The stories of all peoples are rooted in antiquity. Often people traveled long distances in search of suitable conditions for their homes. You can learn more about who the Indo-Europeans are and how they are associated with the Slavs from this article.
Who is it?
Indo-Europeans are called native speakers of the Indo-European language. Currently, this ethnic group includes:
- Slavs.
- Germans.
- Armenians.
- Hindus.
- Celts.
- Greeks.
Why are these peoples called Indo-European? Nearly two centuries ago, a great similarity was found between European languages and Sanskrit - the dialect spoken by the Indians. The group of Indo-European languages includes almost all European languages. The exceptions are Finnish, Turkic and Basque.
The original habitat of the Indo-Europeans was Europe, but due to the nomadic way of life of most peoples, it spread far beyond the original territory. Now representatives of the Indo-European group can be found on all continents of the world. The historical roots of the Indo-Europeans go far into the past.
Ancestral home and ancestors
You may ask, how did it happen that Sanskrit and European languages have a similar sound? There are many theories of who the Indo-Europeans are. Some scholars suggest that the ancestors of all peoples with similar languages were Aryans, who, as a result of migrations, formed various peoples with different dialects, which remained similar in the main. Opinions differ about the ancestral home of the Indo-Europeans. According to the Kurgan theory, widespread in Europe, the territory of the Northern Black Sea region, as well as the lands between the Volga and the Dnieper, can be considered the birthplace of this group of peoples. Why, then, is the population of different countries of Europe so different? Everything is determined by the difference in climatic conditions. After mastering the technology of domestication of horses and the manufacture of bronze, the ancestors of the Indo-Europeans began to actively migrate in different directions. The difference in territories explains the differences in racial-anthropological types of Europeans, which took many years to form.
Historical roots
Who can still be considered the ancestors of the Indo-Europeans? It depends on the territory from which the Indo-European language originates. There are several more or less serious theories:
- The first option is Western Asia or Western Azerbaijan.
- The second option, which we have already described above, is certain lands of Ukraine and Russia, on which the so-called barrow culture was located.
- And the last option - eastern or central Europe, and more precisely - the valley of the Danube, the Balkans or the Alps.
Each of these theories has its opponents and adherents. But this question has not yet been resolved by scientists, although research has been ongoing for more than 200 years. And since the homeland of the Indo-Europeans is not known, the territory of the origin of the Slavic culture is also not possible to determine. Indeed, this will require accurate data on the ancestral home of the main ethnic group. The tangled tangle of history, which is fraught with more mysteries than answers, is not within the power to unravel modern humanity. And the time of the birth of the Indo-European language is also obscured: some name the date in 8 centuries BC, others - 4.5 in. BC.
Traces of the former community
Despite the isolation of peoples, traces of community are easily traced among the various descendants of the Indo-Europeans. What traces of the former community of Indo-Europeans can be cited as evidence?
- The first is language. He is the thread that still connects people on different ends of the planet. For example, the Slavic and Iranian peoples have such general concepts as “god”, “hut”, “ax”, “dog” and many others.
- Commonness can also be seen in applied art. Embroidery patterns of many European nations are strikingly similar to each other.
- You can trace the common homeland of the Indo-European peoples along the “animal” tracks. Many of them still have a deer cult, and some countries annually spend holidays in honor of the awakening of the bear in the spring. As you know, these animals are found only in Europe, and not in India or Iran.
- In religion, one can also find confirmation of the theory of community. The Slavs had the pagan god Perun, and the Lithuanians Perkunas. In India, the Thunderer was called Parjanje, the Celts called him Perkunia. And the image of the ancient god is very similar to the main deity of Ancient Greece - Zeus.
Genetic markers of Indo-Europeans
The main distinguishing feature of the Indo-Europeans is only the linguistic community. Despite some similarities, different peoples of Indo-European origin are very different from each other. But there is other evidence of their commonality. Genetic markers, although they do not prove 100% the common origin of these peoples, still add more common traits.
The most common among Indo-Europeans is the haplogroup R1. It can be found among the peoples inhabiting the territories of Central and Western Asia, India and Eastern Europe. But this gene was not found in some Indo-Europeans. Scientists believe that the language and culture of the great Indo-Europeans were transmitted among these people not through marriage, but through trade and socio-cultural communications.
Who is related
Many modern nations are descendants of the Indo-Europeans. These include the Indo-Iranian peoples, Slavs, Balts, Romance peoples, Celts, Armenians, Greeks and Germanic peoples. Each group, in turn, is divided into other, smaller groups. The Slavic branch is divided into several branches:
South, in turn, is divided into such famous peoples as Serbs, Croats, Bulgarians, Slovenes. Among the Indo-Europeans there are also completely extinct groups: Tochars and Anatolian peoples. The Hittites and the Luvians, who appeared in the Middle East two thousand years BC, are considered the most ancient peoples . There is one people among the Indo-European group that does not speak the Indo-European language: these are the Basques. The Basque language is considered isolated and it is still not precisely established where it originates from.
Problems
The term “Indo-European problem” appeared in the 19th century. It is connected with the still unclear early ethnogenesis of the Indo-Europeans. What was the population of Europe in the era of Eneolithic and Bronze? Scientists still have not come to a consensus. The fact is that in the Indo-European languages that can be found on the territory of Europe, sometimes elements of completely non-Indo-European origin are found. Scientists, studying the ancestral home of the Indo-Europeans, combine their efforts and use all possible methods: archaeological, linguistic and anthropological. Indeed, in each of them lies a possible key to unraveling the origin of the Indo-Europeans. But so far, these attempts have failed. More or less studied areas are the territories of the Middle East, Africa and Western Europe. The remaining parts remain a huge white spot on the archaeological map of the world.
Learning the language of the great Indo-Europeans also cannot give scientists much information. Yes, in it you can track the substrate - the “traces” of languages supplanted by Indo-European. But he is so weak and chaotic that scientists have not come to a consensus about who the Indo-Europeans are.
Resettlement
Indo-Europeans were originally settled peoples, and plow farming was considered their main occupation. But with climate change and the cold that came, they had to start exploring the neighboring lands, which were more favorable for life. From the beginning of the third millennium BC, a nomadic lifestyle has become the norm for Indo-Europeans. During the resettlement, they often entered into military conflicts with tribes living on the lands. Numerous skirmishes are reflected in the legends and myths of many European peoples: Iranian Greeks, Indians. After the peoples inhabiting Europe managed to tame horses and make bronze items, the resettlement gained even greater momentum.
How are Indo-Europeans and Slavs connected? This can be understood if we trace the dispersal of Indo-European peoples. From the southeast of Eurasia, their spread began, which then advanced to the southwest. As a result, Indo-Europeans settled all of Europe to the Atlantic. Some of the settlements were located on the territory of the Finno-Ugric peoples, but did not go further than them. The Ural Mountains, which were a serious obstacle, stopped Indo-European settlement. In the south, they moved much further and settled on the territory of Iran, Iraq, India and the Caucasus. After the Indo-Europeans settled in Eurasia and again began to lead a sedentary lifestyle, their community began to disintegrate. Under the influence of climatic conditions, peoples became more and more dissimilar to each other. Now we can see how strongly the living conditions of Indo-Europeans had an anthropology.
Summary
Modern descendants of Indo-Europeans inhabit many countries of the world. They speak different languages, eat different foods, but still have common distant ancestors. Scientists still have many questions about the ancestors of the Indo-Europeans and their resettlement. It is hoped that eventually all the same they will receive comprehensive answers. As well as the main question: "Who are the Indo-Europeans?"