Bavarian Geographer

The epithet "Bavarian Geographer" (Geographus Bavarus) is the conventional name for the anonymous author of a short Latin medieval text containing a list of the tribes in Central and Eastern Europe, headed.

The name "Bavarian Geographer" was first bestowed (in its French form, "Géographe de Bavière") in 1796 by Polish count and scholar Jan Potocki. The term is now also used at times to refer to the document itself.

It was the first Latin source to claim that all Slavs have originated from the same homeland, called the Zeriuani.

Origin
The short document, written in Latin, was discovered in 1772 in the Bavarian State Library, Munich by Louis XV's ambassador to the Saxon court, Comte Louis-Gabriel Du Buat-Nançay. It had been acquired by the Wittelsbachs with the collection of the antiquarian Hermann Schädel (1410–85) in 1571. The document was much discussed in the early 19th-century historiography, notably by Nikolai Karamzin and Joachim Lelewel.

The provenance of the document is disputed. Although early commentators suggested that it could have been compiled in Regensburg, the list seems to have been taken from Codex Reginbertinus II, recorded in the 9th century in the library of the Reichenau Abbey and named after a local librarian. Based on these findings, Bernhard Bischoff attributes it to a monk active at Reichenau from the 830s to 850s. Aleksandr Nazarenko finds it more probable that the list was composed in the 870s, when Saint Methodius is believed to have resided at Reichenau. The document may have been connected with his missions in the Slavic lands. Henryk Łowmiański demonstrated that the list consists of two parts, which may be datable to different periods and attributed to distinct authors.

In modern times, some scholars attribute the information from this document to be limited, because it is largely geographic in nature, and its understanding of Eastern European geography is limited, so it may be a case of cosmography.

Content
The document has a short introductory sentence and a list of 58 tribal names in Central and Eastern Europe, east of the Elbe and north of the Danube to the Volga River to the Black Sea and Caspian Sea (most of them of Slavonic origin, with Ruzzi, and others such as Vulgarii, etc.). Absent on the list are Polans, Pomeranians and Masovians, tribes first of whom are believed to have settled along the shores of the Warta river during the 8th century, as well Dulebes, Volhynians and White Croats, but instead mentioning several unknown tribes hard to identify. There is also some information about the number of strongholds (civitates) possessed by some of the tribes, however the number in several instances seems exaggerated. The list consists of two parts, first describing the tribes in the Eastern neighborhood of Francia (iste sunt regiones ... nostris), while the second or near or outside the zone of the first going in different directions. The tribes can be geographically grouped into Danubian, Silesian-Lusatian, Baltic, and Eastern Vistulan-Caspian.

List of tribes
According to Łowmiański (1958), in the first list are mentioned:
 * 1. Nortabtrezi (Obotrites),
 * 2. Uuilci (Veleti),
 * 3. Linaa (Linones),
 * 4.–6.Bethenici-Smeldingon (Smeldingi)-Morizani,
 * 7. Hehfeldi (Hevelli),
 * 8. Surbi (Sorbs/Serbs),
 * 9. Talaminzi (Daleminzi-Glomacze),
 * 10. Beheimare (Bohemians),
 * 11. Marharii (Moravians),
 * 12. Uulgarii (Bulgars),
 * 13. Merehanos (Nitra Moravians).

In the second list are mentioned: • 14. Osterabtrezi (other Obotrites),

• 15. Miloxi (uncertain),

• 16. Phesnuzi (unknown),

• 17. Thadesi (uncertain, Tadeslo),

• 18. Glopeani (Goplans),

• 19. Zuireani (uncertain),

• 20. Busani (Buzhans),

• 21. Sittici (uncertain),

• 22. Stadici (uncertain),

• 23. Sebbirozi (uncertain),

• 24. Unlizi (Ulichs),

• 25. Neriuani (uncertain),

• 26. Attorozi (uncertain),

• 27. Eptaradici (uncertain, Seven Slavic tribes),

• 28. Uuilerozi (uncertain),

• 29. Zabrozi (uncertain),

• 30. Znetalici (Netolice and Neletici),

• 31. Aturezani (unknown),

• 32. Chozirozi (uncertain),

• 33. Lendizi (Lendians),

• 34. Thafnezi (unknown),

• 35. Zeriuani (uncertain),

• 36. Prissani,

• 37. Uelunzani (Wolinians),

• 38. Bruzi (Prussians),

• 39. Uuizunbeire (Volga Bulgaria),

• 40. Caziri (Khazars),

• 41. Ruzzi (Rus' people),

• 42.–43. Forsderen-Liudi (uncertain, Drevlians),

• 44. Fresiti (unknown),

• 45. Serauici (unknown),

• 46. Lucolane (uncertain),

• 47. Ungare (Hungarians),

• 48. Uuislane (Vistulans),

• 49. Sleenzane (Silesians),

• 50. Lunsizi (Lusatians),

• 51. Dadosesani (Dziadoszanie),

• 52. Milzane (Milceni),

• 53. Besunzane (Bežunčani or Pšovans),

• 54. Uerizane (unknown),

• 55. Fraganeo (Prague),

• 56. Lupiglaa (uncertain),

• 57. Opolini (Opolans),

• 58. Golensizi.