[gothic-l] Re: Neil Acherson's Crimea

[dirk at SMRA.CO.UK]

I read Vasiliev's book on the Crimean Goths. The book is extremely 
well researched and detailed and I can only recommend it. Vasiliev, 
however, argues that the Gothic language died out sometime in the high 
middle ages (11th Century if I recall correctly) after all remaining 
Goths have been thouroughly hellenised and from the 15th century 
tatarised. Vasiliev is  critical of the Crimean Gothic word list 
produced by a Flemish ambassador in the 16th century. Vasiliev does 
not provide a linguistic examination of the word list, but only points 
out that many of the words are obviously German. Vasiliev questions 
some of the circumstances surrounding the word list. Like the fact 
that the ambassador did not visit the area, but reports of a lifely 
community of Goths at Mangub, while a Polish ambassador who actually 
visited Mangub a few years later found their only a Greek Priest and 
some Turks and Jews living their. Vasiliev argues that the Goths were 
hellenised and tatarised but likely maintained their Christian faith. 
So when in the 18th century a group of tatar speaking Crimeans were 
re-settled to Russia, their 'may have been a drop of Gothic blood in 
their veins'. 

I think Vasiliev's Book is required reading.

Dirk


--- In gothic-l at egroups.com, Tore Gannholm <tore.gannholm at s...> wrote:
> The following book might be of interest.
> 
> AA Vasiliev, The Goths in the Crimea. Mediaeval academy of America,
> Publication N:o 25, Cambridge Mass. 1936
> 
> Tore Gannholm
> 
> >Hails!
> >
> >I promised to follow up on the Crimean Goths with some 
Zusammenfassung of
> >what Neal Ascherson has to say in his book
> >Black Sea. But what do you know.. While doing some search on 
Crimean
> >material I found the very chapter I'm referring
> >to published on the net by Washington Post!! =>
> >
> 
>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/books/chap1/black
sea.htm
> >
> >Reqired reading!
> >
> >This is what I have been able to gather from various sources in 
Russia,
> >Ukraine and elsewhere:
> >
> >The story of the Crimean Goths is intimately tied to those 
so-called cave
> >towns on some flat tops high up the
> >Krimskije Gory mountain range which is defining the south-east sea 
border
> >of Crimea. The best known are Chufut-Kale,
> >Mangup-Kale, Eski-Kermen with a similar history. They were all
> >artificially created for defence purposes back in VIII
> >— IX centuries
> >
> >Although the evidence is by no means conclusive, Mangup was 
reportedly
> >first founded in the 3rd century AD by  Alans
> >and Goths. Justinian I however fortressed Mangup during the 6th 
century as
> >one in a series of strongholds designed to
> >protect the coastal cities.  It has been described as "a Greek
> >principality ruled by gothic princes". The city was
> >later captured by the Khazars but in 787 AD, Prince-Metropolitan 
"John the
> >Goth" led a rebellion against the Khazars,
> >thus founding the principality of Feodoros, which lasted until 
1475.
> >To-days coastal city of Feodosia is an other
> >reminder of the principality of Theodosia with roots from the 5th 
century.
> >(Why do slavs have this lexically
> >irritating tendency to equal th with f?).
> >The Ottomans came in 1475 and laid siege to Mangup for six months 
and
> >ended the principality once and for all.  The
> >jewish fundamentalist Karaims (not at all related to the converted 
Khazar
> >jews!), originating from Babylon moved in
> >and stayed on for a while, and even they left in 1792. Now the 
basilica
> >and citadel stand above all for the few
> >tourist visitors.  One can still see remnants of Byzantine 
architectural
> >styles.
> >
> >Chufut-Kale, a city with a similar history, is located also on a 
plateau,
> >550m above the sea level. It was reportedly
> >built under the guidance of Byzantium by Goths and Alans. Little is 
known
> >of Chufut-Kale's earlier history. The first
> >written documents go back to the late 13th century. At that time 
the
> >fortress got the name Kirk-Er and was the centre
> >of the Crimean Alans according to official Ukrainean history books. 
But in
> >the mid-14th century under the rule of
> >Golden Hord Janibek-Klan, the Tatars seized Chufut-Kale and turned 
it into
> >a Beiluk (Tatar regional centre). After
> >the foundation of the Crimean Khanate, Cufut-Kale became it's first
> >capital. A mosque and a madrasah were built here
> >and the walls were fortified. New suburbs (the posad) for Jewish 
and
> >Armenian communities were built to develop the
> >town's economy. In the early 1650 century the capital of the Crimea 
was
> >moved to Bachchisarai.  Only Karaites and
> >Armenians stayed here. The remaining population were Karaites in 
the
> >mid-17th century and the town was renamed
> >Chufut-Kale (Jewish Fortess).
> >
> >This is not to conclude that the remaining Crimean Goths were 
mountain
> >dwellers in their majority. They probably
> >formed minor communities wherever they felt secure but eventually 
merged
> >with the other peoples all over Crimea.
> >
> >
> >Izwara,
> >
> >Seigmund
> >
> >
> >[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
> >
> >
> >
> >You are a member of the Gothic-L list.  To unsubscribe, send a 
blank email
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> >Homepage: http://www.stormloader.com/carver/gothicl/index.html
> 
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]


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