The Pomeranians (german: Pomoranen; csb, Pòmòrzónie; pl, Pomorzanie), first mentioned as such in the 10th century, were a West Slavic

tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in part due to confli ...

, which since the 5th to the 6th centuries had settled at the shore of the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and ...

between the mouths of the Oder and

Vistula The Vistula (; pl, Wisła, ) is the longest river in Poland and the ninth-longest river in Europe, at in length. The drainage basin, reaching into three other nations, covers , of which is in Poland. The Vistula rises at Barania Góra in ...

Rivers (the latter

Farther Pomerania Farther Pomerania, Hinder Pomerania, Rear Pomerania or Eastern Pomerania (german: Hinterpommern, Ostpommern), is the part of Pomerania which comprised the eastern part of the Duchy and later Province of Pomerania. It stretched roughly from the Od ...

and

Pomerelia Pomerelia,, la, Pomerellia, Pomerania, pl, Pomerelia (rarely used) also known as Eastern Pomerania,, csb, Pòrénkòwô Pòmòrskô Vistula Pomerania, prior to World War II also known as Polish Pomerania, is a historical sub-region of Pome ...

). They spoke the Pomeranian language that belonged to the

Lechitic languages The Lechitic (or Lekhitic) languages are a language subgroup consisting of Polish and several other languages and dialects that were once spoken in the area that is now Poland and eastern Germany. It is one of the branches of the larger West S ...

, a branch of the West Slavic language family. The name ''Pomerania'' has its origin in the Old Polish ''po more'', which means "Land at the Sea".

Prehistory

Following the exit of the Hamburgian hunters, the area was inhabited successively by Celts and the

Wielbark Culture The Wielbark culture (german: Wielbark-Willenberg-Kultur; pl, Kultura wielbarska) or East Pomeranian-Mazovian is an Iron Age archaeological complex which flourished on the territory of today's Poland from the 1st century AD to the 5th century AD. ...

(

Germanic tribes The Germanic peoples were historical groups of people that once occupied Central Europe and Scandinavia during antiquity and into the early Middle Ages. Since the 19th century, they have traditionally been defined by the use of ancient and e ...

similar to the

Goths The Goths ( got, 𐌲𐌿𐍄𐌸𐌹𐌿𐌳𐌰, translit=''Gutþiuda''; la, Gothi, grc-gre, Γότθοι, Gótthoi) were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of medieval Europe ...

and the

Rugians The Rugii, Rogi or Rugians ( grc, Ρογοί, Rogoi), were a Roman-era Germanic people. They were first clearly recorded by Tacitus, in his ''Germania'' who called them the ''Rugii'', and located them near the south shore of the Baltic Sea. Some ...

). Groups of Slavs populated the area as a result of the Slavic migration. The Pomeranian tribes formed around the 6th century. There was also a

Pomeranian culture The Pomeranian culture, also Pomeranian or Pomerelian Face Urn culture was an Iron Age culture with origins in parts of the area south of the Baltic Sea (which later became Pomerania, part of northern Germany/Poland), from the 7th century BC to ...

, which was replaced by the

Jastorf culture The Jastorf culture was an Iron Age material culture in what is now northern Germany and southern Scandinavia spanning the 6th to 1st centuries BC, forming part of the Pre-Roman Iron Age and associating with Germanic peoples. The culture evo ...

. From around the 6th century, West Slavic tribes migrated via the Vistula and Oder Rivers into the southern Baltics, where sizable settlements of Vikings and Danes and large trading centers thrived, such as

Jomsburg Jomsborg or Jómsborg (german: Jomsburg) was a semi-legendary Viking stronghold at the southern coast of the Baltic Sea (medieval Wendland, modern Pomerania), that existed between the 960s and 1043. Its inhabitants were known as Jomsvikings. Joms ...

at the mouth of the Oder and Danzig at the mouth of the Vistula and possibly Baltic settlement centres between the

Parsęta Parsęta (; german: Persante ) is a river in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship (''Zachodniopomorskie'') of north-western Poland, with a length of and a basin area of . According to the 12th-century ''

Nestor Chronicle The ''Tale of Bygone Years'' ( orv, Повѣсть времѧньныхъ лѣтъ, translit=Pověstĭ vremęnĭnyxŭ lětŭ; ; ; ; ), often known in English as the ''Rus' Primary Chronicle'', the ''Russian Primary Chronicle'', or simply the ...

'', the Pomeranians, as well as Poles, Masovians and Lusitanians originated from the tribe of the

Lechites Lechites (, german: Lechiten), also known as the Lechitic tribes (, german: Lechitische Stämme), is a name given to certain West Slavic tribes who inhabited modern-day Poland and eastern Germany, and were speakers of the Lechitic languages. Dist ...

10th to 12th centuries

By 967,

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are rank ...

Mieszko I had after a decisive battle against the

Wolinians The Wolinians ( la, Velunzani, Uelunzani, pl, Wolinianie) were a Lechitic tribe in Early Middle Age Pomerania. They were first mentioned as "Velunzani" with 70 ''civitates'' by the Bavarian Geographer, ca. 845.Johannes Hoops, Herbert Jankuhn, He ...

, led by

Wichmann the Younger Wichmann II the Younger (also spelled ''Wigmann'' or ''Wichman'') (about 930 – 22 September 967) was a member of the Saxon House of Billung. He was a son of Count Wichmann the Elder and his wife Frederuna, a niece of Queen Matilda. The cousin of ...

, and gained full control over the lands between the Vistula and the mouth of the Oder. The earliest known documented use of the term Pomorie dates to 997 in reference to the Duke of Pomorie. The

Piast The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I (c. 930–992). The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of king Casimir III the Great. Branche ...

dukes of

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

began to incorporate the Pomeranians into their realm and succeeded initially. In 1005, Polish Duke Bolesław I the Brave loses control over the area. In the

Annales Altahenses The ''Annales Altahenses'' was an early medieval royal annals compiled in the Niederaltaich Abbey Niederaltaich Abbey (Abtei or Kloster Niederaltaich) is a house of the Benedictine Order founded in 741, situated in the village of Niederalteich on ...

, a ''Zemuzil Bomerianorum'' is mentioned as the first duke known by name in 1064. During the 12th century, the pagan Pomeranians faced continuous incursions by their expanding Christian neighbours of

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

and the Saxon dukes of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...

. In 1121, they were eventually subdued by Polish Duke

Bolesław III Wrymouth Bolesław III Wrymouth ( pl, Bolesław III Krzywousty; 20 August 1086 – 28 October 1138), also known as Boleslaus the Wry-mouthed, was the duke of Lesser Poland, Silesia and Sandomierz between 1102 and 1107 and over the whole of Poland between ...

, who established a

diocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associa ...

with its seat at Kołobrzeg, where Reinbern became the first bishop. Pomerania was

Christianized Christianization ( or Christianisation) is to make Christian; to imbue with Christian principles; to become Christian. It can apply to the conversion of an individual, a practice, a place or a whole society. It began in the Roman Empire, conti ...

with the help of the German missionary Otto of Bamberg. At the same time the Pomeranian Prince

Wartislaw I Wartislaw I (''Warcisław I'') (around 1092 – August 9, 1135) was the first historical ruler of the Duchy of Pomerania and the founder of the Griffin dynasty. Most of the information about him comes from the writings on the life of Otto of ...

conquered the former

Lutici The Lutici or Liutizi (known by various spelling variants) were a federation of West Slavic Polabian tribes, who between the 10th and 12th centuries lived in what is now northeastern Germany. Four tribes made up the core of the federation: th ...

lands west of the Oder. After his successors from the

House of Griffins The House of Griffin or Griffin dynasty (german: Greifen; pl, Gryfici, da, Grif) was a dynasty ruling the Duchy of Pomerania from the 12th century until 1637. The name "Griffins" was used by the dynasty after the 15th century and had been take ...

were defeated by the Saxons at the 1164

Battle of Verchen The Battle of Verchen (german: Schlacht bei Verchen) was a battle between Saxons and West Slavic Obotrites on 6 July 1164. The Obotrites were attacked by Saxons and Danes in 1160, resulting in the death of the Obotrite prince, Niklot, and the pa ...

, they accepted the overlordship of Duke

Henry the Lion Henry the Lion (german: Heinrich der Löwe; 1129/1131 – 6 August 1195) was a member of the Welf dynasty who ruled as the duke of Saxony and Bavaria from 1142 and 1156, respectively, until 1180. Henry was one of the most powerful German p ...

. The Pomeranian lands were eventually divided, with the Western parts entering the Holy Roman Empire as the

Duchy of Pomerania The Duchy of Pomerania (german: Herzogtum Pommern; pl, Księstwo Pomorskie; Latin: ''Ducatus Pomeraniae'') was a duchy in Pomerania on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, ruled by dukes of the House of Pomerania (''Griffins''). The country ha ...

in 1181, and the Eastern part consisting of

under the

Samborides The Samborides () or House of Sobiesław () were a ruling dynasty in the historic region of Pomerelia. They were first documented about 1155 as governors (''princeps'') in the Eastern Pomeranian lands serving the royal Piast dynasty of Poland ...

coming under the influence of Poland and, from 1309 onwards, the

Teutonic Order The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians on ...

. The influx of settlers from the

during the Ostsiedlung caused the

Germanization Germanisation, or Germanization, is the spread of the German language, people and culture. It was a central idea of German conservative thought in the 19th and the 20th centuries, when conservatism and ethnic nationalism went hand in hand. In ling ...

of Pomerania, as many native Pomeranians were slowly and gradually assimilated and discontinued the use of their Slavic language and culture. The direct descendants of the Pomeranians include: *

Kashubians The Kashubians ( csb, Kaszëbi; pl, Kaszubi; german: Kaschuben), also known as Cassubians or Kashubs, are a Lechitic ( West Slavic) ethnic group native to the historical region of Pomerania, including its eastern part called Pomerelia, in nor ...

, who speak the Kashubian language *

Slovincians Slovincians, also known as Łeba Kashubians, is a near-extinct ethnic subgroup of the Kashubian people, who originated from the north western Kashubia, located in the Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland, from the area around the lakes of Łebsko and G ...

* Kociewiacy * Borowiacy * Western Pomeranians, who speak Low German or Standard German * Eastern Pomeranians, who were expelled from Pomerania in 1945 and settled in various parts of Germany and now speak either local dialects or Standard German.

References

External links

Die regierenden Herzöge (The Pomeranian dukes)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pomeranians (Slavic Tribe) Early medieval Poland Lechites History of Pomerania West Slavic tribes

Prehistory

10th to 12th centuries

See also

References

External links