Balto-Daco-Thracian connections of the 3rd millennium BC. e. (Slavic is not involved) The “cradle” of the Balts was not always located somewhere in the Upper Dnieper region or the Neman basin, and here’s why. For quite some time now, attention has been drawn to the connection between the Baltic onomastic

Thracian Tribes

Fig.1 Thracian

General information about the Thracians

The Thracians are an Indo-European tribe that lived in Thrace and the adjacent lands (currently Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, Northeastern Greece, the European and northwestern part of Asian Turkey, eastern Serbia and part of Macedonia).
By the 5th century BC, the Thracians inhabited the northeast of the Balkans and the lands adjacent to the Black Sea to the west. Herodotus in Book 5 called them the second most numerous (after the Indians) in the known world, and potentially the most powerful militarily - if they stopped their internal squabbles. At that time, the Thracians were divided into a large number of warring tribes; Xenophon colorfully spoke about their internal wars in his Anabasis. However, the Thracians managed to create fragile states for some time, such as the Odrysian kingdom, the largest in Europe in the 5th century. BC e., and in Roman times: Dacia led by Burebista.

Origin

Thracian tribes

Bisalty
Bitins
Kikons
Ducky:
Apulites
Carpi
Costoboki
Sukyi
Dii
Edons
Geths
Honeys
Front sights
Satras
Finns
Herbs
Triballs

Rice. 2
Thracian night attack, 400 BC
1. Thracian trumpeter.
2. Thracian mounted bodyguard.

Not completely Thracian tribes:

Agathyrsi (Scythian-Thracian tribe)
Dardanians (tribe mixed from Thracians, Illyrians and possibly Paeonians)

Rice. 3
Thracian peltasts, 400 BC

Thracian territory

Initially, the Thracians occupied the territory up to the Adriatic Sea, but around the 13th century. BC e. were pushed east by the Illyrians.

Occupation of the Thracians

They were engaged in agriculture and cattle breeding (mainly horse breeding), they had developed mining and metal processing, as well as ceramic production. In the early Iron Age (1st half of the 1st millennium BC), the Thracians were at the stage of decomposition of the primitive system, slavery existed.
The most ancient monuments of Thracian art (late 2nd - early 1st millennium BC) include dolmens, ceramics of various shapes (including vessels of the Villanova culture type), often with plastic decoration in the form of flutes, “bumps”, etc.
A unique hoard of gold objects from Valchitrin in northern Bulgaria (vessels and lids for vessels, decorated with exquisite spiral patterns inlaid with silver). The Basarabi culture in Romania (1st half of the 1st millennium BC) is characteristic of the Thracians - fortified and open settlements with wooden above-ground buildings coated with clay; black polished ceramics (bowls, bowls, glasses) with fluted decoration, as well as stamped and engraved geometric patterns with white inlay, revealing a connection with the culture of local tribes of the Bronze Age.
In the 6th–5th centuries. BC e. the art of the Thracians came into contact with the culture of the Scythians. The animal style of the Thracians, which flourished in the 6th–3rd centuries. BC e., is distinguished by local features (gold, silver and bronze plates and helmets with generalized naive expressive images of birds, animals, horsemen, scenes of animal fights, usually covered with a pattern in the form of circles, dots, and strokes).
From the 5th century BC e. the Thracians experienced the increasing influence of ancient Greek civilization.

By 4th–3rd centuries. BC e. includes the construction of the Thracian city of Sevtopol, the creation of numerous monuments of Greco-Thracian art, which are among the masterpieces of ancient artistic culture (Kazanlak tomb, treasure of golden vessels from Panagyurishte, etc.). At the turn of the 1st century. BC e. – 1st century n. e. The Dacian tribes built a system of fortresses in the mountains of Transylvania - Gradistea-Muncelului, Piatra Rosie, Blidarul, etc.
The era of the Roman conquest includes silver, bronze and iron funeral helmets with masks, distinguished by their bright physiognomic expressiveness and perfection of technical execution, figurines and steles with a relief image of the so-called. Thracian horseman, funerary portraits, statues, vessels made of gold, bronze, glass.

Fig.3.1 Thracian Helmet( Thracian)

A Thracian helmet was discovered in1997 in Pletena, western Rhodope Mountains. The helmet is dated to the first half of the 4th century BC.21 "Thracian" helmets were found in the territory of the Ancient Thracian tribes.

Fig.3.2

Silver helmet belonging to the Northern Thracian

Fig.3.3

A golden helmet was found in the tomb of the Geta king on the territory of Romania.

A bronze sword, green with age, is a witness to the military glory of the ancient Thracians.
The fishtail-shaped handle is wrapped in a narrow gold ribbon. The double-sided blade is decorated with a clear pattern. All this indicates the high status of the sword owner.

Fig.3.2

Helmets. Left: iron, leather, high. 31 cm, wide. 27.2 cm. IV century. BC e.
Middle: bronze, high. 39.5 cm, wide. 20.7 cm. Casting, forging, soldering, rivet, engraving. IV century BC e.
Right: Illyrian type, bronze, high. 27 cm. Casting, forging. VI-V centuries BC e.
Below: sword. Bronze, gold, length 69.5 cm. Casting, forging, riveting, engraving. X-IX centuries BC.

Of the three combat helmets, the most interesting in shape is the middle one, of the Thracian-Phrygian type. The helmet is decorated at the top on both sides with palmettes, and below with coiled snakes. Snake-dragons were called upon to protect the owner and help him in battle. The cheekpieces depict a beard and mustache.
On the left is a helmet made of many iron plates-scales attached to a leather base. Chain mail was made in the same way.

At the beginning of the 1st millennium AD. e. the art of the Thracians gradually declined, acquiring a provincial-Roman character.
Even in the time of Homer, the Thracians were known as farmers and cattle breeders. The Thracian mines, weapons, and war chariots were famous

Fig.3.4

Thracian armor

The Thracians traded grain, wine, honey, socks, horses, leather, ceramics, fish, and textiles.
The basis of the economic development of Thracian society in the first half of the 1st millennium BC. e. was the mastery of iron metallurgy, which led to major changes in the economy and social structure. Development followed slightly different paths north of the Balkan Mountains, where the climate was more severe, and south of them. In the southwest of Thrace, near the ore deposits, there were also the main metallurgical centers. The craft became increasingly specialized. Workshops were discovered that were already working for the market. Marketplaces appeared near places of worship (for example, near Filippoiol - Thracian Pulpudeva, modern Plovdiv). Trade routes connected the Thracians with their neighbors. The heyday of Thracian society occurred in the V-IV centuries. BC e. Agriculture finally became arable, based on the use of an iron ploughshare. They sowed wheat, rye, barley, millet, and flax. hemp, cultivated grapes, fruits, and vegetables. Sheep and horse breeding have achieved great development.
From the 8th to the end of the 7th century. BC e. The so-called great Greek colonization took place, which also captured the Thracian regions from the Gulf of Thessaloniki to the mouth of the Danube. Cities (polises) such as Byzantium were founded (from 330 AD, Constantinople, modern Istanbul). Salmides (Mussell). Apollonia (Sozopol), Anchial (Pomerania), Mesambria (Messembria. Mesimvria, Nessebar), Odessa (Varna), Dionysopol (Balchik), Kalatns (Mangalia), Tomi (Constanza), Istros (Istria). The social structure of the colonial cities (democratic, aristocratic) corresponded to the order in the metropolises. Initially hostile relations with Greek cities gave way to peaceful ones. A synthesis zone was formed on the coast: the Thracians penetrated into the cities, receiving citizenship rights and promoting the spread of Thracian culture; Greek influence, in turn, covered the surrounding area, causing the gradual Hellenization of the Thracians living here. Connections with the Greek colonies accelerated the development of Thracian society.
The Thracian tribal aristocracy strengthened by the middle of the 1st millennium BC. e. The exploitation of free community members became regular. The community turned into a territorial, neighborly one, and the community member’s right of ownership to the arable plot was asserted. Property differentiation led to the impoverishment of some of the community members who became dependent. Tribal unions were of a military-democratic nature and fought stubbornly with each other. Military-political and religious centers emerged. Large settlements grew around the dwellings of the leaders, and then fortified cities, such as Uskudum (Adrianople, Edirne) on Maritsa and Kabyle in the upper reaches of Tundzha, founded by the Odryzes. From the 6th century BC e. The natural exchange was replaced by monetary exchange. Greek and Persian coins circulated; Thracian kings also minted their coins in Greek workshops.
The Thracian allied-tribal aristocracy gradually became slave-owning. Slaves were used in cattle breeding, in mines, and as servants. But the main role was still played by free community members. Slaves were often sold to Greek policies. By the middle of the 1st millennium BC. e. the formation of states began.

Rice. 4
Attack on a Tribal stronghold, 424 BC

At first, several state associations arose between Struma and Vardar, along the Aegean coast and in Thrace, among which the Odrysian ones were the strongest. Education at the turn of the VI-V centuries. BC e. The vast Odrysian state was facilitated by the general danger from the Persians - the troops of Darius marched through the lands of the Thracians in 514-513. BC e. against the Scythians, and then the Persian troops during the Greco-Persian wars. The state of the Odrizes covered almost all modern Bulgarian lands in the west and extended beyond their borders in the northeast and southeast. Most of the Greek colonial cities, especially on the Black Sea coast, recognized the sovereignty of the Odrysian kingdom. The Odrysian state maintained relations with the Greek city-states (especially Athens) and the Scythians. It reached its peak in the 5th century. BC e.

From VI-V centuries. BC e. the Thracian lands entered the area of ​​influence of Greek culture, which, however, barely affected the rural area. The peasant's life remained poor. The lifestyle of the nobility, subjected to Hellenization, underwent drastic changes. The building art of the Greeks was introduced into cities: planning, water supply, sewerage, colonnades, statues, bas-reliefs. Many Greek items and works of art were imported. Imports primarily satisfied the demands of the nobility. Colonial cities developed mainly within the framework of Greek culture.

However, Thracian culture and art itself continued to develop. The cults of Thracian gods and goddesses were preserved. The cult of the sun played the main role, the belief in the immortality of the soul was widespread, there was a cult of the rebirth of nature - all these beliefs were reflected in the funeral ritual. When worshiping the gods, the Thracians performed sacrifices, usually bloody, and occasionally sacrificed people. The purpose of the sacrifices was the desire to achieve harvest and fertility. Often the sacrificial animal was a dog. The cult of the so-called Thracian horseman (horseman) was very popular: up to one and a half thousand images of a horseman were found in 350 geographical locations in Bulgaria. The cult of Dionysus was also revered. Celebrations in honor of the fairy-tale god-singer Orpheus and Dionysus were orgical in nature.

Rice. 5
Thracian revolt, 26 AD

Much about the art of the Thracians is known from necropolises. Masterpieces of jewelry art were discovered there - zoomorphic jewelry made of gold and bronze. Thracian art flourished in the 4th - early 3rd centuries. The famous Kazanlak tomb dates back to that era. Her colorful paintings tell not only about the cult of the dead, but also about the life and customs of the living. The Panagyurishtsky gold treasure of highly artistic sacred objects (disc, kushvin, zoomorphic and anthropomorphic rhytons - symbols of power) is also famous. The products are full of local flavor, although they are focused on the best Greek and Persian samples. In other words, as before, the culture of the Eastern Balkans served as a bridge between Europe and Asia.

The Kazanlak tomb and other masterpieces are not purely Thracian monuments: they represented a synthesis of Greco-Thracian art. But the Thracians also had a serious impact on Greek culture. The Thracian deities Ares and Dionysus spread widely throughout the Greek world. The cult of Dionysus is involved in the formation of Greek tragedy and comedy. The Greeks revered Orpheus no less than the Thracians. There was not a single people whose cultural influence on the Greeks was comparable to that of the Thracians.

Military and political life of the Thracians

The process of class formation was especially intense among the southeastern group of Thracians - the Odrysians. In the middle of the 4th century. BC e. The Thracians, together with the Paeonians, entered into an alliance with the Illyrians against Macedonia, which threatened their independence.

Rice. 6
Thracian invasion of Macedonia, 429 BC.

In 342 the tribes of southern Thrace were conquered by Philip II. From 323 to 281 they were under the rule of Lysimachus, after whose death they regained independence. From the end of the 3rd century. BC e. The Thracian coast of the Aegean Sea was conquered by the Ptolemies and then recaptured by the Macedonian king Philip V.

Rice. 7
1. Geth noble warrior.
2. Geth Horse Archer

After the 3rd Macedonian War (171–168 BC), the Thracians left Macedonian rule. At the beginning of the 1st century. BC e. were in an alliance with Mithridates VI Eupator, after his defeat in the 3rd Mithridatic War (74–63 BC) they found themselves in the sphere of influence of the Romans, against whom they waged a stubborn struggle.
In 60–45 BC. e. The North Thracian tribes were united by the Dacian ruler Berebista. In the 1st century n. e. A large association of North Thracian tribes arose, in which the leading role belonged to the Ghetto-Dacians.

Rice. 8
Skirmish at Callinicum, 171 BC

Under the Roman emperors Julius - Claudius (1st century), the main territory of Thrace was turned into a Roman province. The Geto-Dacian region was conquered and became a Roman province under Trajan in 106, but was effectively lost to the Romans under Aurelian.
During the period of the Great Migration of Peoples, the Thracians mixed with other tribes and became an ethnically integral element in the formation of modern peoples (Bulgarians, Romanians and Moldovans, etc.).
The Odryzian power turned out to be fragile. Signs of its collapse became clear by the middle of the 4th century. BC e. The crisis of the slave-holding Greek polis created the conditions for a new state unification of the Thracians, but this was prevented by the expansion of the Macedonian kings.
The center of the Macedonian state lay in the upper reaches of Bistrica. Already in the 1st century. BC e. this kingdom played a major role in the Peloponnesian Wars, and in the 4th century. became the hegemon in the Balkans. In its structure it was similar to classical slaveholding, but with noticeable remnants of primitive communal relations. The power of the king turned into a monarchical one in the first half of the 4th century. BC e. In terms of culture, especially the culture of the higher social stratum, the Macedonian kingdom was close to the Greek states. Came to power in 359 BC. e. Philip II in 342-339. put an end to the Odrysian kingdom. However, the Macedonian power was short-lived: after the death of Alexander in 323 BC. e. his vast state collapsed.

In the 3rd century. BC e. On the territory of the Thracians, the struggle of the Diadochi, the successors of Alexander, unfolded. However, the Odrizes retained their independence in the coastal areas in 212-211. BC I. freed themselves by expelling the Macedonian garrisons. However, the strengthening of the Thracian kingdom was prevented by protracted (until the beginning of the 2nd century BC) wars with Greek cities. Local dynasties emerged. Political instability was exacerbated by the decline of the economy and trade.

Archeology

Throughout the 2000s, archaeologists have been excavating in central Bulgaria and have dubbed the area the “Alley of Thracian Kings.” On August 19, 2005, some archaeologists reported that they had discovered the capital of Thrace near the modern city of Karlovo, Bulgaria. Many smooth fragments of pottery (pieces of roof tiles and Greek vases) discovered during excavations indicate the wealth of the city's inhabitants. The Bulgarian Minister of Culture announced his support for further excavations.

Fig.9

The plot is about the Thracian women who tore the singer Orpheus to pieces. Engraving on canthara. Silver, gilding. Attic workshop. V century BC e.

Fig.10

Balsamarium in the form of a bear. Bronze, high 16.9 cm. Casting, extra. treatment. II - III centuries n. e.

Thracian masters of toreutics (the art of metalworking) made everything from a button to an elegant vase. From simple casting and the use of dies and seals to embossing and engraving.
Time has destroyed almost everything created by the Thracians, but it has the least power over metal. At the exhibition you can see what the Thracians needed to live both here and “there”. But this division, as we will see, is very conditional.

Thracian treasures found in the Rogozen treasure in Bulgaria

Records of the Thracians

The first mentions in literature about the Thracians date back to the Trojan War in the 13th century. BC e. (Homer, Iliad).
The records of the Thracians in the Iliad talk mainly about the Hellespont, and about the tribe of Kikon, who fought on the side of the Trojans (Iliad, book II). From the Thracians, many mythical creatures passed on to their Greek neighbors, such as the god Dionysus, Princess Europa and the hero Orpheus.
In the seventh book of his histories, Herodotus describes the equipment of the Thracians fighting the Persians:
The Thracians wore fox hats on their heads during the campaign. They wore tunics on their bodies and colorful burnouses on top. They had reindeer skin wrappings on their legs and knees. They were armed with droshky, slings and small daggers. After migrating to Asia, this tribe received the name Bithynians, and before, in their own words, they were called Strymonians, since they lived on Strymon. As they say, the Teucrians and Myians expelled them from their habitats. The leader of the Asiatic Thracians was Bassac, son of Artabanus.
In his fifth book, Herodotus describes the customs of the Thracian tribes:
Among the tribes living north of the Krestonians, there is this custom. When someone from the tribe dies, his wives (and they all have many wives) begin a heated argument (with the zealous participation of friends): which of them the deceased husband loved most. Having resolved the dispute, men and women shower the chosen spouse with praise and the closest relatives slaughter her at the grave and then interred with her husband. The rest of the wives are very sad that the choice did not fall on them: after all, this is the greatest shame for them. The customs of other Thracians are as follows: they sell their children to foreign lands. They do not preserve the chastity of girls, allowing them to have intercourse with any man. On the contrary, the fidelity of married women is strictly observed and they buy wives from their parents for a lot of money. A tattoo on the body is considered a sign of nobility among them. Whoever does not have it does not belong to the nobles. A person who spends time in idleness is held in high esteem by them. On the contrary, they treat the farmer with the greatest contempt. They consider the life of a warrior and robber to be the most honorable. These are their most remarkable customs. The Thracians honor only three gods: Ares, Dionysus and Artemis. And their kings (unlike the rest of the people) reverence Hermes more than all the gods and swear only by him. According to them, they themselves originated from Hermes. The funeral rites of the rich Thracians are as follows. The body of the deceased is exposed for three days. At the same time, sacrificial animals of all kinds are slaughtered and, after funeral cries, a funeral feast is held. Then the body is burned or otherwise buried and, having built a mound, various competitions are held. The highest awards are awarded for single combat, depending on the importance of the competition. These are the funeral customs of the Thracians.
Josephus claimed that the ancestor of the Thracians was the seventh son of Japheth, Tiras. He also argued that the Thracians were originally called Tirasians, but then the Greeks renamed them.

Famous Thracians

Fig.12
Burebista- king of the Geto-Dacians, who brought under his rule a huge Thracian territory from modern Moravia in the west to the Bug River in the east, from the Carpathians in the north, to Dionysopolis (modern Balchik) in the south.

Fig.13
Decebalus- the great king of the Geto-Dacians, who won many battles with the Romans, but was defeated by the army of Trajan.

Fig.14
Orpheus- in ancient Greek mythology, a singer, lyre musician. Played an important role in the religion of Greece and Bulgaria.

Fig.15
Spartacus- Roman gladiator who rebelled on the Apennine Peninsula in 73-71 BC. His army, composed largely of escaped gladiators and slaves, defeated several Roman legions in a war known as the Third Servile War or Spartacus's Revolt.

Thracian language

They spoke Thracian, which most authors classify as Indo-European.
Extinction of the Thracians and their language
The Thracian language is a dead Indo-European language of the Thracians, part of the so-called Paleo-Balkan languages. It was widespread in ancient Thrace - a region in southeastern Europe (on the site of modern Bulgaria, Macedonia, European Turkey, partially Romania (Dobrudja), Greece and Serbia), as well as in some regions of Asia Minor. Sometimes the Dacian (Getic) language is also considered close to the Thracian language.
Preserved as a series of glosses in ancient Greek sources. In addition, several extremely brief inscriptions have been found. Although the Indo-European character of the language and its approximate position among other Indo-European languages ​​is obvious from the glosses and inscriptions, the grammar of the Thracian language still cannot be reconstructed.
Sometimes words of unclear etymology from the Bulgarian and Romanian and Moldavian languages ​​are also classified as Thracian. The attitude towards the Thracian language of the modern Albanian language is controversial - according to some scientists, it comes from the Illyrian language with minor Thracian influence, according to others - from the Thracian language.

Inscriptions
Interpretations of the inscriptions are still controversial and mutually exclusive, so only their texts are given here. All inscriptions are in the standard Greek alphabet.

1. Inscription on a gold ring, discovered near the city of Ezerovo, Bulgaria in 1912. Dating back to around the 5th century BC. e.
ΡΟΛΙΣΤΕΝΕΑΣΝ / ΕΡΕΝΕΑΤΙΛ / ΤΕΑΝΗΣΚΟΑ / ΡΑΖΕΑΔΟΜ / ΕΑΝΤΙΛΕΖΥ / ΠΤΑΜΙΗΕ / ΡΑΖ / ΗΛΤΑ
rolisteneasn /ereneatil / teanēskoa / razeadom / eantilezu / ptamiēe / raz / ēlta

2. An inscription on a stone (gravestone?), discovered near the village of Kyolmen, Preslav region, Bulgaria in 1965. Age - about 6th century BC. e.
ΕΒΑΡ. ΖΕΣΑΣΝ ΗΝΕΤΕΣΑ ΙΓΕΚ.Α / ΝΒΛΑΒΑΗΕΓΝ / ΝΥΑΣΝΛΕΤΕΔΝΥΕΔΝΕΙΝΔΑΚΑΤΡ.Σ
ebar. zesasn ēnetesa igek. a/nblabaēgn/nuasnletednuedneindakatr.s

3. An inscription on a ring, discovered in the village of Duvanli, Plovdiv region, Bulgaria, near the left hand of a skeleton in a burial. Dates around the 5th century BC. e. The ring depicts a horseman with this inscription around him.
ΗΖΙΗ ….. ΔΕΛΕ / ΜΕΖΗΝΑΙ
ēziē…..dele / mezēnai
ΜΕΖΗΝΑΙ - apparently the Messapian deity Menzan, to whom horses were dedicated.
Several very brief inscriptions on vessels and other artifacts were also discovered.
In a Latin inscription from Rome, which refers to a Roman citizen originally from Thrace, the phrase Midne potelense is found;
the word midne is compared with the Latvian mitne (dwelling) and is interpreted as “village”. On this basis, the Bulgarian linguist I. Duridanov found other Baltic parallels for Thracian glosses, but many of his comparisons were criticized.
The Thracian language apparently disappeared around the 5th century AD. e. as a result of the Great Migration and the collapse of the Roman Empire. The lands of the former Roman province of Thrace were partially captured by the Slavs and partially transferred to Byzantium.
Ultimately, most Thracians adopted Greek (in the region of Thrace) and Roman culture (Moesia, Dacia, etc.) and essentially became subjects of these states. However, small groups of Thracians existed before the Slavs migrated to the Balkans in the 6th century AD, so theoretically, some of the Thracians could become Slavs.

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Thracians and Getae, who are the Thracians
Indo-Europeans

Dead language groups are in italics

Thracians(ancient Greek Θρᾳκός; lat. Thraci) - an ancient people who lived in the east of the Balkans and adjacent territories. They spoke Thracian, which is considered an Indo-European language.

• 1 Appearance
• 2 Origin
• 3 Historical areas of the Thracians
• 4 History
• 5 Archeology
• 6 Records of the Thracians
• 7 Thracian tribes
• 8 Famous Thracians
• 9 Notes
• 10 Literature
• 11 Links

Appearance

The Greek philosopher Xenophanes describes the Thracians as outwardly different from the Greeks due to their blond hair and blue eyes.

All Ethiopians think of gods as black and snub-nosed, while the Thracians think of them as blue-eyed and fair-haired...

- (Translated by F. F. Zelinsky)

However, anthropologists believe that among the Thracians the Mediterranean type still prevailed with a small Dinaric admixture, possibly with light pigmentation, i.e. in general they were Pontids. Also, the external identity of the Moldovans, Romanians and Bulgarians is determined by the Thracian substrate.

Herodotus describes the equipment of the Thracians fighting the Persians:

The Thracians wore fox hats on their heads during the campaign. They wore tunics on their bodies and colorful burnouses on top. They had reindeer skin wrappings on their legs and knees. They were armed with darts, slings and small daggers (History, VII, 75)

The Thracians grew a mustache and beard, and preferred to collect the hair on their heads on the top of their heads.

Origin

A number of researchers identify the ancestors of the Thracians with the carriers of the Sabatinov or Belogrudov culture.

According to modern genetics, after moving from the Carpathians to the Balkan Peninsula, the Indo-Europeans belonging to haplogroup R1a assimilated with the local Paleo-Balkan tribes of haplogroup I2a, resulting in the formation of the Thracian peoples known to us from written sources (which were dominated by haplogroup I2a with a small admixture of haplogroup R1a); at the same time, the new Thracian language developed on the basis of the language of the conquerors, that is, on an Indo-European basis, incorporating some local features.

Historical areas of the Thracians

Thracian tribes (about 200 ethnonyms) were very numerous and lived on the territory of the modern Balkan Peninsula and part of Asia Minor.

• Thrace (Bulgaria and European Türkiye)
• Dacia (Romania)
• Bithynia (northwestern Anatolia)
• Mysia (northwestern Anatolia)

Story

The formation and spread of the Thracians to Asia Minor dates back to the era of migrations of the peoples of the sea. Already Homer places the Thracians on the banks of the Hellespont (Iliad, II, 845).

By the 5th century BC, the Thracians inhabited the northeast of the Balkans and the lands adjacent to the Black Sea to the west. Herodotus in the 5th book called them the second (after the Indians) in number in the known world, and potentially the most powerful militarily - if they stopped their internal squabbles. At that time, the Thracians were divided into a large number of warring tribes; Xenophon colorfully spoke about their internal wars in his Anabasis. However, the Thracians managed to create fragile states for some time, such as the Odrysian kingdom, the largest in Europe in the 5th century. BC e., and in Roman times - Dacia led by Burebista. After the invasion of Celtic tribes into Thrace, the kingdom of the Gauls was formed with its capital in the city of Tilis.

Ultimately, most Thracians adopted Greek (in the region of Thrace) and Roman cultures (Moesia, Dacia, etc.) and, in fact, became subjects of these states.

However, small groups of Thracians existed even before the migration of the Slavs to the Balkans in the 6th century. n. This. it is possible that some of the Thracians were assimilated by the Slavs.

Archeology

Throughout the 2000s, archaeologists have been excavating in central Bulgaria, in an area they call the “Valley of the Thracian Kings.” On August 19, 2005, reports appeared that the capital of Thrace had been discovered near the modern city of Karlovo, Bulgaria. Many smooth fragments of pottery (pieces of roof tiles and Greek vases) discovered during excavations indicate the wealth of the city's inhabitants. Bulgaria's Minister of Culture has declared his support for further excavations.

Records of the Thracians

The records of the Thracians in the Iliad talk mainly about the Hellespont, and about the tribe of Kikon, who fought on the side of the Trojans (Iliad, book II). From the Thracians, many mythical creatures passed on to their Greek neighbors, such as the god Dionysus, Princess Europa and the hero Orpheus.

In his fifth book, Herodotus describes the customs of the Thracian tribes:

Among the tribes living north of the Krestonians, there is this custom. When one of the tribe dies, his wives (and they all have many wives) begin a heated argument (with the zealous participation of friends): which of them the deceased husband loved most. Having resolved the dispute, men and women shower the chosen spouse with praise and the closest relatives slaughter her at the grave and then interred with her husband. The rest of the wives are very sad that the choice did not fall on them: after all, this is the greatest shame for them.

The customs of other Thracians are as follows: they sell their children to foreign lands. They do not preserve the chastity of girls, allowing them to have intercourse with any man. On the contrary, the fidelity of married women is strictly observed and they buy wives from their parents for a lot of money. A tattoo on the body is considered a sign of nobility among them. Whoever does not have it does not belong to the nobles. A person who spends time in idleness is held in high esteem by them. On the contrary, they treat the farmer with the greatest contempt. They consider the life of a warrior and robber to be the most honorable. These are their most remarkable customs.

The Thracians honor only three gods: Ares, Dionysus and Artemis. And their kings (unlike the rest of the people) reverence Hermes more than all the gods and swear only by him. According to them, they themselves originated from Hermes.

The funeral rites of the rich Thracians are as follows. The body of the deceased is exposed for three days. At the same time, sacrificial animals of all kinds are slaughtered and, after funeral cries, a funeral feast is held. Then the body is burned or otherwise buried and, having built a mound, various competitions are held. The highest awards are awarded for single combat, depending on the importance of the competition. These are the funeral customs of the Thracians.

Josephus claimed that the ancestor of the Thracians was the seventh son of Japheth, Tiras. He also argued that the Thracians were originally called Tirasians, but then the Greeks renamed them.

Thracian tribes

Below is a partial list of Thracian tribes (English)Russian:

• Demons
• Bisalty
• Bitins
• Getae (Herodotus, History 4:93)
• Ducky:
  • Apulites
  • Carps (people)
  • Costoboki
  • Sukyi
• Kikons
• Front sights
• Nipseii (Herodotus, History 4:93)
• Odomancers
• Odrysians
  • Siphons
• Pierians (Pierids)
• Satras
• Skyrmiads (Herodotus, History 4:93)
• Herbs
• Triballs
• Edons

Not completely Thracian tribes:

• Agathyrsi (Scythian-Thracian tribe)
• Dardanians (tribe mixed from Thracians, Illyrians and possibly Paeonians)

Famous Thracians

• Burebista is the king of Dacia, who subjugated to his power a huge Thracian territory from modern Moravia in the west to the Bug River in the east, from the Carpathians in the north, to Dionysopolis (modern Balchik) in the south.
• Decebalus is the king of Dacia, who won many battles with the Romans, but was defeated by the army of Trajan.
• Orpheus is a singer and musician who played the lyre in ancient Greek mythology. Played an important role in the religion of Greece and Bulgaria.
• Spartacus is a Roman gladiator who rebelled on the Apennine Peninsula in 73-71 BC. His army, composed largely of escaped gladiators and slaves, defeated several Roman legions in a war known as the Third Slave War or Spartacus's Revolt.
• Maximin I the Thracian - Gaius Julius Verus Maximinus the Thracian Roman emperor from March 20, 235 to March 22, 238, the first “soldier emperor.”

Notes

1. N. Deratani, N. Timofeeva. Reader on ancient literature, vol. I. Greek literature. M.: State. educational pedagogical Publishing house of the Ministry of Education of the RSFSR, 1958.
2. Which Anthic type originally corresponds to: Slavs, Balts, Illyro-Pelasgians, Celts, Germans, Greeks, Italo-Faliscs, Thracians, Hittite-Luvians, linguistic Tocharians, Armenian-Phrygians, Iranians, Indo-Aryans, Dardams and Nuristanis
3. Moldovans and the Transnistrian nation
4. Beard and hair
5. Haplogroup I2
6. Slavs and substrate | Personal website of the Belarusian historian Vyacheslav Nosevich
7. Haplogroup I2 (Y-DNA) / Haplogroups / Home / Anthropological and genetic classifications
8. Ethnogenesis of Moldovans
9. About the resource - Slavic culture
10. Roman group

Literature

• Danov Kh. M. Ancient Trakia. - Sofia, 1968.
• Zlatkovskaya T. D. The emergence of the state among the Thracians (VII-V centuries BC). - M., 1971.
• Thracian art and culture of the Bulgarian lands. Exhibition catalogue. - M., 1974.
• Tsoncheva M. Artistic heritage on Trakiyskite land. - Sofia, 1971.
• Detschew D. Die Thrakischen Sprachreste. - W., 1957.
• Wiesner J. Die Thraker. - Stuttg., 1963.
• Bulgarian Academy of Science. History of Bulgaria, volume 1. - Sofia, 1979.

Links

• Thracians // Great Soviet Encyclopedia.
• Thracian burial complexes.

ancient Thracians, who are the Thracians, Thracians, Thracians and Getae

Thracians Information About

A tribe that lived in the northeast of the Balkan Peninsula and northwest of Asia Minor. They spoke Thracian, which is classified as an Early Indo-European Paleo-Balkan language. The powerful Thracian tribe - the Odrysians - founded in 450 BC. e. state in Thrace, subsequently conquered by Philip of Macedon (under him Philippopolis arose), in 46 AD. e. under Claudius it was subordinated to the Romans, and from the 14th century it belonged to the Turks.

Appearance

The Thracians grew a mustache and beard, and preferred to collect the hair on their heads on the top of their heads.

Origin

A number of researchers identify the ancestors of the Thracians with the carriers of the Sabatinovskaya or Belogrudovskaya culture.

Genetic studies make it possible to assume that after moving from the Carpathians to the Balkan Peninsula, Indo-Europeans belonging to haplogroup R1a assimilated with local Paleo-Balkan tribes of haplogroup I2a, resulting in the formation - known to us from written sources - Thracian peoples (in which haplogroup I2a dominated with a small admixture of haplogroup R1a); at the same time, the new language was formed on the basis of the language of the conquerors, that is, on an Indo-European basis, incorporating some local features.

In an article in Eupedia magazine dedicated to the genes for red hair, the author considers the Thracians to be carriers of haplogroup R1b.

Historical areas of the Thracians

Story

The formation and spread of the Thracians to Asia Minor dates back to the era of migrations of the peoples of the sea. Already Homer places the Thracians on the banks