User:Andrew Lancaster/Goths

Lead drafting
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Lead
The Goths (𐌲𐌿𐍄𐌸𐌹𐌿𐌳𐌰; Gothi) were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of Medieval Europe. They were first definitely reported by Graeco-Roman authors in the 3rd century AD, living north of the Danube in what is now Ukraine, Moldova and Romania. Later, many moved into the Roman Empire, or settled west of the Carpathians near what is now Hungary.

A people called the Gutones—possibly early Goths—are documented living near the lower Vistula River in the 1st century, where they are associated with the archaeological Wielbark culture. In his book Getica, the Gothic historian Jordanes claimed that the Goths originated in southern Scandinavia more than 1,000 years earlier, but his reliability is disputed. The Wielbark culture expanded southwards towards the Black Sea, where by the late 3rd century it contributed to the formation of the Chernyakhov culture, which is associated with the Goths who were in frequent conflict and contact with the Roman Empire. By the 4th century at the latest, several groups were distinguishable, among whom the Thervingi and Greuthungi were the most powerful. During this time, Ulfilas began the conversion of Goths to Arianism.

In the late 4th century, the lands of the Goths were invaded from the east by the Huns. In the aftermath of this event, several groups of Goths came under Hunnic domination, while others migrated further west or sought refuge inside the Roman Empire. Goths who entered the Empire by crossing the Danube inflicted a devastating defeat upon the Romans at the Battle of Adrianople in 378. These Goths would form the Visigoths, and under their king Alaric I they began a long migration, eventually establishing a Visigothic Kingdom in Spain at Toledo. Meanwhile, Goths under Hunnic rule gained their independence in the 5th century, most importantly the Ostrogoths. Under their king Theodoric the Great, these Goths established an Ostrogothic Kingdom in Italy at Ravenna.

The Ostrogothic Kingdom was destroyed by the Eastern Roman Empire in the 6th century, while the Visigothic Kingdom was conquered by the Umayyad Caliphate in the early 8th century. Remnants of Gothic communities in the Crimea, known as the Crimean Goths, lingered on for several centuries, although Goths would eventually cease to exist as a distinct people.


 * 1. Heather 2012, p. 623. "Goths, a Germanic people, who, according to Jordanes' Getica, originated in Scandinavia. The Cernjachov culture of the later 3rd and 4th cents. AD beside the Black Sea, and the Polish and Byelorussian Wielbark cultures of the 1st–3rd. cents. ad, provide evidence of a Gothic migration down the Vistula to the Black Sea, but no clear trail leads to Scandinavia."
 * 2. Heather 2018, p. 673. "Goths, a Germanic tribe whose name means 'the people', first attested immediately south of the Baltic Sea in the first two centuries."
 * 3. Pritsak 2005.
 * 4. Heather 2018, p. 673.
 * 5. Heather 2012, p. 623.

Lead
The Goths (𐌲𐌿𐍄𐌸𐌹𐌿𐌳𐌰; Gothi) were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of Medieval Europe.

In his book Getica (c. 551), the Gothic historian Jordanes writes that the Goths originated in southern Scandinavia, but the accuracy of this account is unclear. A people called the Gutones—possibly early Goths—are documented living near the lower Vistula River in the 1st century, where they are associated with the archaeological Wielbark culture. From the 2nd century, the Wielbark culture expanded southwards towards the Black Sea in what has been associated with Gothic migration, and by the late 3rd century it contributed to the formation of the Chernyakhov culture. By the 4th century at the latest, several Gothic groups were distinguishable, among whom the Thervingi and Greuthungi were the most powerful. During this time, Ulfilas began the conversion of Goths to Arianism.

In the late 4th century, the lands of the Goths were invaded from the east by the Huns. In the aftermath of this event, several groups of Goths came under Hunnic domination, while others migrated further west or sought refuge inside the Roman Empire. Goths who entered the Empire by crossing the Danube inflicted a devastating defeat upon the Romans at the Battle of Adrianople in 378. These Goths would form the Visigoths, and under their king Alaric I they began a long migration, eventually establishing a Visigothic Kingdom in Spain at Toledo. Meanwhile, Goths under Hunnic rule gained their independence in the 5th century, most importantly the Ostrogoths. Under their king Theodoric the Great, these Goths established an Ostrogothic Kingdom in Italy at Ravenna.

The Ostrogothic Kingdom was destroyed by the Eastern Roman Empire in the 6th century, while the Visigothic Kingdom was conquered by the Umayyad Caliphate in the early 8th century. Remnants of Gothic communities in the Crimea, known as the Crimean Goths, lingered on for several centuries, although Goths would eventually cease to exist as a distinct people.


 * 1. Heather 2012, p. 623. "Goths, a Germanic people, who, according to Jordanes' Getica, originated in Scandinavia. The Cernjachov culture of the later 3rd and 4th cents. AD beside the Black Sea, and the Polish and Byelorussian Wielbark cultures of the 1st–3rd. cents. ad, provide evidence of a Gothic migration down the Vistula to the Black Sea, but no clear trail leads to Scandinavia."
 * 2. Heather 2018, p. 673. "a Germanic tribe whose name means 'the people', first attested immediately south of the Baltic Sea in the first two centuries."
 * 3. Pritsak 2005.
 * 4. Heather 2018, p. 673.
 * 5. Heather 2012, p. 623.

Lead
The Goths (𐌲𐌿𐍄𐌸𐌹𐌿𐌳𐌰; Gothi) were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of Medieval Europe, particularly in Italy, France and Spain. They were first reported by Graeco-Roman authors in the 3rd century AD,   living north of the Danube in what is now Ukraine, Moldova and Romania. These Goths conducted raids into Roman territory, and large numbers of them joined the Roman military.

In the late 4th century, the lands of the Goths were invaded from the east by the Huns. In the aftermath of this event, many Goths came under Hunnic domination and became one of the elements with the multiethnic empire of Attila which established itself on the Middle Danube on the Roman frontier. Large numbers of Goths also sought refuge inside the Roman Empire, significantly affecting the course of Roman history. After crossing the Lower Danube a large group of armed refugees inflicted a devastating defeat upon the Romans at the Battle of Adrianople in 378. In the following generation, a large group of these Goths, now established within Rome and its military, came into conflict with the imperial government under the command of Alaric I. Failing to find a peaceful agreement, they began a long migration within the empire, eventually establishing the Visigothic Kingdom in southwestern France, which later shifted to Spain and was long ruled from Toledo. Meanwhile, Goths under Hunnic rule gained their independence in the 5th century, most importantly the Ostrogoths. Under their king Theodoric the Great, these Goths established an Ostrogothic Kingdom in Italy at Ravenna.

The Ostrogothic Kingdom was destroyed by the Eastern Roman Empire in the 6th century, while the Visigothic Kingdom was conquered by the Umayyad Caliphate in the early 8th century. Remnants of Gothic communities in the Crimea, known as the Crimean Goths, reportedly lingered on for several centuries.



Lead
The Goths (𐌲𐌿𐍄𐌸𐌹𐌿𐌳𐌰; Gothi) were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of Medieval Europe.

Goths have been associated with the Wielbark culture and the Gutones of 1st and 2nd century Poland. They were part of the Chernyakhov culture, which flourished throughout large parts of modern-day Romania, Moldova and Ukraine during the 3rd and 4th centuries. During this time, Gothic groups such as the Thervingi and Greuthungi were in frequent contact with the Roman Empire, and Ulfilas began the conversion of Goths to Arianism.

In the late 4th century, the lands of the Goths were invaded from the east by the Huns. Several Gothic groups subsequently came under Hunnic domination, while others migrated further west or sought refuge inside the Roman Empire. Goths who entered the Empire by crossing the Danube inflicted a devastating defeat upon the Romans at the Battle of Adrianople in 378. These Goths contributed to the formation of the Visigoths, who under their king Alaric I they began a long migration, eventually establishing a Visigothic Kingdom in Spain at Toledo. Meanwhile, Goths under Hunnic rule gained their independence in the 5th century, most importantly the Ostrogoths. Under their king Theodoric the Great, these Goths established an Ostrogothic Kingdom in Italy at Ravenna.

The Ostrogothic Kingdom was destroyed by the Eastern Roman Empire in the 6th century, while the Visigothic Kingdom was conquered by the Umayyad Caliphate in the early 8th century. Remnants of Gothic communities in the Crimea, known as the Crimean Goths, lingered on for several centuries.


 * 1. Heather 2012, p. 623. "Goths, a Germanic people, who, according to Jordanes' Getica, originated in Scandinavia. The Cernjachov culture of the later 3rd and 4th cents. AD beside the Black Sea, and the Polish and Byelorussian Wielbark cultures of the 1st–3rd. cents. ad, provide evidence of a Gothic migration down the Vistula to the Black Sea, but no clear trail leads to Scandinavia."
 * 2. Heather 2018, p. 673. "a Germanic tribe whose name means 'the people', first attested immediately south of the Baltic Sea in the first two centuries."
 * 3. Pritsak 2005.
 * 4. Heather 2018, p. 673.
 * 5. Heather 2012, p. 623.
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Origins drafting
Aiming to replace 3 current sub-sections: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Goths#Sketches_for_an_origins_section Note to self: it is also possible to start with Jordanes, then move on quickly.
 * 3.1	Prehistory
 * 3.2	Early history
 * 3.3	Movement towards the Black Sea

playing around
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Gothic origins
[compare to drafts with sources below]

There is no consensus among scholars about whether it is possible to reconstruct a history of the Goths before they began to be mentioned in Roman sources in the third century. However, many argue that evidence such as their language, name and culture links them to the region of the lower Vistula river, where 1st-century Roman writers mentioned the presence of the Gutones. Historian Peter Heather has argued that the similar names of the Goths and Gutones shouldn't be dismissed as an "accidental resemblance", because the names of at least two other 1st-century Germanic peoples from the Polish region, the Vandals and the Rugii, are also found south of the Carpathians by the 3rd century.

The original source of the idea that the Goths came from the Vistula is the Getica, written by Jordanes in the 6th century. It gave a Gothic history going back about 2000 years before his own time, and beginning with two migrations. First, in about 1500 BCE they moved from "Scandza" (Scandinavia), to "Gothiscandza" near the Vistula. About five generations later they moved to the Black Sea region. While the migration stories continue to influence scholarly speculation, there is a consensus among Jordanes commentators that, even ignoring the chronology, his history can not be relied upon in any straightforward way.

In recent generations, scholars have increasingly proposed that instead of large migrations, there were movements of small groups who managed to have an out-sized cultural influence on the peoples around them. In these scenarios, the sudden move of the Gutones, and their apparent increase in population and military power, are explained by the prestige of the Gothic name, which was carried by small numbers of people to new places, and came to be shared with people of diverse backgrounds. Herwig Wolfram proposed that Gothic kings had an unusual policy of accepting newcomers as Goths, which contributed to their success. Guy Halsall, more recently, has argued that Gothic leaders possibly gained importance by controlling positions along the Amber trade route which connected the Vistula region to the Black Sea.

It is generally agreed that archaeological evidence indicates significant trading and cultural links between the lower Vistula and Black Sea regions, if not actual migration. In the period of their first historical appearances, the Goths were a significant, and apparently politically dominant, part of the Černjachov - Sântana de Mureș group of material cultures, which cover much of Ukraine, Moldava, and Rumania, north of the Black Sea. The Vistula Gutones are understood to be one of the groups within the contemporary but older Wielbark material culture around the lower Vistula.

Similarly, while Jordanes-based proposals that the Gutones had Scandinavian origins are still common, small influential groups are proposed to have moved, rather than large populations. The Wielbark culture evolved mainly from previous local cultures, however archaeologists find evidence that the material cultures of Scandinavia and the Baltic islands are among those which influenced its formation. Linguists and philologists have also proposed that another form of the Goth or Gutones name can be found in Scandinavia, in the form of the Gutoi, reported by Ptolemy in the 2nd century, who are also associated with the medieval Geats and/or Gutes. It is therefore argued that the name may have been carried by a prestigious clan who became influential among the other peoples living near the lower Vistula.


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Gothic origins
There is no consensus among scholars about whether it is possible to reconstruct a history of the Goths before they began to be mentioned in Roman sources in the 3rd century. However, most scholars believe that evidence such as their name, their Germanic language, and their archaeological material culture, indicates that the arrival of the Goths north of the Black Sea involved at least some movement of people from the region near the Polish Baltic sea coast, where 1st and 2nd century Roman writers mentioned the presence of a Germanic people called the Gutones. The original source for this migration is the Getica, written by Jordanes in the 6th century. While his migration stories continue to influence scholarly speculation, there is a consensus among Jordanes commentators that these are unreliable, meaning other evidence must be considered.

Historian Peter Heather, for example, has argued that the similar names of the Goths and Gutones shouldn't be dismissed as an "accidental resemblance", because the names of at least two other 1st-century Germanic peoples from the Polish region, the Vandals and the Rugii, are also found south of the Carpathians by the 3rd century. Instead of a simple migration, scholars now believe that movements of small groups with cultural prestige and military influence could be enough to account for the way in which the Gutones seem to have moved from the Baltic to the Black Sea becoming the Goths, as known to history. Another historian, Guy Halsall has for example suggested that a Gothic military elite may have spread its power along the important trade route along which amber was traded.

Archaeologically speaking, during the 3rd century the Goths were a significant, and increasingly powerful part of the Černjachov - Sântana de Mureș group of material cultures, which covered much of Ukraine, Moldava, and Rumania. This group displays evidence of links with the Wielbark culture around the lower Vistula region. Also believed to have been present in this group of cultures under Gothic dominance were Roman provincials, various Sarmatian and Dacian peoples, Carpi, Taifali and Bastarnae.


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Draft with excessive? sourcing
Although many scholars are sceptical about the possibilities of reconstructing the origins of the Goths before they begin to be mentioned in Roman sources in the third century,   many others believe that evidence such as the language, name and culture of the Goths links them to the first century Gutones, mentioned by Roman writers as living on the lower Vistula river, now in Poland.

Historian Peter Heather argues that the name similarity is harder to dismiss as an accidental resemblance, when it is considered that the names of at least two other 1st-century Germanic peoples from the Polish region, the Vandals and the Rugii, are also found south of the Carpathians by the 3rd century.

Scholars do not all agree about whether the archaeological evidence can be used to prove there was a migration from the Vistula.

The Goths represent a part of the Černjachov - Sântana de Mureș group of material cultures, which included most of modern Ukraine, Moldava and Romania.

The Vistula Gutones are understood to be one of the groups within the contemporary but older Wielbark material culture around the lower Vistula. It is however generally agreed that these two material cultures show signs of trading and cultural links.

Jordanes in his 6th century Getica, claimed that the Goths migrated from Scandinavia to the Vistula, and then to the Black Sea region, about 2000 years before his time. Despite the unrealistic timeframe, these migration stories have traditionally been very influential. However, there is a consensus among commentators of this text that it is not a reliable source.

While Jordanes cannot be taken literally concerning the two migrations, many scholars propose that there were movements of small groups and cultural influences in the same direction, which is known to have been an important trade route.

According to these proposals, the name of the Gutones must have had a special prestige, leading to the transfer of their name to new amalgamations of peoples in the Black Sea region, who came to be dominated by the carriers of this tradition.

Linguists and philologists have furthermore proposed that another form of the Goth or Gutones name can be found in Scandinavia, in the form of the Gutoi, reported by Ptolemy in the 2nd century, who are also associated with the medieval Geats and/or Gutes. And while the Wielbark material culture appears to be mainly a local development, archaeologists confirm signs of Scandinavian influence within it.

Older Origins drafting, source collecting
There is no consensus among scholars about whether the origins of the Goths can be traced in any significant way before their first appearances in classical records in the third century CE.

Most scholars however agree that the language, name and culture of the Goths indicates that they were strongly influenced by people who must have arrived from the direction of the lower Vistula river, which is now in Poland.

Contemporaries of the 3rd and 4th century Goths before they became entered the Roman empire, such as Dexippos, Ambrose (about 340–397), Orosius (about 375–420) and Jerome (about 347–420) categorized the Goths among the Scythians, peoples who had lived in the same steppe region, and equated them to the similar-sounding Getae, who had lived near the Lower Danube, at the western extent of Gothic habitation. Additionally, Ambrose began a tradition of equating the Scythians, especially his contemporaries the Goths, with the similar-sounding Old Testament Gog and Magog, who he understood to be barbarians who came from the extreme north, where there are islands. Much later, in the 6th century, Procopius asserted that the "Getic peoples", among whom he listed not only the Goths but also the Gepids and Vandals, were descended from the Sarmatians, an earlier Scythian group, and also the Melanchlaeni or "black cloaks", who had lived beyond the Scythians in the time of Herodotus (5th century BCE).

Among modern scholars however, on-going scholarly debate continues to be more influenced by the much more detailed account of Gothic origins found in Jordanes, a contemporary of Procopius, whose work, the Getica, described thousands of years of migrations including a long period in the Middle East. He equated the Goths to various historical peoples including not only the Getae and Scythians, but also Dacians and Amazons. Jordanes, who claimed Gothic ancestry, mentioned stories in "old Gothic songs of an almost historic style", and also cited now lost written works by Cassiodorus, and a Gothic writer named Ablabius.

Jordanes himself is considered an unreliable source for events before 500.

Although there is no consensus, scholars have made various arguments that two of the migrations described by Jordanes, from Scandinavia to the Vistula in 1490 BCE, and from there to the region corresponding to the plains north of the Black Sea about five generations later, may have reflected real events in some way, even though the dating and many other aspects of the story are rejected. Many scholars who believe that these two migration stories reflect real events argue that they were not straightforward migrations, but movements of small numbers of influential people, who brought their traditions and tribal names. This Traditionskern concept originated with Richard Wenskus and his so-called Vienna school, which has included Herwig Wolfram, and Walter Pohl. It is also accepted by Peter Heather, who argues that hints of this can even be detected in Jordanes.

Various types of evidence which various scholars have argued to be consistent with Jordanes include the following:
 * The Gothic language is indisputably a Germanic language, meaning it is closely related to languages which are believed to have originated in what is now Scandinavia and eastern Germany, near the Vistula. Peter Heather has argued that this strongly implies a significant number of people actually migrated, including women.
 * Consistent with Jordanes, Roman writers described a Germanic people known as the Gutones in the Vistula region in the first century. This name is considered by most philologists to be a variant form of the ethnic name of the Goths, in a Germanic language. Heather argues that the connection of the names is made more confident by the examples of the Vandals and Rugii, whose names similarly appear the Polish region in the first century but are later found "in and around the Carpathians".
 * Historians such as Peter Heather emphasizes the way in which Jordanes, specifically mentioned some people and events mentioned in Gothic songs, indicating that he had some access to the information in such sources.
 * Archaeologists have found evidence of Scandinavian influence and trade in Wielbark culture which is believed to have included the Gutones, along with "other ethnic groups sharing essentially the same material culture". Furthermore, this culture spread south, and was influential upon the Chernyakhov culture which is associated with the Goths known to the Romans. On this basis, Heather argues that this is proof that the second migration described by Jordanes involved a significant movement of people, though as "many smaller groups [...] over an extended period".

More specifically concerning the first Jordanes migration from Scandinavia:
 * A people of Scandza called the Gutae, possibly identical to the later Geats, were mentioned by Ptolemy, and their name may also be another form of the name used by the Gutones and Goths. However the connection of the names has been doubted.
 * It has been argued that evidence from etymology and the medieval Gutasaga suggests connections between the Goths and Gotland and the Gutes.

Older Drafting

 * The Goths are first clearly mentioned in Roman sources in the third century, living in the area north of the Lower Danube and Black Sea, in the Scythian region which had previously been home to Sarmatians and Bastarnae, and which is now contained within Romania, Moldava and Ukraine.
 * Scholars do not agree about whether these Goths had an identifiable and continuous history and identity which stretched before the third century.
 * Whether or not the Goths were a newly constituted people in the third century, several lines of evidence suggest that this happened under strong cultural influence from the direction of the Vistula, which possibly involved significant migration:
 * First and second century authors, specifically Tacitus and Ptolemy, mentioned Gotones living near the Vistula, south of the Baltic sea, in their time.
 * Jordanes, in the 6th century, wrote a history of the Goths which described them as having once lived near the Vistula.

comparisons and notes
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Origins and early history
According to Jordanes, a Gothic 6th-century historian, the Goths migrated from southern Scandinavia to the lower Vistula, seizing the lands of the Rugii. Such a migration is controversial, and has not been confirmed archaeologically. Rather than a wholesale migration, Herwig Wolfram considers it entirely plausible that the Gothic elite had come from southern Scandinavia.

The earliest possible mentions of the Goths are in Roman sources of the 1st century, who refer to a people called the "Gutones" living along the lower Vistula. The Gutones are generally considered ancestral or even identical to the later Goths,  but not everyone accepts this. The Gutones are associated with the Wielbark culture, which flourished in the area at the time,  having succeeded the Oksywie culture.

Roman historians write that the Gutones were in close contact with the Lugii and Vandals, and that they were at times in conflict with the Suebi. A people of Scandza called the Gutae, possibly identical to the later Geats, are also mentioned, and it is possible that this people had close relations or even shared origins with the Gutones. Evidence from etymology and the Gutasaga suggests connections with Gotland and the Gutes.

During the early centuries AD, the Wielbark culture expands southward at the expense of the Przeworsk culture, which is associated with the Lugii and Vandals. By the 3rd century, this southward expansion to the areas north of the Danube is believed to have contributed to the formation of the Chernyakhov culture. It is in the 3rd century that the name "Goths" is first mentioned.



Origins and early history
It is in the 3rd century that the name "Goths" is first mentioned. [Move last sentence to first position].
 * Steinacher p.27: Jene Völker, die dann in der Spätantike und dem Frühmittelalter eine bedeutende Rolle spielen sollten, also die Goten, Vandalen, Franken, Alemannen, Gepiden, Heruler and andere Völker, begannen gerade im 3. Jahrhundert hervorzutreten.
 * Steinacher p.48: Dass die römischen Quellen dort [an das Schwarze Meer] im Vorfeld de Imperium, im 3. und 4. Jahrhundert Goten lokalisieren, steht fest.
 * Wolfram p.13: The Goths of the third century were considered a new people to whom the old Scythian name applied. No ancient ethnographer made a connection between the Goths and the Gutones. The Gutonic immigrants became Goths the very moment the Mediterranean world considered them Scythians.

The exact origins of the Goths are unclear and disputed. The 6th-century Jordanes historian, in his work called the Getica, claimed that the Goths had migrated many times before arriving in the first

the Goths migrated from southern Scandinavia to the lower Vistula, seizing the lands of the Rugii. Such a migration is controversial, and has not been confirmed archaeologically. Rather than a wholesale migration, Herwig Wolfram considers it entirely plausible that the Gothic elite had come from southern Scandinavia.

The earliest possible mentions of the Goths are in Roman sources of the 1st century, who refer to a people called the "Gutones" living along the lower Vistula. The Gutones are generally considered ancestral or even identical to the later Goths,  but not everyone accepts this. The Gutones are associated with the Wielbark culture, which flourished in the area at the time,  having succeeded the Oksywie culture.

Tacitus described the Gutones living close to the Lugii and Vandals, and that they were at times in conflict with the Suebi. A people of Scandza called the Gutae, possibly identical to the later Geats, are also mentioned by Ptolemy, and it is possible that this people had close relations or even shared origins with the Gutones. Evidence from etymology and the Gutasaga suggests connections with Gotland and the Gutes.

During the early centuries AD, the Wielbark culture expands southward at the expense of the Przeworsk culture, which is associated with the Lugii and Vandals. By the 3rd century, this southward expansion to the areas north of the Danube is believed to have contributed to the formation of the Chernyakhov culture.


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