European Ethnic Groups: The Slavs


Figure 1.--/i>

The Slavs are a major Eastern European language and ethnic group speaking one of the Indo-European family languages. The Slavs are normally divided into the West Slavs (Poles, Czechs, and Slovaks), East Slavs (Great Russians, Ukranians, and Bylorusians/White Russians), and South Slavs (Serbs, Croats, Slovenes, Macedonians, Montenegrans, and Bulgarians). The origins of the Slavs are not well understood. Like the Germans, Slavs have developed politically based national theories which have complicated actual scholarship and confused existing literature. Russia's Tsars used pan-Slavism to further its imperial expansion southward into the Ukraine and Balkans. Culturally the Slavs are divided into those national groups associated with the Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches. Germans and different Slavic nations employed both theories about origins as tools of political propaganda, resulting in general confusion. Some authors note references in Roman sources which appear to refer to the Slavs (1st century BC). Other sources maintain the first references appear later (1st century AD). Some scientists (such as Kazimierz Godlowski or Zdenek Vana) dismiss the work of other authors ans maintAin that the Slavs appeared and differentiated themselves from other tribes at some time in the 1st century AD. One author describes two waves of Slavs who he describes as Proto-Slavs (called Venedes or Wenets) and Slavs proper. This author claims that the two waves merged to form the modern Slavs. There appears to be no definitive archeological study as to the Slavs oigins and early history. Considerable archeolgical work has been done, but the findings at ths time seem rather confused. No one knows definitively where the Slavs originated from before the population exploded to become Europe's large ethnic group. The earliest evidence places the Slavs in the Pripyat Marshes area (Polesie). There are many Slavic words suggesting Indo-Aryan links and not mere borrowing. There are also theories of an autochthonous origins dating from pre-glacial times. Scholars are conducting genetic research to address the question of origins and ethnic differences. Anthropologists still debate the theories of multi-regional as opposed to the "out of Africa" concept of human evolution. Some historians speculate that the Slavic homeland was what Tacitus decribed as Germania. The origins of the Slavs are further complicated by the assimilation of non-Slavic peoples. Modern Bulgarians, for example, seem a combination of Central-Asian Bulgars who later mixed with Slavs mocing into the Balkans to form the modern Bugarian population. One of the ongoing conflict in European history has been the conflict between Slavs and Germans, a confict which as a result of NAZI racial theories reached murderous proportions in World War II. NAZI attrocities in the occupied East defy human understanding.

Language and Ethnicity

The Slavs are a major Eastern European language and ethnic group speaking one of the Indo-European family languages. They are the largest ethnic group in modern Europe. Before the development of modern DNA techniques, linguistics was an important method of studing etnnic groups in pre-historical eras. Linguistics have not identified a Proto-Slavic language. They believe that Slaviv languages developed through the blending of tribal dialects. Differences in Slavic languages may represent the geopgraphic separation on the Slavic tribes as well as the linguistic influences of the different people with which the Slavs mixed. Interestingly the Slavic language was retained even when the Slavs mixed to an extent that they would not the majority ethnic population. This dynamic is not fully understood. As a result, however, the Slavic languages are the major cultural afinity among modern Slavic peoples. There are today an estimated 300 million Slaves scatered througout eastern and southern Europe.

Sub-groups

The Slavs are normally divided into the West Slavs (Czechs, Poles, Slovaks, and Wends/Lusatians), East Slavs (Bylorusians/White Russians, Great Russians, Ukranians), and South Slavs (Bosniaks, Bulgarians, Croats, Macedonians, Montenegrans, Serbs, and Slovenes).

Origins

The origins of the Slavs are not well understood. Like the Germans, Slavs have developed politically based national theories which have complicated actual scholarship and confused existing literature. Germans and different Slavic nations employed both theories about origins as tools of political propaganda, resulting in general confusion. This is all complicated by the fact the early Slavs do not appear to have any kind of unity. And Slaves mixed with the people in the many areas where they settled. This has included many diiferent peoples including Turko-Tatars, Finnic, Germanics, Mongols, Greeks, and Illyrian peoples. The modern Bulgarians are a good example of the Slavic propensity to mix. The Bulgars were not a Slaviv people. Modern Bulgarians are a mix of Slavs and Bulgars, but speak a Slavic language. There are many Slavic words suggesting Indo-Aryan links and not mere borrowing. There are also theories of an autochthonous origins dating from pre-glacial times. Scholars are conducting genetic research to address the question of origins and ethnic differences. Anthropologists still debate the theories of multi-regional as opposed to the "out of Africa" concept of human evolution. The undefined origins of the Slavs has resulted in differenbt often conflicing theories. Many authors tend to fall back on the Polesie marshes in Galicia. There appears to be no definitive archeological study as to the Slavs oigins and early history. Considerable archeolgical work has been done, but the findings at ths time seem rather confused. No one knows definitively where the Slavs originated from before the population exploded to become Europe's large ethnic group. The earliest evidence places the Slavs in the Pripyat Marshes area (Polesie). The Slavs appear go be neolithic tribes who occupied land in Galacia or nearby territory before the Christian era. Some scholars see similarities between Proto-Slavs and Proto-Balts. Some historians speculate that the Slavic homeland was what Tacitus decribed as Germania. The origins of the Slavs are further complicated by the assimilation of non-Slavic peoples. Modern Bulgarians, for example, seem a combination of Central-Asian Bulgars who later mixed with Slavs moving into the Balkans to form the modern Bugarian population. The Slavs were first noted when they were still a pre-literary people meaning the earliest written records are provided by other peoples. Some authors note references in Roman sources which appear to refer to the Slavs (1st century BC). Other sources maintain the first references appear later (1st century AD). Some scientists (such as Kazimierz Godlowski or Zdenek Vana) dismiss the work of other authors ans maintain that the Slavs appeared and differentiated themselves from other tribes at some time in the 1st century AD. One author describes two waves of Slavs who he describes as Proto-Slavs (called Venedes or Wenets) and Slavs proper. This author claims that the two waves merged to form the modern Slavs.

Pan-Slavism

Russia's Tsars used pan-Slavism to further its imperial expansion southward into the Ukraine and Balkans.

Cultural Groups

Culturally the Slavs are divided into those national groups associated with the Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches. The Orthodox Eastern Church is dominant anong the the Great Russians, the eastern Ukrainians, and some Belorussians, the Bulgarians, the Serbs, and the Macedonians. The Roman Catholic Church is dominant aming the West Slavs, most Belorussians, the western Ukrainians, the Croats and the Slovenes). The religious orientation generally follows the alphabet used. The Slavs adhering to the Eastern Church use the a Cyrillic alphabet. Those adhering to the Roman Catholic Church use the Roman alphabet. Thee different alphabet can mask the substantial libguistic similarities to those unfamiliar with Slavic languages.

Drag Nach Ost

One of the ongoing conflict in European history has been the conflict between Slavs and Germans, a confict which as a result of NAZI racial theories reached murderous proportions in World War II. NAZI attrocities in the occupied East defy human understanding.

Sources

Cross, S.H. Slavic Civilization through the Ages (1963).

Dvornik, F. The Slavs (1956).

Dvornik, F. The Slavs in European History and Civilization (1962, repr. 1986).

Gimbutas, M.a> The Slavs (1971). 9

Jazdzewski, K. Atlas to the Prehistory of the Slavs (tr., 2 vol., 1948–49).

Roucek, J.S. ed. Slavonic Encyclopaedia (4 vol., 1949, repr. 1969).

Vlasto, A.P. The Entry of the Slavs into Christendom (1970).





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