Varangians

Etymology

The altostslawische varęgŭ was derived from Old Norse væringi, originally a composition of vár 'pledge' and Gengi " companion ", ie " a sworn person ".

In Eastern Europe

As Varangians associated Scandinavian armed men frets were referred in particular by oaths and vows, and common trade interests that were active between the 8th and 12th centuries in the Baltics and Eastern Europe. They took advantage of major rivers such as the Volkhov, Neva, Daugava River, Volga, Dnieper and Don, to get around in the Eastern lowlands. The Varangians were encountered as traders, warriors and settlers. In their trading voyages across the Black Sea, they came up to Constantinople Opel, where they temporarily put the bodyguard ( Varangian Guard ) of the Eastern Roman Emperor. About the Caspian Sea they even came to Baghdad. The bodyguards Russian princes who Drushinas, go back to warägische oath communities.

The Varangians were involved in the founding of the kingdom of Kievan Rus. From the 9th century they first settled as a mercenary, then as a noble leader and layer under the East Slavs. The resident in Russia Scandinavians were completely slavicized until the end of the 10th century. From now on they were referred to no more than Varangians (Russian Warjagi ), for the word " Varangian " always referred to strangers, never locals or Integrated.

Until the 13th century, however, were always new warriors from Scandinavia to long to serve in a time of Kievan Rus as mercenaries. These foreign Scandinavians were still referred to as Varangians, in contrast to the native Rus.

In the history of science, it is not without controversy, whether the establishment of Kievan Rus originally dates back to Norman (ie Scandinavian ) or Slavic groups. Birgit Scholz writes in her dissertation: " The question of the Slavic or Norman roots of the Old Russian state since the 18th century a political issue of the first rank in the relations between the German, Scandinavian and Russian historiography, come here but feelings of superiority on the one side and certain inferiority complexes together on the other side. "

In Arabia and Asia

Excavations have recently been furnished that - at least occasionally - warägische dealers after they were bringing their goods by caravans across the isthmus at Suez on the Red Sea, in the area of present-day Qatar occurred. From Arabic sources indicates that Varangians visited already in the 9th century Baghdad and came to Itil on the Caspian Sea, from where you could reach the Silk Road to China.

Initially, the people of the Rus appeared in the 9th century in Serkland on as traveling merchants along the Volga trade route.

Miscellaneous

The term served as the designation for the Russian cruiser Varyag (1899), the Soviet, unfinished aircraft carrier of the same name (begun 1985), and in World War II for a planned division of the Waffen- SS.