Getica

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De origine actibusque Getarum ( Getica for short ) is the main historical work of the Roman- Gothic scholar and historian Jordanes († after 552) from the 6th century. Jordanes describes the people of the Goths in his work .

background

Jordanes, who himself was of Gothic descent, probably wrote his work on the basis of the record written by the Roman scholar Cassiodorus in 12 books as Historia Gothorum (History of the Goths) on behalf of Theodoric the Great around the year 520 . Jordanes had the opportunity to look at Cassiodor's now lost work for three days and then wrote his De origine actibusque Getarum (On the Origin and Deeds of the Goths) himself, but also relied on additional sources such as a writing by the historian Ablabius . He could also refer to current events, such as the battles of Emperor Justinian's troops against the Ostrogoths.

The Getica made by Jordanes is considered to be an important source for Gothic history, since the works of Cassiodor and Ablabius have been completely lost; Fragments from the work of Ablabius are only preserved from Jordanes. However, it must be taken into account that Jordane's portrayal was from an Ostrogothic or Roman perspective. The Historia Romana , which he also wrote , probably forms a unit with the Getica or is to be regarded as a supplement.

To date, the credibility of the Jordanes is controversial on several points. It is also controversial to what extent Cassiodore's Gothic story formed the basis for the Getica or whether Jordanes offered a more independent description in which only parts of the respective sources were processed.

Critical consideration of the sources

Direct comparisons between the works of Jordanes and Cassiodorus are no longer possible because Cassiodor's books have not survived. He had stated that he used Gothic folk songs (Latin carmina prisca ) as a source for his records. Jordanes also relies on old stories. The main motive of his recording is seen in research as the glorification of the Ostrogoths ruling Italy at the time, which Cassiodorus wanted to help achieve a glorious history. Gothic history has been portrayed as going back as long as Roman. In modern research, however, this representation is viewed very critically; Ultimately, Cassiodorus (taking Jordanes' report as a basis) constructed a historical past of the Goths that did not correspond to reality.

Arne Søby Christensen based his investigation of the Getica first on the Greco-Roman and Judeo-Christian literature about the Goths, which had been written before Cassiodorus. The name "Gothi" can be found in sources from the early 3rd century; The historian Tacitus (* around 58 AD; † around 120) also mentions a people called "Gotones" in his writings, who lived south of the Baltic Sea. Jordanes settled these on the Danube. Ptolemy (* around 100; † before 180) reports on the Sarmatians who lived on the Vistula. However, none of these details coincide with the chronology of the Jordanes. Jordanes explained that the Getes were the same people as the Goths and relied on the information provided by Orosius (* around 385, † around 418). A controversial passage is the equation of the Slavs of the 6th century with the Venetians mentioned by Tacitus and Pliny the Elder (* about 23; † 79) or the Sarmatians mentioned by Ptolemy.

An important question is therefore the historical accuracy in the work of Jordanes, especially with regard to the dating of the events and the origin of the Goths. Critics see it as a description of the peoples of the 6th century as they were to be found at the time of writing. The lost history of Cassiodorus, Jordanes' main source, was also presumably based on descriptions of peoples who cannot be identified with certainty as Goths.

Text history

Today the text is based on the edition by the famous German ancient historian Theodor Mommsen , which is based on the Heidelberg manuscript, which was best preserved at the time (1882) and which probably dates from the early 8th century. However, this manuscript was destroyed in a fire in Mommsen's house on July 7, 1880, and only the editing by Mommsen himself survives today. This fact contributes to the fact that the version of the Jordanes available today is sometimes questioned as a reliable historical source, although Mommsen is generally regarded as a careful and competent editor. The manuscript with the next greatest historical value is the Vaticanus Palatinus from the 10th century and the Valenciennes manuscript from the 9th century. The manuscript of the Palermo State Archives , which is only slightly younger than the Heidelberg manuscript, was not known to Mommsen. It was used for the 1991 edition.

In terms of textual criticism and the history of transmission, Getica is a work of lack of certainty when it comes to the authenticity of what has come down to us today: So “… we have to be modest not to be able to say with certainty what Jordanis really wrote,” wrote the Getica translator , W. Martens, as early as 1913.

Structure of the "Getica"

The Getica are divided into sections.

  • The geographical introduction

Jordanes reports on the world conception of the Goths, which they imagined as a circle of the entire known world, which was enclosed on three sides by a kind of belt of oceans. The three continents were called Asia, Europe and Africa. In addition, there are some archipelagos such as the Cyclades or the Sporades .

  • The united Goths

Jordanes begins his story with the emigration of the Goths under their leader Berig , when they set off with three ships from the island of Scandza for Gothiscandza (coast of the Goths). This is equated with the Willenberg culture in today's Poland or with Danzig at the mouth of the Vistula. However, modern research speaks out against the fact that the Goths immigrated from Scandinavia , the report of the Jordanes is rather viewed as a topical legend of origin ( Origo gentis ).

In the story, Herodotus, the Gothic demigod Zalmoxis , becomes the king of the Goths. Glorious stories follow up to the first encounter between the Goths and the Romans.

  • The Visigoths
  • The Ostrogoths

The work ends with the submission of the Goths by the Eastern Roman general Belisarius .

Editions and translations

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e Charles C. Mierow: The Origin and Deeds of the Goths. on people.ucalgary.ca, accessed March 25, 2013.
  2. ↑ Cf. Arne Søby Christensen: Cassiodorus, Jordanes and the History of the Goths. Copenhagen 2002, pp. 248f.
  3. ^ Arne Søby Christensen: Cassiodorus, Jordanes and the History of the Goths. Copenhagen 2002, summarized on p. 343ff.
  4. ↑ Cf. Arne Søby Christensen: Cassiodorus, Jordanes and the History of the Goths. Copenhagen 2002, p. 240ff.
  5. ↑ Patric J. Geary: The Myth of Nations, the Medieval Origins of Europe. Princeton University Press, 2002, ISBN 0-691-11481-1 , pp. 60f.
  6. ↑ Herwig Wolfram: Gothic studies: People and rule in the early Middle Ages. on books.google.de, accessed on March 25, 2013.