Opolans (; ; ; ) were the West Slavic tribe that lived in the region of upper Odra. Their main settlement ( gord) was

Opole Opole (; ; ; ) is a city located in southern Poland on the Oder River and the historical capital of Upper Silesia. With a population of approximately 127,387 as of the 2021 census, it is the capital of Opole Voivodeship (province) and the seat of ...

. They were mentioned in the

Bavarian Geographer The epithet "Bavarian Geographer" () is the conventional name for the anonymous author of a short Latin medieval text containing a list of the tribes in Central and Eastern Europe, headed . The name "Bavarian Geographer" was first bestowed (in its ...

, under the

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

name Opolini, as one of the seven tribes living in

Silesia Silesia (see names #Etymology, below) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at 8, ...

(

Silesian tribes The Silesian tribes () is a term used to refer to tribes, or groups of West Slavs that lived in the territories of Silesia in the Early Middle Ages. The territory they lived on became part of Great Moravia in 875 (now mostly in the Czech Republic) a ...

). The other six were:

Dziadoszanie Dadosesani was a Slavic tribe that inhabited the area near the central Bóbr river, between the modern location of the towns of Szprotawa and Głogów, in the area of modern southwestern Poland.Kieseler A., Biermann F., Nowakowski D., Grodzisko p ...

Golęszyce The Golensizi (, , ) were a tribe of West Slavs, specifically of the Lechitic tribes (one of the Silesian tribes), living in the Early Middle Ages and inhabiting southern territories of what was later known as Upper Silesia, on the upper Oder Riv ...

Ślężanie The Silesians () were a tribe of West Slavs, specifically of the Lechitic tribes, Lechitic/Polish tribes, Polish group, inhabiting territories of Lower Silesia, near Mount Ślęża, Ślęża mountain and Ślęza river, on both banks of the Oder, u ...

, ,

Bobrzanie The Bobrzanie are one of the Silesian tribes mentioned in the '' Prague document'' from the 11th century CE. The area they inhabited was located on the Bóbr river, from which they took their name. References Silesian tribes {{Europe-et ...

and Lupiglaa (often identified with ). Location of Silesian tribes in the 9th and 10th centuries The name Opolans derives from a

Slavic Slavic, Slav or Slavonic may refer to: Peoples * Slavic peoples, an ethno-linguistic group living in Europe and Asia ** East Slavic peoples, eastern group of Slavic peoples ** South Slavic peoples, southern group of Slavic peoples ** West Slav ...

term ''opole'', that meant a specific form of

self-government Self-governance, self-government, self-sovereignty or self-rule is the ability of a person or group to exercise all necessary functions of regulation without intervention from an external authority. It may refer to personal conduct or to any ...

used among the

West Slavs The West Slavs are Slavic peoples who speak the West Slavic languages. They separated from the common Slavic group around the 7th century, and established independent polities in Central Europe by the 8th to 9th centuries. The West Slavic langu ...

. Early

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

''opole'' transformed into an administrative governing form used in Early

Medieval Poland This article covers the history of Poland in the Middle Ages. This time covers roughly a millennium, from the 5th century to the 16th century. It is commonly dated from the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, and contrasted with a later Early Modern ...

mainly to collect

tax A tax is a mandatory financial charge or levy imposed on an individual or legal entity by a governmental organization to support government spending and public expenditures collectively or to regulate and reduce negative externalities. Tax co ...

es. According to the Geographer Opolans possessed 20 gords in what was later known as

Upper Silesia Upper Silesia ( ; ; ; ; Silesian German: ; ) is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia, located today mostly in Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic. The area is predominantly known for its heav ...

such as Opole and

Toszek Toszek () is a small town in southern Poland. It is situated within Gliwice County in the Silesian Voivodeship (province), and its population was estimated at 3,600 inhabitants in 2019. It is situated on the Toszecki Potok River, a tributary of K� ...

. Presumably their place of cult was the Saint Anna mountain. Opolanie's territories were conquered by

Great Moravia Great Moravia (; , ''Meghálī Moravía''; ; ; , ), or simply Moravia, was the first major state that was predominantly West Slavic to emerge in the area of Central Europe, possibly including territories which are today part of the Czech Repub ...

in 875 and were probably incorporated into the Přemyslid

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

in the first half of the 10th century. In 990 Opolans' territories were incorporated into the first Polish state. Due to this fact they are usually treated as part of the

Polish tribes "Polish tribes" is a term used sometimes to describe the tribes of West Slavic Lechites that lived from around the mid-6th century in the territories that became Polish with the creation of the Polish state by the Piast dynasty. The territory ...

References

Further reading

See also