Terwingi and Tyringi/Turingi

[faltin2001]

Hi all,

I've read the new article "Thüringer" in the Reallexikon der
Germanischen Altertumskunde (RGA). The authors clearly reject the old
theory, which saw the Thuringi as descendents of the Hermun-duri. M.
Springer argues in the historical section of the study that neither
the temporal, nor the geographical and especially not the linguistic
arguments allow such a link between the Thuringi and Hermunduri. In
the archaeological section of the study, C. Theune supports this view
and states bluntly that the newer scholarship rejects the link
between Thuringi and Hermunduri (p. 536).

This leaves the question open where did the Thuringi come from. M.
Springer discusses the theory, presented (again) recently by Grahn-
Hoek, which argued that the Thuringi originated from remnants of the
Tervingi. The idea is that the name T(h)(e)uringi is derived from the
form T(h)eruingi. This theory has the advantage that it is
linguistically feasible and that it makes sense also from a temporal
point of view. I.e. the Theruingi disappear just at the time when the
Theuringi appear at the Danube. Grahn-Hoek sites also a lot of
historical argumentation for this theory, but the best support comes
from archaeology. Thus, archaeologists have shown that carriers of
the Chernyakhovs/Sintana-de-Mures culture had moved from the Black
Sea to the heartland of the later Thuringian realm in the last
decades of the 4th century. B. Schmidt names this group Niemberger
Gruppe and Theune wrote that the Thuringian ethnogenesis took place
on the basis of this Niemberger Gruppe around 400 AD. Theune states
that further horse nomadic and East Germanic influences arrived in
the course of the 5th century.

Interestingly, in her study Grahn-Hoek had linked the Thuringi with
the Terwingi of Athanaric. Among others, she had stated that the
Burgundian royal family was descended from Athanaric, the Terwingian
judge. Grahn-Hoek argued that such a family link would be much more
feasible if remnants of Athanaric's family had moved much further to
the west to Thuringia than the usual settlements in Rumania. Indeed,
Springer reiterates that early sources usually mention Thuringians
and Burgundians side-by-side. He does not refer to the link with
Athanaric, but Springer notes that the Thuringian castle Giebichen-
stein might be named after the royal house of the Burgundians, the
Giebichungen.

In his article "Terwingen" in the RGA, G. Kampers mentions an
alternative name link, which was also discussed by Grahn-Hoek.
Kampers states that the T(h)yringi (which is one of the name forms
for Thuringi) could be the name of the Terwingi who lived at the
Tyrus river (i.e. the later Dnestr). Such a name form would be
analogue to the Tanaites, i.e. the Alan who lived at the Tanais river
(Don).

Cheers,

Dirk







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