Carentania, in old Slovenian onomastics Korotan, or Karantanija) was a Slavic principality that emerged in the 7th century and was centered on the territory of contemporary Carinthia. ... The Maria Saal Cathedral Maria Saal (Slovenian: Gospa Sveta) is a market town in the district of Klagenfurt-Land in Carinthia, Austria, in the Zollfield Valley. ...

Larger scale state-generating processes and in more remote (in relation to Byzantium) Slavic areas took place in 9th century. Great Moravia became established in early 9th century south of today's Poland, but eventually encroached on and included also the Silesia and very likely Lesser Poland regions. The glory of Great Moravian empire became fully apparent in light of archeological discoveries, of which lavishly equipped burials are especially spectacular. Such finds however do not extend to the peripheral (for Great Moravia) areas of southern Poland. The great territorial expansion of Great Moravia took place during the reign of Svatopluk I, at the end of 9th century. Beyond the original Moravia and western Slovakia the Great Moravian state incorporated then also, to various degrees, Bohemia, Pannonia and the above mentioned regions of Poland. In 906 Great Moravia, weakened by an internal crisis and Magyar invasions, ceased to exist. â€œByzantineâ€ redirects here. ... Great Moravia was an empire existing in Central Europe between 833 and the early 10th century. ... Silesia (English pronunciation [], Czech: ; German: ; Latin: ; Polish: ; Silesian: ÅšlÅ¯nsk) is a historical region in central Europe, located along the upper and middle Oder River, upper Vistula River, and along the Sudetes, Carpathian (Silesian Beskids) mountain range. ... KrakÃ³w Katowice WrocÅ‚aw ÅÃ³dÅº PoznaÅ„ Bydgoszcz Lublin BiaÅ‚ystok GdaÅ„sk Szczecin Warsaw M A S O V I A S I L E S I A G R E A T E R P O L A N D L E S S E R P O... Svatopluk (-modern Czech name; modern Slovak name: SvÃ¤topluk; Old Slavic Ð¡Ð²Ñ§Ñ‚Ð¾Ð¿ÑŠÐ»ÐºÑŠ; reconstructed name: Sventopluk; some names in Latin texts: Suentopolcus, Zventopluk, Suatopluk, Zwentibald) (around 830 - 894) from the MojmÃrs dynasty was the prince of the Nitrian principality (850s - 871) and then the king of Great Moravia (871 - 894). ... Flag of Moravia Moravia (Czech and Slovak: Morava; German: ; Hungarian: ; Polish: ) is a historical region in the east of the Czech RepublicCzechia. ... Flag of Bohemia Bohemia (Czech: ; German: ) is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western and middle thirds of the Czech Republic. ... Position of the Roman province of Pannonia Pannonia is an ancient country bounded north and east by the Danube, conterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia. ... Magyar may refer to: The Magyar language The Magyar people This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

In 831 Mojmir I was baptized and his Moravian state became a part of the Bavarian Passau diocese. Aiming to achieve ecclesiastical as well as political independence from East Frankish influence, his successor Rastislav asked Byzantine emperor Michael III for missionaries. As a result Cyril and Methodius arrived in Moravia in 863 and commenced missionary activities among the Slavic people there. To further their goals the brothers developed a written Slavic liturgical language - the Old Church Slavonic, using the Glagolitic alphabet created by them. Into this language they translated the Bible and other church texts, thus establishing a foundation for the later Slavic Eastern Orthodox churches. MojmÃr I or Moymir I (* c. ... For other uses, see Bavaria (disambiguation). ... Passau (Latin: Batavis or Batavia, also Passavium; Italian: Passavia; Czech: Pasov) is a town in Niederbayern, Eastern Bavaria, Germany, known also as the DreiflÃ¼ssestadt (City of Three Rivers), because the Danube River is joined there by the Inn River from the South, and the Ilz River coming out of... Rastislav (?-870) was the second prince of Great Moravia. ... This coin struck during the regency of Theodora shows how Michael was less prominent than his mother, who is represented as ruler alone on the obverse, and even than his sister Thecla, who is depicted together with the young Michael on the reverse of this coin. ... Monument to Sts. ... Old Church Slavonic (pol. ... The Glagolitic alphabet or Glagolitsa is the oldest known Slavic alphabet. ... This Gutenberg Bible is displayed by the United States Library. ... Eastern Orthodoxy (also called Greek Orthodoxy and Russian Orthodoxy) is a Christian tradition which represents the majority of Eastern Christianity. ...

The fall of Great Moravia made room for the expansion of the Czech or Bohemian state, which likewise incorporated some of the Polish lands. The founder of the Přemyslid dynasty, Prince Borivoj was baptized by Methodius during the later part of 9th century and settled in Prague. His grandson Prince Wenceslaus, the future Czech martyr and patron saint, was killed, probably in 935, by his brother Boleslaus. Boleslaus I solidified the power of the Prague princes and most likely dominated the Lesser Poland Vistulans and Lendians tribes and at least parts of Silesia. Flag of Bohemia Bohemia (Czech: ; German: ) is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western and middle thirds of the Czech Republic. ... PÅ™emyslid coat of arms. ... Bořivoj I, Duke of Bohemia (852/853 - 888/889) The head of the Premyslid Czechs who dominated the environs of Prague, Borivoj in c. ... Nickname: Motto: Praga Caput Rei publicae Location within the Czech Republic Coordinates: , Country Czech Republic Region Capital City of Prague Founded 9th century Government - Mayor Pavel BÃ©m Area - City 496 kmÂ² (191. ... Statue of Saint Wenceslaus in Olomouc (Czech Republic). ... Boleslav (or Boleslaus) I the Cruel (? - 972), was the Duke of Bohemia from 929 or 935 to July 15, 972. ... Vistulans (Polish: WiÅ›lanie) were a Lechitic tribe inhabiting, since at least 7th century, lands known today as Lesser Poland. ... West Slavic tribes from Bavarian Geographer, 845, Lendizi nr 33 Lendians, Polish: LÄ™dzianie by Constantine VII Lendzanenoi or Lendzaninoi in 959, by Josippon Lzâ€™njn in 953, by Nestor the Chronicler, 981 - Lachy, by Ali al-Masudi Landzaneh - 940, better known in historiography by the names derived from the... Silesia (English pronunciation [], Czech: ; German: ; Latin: ; Polish: ; Silesian: ÅšlÅ¯nsk) is a historical region in central Europe, located along the upper and middle Oder River, upper Vistula River, and along the Sudetes, Carpathian (Silesian Beskids) mountain range. ...

In 9th century the Polish lands were still on the peripheries in relation to the major powers and events of medieval Europe. They were populated by many tribes of various sizes. The names of some of them are known from written sources, especially the Latin language document written in mid 9th century by the anonymous Bavarian Geographer. For other uses, see Latin (disambiguation). ... The Bavarian Geographer is anonymous medieval document prepared in ca. ...

Characteristic of the turn of 9th century was an intensification of gord building activity. The gords were the centers of social and political life, tribal leaders and elders had their headquarters in their protected environment, some of the tribal general assemblies took place inside them. Religious cult locations were commonly located in the vicinity, while the gords themselves were frequently visited by traders and artisans. Reconstructed gord in Biskupin, Poland although this isnt a Slavonic gord (it is much older), it is a good illustration of what gords looked like The ancient Slavs were known for building wooden fortified settlements. ...

In terms of economic and general civilizational achievement the most advanced region was Western Pomerania, characterized also by the most extensive contacts with the external world, and accordingly, cultural richness and diversity. Western Pomerania was a favorite destination for traders and other entrepreneurs from distant lands, some of whom were establishing local manufacturing and trade centers, usually accompanied by nearby gords inhabited by the local elite. Some of them gave rise to early towns - urban centers, such as Wolin or Szczecin. The Bavarian Geographer noticed two tribes, the Wolinians (Uelunzani) and Pyrzyczans (Prissani) in the area, each with 70 towns, but despite the high civilizational advancement, no statehood structures developed in Western Pomerania.^[88] Pommern redirects here. ... Wolin is the name shared by an island located in the Baltic Sea located just off the Polish coast, and a town located on the island. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

The Wolin settlement was established on the island of the same name in 8th century. Located at the mouth of the Oder River, from the beginning was involved with long distance Baltic Sea trade. The settlement, later a city, was pagan, multiethnic, and readily kept accepting newcomers, especially craftsmen and other professionals, from all over the world. Being located on a major intercontinental sea route, it soon became a big European industrial and trade power. Writing in 11th century Adam of Bremen saw Wolin as one of the largest European cities, inhabited by honest, good-natured and hospitable Slavic people, together with other nationalities, from the Greeks to barbarians, including the Saxons, as long as they didn't demonstrate their Christianity too openly. Wolin is the name shared by an island located in the Baltic Sea located just off the Polish coast, and a town located on the island. ... The Oder (known in Czech, Slovak and Polish as Odra) is a river in Central Europe. ... The Baltic Sea is located in Northern Europe, from 53Â°N to 66Â°N latitude and from 20Â°E to 26Â°E longitude. ... Adam of Bremen (also: Adam Bremensis) was one of the most important German medieval chroniclers. ... Location Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2) Administration Country NUTS Region DED Capital Dresden Minister-President Georg Milbradt (CDU) Governing parties CDU / SPD Votes in Bundesrat 4 (from 69) Basic statistics Area 18,416 kmÂ² (7,110 sq mi) Population 4,252,000 (11/2006)[1] - Density 231 /km...

Wolin was a central seat of the Wolinianie tribe, who possessed, besides the island, a broad stretch of the mainland, with the tribal boundaries protected by a string of gords. The city's peak of prosperity occurred around and after year 900, when a new seaport was built (the municipal complex had now four of them) and the metropolitan area was secured by walls and embankments. The archeological findings there include a great variety of imported (even from the Far East) and locally manufactured products and raw materials; amber and precious metals figure prominently, as jewelry was one of the mainstay economic activities of the Wolinian elite. The far east as a cultural block includes East Asia, Southeast Asia, Northeast Asia and South Asia. ...

After 967 Wolin became a part of the Mieszko's state, but was lost by his son Bolesław early in 11th century; afterwards its importance gradually diminished, until it was destroyed by the Danes in 1173.^[89] Reign ca. ... BolesÅ‚aw I the Brave (or Valiant) (Polish: ; Czech: Boleslav ChrabrÃ½; 967 - June 17, 1025), in the past also known as BolesÅ‚aw I the Great, in Polish: BolesÅ‚aw I Wielki), of the Piast Dynasty â€” son of Mieszko I and of his first wife, the Bohemian princess Dobrawa â€” ruled...

The other big story of this period concerns the somewhat enigmatic Wiślanie, or Vistulans (Bavarian Geographer's Vuislane) tribe. It is believed that the Vistulans of western Lesser Poland, mentioned in several contemporary written sources, were evolving in the second half of 9th century toward a supertribal state, until their efforts were terminated by the more powerful neighbors from the south. Vistulan's main town Kraków, with its Wawel gord, was located along a major "international" trade route. The main Vistulans-related archeological find (besides the above mentioned large burial mounds and the remnants of a number of gords) is the late 9th century valuable treasure of iron ax shaped grzywnas, well-known as currency units in Great Moravia. They were discovered in 1979 in a wooden chest, below the basement of a medieval house on Kanonicza Street, near the Vistula and the Wawel Hill. The total weight of the iron material is 3630 kilograms and the individual bars of various sizes (4212 of them) were bound in bundles, which suggests that the package was being readied for transportation.^[90] Vistulans (Polish: WiÅ›lanie) were a Lechitic tribe inhabiting, since at least 7th century, lands known today as Lesser Poland. ... KrakÃ³w Katowice WrocÅ‚aw ÅÃ³dÅº PoznaÅ„ Bydgoszcz Lublin BiaÅ‚ystok GdaÅ„sk Szczecin Warsaw M A S O V I A S I L E S I A G R E A T E R P O L A N D L E S S E R P O... For other uses, see Krakow (disambiguation). ... Wawel (Polish WzgÃ³rze wawelskie or for short Wawel) is the name of a lime hillock situated on the left bank of the Vistula in KrakÃ³w, Poland at an altitude of 228 metres above sea level. ... For other uses, see Vistula (disambiguation). ... The international prototype, made of platinum-iridium, which is kept at the BIPM under conditions specified by the 1st CGPM in 1889. ...

According to Constantine VII, in 6th century a White Croat state with the capital in Kraków existed around the Upper Vistula region and in northern Bohemia. In 7th century seven Croat tribes supposedly left the area for the Balkans, asked by Emperor Heraclius to help defend the imperial borders. There is however no archeological corroboration for this story, as the gord in Kraków was apparently built in 8th century. Constantine and his mother ZoÃ«. Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos or Porphyrogenitus, the Purple-born (Greek: ÎšÏ‰Î½ÏƒÏ„Î±Î½Ï„Î¯Î½Î¿Ï‚ Î–Î„ Î Î¿ÏÏ†Ï…ÏÎ¿Î³ÎÎ½Î½Î·Ï„Î¿Ï‚, KÅnstantinos VII PorphyrogennÄ“tos), (Constantinople, September 905 â€“ November 9, 959 in Constantinople) was the son of the Byzantine emperor Leo VI and his fourth wife Zoe Karbonopsina. ... White Chrobatians on a map of Eastern Europe (XIII-IXc) White Croats is the designation for a group of Croatian tribes which migrated to Dalmatia (the coastal part of todays Croatia) as part of the migration of the Croats in 610-641 A.D. Their homeland, defined by Edward... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... For the Patriarch of Jerusalem, see Patriarch Heraclius of Jerusalem. ...

Vistulan gords, built from mid 8th century on, had typically very large area, often over 10 hectares. The largest one, in Stradów, Kazimierza Wielka County, had an area of 25 hectares and walls or embankments up 18 meters high, but parts of this giant structure were probably built later. The gords were often located along the northern slope of the western Carpathian Mountains, on hills or hillsides. The buildings inside the walls were sparsely located or altogether absent, so for the most part the gords' role was other than that of settlements or administrative centers. A hectare (symbol ha) is a metric unit of surface area, equal to 100 ares (the name is a contraction of the SI prefix hecto + are). ... Kazimierza Wielka ( listen) is a town in Poland, in ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyskie Voivodship, about 45 km northeast of KrakÃ³w. ...

A large (2.5 hectares) gord was built at the turn of 8th century in Zawada Lanckorońska, Tarnów County, and rebuilt after 868. A treasure found there contains various Great Moravian type decorations dated from the late 9th century through mid 10th century. The treasure was hidden and the gord destroyed by fire during the second half of that century^[91]. TarnÃ³w is a city in south-eastern Poland with 121,500 inhabitants (1995). ...

The large mounds, up to 50 meters in diameter, are found not only in Kraków, but also in Przemyśl and Sandomierz among other places. They were probably funeral locations of rulers or chiefs, with the actual burial site, on the top of the mound, long lost. Besides the mounds-kurgans, the degree of the Wawel gord development and the grzywna treasure point to Kraków as the main center of Vistulan power (in the past Wiślica was also suspected of that role). PrzemyÅ›l (pronounce: pÊƒÎµmiÉ•l, Ukrainian: ÐŸÐµÑ€ÐµÐ¼Ð¸ÑˆÐ»ÑŒ, Peremyshl) is a town in south-eastern Poland with 67,847 inhabitants (2005). ... Flag of Sandomierz Sandomierz Coat of Arms Sandomierz(Sandomir) ( listen) is a city in south-eastern Poland with 25,714 inhabitants (2006). ... WiÅ›lica is a town on the Nida River in ÅšwiÄ™tokrzyskie Voivodship in Poland. ...

The most important Vistulans related written reference comes from the The Life of Saint Methodius, also known as The Pannonian Legend. The fragment speaks of a very powerful pagan prince, residing in the Vistulan country, who reviled the Christians and caused them great harm. He was warned by St. Methodius' emissaries speaking on the missionary's behalf (who himself may had been acting as Svatopluk's agent here), advised to reform and voluntarily accept baptism in his own homeland. Otherwise, it was predicted, he would be forced to do so in a foreign land, and, the story goes, that's what eventually happened. This passage is widely interpreted as the indication that the Vistulans were invaded and overrun by the army of Great Moravia and their pagan prince captured. It would have to happen during Methodius' second stay in Moravia, between 873 and 885, and during Svatopluk's reign. Saint Methodius (Greek: ÎœÎµÎ¸ÏŒÎ´Î¹Î¿Ï‚; Church Slavonic ÐœÐµÑ„Ð¾Ð´Ð¸Ð¸) (b. ... A landscape from the Pannonian Basin - Farm on the HortobÃ¡gy, Hungary A landscape from the Pannonian Basin - Canal Danube-Tisa-Danube near the village of Rumenka, close to Novi Sad, Serbia The Pannonian Basin or Carpathian Basin is a large basin in Central Europe that remained when the Pliocene... Svatopluk (-modern Czech name; modern Slovak name: SvÃ¤topluk; Old Slavic Ð¡Ð²Ñ§Ñ‚Ð¾Ð¿ÑŠÐ»ÐºÑŠ; reconstructed name: Sventopluk; some names in Latin texts: Suentopolcus, Zventopluk, Suatopluk, Zwentibald) (around 830 - 894) from the MojmÃrs dynasty was the prince of the Nitrian principality (850s - 871) and then the king of Great Moravia (871 - 894). ... Great Moravia was an empire existing in Central Europe between 833 and the early 10th century. ...

A further elaboration on this story is possibly found in the chronicle of Wincenty Kadłubek, written some three centuries later. The chronicler talks of a past Polish war with the army of Alexander the Great (!). The countless enemy soldiers thrust their way into Poland, and the King himself, having previously subjugated the Pannonians, entered through Moravia like through the back door, victoriously unfolded the wings of his forces, conquered the Kraków area lands and Silesia, leveling in process the ancient city walls. Obviously at some point during the intervening period, or by the chronicler himself, the glitter of the Svatopluk's army became confused with that of the emperor-warrior of another place and time. A dozen or more southern Lesser Poland gords attacked and destroyed at the end of 9th century lends some archeological credence to this version of events. Wincenty KadÅ‚ubek, also known as Vincent Kadlubek, Vincent Kadlubo, Vincent Kadlubko, Vincent of Cracow. ... For the film of the same name, see Alexander the Great (1956 film). ... Silesia (English pronunciation [], Czech: ; German: ; Latin: ; Polish: ; Silesian: ÅšlÅ¯nsk) is a historical region in central Europe, located along the upper and middle Oder River, upper Vistula River, and along the Sudetes, Carpathian (Silesian Beskids) mountain range. ... KrakÃ³w Katowice WrocÅ‚aw ÅÃ³dÅº PoznaÅ„ Bydgoszcz Lublin BiaÅ‚ystok GdaÅ„sk Szczecin Warsaw M A S O V I A S I L E S I A G R E A T E R P O L A N D L E S S E R P O...

East of the Vistulans, eastern Lesser Poland was the territory of the Lendians (Lędzianie, Bavarian Geographer's Lendizi) tribe. The Lendians had to be a very substantial tribe, since the names for Poland in the Lithuanian and Hungarian languages and for the Poles in medieval Ruthenian all begin with the letter "L", being derived from their tribe's name^[92]. After the fall of Great Moravia the Magyars controlled at least partially the territory of the Lendians. The Vistulans were probably also subjected to their rides, as an additional layer of embankments was in many cases added to the gord fortifications in the early part of 10th century. In mid 10th century the Vistulan entity was incorporated by Boleslaus I of Bohemia into the Czech state. This association turned out to be beneficial in terms of economic development, because Kraków was an important station on the Prague - Kiev trade route. The first known Christian church structures were erected on the Wawel Hill. Later in 10th century, under uncertain circumstances but in a peaceful way (the gord network suffered no damage on this occasion), the Vistulans became a part of the Piast Polish state.^[93] West Slavic tribes from Bavarian Geographer, 845, Lendizi nr 33 Lendians, Polish: LÄ™dzianie by Constantine VII Lendzanenoi or Lendzaninoi in 959, by Josippon Lzâ€™njn in 953, by Nestor the Chronicler, 981 - Lachy, by Ali al-Masudi Landzaneh - 940, better known in historiography by the names derived from the... Ruthenia is a name applied to parts of Eastern Europe which were populated by Eastern Slavic peoples, as well as to various states that existed in this territory in the past. ... This article is about the Hungarian ethnic group. ... Boleslav (or Boleslaus) I the Cruel (? - 972), was the Duke of Bohemia from 929 or 935 to July 15, 972. ... Nickname: Motto: Praga Caput Rei publicae Location within the Czech Republic Coordinates: , Country Czech Republic Region Capital City of Prague Founded 9th century Government - Mayor Pavel BÃ©m Area - City 496 kmÂ² (191. ... Map of Ukraine with Kiev highlighted Coordinates: , Country Ukraine Oblast Kiev City Municipality Raion Municipality Government - Mayor Leonid Chernovetskyi Elevation 179 m (587 ft) Population (2006) - City 4,450,968 - Density 3,299/kmÂ² (8,544. ... This article is about a Polish dynasty. ...

10th century developments in Greater Poland; Mieszko's state

9th and 10th century sources make no mention of the Polans (Polanie) tribe. The closest thing would be the huge (400 gords) Glopeani tribe of the Bavarian Geographer, whose name seems to be derived from that of Lake Gopło, but archeological investigations cannot confirm any such scale of settlement activity in Lake Gopło area. What the research does indicate is the presence of several distinct tribes in 9th century Greater Poland, one around the upper and middle Obra River basin, one in the lower Obra basin, and another one west of the Warta River. There was the Gniezno area tribe, whose settlements were concentrated around the regional cult center - the Lech Hill of today's Gniezno. Throughout 9th century the Greater Poland tribes did not constitute a uniform entity or whole in the cultural, or settlement pattern sense. The centrally located Gniezno Land was at that time rather isolated from external influences, such as from the highly developed Moravian-Czech or Baltic Sea centers. Such separation (also from the more expansive powers) was probably a positive factor, facilitating at this stage the efforts of a lineage of leaders from an elder clan of one of the tribes there, known as the Piast House, which resulted in the early part of 10th century in the establishment of an embryonic state. What was later to be called Gniezno state, also known as Mieszko's state, was expanded at the expense of the subdued tribes in Mieszko's grandfather and father times, and in particular by Mieszko himself. Writing around 965 or 966 Ibrahim ibn Yaqub described the country of Mieszko, "the king of the North", as the most wide-ranging of the Slavic lands. Mieszko, the ruler of the Slavs, was also mentioned as such at that time by Widukind of Corvey in his Res gestae saxonicae. In its mature form this state included the West Slavic lands between the Oder and Bug rivers and between the Baltic Sea and the Carpathian Mountains, including the economically crucial mouth areas of the Vistula and Oder rivers, as well as Lesser Poland and Silesia. Poland 960-992 Polans (also Polanes, Polanians, or Polians; Polish: Polanie) were a West Slavic tribe inhabiting the Warta river basin in the 8th century. ... The Bavarian Geographer is anonymous medieval document prepared in ca. ... GopÅ‚o Lake, view from the Mouse Tower of Kruszwica GopÅ‚o is a lake in Poland near the city of Gniezno in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodship. ... GopÅ‚o Lake, view from the Mouse Tower of Kruszwica GopÅ‚o is a lake in Poland near the city of Gniezno in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodship. ... Voivodship wielkopolskie since 1999 Coat of Arms for voivodship wielkopolskie Greater Poland (also Great Poland; Polish: , German: GroÃŸpolen, Latin: Polonia Maior) is a historical region of west-central Poland. ... Obra is a river in west Poland, a tributary of the Warta river (in Skwierzyna), with a length of 164 kilometres (27th longest) and the basin area of 2,758 sq. ... Warta (Latin: Varta, German: Warthe) is a river in western-central Poland, a tributary of the Oder river. ... Gniezno (pronounced: [gÉ²È‹ÎµznÉ”]) is a town in central-western Poland, some 50 km east of PoznaÅ„, inhabited by about 73,000 people. ... Lech can refer to: a Slavic, especially Polish, first name, e. ... The Piast dynasty is a line of Kings and dukes that ruled Poland from its beginnings as an independent state up to 1370. ... Reign ca. ... Abraham ben Jacob, better known under his Arabic name of Ibrahim ibn Yaqub was a 10th century Sefardic traveller, merchant and chronicler from Moorish-ruled á¹¬urá¹Å«Å¡ah in Al-Andalus. ... Widukind of Corvey was a Saxon historical chronicler, named after the famous Saxon national hero Widukind. ... The three-volume Res gestae saxonicae sive annalium libri tres is an important chronicle of the 10th century Frankish Empire written by Widukind of Corvey. ... Countries inhabited by West Slavs (in light green) Distribution of Slavic peoples by language Map showing an approximation location of Polish tribes West Slavs in 9th/10th century The West Slavs are Slavic peoples speaking West Slavic languages. ... The Oder (known in Czech, Slovak and Polish as Odra) is a river in Central Europe. ... Bug at Wlodawa One of the two rivers called Bug (pronounced Boog), the Western Bug, or Buh (Belarusian: Захо́дні Буг; Russian: За́падный Буг; Ukrainian: Західн&#1080... The Baltic Sea is located in Northern Europe, from 53Â°N to 66Â°N latitude and from 20Â°E to 26Â°E longitude. ... Satellite image of the Carpathians. ... For other uses, see Vistula (disambiguation). ... The Oder (known in Czech, Slovak and Polish as Odra) is a river in Central Europe. ... KrakÃ³w Katowice WrocÅ‚aw ÅÃ³dÅº PoznaÅ„ Bydgoszcz Lublin BiaÅ‚ystok GdaÅ„sk Szczecin Warsaw M A S O V I A S I L E S I A G R E A T E R P O L A N D L E S S E R P O... Silesia (English pronunciation [], Czech: ; German: ; Latin: ; Polish: ; Silesian: ÅšlÅ¯nsk) is a historical region in central Europe, located along the upper and middle Oder River, upper Vistula River, and along the Sudetes, Carpathian (Silesian Beskids) mountain range. ...

The Polans (tribal) name appears in writing for the first time around year 1000, like the country's name Poland (Latinized as Polonia). "Polanie" was possibly the name given later to the inhabitants of Greater Poland, originating from unknown (by name) tribes, which were instrumental in bringing about the establishment of the Polish state; one such tribe had to constitute the immediate power base of Mieszko's predecessors, if not Mieszko himself. Voivodship wielkopolskie since 1999 Coat of Arms for voivodship wielkopolskie Greater Poland (also Great Poland; Polish: , German: GroÃŸpolen, Latin: Polonia Maior) is a historical region of west-central Poland. ...

A 12th century chronicler Gallus Anonymus wrote down or invented a dynastic legend of the House of Piasts. The story gives the names of the supposed ancestors of the royal family, beginning with a man named Chościsko, father of the central figure Piast, who was a humble farmer living in Gniezno, married to Rzepicha. The male heads of the Piast clan following after him were, according to Gallus, Siemowit, Lestek, Siemomysł and Mieszko I, the first "Piast" known with historic certainty. The results of archeological studies of the Greater Poland's 9th and 10th century gords are at odds with the timing of this story. There was no Gniezno settlement in 8th or 9th century; there was a pagan cult site there beginning with the turn of 9th century. The Gniezno gord was built around year 940, possibly because the location, being of great spiritual importance to the tribal community, would rally the local population around the building and defense effort. Gallus Anonymus (Polish: Gall Anonim) living in 11th and 12th century was the first Polish historian, author of Cronicae et gesta ducum sive principum Polonorum (c. ... ChoÅ›cisko was, according to Gallus Anonymus, the father of Piast the Wheelwright, the legendary founder of the Piast dynasty. ... Piast KoÅ‚odziej (KoÅ‚odziej means wheelwright) is a legendary figure from the prehistory of Poland (8th or 9th century AD), founder of the Piast dynasty that would rule the early Kingdom of Poland. ... Rzepicha (also Rzepka) was the wife of the legendary Piast and the mother of Siemowit. ... Siemowit (also Ziemowit) was, according to the chronicles of Gallus Anonymus, the son of Piast and Rzepicha. ... Lestko (also Lestek, Leszek) is the second legendary duke of Poland, and son of Siemowit, born probably 930/940 Though proof of his actual existence is unclear, he had to have been a major figure in his time, due to the fact that before Poland existed as a state, the... SiemomysÅ‚ is the third legendary Polish duke, and said to be the father of Polands first historical ruler, Mieszko I. SiemomysÅ‚ is credited with leaving the lands known as Greater Poland to his son, who further expanded them during his reign. ... Reign From c. ...

Under the old tribal system, the tribal assembly elected a chief in case of an external threat, to lead the defense effort, and it was a temporarily granted authority. The Piast clan was able to replace it in Gniezno area with its own hereditary rule, which was in line with the trends of the times, and allowed them to create the state that they controlled. Greater Poland during the first half of 10th century was not particularly densely populated or economically developed, lagging behind such regions as Pomerania, Silesia and Lesser Poland. It was favored by the above mentioned geographic isolation, central location among the culturally similar tribes and extensive network of suitable for transportation rivers. What made the ultimate difference however could be the exceptional individualities of the Piast family members, who were able to take advantage of the arising opportunities.

The development of the Piast state can be traced to some degree by following the disappearance of the old tribal gords (many of them were built in Greater Poland during the later part of 9th century and soon thereafter), destroyed by the advancing Gniezno tribe people. For example the gords in Spławie, Września County and in Daleszyn, Gostyń County, both built soon after 899, were attacked and taken over by the Piast state forces, the first one burned during the initial period of the armed expansion. The old gords were often rebuilt and enlarged or replaced, beginning in the first decades of 10th century, by new, large and massively reinforced Piast gords. Gords of this type were erected or reconstructed from earlier ones initially in the tribe's native Gniezno Land and then elsewhere in central Greater Poland, in Grzybowo near Września (920-930), Ostrów Lednicki, Giecz, Gniezno, Bnin in Poznań County, Ląd in Słupca County and in Poznań. Connected by water communication lines, in mid 10th century the powerful gords served as the main concentrations of forces of the emerging state. In parallel with the gord building activity (920-950) the Piasts undertook military expansion, crossing Warta and moving towards the end of this period south and west within the Oder River basin (the entire network of tribal gords between the Obra and Barycz rivers was eliminated among other places), often resettling the conquered populations to central Greater Poland, partially depopulating previously well-developed regions. At the end of this stage of the Piast state formation new Piast gords were built in the (north) Noteć River area and other outlying areas of the annexed lands, for example in Santok and Śrem around 970. During the following decade the job of unifying the core of the early Piast state was finished - besides Greater Poland with Kujawy it included also much of central Poland. Masovia and parts of Pomerania found themselves increasingly under the Piast influence, while the southbound expansion was for the time being stalled, because large portions of Lesser Poland and Silesia were controlled by the Czech state. WrzeÅ›nia is a town in central Poland with 28,600 inhabitants (1995). ... GostyÅ„ is a town in Greater Poland Voivodship (from 1975 to 1998 in Leszno Voivodship), in GostyÅ„ County. ... WrzeÅ›nia is a town in central Poland with 28,600 inhabitants (1995). ... OstrÃ³w Lednicki is a castle in Poland built in mediaeval times on an island on Lake Lednica. ... Giecz is a small village in Poland, in the Greater Polish Voivodship, near Dominowo and Åšroda. ... Gniezno (pronounced: [gÉ²È‹ÎµznÉ”]) is a town in central-western Poland, some 50 km east of PoznaÅ„, inhabited by about 73,000 people. ... Coordinates: , Country Voivodeship Powiat city county Gmina PoznaÅ„ Established 8th century City Rights 1253 Government - Mayor Ryszard Grobelny Area - City 261. ... SÅ‚upca is a town in Greater Poland Voivodship, Poland, capital of SÅ‚upca district. ... Coordinates: , Country Voivodeship Powiat city county Gmina PoznaÅ„ Established 8th century City Rights 1253 Government - Mayor Ryszard Grobelny Area - City 261. ... The Oder (known in Czech, Slovak and Polish as Odra) is a river in Central Europe. ... Obra is a river in west Poland, a tributary of the Warta river (in Skwierzyna), with a length of 164 kilometres (27th longest) and the basin area of 2,758 sq. ... Barycz is a river in western Poland, a right tributary of the Odra River. ... Santok (German: ) is a village in Poland, Lubusz Voivodeship, GorzÃ³w Wielkopolski County. ... Water tower in Åšrem Åšrem is a town on the Warta river in central Poland. ... Kuyavia (sometimes spelt Cuyavia, Polish Kujawy) is a historical region of Poland, between the Vistula to the east and Noteć river to the west and between Noteć and Krówka river to the south. ... Historical division of Masovia Masovia (Polish: Mazowsze) is a geographical and historical region situated in central Poland with its capital at Warsaw. ... Pommern redirects here. ...

The expanding Piast state developed a professional military force. According to Ibrahim ibn Yaqub, Mieszko collected taxes in the form of weights used for trading and spent those taxes as monthly pay for his warriors. He had three thousands of heavily armored mounted soldiers alone, whose quality according to Ibrahim was very impressive. Mieszko provided for all their equipment and needs, even military pay for their sons, from the moment they were born. This force was supported by a greater number of foot fighters. Numerous armaments were found in the Piast gords, many of them of foreign, e.g. Frankish or Scandinavian origin. Mercenaries from these regions, as well as German and Norman knights, constituted a significant element of Mieszko's elite fighting guard. This article is about the Frankish people and society. ... For other uses, see Scandinavia (disambiguation). ... Norman conquests in red. ...

To sustain this military machine and to meet other state expenses large amounts of revenue were necessary. Greater Poland had some natural resources used for trade such as fur, hide, honey and wax, but those surely did not provide enough income. According to Ibrahim ibn Yaqub, Prague in Bohemia, a city built of stone, was the main center for the exchange of trading commodities in this part of Europe. The Slavic traders brought here from Kraków tin and other products they had and most importantly slaves; Muslim, Jewish, Hungarian and other traders were the buyers. The Life of St. Adalbert, written at the end of 10th century by John Canaparius, lists the fate of many Christian slaves, sold in Prague "for the wretched gold", as the main curse of the time (dragging of shackled slaves is shown as one of the scenes on the bronze 12th century Gniezno Doors). It may well be that the territorial expansion financed itself, and partially the expanding state, by being the source of loot, of which the captured local people were the most valuable part. The scale of the human trade practice is however arguable, because much of the population from the defeated tribes was resettled for agricultural work or in the near-gord settlements, where they could serve the victors in various capacities and thus contribute to the economic and demographic potential of the state. Considerable increase of population density was characteristic of the newly established states in eastern and central Europe. The slave trade not being enough, the Piast state had to look for other options for generating revenue. Nickname: Motto: Praga Caput Rei publicae Location within the Czech Republic Coordinates: , Country Czech Republic Region Capital City of Prague Founded 9th century Government - Mayor Pavel BÃ©m Area - City 496 kmÂ² (191. ... For other uses, see Krakow (disambiguation). ... Silver coffin of St. ... John Canaparius (Jan Kanaperiusz) was a Benedictine monk at Aventine monastery in Rome. ... Gniezno door - general view Scene no. ...

The answer lies in the Piast tendency to subdue Pomerania with its Baltic Sea shores, an especially persistent effort during the Mieszko's rule. The area was the site of wealthy trade emporiums, frequently visited by traders, especially from the east, west and north. Controlling in particular the rich seaports of Western Pomerania situated on long distance trade routes, such as Wolin, Szczecin and Kołobrzeg, would be very profitable. Pommern redirects here. ... Wolin is the name shared by an island located in the Baltic Sea located just off the Polish coast, and a town located on the island. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Coordinates: , Country Poland Voivodeship West Pomeranian Powiat KoÅ‚obrzeg County Gmina KoÅ‚obrzeg Estabilished 10th century City Rights 1255 Government - Mayor Janusz Gromek Area - Town 25. ...

The Piast state reached the mouth of the Vistula first. Based on the investigations of the gords erected along the middle and lower Vistula, it appears that the lower Vistula waterway was under the Piast control from about mid 10th century. A powerful gord built in Gdańsk, under Mieszko at the latest, solidified the Piast rule over Eastern Pomerania. Western Pomerania turned out to be a more difficult issue to deal with. The mouth of the Oder River was firmly controlled by the Wolinians tribe, who were allied with the Veleti. "The Veleti are fighting Mieszko", reported Ibrahim ibn Yaqub, "and their military might is great". Widukind wrote about the events of 963, involving the person of the Saxon Graf Wichmann, an adventurer exiled from his country. According to Widukind, "Wichmann went to the barbarians (probably the Veleti or the Wolinians) and leading them twice defeated Mieszko, killed his brother and acquired a great deal of spoils". As the German state was at that time getting increasingly involved in its eastbound expansion, Thietmar also claims that Mieszko with his people became in 963, together with other Slavic entities such as the Lusatians, subjects of the Holy Roman Emperor, forced into that role by the powerful Margrave Gero of the Saxon Eastern March. For other uses, see Vistula (disambiguation). ... Motto: Nec temere, nec timide (No rashness, no timidness) Coordinates: , Country Poland Voivodeship Pomeranian Powiat city county Gmina GdaÅ„sk Established 10th century City Rights 1263 Government - Mayor PaweÅ‚ Adamowicz Area - City 262 kmÂ² (101. ... The Oder (known in Czech, Slovak and Polish as Odra) is a river in Central Europe. ... The Veleti are a group of the Polabian Slavs. ... Widukind of Corvey was a Saxon historical chronicler, named after the famous Saxon national hero Widukind. ... Look up Saxon in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For other uses, see Graf (disambiguation). ... Wichmann II the Younger (also spelled Wigmann or Wichman; died 22 September 967) was a member of the Saxon House of Billung. ... Thietmar (Dietmar or Dithmar) of Merseburg (July 25, 975 - December 1, 1018), German chronicler, was a son of Siegfried, count of Walbeck, and was related to the family of the emperor Otto the Great. ... Sorbian national flag The Sorbs (also Lusatians or Lusatia Serbs) are a relatively small west Slavic people, living as a minority in the region known as Lusatia in the German states of Saxony and Brandenburg (in former GDR territory). ... This article is about the medieval empire. ... Margrave (Latin: marchio) is the English and French form (recorded since 1551) of the German title Markgraf (from Mark march and Graf count) and certain equivalent nobiliary (princely) titles in other languages. ... 14th-century wall painting depiciting Gero in the chuch he founded at Gernrode. ... The Saxon Eastern March or Ostmark (German: ) was a march of the Holy Roman Empire from the 10th until the 12th century. ...

Such series of military reverses and detrimental relationships, which also involved the Czech Přemyslids allied with the Veleti, compelled Mieszko to seek the support of the German Emperor Otto I. This must had worked out, since Widukind then described Mieszko as "a friend of the Emperor". A pact was negotiated and finalized no later than in 965. The price Mieszko had to pay for the imperial protection was becoming the Emperor's vassal, paying him tribute from the lands up to the Warta River, and, very likely, making a promise of accepting Christianity. PÅ™emyslid coat of arms. ... For others with the same name, see Otto I (disambiguation). ... Look up vassal in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Warta (Latin: Varta, German: Warthe) is a river in western-central Poland, a tributary of the Oder river. ...

The baptism and the attendant processes did not take place through Mieszko's German connections though. Installing in Poland the Christian Church in its western Latin Rite brought Mieszko's country into the realm of the ancient Mediterranean culture, but was done in response to the immediate practical concerns. Of these the preeminent was the increasing pressure of the eastbound expansion (between the Elbe and the Oder rivers) of the German state and its plans to control the parallel expansion of the Church through the archdiocese in Magdeburg, the establishment of which was finalized in 968. This article is about the Christian religious act of Baptism. ... Topics in Christianity Movements Â· Denominations Â· Other religions Ecumenism Â· Preaching Â· Prayer Music Â· Liturgy Â· Calendar Symbols Â· Art Â· Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul Â· Church Fathers Constantine Â· Athanasius Â· Augustine Anselm Â· Aquinas Â· Palamas Â· Luther Calvin Â· Wesley Arius Â· Marcion of Sinope Archbishop of Canterbury Â· Catholic Pope Coptic Pope Â· Ecumenical Patriarch Christianity Portal This box: Christianity is... The Latin Rite is one of the 23 sui iuris particular Churches within the Catholic Church. ... The Mediterranean Sea is an intercontinental sea positioned between Europe to the north, Africa to the south and Asia to the east, covering an approximate area of 2. ... This article is about a river in Central Europe. ... The Oder (known in Czech, Slovak and Polish as Odra) is a river in Central Europe. ... In Christianity, an archbishop is an elevated bishop. ... This article is about the German city. ...

Mieszko at that time was in process of fixing the uneasy so far, mainly because of the Czech cooperation with the Veleti, relationship with the Bohemian state of Boleslaus I. Already in 964 the two parties arrived at an agreement on that and other issues. In 965 Mieszko married Boleslaus' daughter Doubravka. Mieszko's chosen Christian princess Dobrawa, as she is called in Polish, a woman possibly in her twenties, was a devout Christian and Mieszko's own baptism had to be a part of the deal. This act in fact followed in 966 and initialized the Christianization of Greater Poland, a region so far, unlike Lesser Poland and Silesia, not exposed to Christian influence. In 968 an independent bishopric, reporting directly to the Pope was established, with Jordan installed as the first bishop. The Veleti are a group of the Polabian Slavs. ... Boleslav (or Boleslaus) I the Cruel (? - 972), was the Duke of Bohemia from 929 or 935 to July 15, 972. ... Dubrawka, by Jan Matejko Dubrawka of Bohemia (Czech, Doubravka; Polish, Dobrawa or DÄ…brÃ³wka; born circa 925/931, died 977) was the daughter of Duke Boleslav I of Bohemia and of Adiva of England. ... Events April 14 or April 30 - Mieszko I, first duke of Poland, baptised a Christian Births Fujiwara no Michinaga, Japanese regent Deaths King Dubh I of Scotland Categories: 966 ... Pope Pius XI blesses Bishop Stephen Alencastre as fifth Apostolic Vicar of the Hawaiian Islands in a Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace window. ...

The scope of the Christianization mission in its early phase was quite limited geographically and the few relics that have survived come from Gniezno Land. Stone churches and baptisteries were discovered within the Ostrów Lednicki and Poznań gords. Poznań was also the site of the first cathedral, the bishopric seat of Jordan and Bishop Unger, who followed him. In Christian architecture the baptistery or baptistry (Latin baptisterium) is the separate centrally-planned structure surrounding the baptismal font. ... OstrÃ³w Lednicki is a castle in Poland built in mediaeval times on an island on Lake Lednica. ... Coordinates: , Country Voivodeship Powiat city county Gmina PoznaÅ„ Established 8th century City Rights 1253 Government - Mayor Ryszard Grobelny Area - City 261. ... For other uses, see Cathedral (disambiguation). ... Unger (died 9 June 1012) â€” bishop of Poland with seat in PoznaÅ„, after year 1000 bishop of PoznaÅ„ independent from archbishop of Gniezno. ...

Newer research points out to some other intriguing possibilities regarding the early origins of the Polish state in Greater Poland. There are indications that the processes that led to the establishment of the Piast state began during the 890-910 period. During these years a tremendous civilizational advancement took place in central Greater Poland, as the unearthed products of all kinds are better made and more luxurious. The timing coincides with the breakdown of the Great Moravian state caused by the Magyar invasions. Before and after its 905-907 fall, fearing for their lives many Great Moravian people had to escape. According to the notes made by Constantine VII, they found refuge in the neighboring countries. Decorations found in Sołacz graves in Poznań have their counterparts in burial sites around Nitra in Slovakia. In Nitra area also there was in medieval times a well-known clan named Poznan. It could be that the Poznań town was established by the Nitran refugees, and more generally, the immigrants from Great Moravia contributed to the sudden awakening of the otherwise remote and isolated Piast lands. Great Moravia was an empire existing in Central Europe between 833 and the early 10th century. ... Magyar may refer to: The Magyar language The Magyar people This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Constantine and his mother ZoÃ«. Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos or Porphyrogenitus, the Purple-born (Greek: ÎšÏ‰Î½ÏƒÏ„Î±Î½Ï„Î¯Î½Î¿Ï‚ Î–Î„ Î Î¿ÏÏ†Ï…ÏÎ¿Î³ÎÎ½Î½Î·Ï„Î¿Ï‚, KÅnstantinos VII PorphyrogennÄ“tos), (Constantinople, September 905 â€“ November 9, 959 in Constantinople) was the son of the Byzantine emperor Leo VI and his fourth wife Zoe Karbonopsina. ... Coordinates: , Country Voivodeship Powiat city county Gmina PoznaÅ„ Established 8th century City Rights 1253 Government - Mayor Ryszard Grobelny Area - City 261. ... Nitra - City Center Nitra (German: ( ); Hungarian: / Nyitria [archaic]) is a city in western Slovakia (and the fourth largest urban settlement in Slovakia) situated at the foot of Zobor Mountain in the Nitra River valley. ...

Early expansion of the Gniezno Land tribe began very likely under Mieszko's grandfather Lestek, the probable real founder of the Piast state. Widukind's chronicle speaks of Mieszko ruling the Slavic nation called "Licicaviki", which was what Widukind made out of "Lestkowicy", the people of Lestko, or Lestek. Lestek was also reflected in the sagas of the Normans, who are believed by some to had played a role in Poland's origins. Siemomysł and then Mieszko continued after Lestek, whose tradition was alive within the Piast court when Bolesław III Wrymouth gave this name to one of his sons and Gallus Anonymous wrote his chronicle. The "Lechici" term popular later, synonymous with "Poles", like the legend of Lech, may also had been inspired by Mieszko's grandfather. This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Norman conquests in red. ... BolesÅ‚aw III Wrymouth. ... Gallus Anonymus (Polish: Gall Anonim; 11th-12th centuries) is considered to be the first author of Polish history by creating the work Cronicae et gesta ducum sive principum Polonorum (Chronicles and Deeds of the Dukes or Princes of the Poles, ca. ... Lech by Walery Eljasz-Radzikowski (1841-1905) Duke Czech Lech, Czech and Rus oaks in Rogalin, Poland According to an old legend, Lech, Czech and Rus were eponymous brothers who founded the three Slavic nations: Poland (poetically also known as Lechia), Bohemia (ÄŒechy â€“ now the major part of the Czech...

There is some disagreement as to the early seat of the ruling clan. Traditionally Gniezno was seen in that role, but the gord in Gniezno didn't even exist until about 940. The relics (including a great concentration of silver treasures) found in Giecz, where the original gord was built some 80 years earlier, later turned into a powerful Piast stronghold, point to that location. Others see early capitals in the old gords of Grzybowo, Kalisz (located away from Gniezno Land) or Poznań. Older than Gniezno Poznań, where the first cathedral church, a monumental structure, was erected, was likely the original Mieszko's court site in the earlier years of his reign. The events of 974-978, when Mieszko, like his brother-in-law Boleslaus II of Bohemia, supported Henry II in his rebellion against Otto II, created a threat of the Emperor's retribution (ineffective, as it turned out) and probably motivated Mieszko to move the government to the safer, because of its more eastern location, Gniezno (the growing importance of Gniezno was reflected in the addition around 980 of the new southern part to the original two segments of the gord). This geographical advantage continued in the years to come, so in the Dagome iudex document written 991/992 before Mieszko's death, Mieszko's state is called Civitas Gnesnensis, or Gniezno State. Gniezno (pronounced: [gÉ²È‹ÎµznÉ”]) is a town in central-western Poland, some 50 km east of PoznaÅ„, inhabited by about 73,000 people. ... Giecz is a small village in Poland, in the Greater Polish Voivodship, near Dominowo and Åšroda. ... Kalisz (pronounce: [kaliÊƒ]) is a city in central Poland with 109,800 inhabitants (1995). ... Coordinates: , Country Voivodeship Powiat city county Gmina PoznaÅ„ Established 8th century City Rights 1253 Government - Mayor Ryszard Grobelny Area - City 261. ... Boleslaus II the Pious Boleslaus II the Pious (Czech: ; ca. ... Henry II the Wrangler Henry II (951â€“995), called the Wrangler or the Quarrelsome, in German Heinrich der ZÃ¤nker, was the son of Henry I and Judith of Bavaria. ... Otto II and Theophano. ... Dagome iudex is the name applied to one of the earliest documents supposedly relating to Poland, which refers to Dago/Dagr of the Norwegian Daglingers, (who was later called Mieszko I), and his wife Oda in 991, placing the land of the Polans with its capital, Gniezno, under the protection...

The enormous effort of the 100-150 thousands of residents of the Gniezno region involved in building or modernizing Gniezno and several other main Piast gords (all of the local supply of oak timber was exhausted) was made in response to a perceived deadly threat, not just to help them pursue regional conquests. After 935, when the Gniezno people were probably already led by Mieszko's father Siemomysł, the Czechs conquered Silesia and soon moved also against Germany. The fear of desecration of their tribal cult center by the advancing Czechs could had mobilized the community. Also a Polabian Slavs uprising was suppressed around 940 by Germany under Otto I and the eastbound moving Saxons must had added to the sense of danger at that time (unless the Piast state was already allied with Otto, helping restrain the Polabians). When the situation stabilized, the Piast state consolidated and the huge gords turned out handy for facilitating their own expansion, led at this stage by Siemomysł. SiemomysÅ‚ is the third legendary Polish duke, and said to be the father of Polands first historical ruler, Mieszko I. SiemomysÅ‚ is credited with leaving the lands known as Greater Poland to his son, who further expanded them during his reign. ... Silesia (English pronunciation [], Czech: ; German: ; Latin: ; Polish: ; Silesian: ÅšlÅ¯nsk) is a historical region in central Europe, located along the upper and middle Oder River, upper Vistula River, and along the Sudetes, Carpathian (Silesian Beskids) mountain range. ... Polabian Slavs is a collective term applied to a number of Slavic tribes living along the Elbe, between the Baltic Sea to the north, Solau to the west and Sudetes to the south. ...

Fighting the Veleti from the beginning of Mieszko's rule led to a natural at this point alliance of his state with Germany. The victory achieved in September of 967, when Wichmann, leading this time according to Widukind the forces of the Wolinians was killed and Mieszko had his revenge (additional mounted units were provided by Mieszko's father-in-law Boleslaus), was recognized by the Emperor as the turning point in the struggle to contain the Polabian Slavs, which distracted him from pursuing his Italian policies. This new status allowed Mieszko to successfully pursue the efforts leading to obtaining by his country an independent bishopric even before the Czechs, who had a vastly longer tradition of Christianity behind them. This victory, as well as succesful fighting with Margrave Hodo that followed in 972, allowed Mieszko to complete the conquest of Pomerania as far west as the lower Oder River vicinity, including the rich and powerful Wolin, which however remained autonomous and pagan. Szczecin was the other major center of that region and Kołobrzeg, where a strong gord was built around 985 was probably the actual center of Piast power there. In the west Lubusz Land was also under Mieszko's control and another important gord was built in Włocławek much further east. Masovia was still more loosely associated with the Piast state, while Sandomierz region was for a while their southern outpost. The Veleti are a group of the Polabian Slavs. ... Wichmann II the Younger (also spelled Wigmann or Wichman; died 22 September 967) was a member of the Saxon House of Billung. ... Widukind of Corvey was a Saxon historical chronicler, named after the famous Saxon national hero Widukind. ... Wolin is the name shared by an island located in the Baltic Sea located just off the Polish coast, and a town located on the island. ... Boleslav (or Boleslaus) I the Cruel (? - 972), was the Duke of Bohemia from 929 or 935 to July 15, 972. ... Pope Pius XI blesses Bishop Stephen Alencastre as fifth Apostolic Vicar of the Hawaiian Islands in a Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace window. ... Margrave (Latin: marchio) is the English and French form (recorded since 1551) of the German title Markgraf (from Mark march and Graf count) and certain equivalent nobiliary (princely) titles in other languages. ... Odo I or Hodo I (also Huodo or Huoto; died 13 March 993) was the Margrave of the Saxon Ostmark from 965 until his death. ... Pommern redirects here. ... Wolin is the name shared by an island located in the Baltic Sea located just off the Polish coast, and a town located on the island. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Coordinates: , Country Poland Voivodeship West Pomeranian Powiat KoÅ‚obrzeg County Gmina KoÅ‚obrzeg Estabilished 10th century City Rights 1255 Government - Mayor Janusz Gromek Area - Town 25. ... Lubus Land, Lebus Land ( pol: Ziemia Lubuska ger: Land Lebus, czech: Lubušsko) on the Oder river. ... WÅ‚ocÅ‚awek (pronounce: [vÈ—oÊ¦wavek]) is a town in central Poland on the Vistula river, with population of approximately 123 000. ... Historical division of Masovia Masovia (Polish: Mazowsze) is a geographical and historical region situated in central Poland with its capital at Warsaw. ... Flag of Sandomierz Sandomierz Coat of Arms Sandomierz(Sandomir) ( listen) is a city in south-eastern Poland with 25,714 inhabitants (2006). ...

Dendrological studies, which form the important bases of wooden settlement dating, show the construction of powerful Piast gords in western Silesia region along the Oder River (Głogów, Wrocław and Opole) in 985 at the latest. The alliance with the Czechs was by that time over, Mieszko allied with Germany fought the Přemyslids and took over that part of Silesia and also eastern Lesser Poland, the Lendian lands. In 989 Kraków with the rest of Lesser Poland was taken over (autonomous under the Czech rule, the region preserved its special status within the Piast state) and in 990 eastern Silesia, which completed the Piast takeover of southern Poland. Dendrology, from the Ancient Greek Î´ÎÎ½Î´ÏÎ¿Î½ meaning tree and Î»ÏŒÎ³Î¿Ï‚ meaning study, is the science of trees, and more generally the study of woody plants. ... Silesia (English pronunciation [], Czech: ; German: ; Latin: ; Polish: ; Silesian: ÅšlÅ¯nsk) is a historical region in central Europe, located along the upper and middle Oder River, upper Vistula River, and along the Sudetes, Carpathian (Silesian Beskids) mountain range. ... The Oder (known in Czech, Slovak and Polish as Odra) is a river in Central Europe. ... GÅ‚ogÃ³w (pronounce: [gÈ—oguv], German: Glogau, Czech: Hlohov, the latter rare) is a town in southwestern Poland. ... Motto: Miasto spotkaÅ„ (the meeting place) Coordinates: , Country Poland Voivodeship Lower Silesian Powiat city county Gmina WrocÅ‚aw Established 10th century City Rights 1262 Government - Mayor RafaÅ‚ Dutkiewicz Area - City 292. ... Opole ( ; German: ) is a city in southern Poland on the Oder River (Odra). ... PÅ™emyslid coat of arms. ... KrakÃ³w Katowice WrocÅ‚aw ÅÃ³dÅº PoznaÅ„ Bydgoszcz Lublin BiaÅ‚ystok GdaÅ„sk Szczecin Warsaw M A S O V I A S I L E S I A G R E A T E R P O L A N D L E S S E R P O... West Slavic tribes from Bavarian Geographer, 845, Lendizi nr 33 Lendians, Polish: LÄ™dzianie by Constantine VII Lendzanenoi or Lendzaninoi in 959, by Josippon Lzâ€™njn in 953, by Nestor the Chronicler, 981 - Lachy, by Ali al-Masudi Landzaneh - 940, better known in historiography by the names derived from the... For other uses, see Krakow (disambiguation). ...

Silver treasures, common in the Scandinavian countries, are found also in Slavic areas including Poland, especially northern Poland. Silver objects, coins and decorations, often cut into pieces, are believed to had served as currency units, brought in by Jewish and Arab traders, but locally more as accumulations of wealth and symbols of prestige. The process of hiding or depositing them, besides protecting them from danger, is believed to represent a cult ritual. For other uses, see Scandinavia (disambiguation). ...

The silver treasures, sometimes wrapped in a cloth and weighing up to several kilograms, were placed in clay containers. The oldest ones, from the end of 8th century through the turn of 9th century contain Arab dirhem coins; German, English, Czech and Hungarian currency occurs from mid 10th century and Polish coins from the turn of 10th century. Besides the coins, fine (but damaged through cutting) ornaments are present as well as silver "pancakes", that is pieces of melted silver, and more rarely, complete undamaged jewelry and other products. Dirham is a unit of currency in several Arabic-speaking nations, including: Islamic Dirham The Moroccan dirham The United Arab Emirates dirham 1/1000 of the Libyan dinar 1/100 of the Qatari riyal 1/10 of the Jordanian dinar The dirham, spelt diram, is 1/100 of the Tajikistani...

A treasure located in Góra Strękowa, Białystok County, hidden after 901, includes dirhem coins minted between 764 and 901 and Slavic decorations made in southern Ruthenia, showing Byzantine influence. This find is a manifestation of a 10th century trade route running all the way from Central Asia, through Byzantium, Kiev, the Dnieper and Pripyat rivers basins and Masovia, to the Baltic Sea shores. Such treasures most likely belonged to members of the emerging elites. Coordinates: , Country Poland Voivodeship Podlachian Powiat city county Gmina BiaÅ‚ystok Established 14th century City Rights 1692 Government - Mayor Tadeusz Truskolaski Area - City 102 kmÂ² (39. ... Ruthenia is a name applied to parts of Eastern Europe which were populated by Eastern Slavic peoples, as well as to various states that existed in this territory in the past. ... Map of Central Asia showing three sets of possible boundaries for the region Central Asia located as a region of the world Central Asia is a vast landlocked region of Asia. ... Byzantium (Greek: Î’Ï…Î¶Î¬Î½Ï„Î¹Î¿Î½) was an ancient Greek city, which, according to legend, was founded by Greek colonists from Megara in 667 BC and named after their king Byzas or Byzantas (Î’ÏÎ¶Î±Ï‚ or Î’ÏÎ¶Î±Î½Ï„Î±Ï‚ in Greek). ... Map of Ukraine with Kiev highlighted Coordinates: , Country Ukraine Oblast Kiev City Municipality Raion Municipality Government - Mayor Leonid Chernovetskyi Elevation 179 m (587 ft) Population (2006) - City 4,450,968 - Density 3,299/kmÂ² (8,544. ... The Dnieper River (Russian: , Dnepr; Belarusian: , Dniapro; Ukrainian: , Dnipro) is a river which flows from Russia, through Belarus and Ukraine, ending its flow in the Black Sea. ... The Pripyat River (Ukrainian: Припять, Prýpyat; Belarusian: Прыпяць, Prýpyats, Polish Prypeć) is a river in Eastern Europe, of approximately 440 miles (710 km). ... Historical division of Masovia Masovia (Polish: Mazowsze) is a geographical and historical region situated in central Poland with its capital at Warsaw. ... The Baltic Sea is located in Northern Europe, from 53Â°N to 66Â°N latitude and from 20Â°E to 26Â°E longitude. ...

References and notes

^ ^a ^b ^c U źródeł Polski, p. 10-25, Jan M. Burdukiewicz
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 55-58
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 26-31, Jan M. Burdukiewicz
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 112
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 32-39, Ryszard Grygiel
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 123
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 40-47, Ryszard Grygiel
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 48-53, Ryszard Grygiel
^ Archeologia Żywa (Archeology Alive) quarterly, Warsaw, issue 3-4(29-30)2004, "Bruszczewo..." by Janusz Czebreszuk, Johannes Muller
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 54-59, Sławomir Kadrow
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 60-63, Bogusław Gediga
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 84, Adam Żurek
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 63-67, Bogusław Gediga
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 187
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 68-82, Bogusław Gediga
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 84-85, Adam Żurek
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 78-83, Bogusław Gediga
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 117, Danuta Jaskanis
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 187, 225
^ Polish Wikipedia article on this culture
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 101, Tadeusz Makiewicz
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 86-91, Bogusław Gediga
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 92-93, Marek Derwich
^ The Lusatian and Pomeranian people linguistically may had belonged to the hypothetical Old European Languages group (Pre-Indo-European), which is the probable source of the names of many European rivers. Their descendants possibly constituted the bulk of the Przeworsk culture population in its early stages. Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 348
^ U źródeł Polski, map on p.88
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 94-96, Tadeusz Makiewicz
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, map on p. 210 and p. 215-216
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 216
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 327-330
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 94-97, Tadeusz Makiewicz
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 101, Tadeusz Makiewicz; the story is told in Naturalis Historia by Pliny the Elder
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 101-103, Tadeusz Makiewicz; this would appear to contradict the "countless multitude" of Lugii warriors, as seen by Tacitus
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 98-105, Tadeusz Makiewicz
^ U źródeł Polski, maps on p. 100 and 108
^ Polish Wikipedia article on this culture
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 256
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 114-115, Borys Paszkiewicz
^ Polish Wikipedia article on Przywóz
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, map on p. 302
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 222, Wojciech Mrozowicz, Adam Żurek
^ Problem kontynuacji kulturowej... by Tadeusz Makiewicz, from Praojczyzna Słowian, Institute of Anthropology in Poznań
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 106-113 and 120, Tadeusz Makiewicz
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 327-331
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 120-121, Tadeusz Makiewicz
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 102, Tadeusz Makiewicz
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 299-300
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 331-333
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 116-119, Danuta Jaskanis
^ This is the so-called allochthonic theory; according to the autochthonic theory the opposite is true
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 337
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 327-330 and specifically 346
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 334
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 232, 351
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 125-126, Michał Parczewski
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 191, 212, 228-230, 232, 281
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 281, 302, 303, 334, 351
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 126, Michał Parczewski
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 126, Michał Parczewski
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 327, 334, 351
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 333, 334
^ The web site of the Institute of Archeology, Jagiellonian University - Bachórz
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 124, Michał Parczewski
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 334-337
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 123-126, Michał Parczewski
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 337
^ Polish Wikipedia article "Historia Polski (do 1138)"
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 327, 337-338
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 337-338
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 126-127, Michał Parczewski
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 259, 350
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 102, Tadeusz Makiewicz
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 250, 329, 330, 333, 350, 352
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 122, 123, 126, Michał Parczewski
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 122-127, Michał Parczewski
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 124, 126, Michał Parczewski
^ From the turn of 7th century, used to date the mound itself. U źródeł Polski, p. 141, Zofia Kurnatowska
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 338-339
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 128-129, Michał Parczewski
^ This and the preceding sections reflect the contemporary point of view of the Polish and East European archeologies. Many of the concepts presented were originally formulated by Kazimierz Godłowski of the Jagiellonian University.
^ gród (pron. grood) or gord - a Slavic or pre-Slavic fortified settlement or other area built with wood as the primary component
^ Kaczanowski, Kozłowski, p. 339
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 148, Zofia Kurnatowska
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 125, 133, Michał Parczewski
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 125, Michał Parczewski
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 134, Stanisław Rosik
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 134-135, Stanisław Rosik
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 128-133, Michał Parczewski
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 136-140, Zofia Kurnatowska
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 142-143, Władysław Filipowiak
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 140-141, Zofia Kurnatowska
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 164, Zofia Kurnatowska
^ U źródeł Polski, p. 147, Zofia Kurnatowska
^ Polish Wikipedia article on the Wiślanie tribe

Wydawnictwo DolnoÅ›lÄ…skie is a publishing company founded in 1986 with cooperation with Bertelsmann Media. ... Map showing the Neolithic expansions from the 7th to the 5th millennium BCE Europe in ca. ... Naturalis Historia Pliny the Elders Natural History is an encyclopedia written by Pliny the Elder. ... Pliny the Elder: an imaginative 19th Century portrait. ... Distribution of Slavic people by language The Slavic peoples are a linguistic and ethnic branch of Indo-European peoples, living mainly in Europe, where they constitute roughly a third of the population. ... Distribution of Slavic people by language The Slavic peoples are a linguistic and ethnic branch of Indo-European peoples, living mainly in Europe, where they constitute roughly a third of the population. ... For several academies alternatively called Krakow Academy, see Education in KrakÃ³w The Jagiellonian University (Polish: , often shortened to UJ) is located in KrakÃ³w, Poland. ... Kazimierz GodÅ‚owski (1934-09-12 in KrakÃ³w - 1995-09-07) was a Polish archaeologist. ... For several academies alternatively called Krakow Academy, see Education in KrakÃ³w The Jagiellonian University (Polish: , often shortened to UJ) is located in KrakÃ³w, Poland. ...

Contents

Prehistory of Polish lands from earliest human settlements through the Roman Empire times

Homo erectus

Homo neanderthalensis

Homo sapiens

Mesolithic hunters and gatherers

Introduction of agriculture - Danubian cultures of farming communities

Neolithic cultures developed by native populations

Late Neolithic arrivals from eastern and western regions of Europe

Unetice and other Bronze Age cultures

Lusatian culture of the later Bronze Age

Lusatian culture of the early Iron Age

Pomeranian culture, Western Baltic Kurgans culture

Celtic peoples

Early Germanic peoples

Germanic cultures and tribes in Roman times

"Barbarians", Late Roman Empire and the Great Migration of Peoples

Baltic peoples

Slavic peoples - Polish myths and legends

Slavic origins of the Polish nation and state (5th - 10th century)

Early Slavic peoples

Polish tribes

9th century

10th century developments in Greater Poland; Mieszko's state

References and notes

See also

Contents

Prehistory of Polish lands from earliest human settlements through the Roman Empire times var ACE_AR = {Site: '756743', Size: '300250'};

Homo erectus

Homo neanderthalensis

Homo sapiens

Mesolithic hunters and gatherers

Introduction of agriculture - Danubian cultures of farming communities

Neolithic cultures developed by native populations

Late Neolithic arrivals from eastern and western regions of Europe

Unetice and other Bronze Age cultures

Lusatian culture of the later Bronze Age

Lusatian culture of the early Iron Age

Pomeranian culture, Western Baltic Kurgans culture

Celtic peoples

Early Germanic peoples

Germanic cultures and tribes in Roman times

"Barbarians", Late Roman Empire and the Great Migration of Peoples

Baltic peoples

Slavic peoples - Polish myths and legends

Slavic origins of the Polish nation and state (5th - 10th century)

Early Slavic peoples

Polish tribes

9th century

10th century developments in Greater Poland; Mieszko's state

References and notes

See also

Prehistory of Polish lands from earliest human settlements through the Roman Empire times