The Bohemians (Latin: Behemanni, Beehaimi, Beheimi, Behemi, Boemani, Behemitae, Behemenses) or Bohemian Slavs (Latin: Sclavi qui dicitur Behaimi, Bohemos Slavos, Boemanos Sclavos), as a term designates an early Slavic group of peoples living in Bohemia (modern Czech Republic), meaning the early Czechs. Their land became recognised as the Duchy of Bohemia around 870 (later becoming Kingdom of Bohemia).

Their main adversary and partner was Francia, and around the early 9th century emerged a layer of castles with their own hereditary aristocracy, but while Mojmir I seized control over Moravians and founded a state Great Moravia (830s), the Czechs did only since Bořivoj I, the first historically documented Duke of Bohemia from about 870 and progenitor of the Přemyslid dynasty.

The related hypothesis about the Bohemian/Czech tribes was formed in the 19th century, based on the 12th-century chronicle Chronica Boemorum (specifically from its late 11th century Prague Charter) by Cosmas of Prague, that mentions “pseudo-tribes", but by the 21st century, that hypothesis became "completely abandoned".

The Slavs arrived in Bohemia in the 6th century after it had been vacated by the westward movement of Germanic tribes during the Migration Period. According to historian Dušan Třeštík, they advanced through the Moravian Gate (Moravská brána) valley and in the year 530 moved into Eastern Bohemia, along the rivers Labe (Elbe) and Vltava (Moldau) further into Central Bohemia, composed of separate groups from Ukraine and Carpathian Basin (with the Czechs possibly belonging to the latter group), fought with neighboring Pannonian Avars until the coming of Samo in the early 7th century.

The late 9th-century Bavarian Geographer mentions Beheimare having 15 civitates, but there's no correlation with the rest of the names from the Prague Charter (1086). Historical sources mention only single gens ("people" or "tribe") living in the principality of Bohemia, and usually mention the people or tribe of Bohemians rather than a country of the same name. The earliest recording of the term of Czechs is from the 10th century Old Church Slavonic legend of Saint Wenceslaus I, Duke of Bohemia.

In the second half of the 8th century and early 9th century, archaeologically, a change occurred in the use of Late Avar and Byzantine type of elite findings imported from the Carpathian Basin, with those of Carolingian type, a change of political network of hillforts, and the burial rite to inhumation.

In the Royal Frankish Annals (9th century), it is recorded that in 791 part of Charlemagne's army marched through Bohemia for the Avar Wars. In 805, the Charles the Younger launched a campaign against the Slavs in Bohemia, "ravaged their native land from one end to the other and killed their chief Lecho". The next year, forces from Bavaria, Alamannia and Burgundy were sent to attack Bohemia, "after laying waste much of the land the army returned without serious losses". In 822, the Bohemians sent an embassy with gifts alongside other Slavs (Obodrites, Wilzi, Sorbs, Moravians, Praedenecenti as well as Pannonian Avars) to a Louis the Pious's general assembly at Frankfurt.

In the Annales Fuldenses (9th century), it is recorded that in 845, fourteen Bohemian duces submitted to the Frankish king Louis the German and received baptism. The next year, on the return from the war with the Moravians, the Frankish army suffered greatly in Bohemia due to their treachery. In 847 and 848, king Louis the German sent expeditions against the Bohemians because they "were planning rebellion" (according to the Annales Bertiniani they attacked the Frankish frontier), and "crushed them, forcing them to send ambassadors to sue for peace and to give hostages". In 849, the "Bohemians in their usual fashion denied their loyalty and planned to rebel against the Franks", because of which dux Ernest was sent with a large army to crush them, resulting in a military debacle due to the feud between Ernest and Thachulf, with the Bohemians killing many Franks and their nobles. In August 856, king Louis the German's army, after a successful attack on the Sorbs and Daleminzi, was returning through the lands of the Bohemians "and received the surrender of several of their duces". The next year, the brother of Sclavitag/Slavitach, son of rebellious Wiztrach dux of Bohemians, found a refuge at the court of Zistibor of Sorbs before he was made new dux of Bohemians by the Franks.