Germania
Dating back to the
Roman era, Germania was the
Latin name for a geographical area that stretched from the west bank of the
Rhine to a vaguely-defined eastern frontier with the forest and
steppe regions of modern
Russia and
Ukraine .
Encyclopedia
Dating back to the
Roman era,
Germania was the
Latin name for a geographical area that stretched from the west bank of the
Rhine to a vaguely-defined eastern frontier with the forest and
steppe regions of modern
Russia and
Ukraine .
History
Germania was inhabited by different tribes, mostly
Germanic but also including
Celtic,
Baltic,
Slavic and
Scythian, or steppe elements. Though Germanic tribes were in the majority, the ethnic makeup was complex and changed over the centuries as a result of
migrations. The Germanic people spoke
Proto-Germanic dialects.
The classical world knew little about the people who inhabited the north of Europe before the second century BC. In the fifth century BC the Greeks were aware of a group they called
Celts .
Herodotus also mentioned the Scythians, but no other barbarian tribes. At around 320, Pytheas of
Massalia sailed around
Britain and along the northern coast of Europe, and what he found on his journeys were so unbelievable that later writers refused to believe him. He may have been the first Mediterranean to distinguish the Germanic people from the Celts. Caesar described the cultural differences between the Germanic tribesmen, the Romans and the Gauls. He said that the Gauls, although warlike, could be civilized, but the Germanic tribesmen were far more savage, and were a threat to Roman Gaul, and so had to be conquered. His accounts of barbaric northern tribes could be described as an expression of the superiority of Rome. The most complete account of Germania that has been preserved from Roman times is
Tacitus'
Germania.
Regions
Germania was defined by Rome as having two regions: 'the inner Germania', west and south of the Rhine, occupied by the Romans, and 'the big Germania' east of the Rhine.
The occupied Germania was divided into two provinces:
Germania Inferior and
Germania Superior .
See also
External links
References
