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Origin stories of the Goths
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Origin stories of the Goths
There were several origin stories of the Goths recorded by Latin and Greek authors in late antiquity (roughly 3rd–8th centuries AD), and these are relevant not only to the study of literature, but also to attempts to reconstruct the early history of the Goths, and other peoples related to the Goths. From the perspective of Latin and Greek scholars, the Goths appeared under that name in the region north of the Black Sea and Lower Danube in the third century AD, but even the name of the Goths was not necessarily seen as new, because many such authors saw it as a new form of the name of the Getae who had long lived on the Lower Danube, or a new name for a part of the Scythian peoples who had long lived to their east, north of the Black sea. In the sixth century, Isidore of Seville also accepted this approach.
The earliest surviving written accounts of Gothic origins in the 5th century were by early Christian authors who continued to see the Goths as descendants of the Getae or Scythians, but they also attempted to fit them into biblical understandings of history. In the 6th century Jordanes drew upon these, but went further, giving a chronologically impossible account, which also drew upon older Roman historiography, and apparently Gothic accounts which no longer exist. His account was influential in the Middle Ages, and has often guided modern scholars in their own attempts to understand Gothic origins. In recent generations the strong influence of Jordanes upon the assumptions of scholars has become a topic of controversy.
Jordanes specifically linked the earliest Gothic origins, and therefore also in his account Getic and Dacia origins, to Scandinavia (the "island" of Scandza), and the Vistula estuary. Classical authors who Jordanes specifically cited, had reported the existence of the similarly named Gauts, and Gutones in those places, but his narrative may also have been influenced by lost accounts from the Goths themselves, or from others who were speculating on this topic in the 6th century. Many modern scholars have long seen this migration as a believable explanation of the Gothic name and their Germanic language. Jordanes' Getica has been categorized among the most important examples of the origo gentis (origin of a people) genre of literature as understood for example by historian Herwig Wolfram, but whether this category should be described as a genre has been questioned, for example by Walter Goffart, because of doubts that the authors understood themselves to be following a shared traditional model.
A quite different 6th century account was given by Procopius, who didn't emphasize the possible connection to the Danubian Getae, but instead specified their Scythian ancestry among the Sarmatians and Melanchlaeni who had lived on the eastern edge of the Greek world for centuries, originally near the River Don and Sea of Azov. He considered the Goths, Vandals and Gepids to be one people, only given different names because of their political history, and he saw the Sarmatians and Melanchlaeni as the same people. Like all classical writers including Jordanes he never referred to them as "Germanic peoples" (Germani), which in his account was the old name of the Franks of his time.
The Goths are first noted as living north of the Roman empire's frontier on the Lower Danube in an area which had previously been home to Getae, Carpi, Bastarni and Sarmatians. Much earlier the regions east of the Getae were inhabited by the Scythians, and the term "Scythian" was still used in classical times to refer to inhabitants of the area. All of the surviving Gothic origins stories included elements which connected the Goths to at least some of these previous inhabitants of "Scythia". Already in the first half of the third century, Dexippos, whose history has only survived in fragments, referred to the Goths of his time as Scythians, although from the surviving fragments he did not necessarily intend to assert that all Scythians had the same origins.
The first surviving rationales for equating Goths with Scythians or Getae were by early Christian scholars, Ambrose (about 340–397), Orosius (about 375–420) and Jerome (about 347–420). Ambrose equated the Scythians and Goths with the Biblical Gog and Magog — barbarians who come from the extreme north, where there are islands. Ambrose, in his De Fide II.xvi explains that "Gog" the ruler of "Magog" mentioned in the Book of Ezekiel represented "the Goths" (hoc est Gothis). Gog was the subject of a prophecy in the Bible of an invader from the north, who will come on horseback as a mighty army, and be defeated. Gog and Magog were also associated with islands because God would "send fire on Magog, and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles".
According to Arne S. Christensen, one precursor of Ambrose's equation of the Goths with the Biblical Gog and Magog was Josephus (died about 100), who equated the Scythians with the descendants of biblical Magog, who he understood as a person, not a country. This was based upon a passage in the Book of Genesis. A connection between this ancestral Genesis Magog, and the prophesied Gog from Ezekiel, who ruled a country named Magog, or "Gog and Magog" from the similar 1st century AD Book of Revelation prophecy, was made explicit in Jerome. This paved the way for other writers to connect specifically to the Goths, as Scythians, to the biblical account of the ancestry of the Scythians as interpreted by Josephus, although Jerome himself did not do this.
Orosius is among early writers to equate the Goths with Scythians, listing them along with the Huns and Alans as the "Scythians" of his time. Jerome, like his contemporary Orosius, equated the Goths to the earlier Getae, but did not equate them to Gog and Magog, only stating that scholars before him and Orosius had made this equation. Saint Jerome however specifically rejected this equation of the Goths with Gog and Magog. (Nevertheless, Herwig Wolfram believes that with this assertion "he probably invented the identification of the Goths as Getae".) Their contemporary, Saint Augustine, argued that Gog and Magog should not be read as Ambrose had, as Goths, but seen as representing peoples all over the world, not any single specific barbarian people.
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Origin stories of the Goths
There were several origin stories of the Goths recorded by Latin and Greek authors in late antiquity (roughly 3rd–8th centuries AD), and these are relevant not only to the study of literature, but also to attempts to reconstruct the early history of the Goths, and other peoples related to the Goths. From the perspective of Latin and Greek scholars, the Goths appeared under that name in the region north of the Black Sea and Lower Danube in the third century AD, but even the name of the Goths was not necessarily seen as new, because many such authors saw it as a new form of the name of the Getae who had long lived on the Lower Danube, or a new name for a part of the Scythian peoples who had long lived to their east, north of the Black sea. In the sixth century, Isidore of Seville also accepted this approach.
The earliest surviving written accounts of Gothic origins in the 5th century were by early Christian authors who continued to see the Goths as descendants of the Getae or Scythians, but they also attempted to fit them into biblical understandings of history. In the 6th century Jordanes drew upon these, but went further, giving a chronologically impossible account, which also drew upon older Roman historiography, and apparently Gothic accounts which no longer exist. His account was influential in the Middle Ages, and has often guided modern scholars in their own attempts to understand Gothic origins. In recent generations the strong influence of Jordanes upon the assumptions of scholars has become a topic of controversy.
Jordanes specifically linked the earliest Gothic origins, and therefore also in his account Getic and Dacia origins, to Scandinavia (the "island" of Scandza), and the Vistula estuary. Classical authors who Jordanes specifically cited, had reported the existence of the similarly named Gauts, and Gutones in those places, but his narrative may also have been influenced by lost accounts from the Goths themselves, or from others who were speculating on this topic in the 6th century. Many modern scholars have long seen this migration as a believable explanation of the Gothic name and their Germanic language. Jordanes' Getica has been categorized among the most important examples of the origo gentis (origin of a people) genre of literature as understood for example by historian Herwig Wolfram, but whether this category should be described as a genre has been questioned, for example by Walter Goffart, because of doubts that the authors understood themselves to be following a shared traditional model.
A quite different 6th century account was given by Procopius, who didn't emphasize the possible connection to the Danubian Getae, but instead specified their Scythian ancestry among the Sarmatians and Melanchlaeni who had lived on the eastern edge of the Greek world for centuries, originally near the River Don and Sea of Azov. He considered the Goths, Vandals and Gepids to be one people, only given different names because of their political history, and he saw the Sarmatians and Melanchlaeni as the same people. Like all classical writers including Jordanes he never referred to them as "Germanic peoples" (Germani), which in his account was the old name of the Franks of his time.
The Goths are first noted as living north of the Roman empire's frontier on the Lower Danube in an area which had previously been home to Getae, Carpi, Bastarni and Sarmatians. Much earlier the regions east of the Getae were inhabited by the Scythians, and the term "Scythian" was still used in classical times to refer to inhabitants of the area. All of the surviving Gothic origins stories included elements which connected the Goths to at least some of these previous inhabitants of "Scythia". Already in the first half of the third century, Dexippos, whose history has only survived in fragments, referred to the Goths of his time as Scythians, although from the surviving fragments he did not necessarily intend to assert that all Scythians had the same origins.
The first surviving rationales for equating Goths with Scythians or Getae were by early Christian scholars, Ambrose (about 340–397), Orosius (about 375–420) and Jerome (about 347–420). Ambrose equated the Scythians and Goths with the Biblical Gog and Magog — barbarians who come from the extreme north, where there are islands. Ambrose, in his De Fide II.xvi explains that "Gog" the ruler of "Magog" mentioned in the Book of Ezekiel represented "the Goths" (hoc est Gothis). Gog was the subject of a prophecy in the Bible of an invader from the north, who will come on horseback as a mighty army, and be defeated. Gog and Magog were also associated with islands because God would "send fire on Magog, and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles".
According to Arne S. Christensen, one precursor of Ambrose's equation of the Goths with the Biblical Gog and Magog was Josephus (died about 100), who equated the Scythians with the descendants of biblical Magog, who he understood as a person, not a country. This was based upon a passage in the Book of Genesis. A connection between this ancestral Genesis Magog, and the prophesied Gog from Ezekiel, who ruled a country named Magog, or "Gog and Magog" from the similar 1st century AD Book of Revelation prophecy, was made explicit in Jerome. This paved the way for other writers to connect specifically to the Goths, as Scythians, to the biblical account of the ancestry of the Scythians as interpreted by Josephus, although Jerome himself did not do this.
Orosius is among early writers to equate the Goths with Scythians, listing them along with the Huns and Alans as the "Scythians" of his time. Jerome, like his contemporary Orosius, equated the Goths to the earlier Getae, but did not equate them to Gog and Magog, only stating that scholars before him and Orosius had made this equation. Saint Jerome however specifically rejected this equation of the Goths with Gog and Magog. (Nevertheless, Herwig Wolfram believes that with this assertion "he probably invented the identification of the Goths as Getae".) Their contemporary, Saint Augustine, argued that Gog and Magog should not be read as Ambrose had, as Goths, but seen as representing peoples all over the world, not any single specific barbarian people.