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The Aryans
The Indo-Aryan tribes mentioned in the Rigveda are described as semi-nomadic pastoralists, subdivided into temporary settlements (vish, viÅ›) and headed by a tribal chief (raja, rÄjan) assisted by a priestly caste. They formed a warrior society, engaging in endemic warfare and cattle raids ("gaviá¹£á¹i") among themselves and against the "Dasyu" or Dasa. The size of a typical tribe was probably of the order of a few thousand people.
The king is often referred to as gopa (protector). He was aided by several functionaries, including the purohita (chaplain) and the senani (army chief; sena: army). The former not only gave advice to the ruler but also was his chariot driver and practised spells and charms for success in war.
The expansion of the Indo-Europeans is attributed to their pioneering military use of horses and early chariots. The first strong evidence for the domestication of the horse comes from the Sredny Stog culture north of the Azov Sea in Ukraine, and would correspond to an early PIE or pre-PIE nucleus of the 5th millennium BCE. The earliest known chariot was discovered at Krivoye Lake and dates to c. 2000 BCE.
Subsequent expansion led to the Indo-Europeanisation of vast areas and populations, which later diversified into a number of branches. Among them were the Indo-Iranian cultures, who controlled a large area just past the edge of eastern Europe around 2500 BCE.
The separation of Indo-Aryans proper from the Iranians is commonly dated, on linguistic grounds, to roughly 1800 BCE. The Nuristani languages probably split in such early times, and are classified as either remote Indo-Aryan dialects or as an independent branch of Indo-Iranian. By the mid 2nd millennium BCE early Indo-Aryans had reached Assyria in the west (the Indo-Aryan superstrate in Mitanni) and the northern Punjab in the east (the Rigvedic tribes).
The Scythians were a nomadic tribe that dominated the steppes for nearly five hundred years (From the 8th to approximately the 3rd Centuries BC). The Scythians spoke a tongue from the Northeastern Iranian language family. The Scythians were renowned for their ability to shoot their arrows with deadly accuracy from horseback. This talent astounded their neighbors, who referred to them as the "horse-bowmen." The greatest amount of territory under Scythian influence extended west to east from Ukraine to an area of Siberia just above Mongolia. Scythians settled as far west as what is now modern-day Romania and Hungary and appeared in what is now modern-day Iran just as the Assyrians and Medes were battling for supremacy in the Near-East.
Sarmatia
The territory of Sarmatia was an expansive stretch of land reaching from the Caspian Sea in the East to the Vistula River in the West, and as far south as the Danube. Essentially, Sarmatia was a collection of independent tribes, much like ancient Germania, that encompassed parts of modern Russia, Ukraine, the Baltic States, Central Asian nations and into central European countries such as Romania and Poland. The Sarmatian people were a blend of Iranian nomadic horse tribes that were likely related to the Scythians. Herodotus suggested in the 5th century BC that the Sauromatae, perhaps the original Sarmatians, were descended from the Scythians and the Amazons.
The Amazon legend was widely accepted among Greeks and later Romans, thanks to Sarmatian women having a much higher social standing than their Mediterranean counterparts. Regardless, Sarmatians moved west from the Central Asian steppes and into Europe between the 5th and 3rd centuries BC. These migrations brought them into direct contact with the Greeks, who at time proved to be adversary and friend. Some Greek coastal towns paid tribute to the violent horsement, while others traded and held alliances of varying degrees. These alliances helped the Sarmatians completely overtake lands previously held by the Scythians and they disappear from history for the most part.
By the first century BC, Sarmatians came into direct contact with Rome through Mithridates VI of Pontus. In the employ of the Pontic King, the Sarmatians ran helped bring Asia Minor under his rule, and likely wreaking havoc in Greece and the Balkans, at the expense of Rome. These alliances would eventually be crushed by Pompey and by Caesar in the mid 1st century BC, but the Sarmatians would continue to be a threat to Rome for another several centuries. External pressures from marauding Huns and other eastern people pushed the Sarmatians farther west. The Iazyges, certainly the most commonly known tribe to the Romans, settled along the Danube, between Dacia and Pannonia, soon to be in direct conflict with Rome.
Initially, the Iazyges were cautiously welcomed by the Romans, as they caused problems for tribes in Dacia, but eventually they would ally against the common foe. The Roxolani, another Sarmatian tribe, had settled the region and joined with their cousins as well. By the early 2nd century AD, the Emperor Trajan led a massive campaign to conquer Dacia, and between 102 and 106 AD, he brought this region and these tribes under Roman rule. Just a generation later, under Hadrian, it was deemed more advantageous to allow the nomadic horsemen their freedom, though Dacia itself was kept under Roman dominion. Another generation later, the Sarmatians, now including the Alans who migrated all the way from the Caspian Sea, had joined with Germanic neighbors, mainly the Quadi and Marcomanni. Marcus Aurelius, in a series of bloody and protracted wars from the 160's until his death in 180 AD, eventually pacified the region, but this too would only be temporary. It's also during this point in history that the first 'Sarmatian Knights' or auxilia were moved to Britain to serve along Hadrian 's Wall.
By the 3rd Century AD, political upheaval in the Empire and continued unrest among northern tribes, brought the Sarmatians back into permanent contact with Rome. They occupied Dacia, which was largely abandoned by the Legions, and began to settle more permanent homes, acting as buffers with migrating Germanics for the rest of the Empire's existence. A century later, many Iazyges were brought south of the Danube, and into the Balkans, under Diocletion and Constantine as farmers and tradesmen. Those Sarmatians who remained in the greater expanse of land to the north and east were eventually overrun by Huns and Goths and were either destroyed or absorbed by the 6th century AD.
In regarding the Sarmatians, it's important to note their potential contributions to the lore and mythos of western civilization. Their foundation and relationship to the Amazons has already been alluded to, but their transfer to Britain has helped feed speculation on the origin of King Arthur. Lucius Artorius Castus, a Roman cavalry officer serving in the 2nd century AD has often been associated with one possible source of the true historical Arthur. Whether true or not, the Sarmatian contribution to the story is certainly one major piece of the huge Arthurian puzzle. The service of Sarmatian cavalry, from the 2nd century until the 5th century and the Roman withdrawal from Britain, along with the deeds and exploits of Artorius, may have allowed his legend to grow and foster with each successive generation of Sarmatian 'colonists'. They also provided an invaluable contribution in post-Roman Britain, fending off Saxon invasions, which certainly helped foster the growing Arthur mythology.
http://www.unrv.com/provinces/sarmatia.php
http://listverse.com/2010/01/05/top-...the-scythians/
Indian subcontinent both the Jats and the Rajputs are supposed to be Scythians.
India is reffered to as "Arya-vrat" in Sanskrit which means the home of the Arya which was another Sanskrit term for brave. Even Iran derives its name from the word Aryan. Iran is a cognate of the word Aryan which means "Land of the Aryans".
The Indo-Aryan tribes mentioned in the Rigveda are described as semi-nomadic pastoralists, subdivided into temporary settlements (vish, viÅ›) and headed by a tribal chief (raja, rÄjan) assisted by a priestly caste. They formed a warrior society, engaging in endemic warfare and cattle raids ("gaviá¹£á¹i") among themselves and against the "Dasyu" or Dasa. The size of a typical tribe was probably of the order of a few thousand people.
The king is often referred to as gopa (protector). He was aided by several functionaries, including the purohita (chaplain) and the senani (army chief; sena: army). The former not only gave advice to the ruler but also was his chariot driver and practised spells and charms for success in war.
The expansion of the Indo-Europeans is attributed to their pioneering military use of horses and early chariots. The first strong evidence for the domestication of the horse comes from the Sredny Stog culture north of the Azov Sea in Ukraine, and would correspond to an early PIE or pre-PIE nucleus of the 5th millennium BCE. The earliest known chariot was discovered at Krivoye Lake and dates to c. 2000 BCE.
Subsequent expansion led to the Indo-Europeanisation of vast areas and populations, which later diversified into a number of branches. Among them were the Indo-Iranian cultures, who controlled a large area just past the edge of eastern Europe around 2500 BCE.
The separation of Indo-Aryans proper from the Iranians is commonly dated, on linguistic grounds, to roughly 1800 BCE. The Nuristani languages probably split in such early times, and are classified as either remote Indo-Aryan dialects or as an independent branch of Indo-Iranian. By the mid 2nd millennium BCE early Indo-Aryans had reached Assyria in the west (the Indo-Aryan superstrate in Mitanni) and the northern Punjab in the east (the Rigvedic tribes).
The Scythians were a nomadic tribe that dominated the steppes for nearly five hundred years (From the 8th to approximately the 3rd Centuries BC). The Scythians spoke a tongue from the Northeastern Iranian language family. The Scythians were renowned for their ability to shoot their arrows with deadly accuracy from horseback. This talent astounded their neighbors, who referred to them as the "horse-bowmen." The greatest amount of territory under Scythian influence extended west to east from Ukraine to an area of Siberia just above Mongolia. Scythians settled as far west as what is now modern-day Romania and Hungary and appeared in what is now modern-day Iran just as the Assyrians and Medes were battling for supremacy in the Near-East.
Sarmatia
The territory of Sarmatia was an expansive stretch of land reaching from the Caspian Sea in the East to the Vistula River in the West, and as far south as the Danube. Essentially, Sarmatia was a collection of independent tribes, much like ancient Germania, that encompassed parts of modern Russia, Ukraine, the Baltic States, Central Asian nations and into central European countries such as Romania and Poland. The Sarmatian people were a blend of Iranian nomadic horse tribes that were likely related to the Scythians. Herodotus suggested in the 5th century BC that the Sauromatae, perhaps the original Sarmatians, were descended from the Scythians and the Amazons.
The Amazon legend was widely accepted among Greeks and later Romans, thanks to Sarmatian women having a much higher social standing than their Mediterranean counterparts. Regardless, Sarmatians moved west from the Central Asian steppes and into Europe between the 5th and 3rd centuries BC. These migrations brought them into direct contact with the Greeks, who at time proved to be adversary and friend. Some Greek coastal towns paid tribute to the violent horsement, while others traded and held alliances of varying degrees. These alliances helped the Sarmatians completely overtake lands previously held by the Scythians and they disappear from history for the most part.
By the first century BC, Sarmatians came into direct contact with Rome through Mithridates VI of Pontus. In the employ of the Pontic King, the Sarmatians ran helped bring Asia Minor under his rule, and likely wreaking havoc in Greece and the Balkans, at the expense of Rome. These alliances would eventually be crushed by Pompey and by Caesar in the mid 1st century BC, but the Sarmatians would continue to be a threat to Rome for another several centuries. External pressures from marauding Huns and other eastern people pushed the Sarmatians farther west. The Iazyges, certainly the most commonly known tribe to the Romans, settled along the Danube, between Dacia and Pannonia, soon to be in direct conflict with Rome.
Initially, the Iazyges were cautiously welcomed by the Romans, as they caused problems for tribes in Dacia, but eventually they would ally against the common foe. The Roxolani, another Sarmatian tribe, had settled the region and joined with their cousins as well. By the early 2nd century AD, the Emperor Trajan led a massive campaign to conquer Dacia, and between 102 and 106 AD, he brought this region and these tribes under Roman rule. Just a generation later, under Hadrian, it was deemed more advantageous to allow the nomadic horsemen their freedom, though Dacia itself was kept under Roman dominion. Another generation later, the Sarmatians, now including the Alans who migrated all the way from the Caspian Sea, had joined with Germanic neighbors, mainly the Quadi and Marcomanni. Marcus Aurelius, in a series of bloody and protracted wars from the 160's until his death in 180 AD, eventually pacified the region, but this too would only be temporary. It's also during this point in history that the first 'Sarmatian Knights' or auxilia were moved to Britain to serve along Hadrian 's Wall.
By the 3rd Century AD, political upheaval in the Empire and continued unrest among northern tribes, brought the Sarmatians back into permanent contact with Rome. They occupied Dacia, which was largely abandoned by the Legions, and began to settle more permanent homes, acting as buffers with migrating Germanics for the rest of the Empire's existence. A century later, many Iazyges were brought south of the Danube, and into the Balkans, under Diocletion and Constantine as farmers and tradesmen. Those Sarmatians who remained in the greater expanse of land to the north and east were eventually overrun by Huns and Goths and were either destroyed or absorbed by the 6th century AD.
In regarding the Sarmatians, it's important to note their potential contributions to the lore and mythos of western civilization. Their foundation and relationship to the Amazons has already been alluded to, but their transfer to Britain has helped feed speculation on the origin of King Arthur. Lucius Artorius Castus, a Roman cavalry officer serving in the 2nd century AD has often been associated with one possible source of the true historical Arthur. Whether true or not, the Sarmatian contribution to the story is certainly one major piece of the huge Arthurian puzzle. The service of Sarmatian cavalry, from the 2nd century until the 5th century and the Roman withdrawal from Britain, along with the deeds and exploits of Artorius, may have allowed his legend to grow and foster with each successive generation of Sarmatian 'colonists'. They also provided an invaluable contribution in post-Roman Britain, fending off Saxon invasions, which certainly helped foster the growing Arthur mythology.
http://www.unrv.com/provinces/sarmatia.php
http://listverse.com/2010/01/05/top-...the-scythians/
Indian subcontinent both the Jats and the Rajputs are supposed to be Scythians.
India is reffered to as "Arya-vrat" in Sanskrit which means the home of the Arya which was another Sanskrit term for brave. Even Iran derives its name from the word Aryan. Iran is a cognate of the word Aryan which means "Land of the Aryans".
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