Map of residence of Slavic tribes. Settlement of Slavic tribes

Comment: It is better to do the work step by step, sequentially completing tasks for the contour maps. To enlarge the map, simply click on it.

TASKS

1. Label different colors territories of settlement of the Eastern, Western and Southern Slavs.

Eastern Slavs - in green

Western Slavs - yellow

Southern Slavs - in pink

2. Write the names of the rivers along which the Eastern Slavs settled.

Volga, Desna, Seim, Southern Bug, Dnest, Prut, Pripyat, Bug, Dnieper, Western Dvina, Lovat, Neva, Volkhov

3. Sign the names of the breeding unions Eastern Slavs, about which the chronicler wrote:

1. “These Slavs came and sat down along the Dnieper... [in the fields]” - clearing

2. “And others sat down in the forests” - Drevlyans

3. “And others sat down between Pripyat and Dvina [in the swamps]” - Dregovichi

4. “Some sat down along the Dvina, along a river that flows into the Dvina and is called Polota” - Polotsk residents

5. “The same Slavs who settled around Lake Ilmen were called by their own name” - Slovenian Ilmenskie

6. “And others sat along the Desna, and the Seim, and the Sula” - northerners

7. “And they sit in the upper reaches of the Volga, and in the upper reaches of the Dvina, and in the upper reaches of the Dnieper” - Krivichi

8. “After all, the Poles had two brothers - Radim, and the other - Vyatko; and they came and sat down: Radim on the Sozh, and Vyatko sat down with his family along the Oka" - Radimichi and Vyatichi

9. “There were many of them: they sat along the Dniester and near the Danube all the way to the sea” - Tivertsy

Write the names of the cities that became the centers of these unions.

Kyiv, Iskorosten, Smolensk, Polotsk, Chernigov, Izborsk, Pskov, Novgorod, Ladoga, Rostov

4. Write the names of non-Slavic tribes neighboring the Eastern Slavs.

Merya, Murom, Meshchera, Mordovians, Hungarians (Magyars), Yases (Alans), Wallachians, Avars, Golyad, Yatvingians, Lithuania, Semigallians, Latgallians, Chud (Ests), Vod, Korela, all.

5. Circle the borders of the three largest states beginning of the 9th century and sign their names.

Byzantine Empire

Khazar Khaganate

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What tribes did the East Slavic peoples have?

According to information, most of which was obtained as a result of the study of ancient written sources and archaeological finds, the tribes of the Eastern Slavs separated from the Indo-European community around one hundred and fifty BC, after which their numbers and influence began to rapidly increase.

How did the tribes of the Eastern Slavs arise?

The first mentions of the numerous tribes of the Wends, as well as the Sklavins and Antes (that is what the first Slavic ethnic groups were called in those days) are present in the manuscripts of Greek, Byzantine, Roman, and Arab authors. ABOUT early times You can also glean information from Russian chronicles.

The very fragmentation of this people into eastern, western and southern, according to some scientists, occurs due to their displacement by other peoples, which was not uncommon in that period (the times of the great migration of peoples).

South Slavic (Bulgarian, Slovenian, as well as Serbo-Croatian and Macedonian) tribes are those communities that chose to remain in Europe. Today they are considered the ancestors of Serbs, Montenegrins, Croats, Bulgarians, as well as Slovenes and Bosnians.

Scientists include the Slavs who moved to northern latitudes among the tribes of the Western Slavs (Slenzhans, Polans, Pomorians, as well as Bohemians and Polabs). From these communities, according to the authors of the most popular versions of the appearance Slavic peoples, there were Czechs, Poles and Slovaks. The southern and western Slavic tribes were, in turn, captured and assimilated by representatives of other peoples.

The East Slavic tribes, to which scientists include the Tiverts, White Croats, Northerners, Volynians, Polotsk, Drevlyans, as well as the Ulitsch, Radimichi, Buzhan, Vyatichi and Dregovichi, consist of Slavs who moved to the territory of the so-called East European Plain. Today's historians and Slavophile researchers consider Ukrainians, Russians and Belarusians to be the descendants of the above tribes.

Table: East Slavic tribal unions

Scheme: Eastern Slavs during the era of the “Great Migration”

How did the Slavic tribes coexist with other nationalities?

Most of the Slavic tribes were forced to move to the territory of central Europe, in particular, to the lands of the once great Roman Empire, which collapsed in 476. At the same time, the conquerors of this empire formed a new statehood during this period, which, although based on the experience of the legacy of the Roman Empire, was different from it. At the same time, the territories chosen by the East Slavic tribes were not so culturally developed.

Some Slavic tribes settled on the shores of Lake Ilmen, subsequently founding the city of Novgorod on this place, others decided to continue their journey and, settling on the banks of the Dnieper River, founded the city of Kyiv there, which later became the mother of Russian cities.

By around the sixth to eighth centuries, the Eastern Slavs were able to occupy the entire territory of the East European Plain. Their neighbors were Finns, Estonians, Lithuanians, Laishes, Mansi, Khanty, as well as Ugrians and Komi. It is worth noting that according to available historical data, the settlement and development of new territories took place peacefully, without any military action. The Eastern Slavs themselves were not at enmity with the above-mentioned peoples.

Confrontation of the Eastern Slavs with the nomads

But in the territories located in the east and southeast, a completely different situation developed at the same time. In these regions, the plain adjoined the steppe and the neighbors of the Slavs there became a nomadic people called the Turks. Regular raids by steppe nomads ravaged Slavic settlements for about a thousand years. At the same time, the Turks formed their states on the southeastern and eastern borders of the Eastern Slavs. Their largest and most powerful state, the Avar Kaganate, existed in the mid-500s and fell in 625, after the collapse of Byzantium. However, in the seventh and eighth centuries, the Bulgarian kingdom was located on the same territory. Most of the Bulgars, who settled along the middle reaches of the Volga, formed a state that went down in history as Volga Bulgaria. The remaining Bulgars who settled near the Danube formed Danube Bulgaria. A little later, as a result of the assimilation of representatives of the South Slavic tribes with Turkic settlers, new people, who called themselves Bulgarians.

The territories liberated by the Bulgars were occupied by new Turks - the Pechenegs. These people subsequently founded the Khazar Kaganate, on the steppe territories located between the banks of the Volga and the Azov and Caspian seas. Later, the tribes of the Eastern Slavs were enslaved by the Khazars. At the same time, the Eastern Slavs pledged to pay tribute to the Khazar Kaganate. Such relations between the Slavic eastern tribes and the Khazars continued until the ninth century.

When starting a conversation about the Eastern Slavs, it is very difficult to be unambiguous. There are practically no surviving sources telling about the Slavs in ancient times. Many historians come to the conclusion that the process of the origin of the Slavs began in the second millennium BC. It is also believed that the Slavs are an isolated part of the Indo-European community.

But the region where the ancestral home of the ancient Slavs was located has not yet been determined. Historians and archaeologists continue to debate where the Slavs came from. Most often it is stated, and this is evidenced by Byzantine sources, that the Eastern Slavs already in the middle of the 5th century BC lived in the territory of Central and of Eastern Europe. It is also generally accepted that they were divided into three groups:

Weneds (lived in the Vistula River basin) - Western Slavs.

Sklavins (lived between the upper reaches of the Vistula, Danube and Dniester) - southern Slavs.

Ants (lived between the Dnieper and Dniester) - Eastern Slavs.

All historical sources characterize the ancient Slavs as people with the will and love of freedom, differing in temperament strong character, endurance, courage, unity. They were hospitable to strangers, had pagan polytheism and elaborate rituals. Initially there was no particular fragmentation among the Slavs, since the tribal unions had similar languages, customs and laws.

Territories and tribes of the Eastern Slavs

An important question is how the Slavs developed new territories and their settlement in general. There are two main theories about the appearance of the Eastern Slavs in Eastern Europe.

One of them was put forward by the famous Soviet historian, academician B. A. Rybakov. He believed that the Slavs originally lived on the East European Plain. But the famous historians of the 19th century S. M. Solovyov and V. O. Klyuchevsky believed that the Slavs moved from the territories near the Danube.

The final settlement of the Slavic tribes looked like this:

Activities of the Eastern Slavs

The main occupation of the Eastern Slavs must include agriculture, which was associated with the characteristics of local soils. Arable farming was common in the steppe regions, and slash-and-burn farming was practiced in forests. The arable land was quickly depleted, and the Slavs moved to new territories. Such farming required a lot of labor; it was difficult to cope with the cultivation of even small plots, and the sharply continental climate did not allow one to count on high yields.

Nevertheless, even in such conditions, the Slavs sowed several varieties of wheat and barley, millet, rye, oats, buckwheat, lentils, peas, hemp, and flax. Turnips, beets, radishes, onions, garlic, and cabbage were grown in the gardens.

The main food product was bread. The ancient Slavs called it “zhito”, which was associated with the Slavic word “to live”.

Slavic farms raised livestock: cows, horses, sheep. The following trades were of great help: hunting, fishing and beekeeping (collecting wild honey). Fur trading became widespread. The fact that the Eastern Slavs settled along the banks of rivers and lakes contributed to the emergence of shipping, trade and various crafts that provided products for exchange. Trade routes contributed to the emergence major cities, breeding centers.

Social order and tribal alliances

Initially, the Eastern Slavs lived in tribal communities, later they united into tribes. The development of production and the use of draft power (horses and oxen) contributed to the fact that even a small family could cultivate its own plot. Family ties began to weaken, families began to settle separately and plow new plots of land on their own.

The community remained, but now it included not only relatives, but also neighbors. Each family had its own plot of land for cultivation, its own tools of production and harvested. Private property appeared, but it did not extend to forests, meadows, rivers and lakes. The Slavs enjoyed these benefits together.

In the neighboring community, the property status of different families was no longer the same. The best lands began to be concentrated in the hands of elders and military leaders, and they also received most of the spoils from military campaigns.

Rich leaders-princes began to appear at the head of the Slavic tribes. They had their own armed units - squads, and they also collected tribute from the subject population. The collection of tribute was called polyudye.

The 6th century is characterized by the unification of Slavic tribes into unions. The most militarily powerful princes led them. The local nobility gradually strengthened around such princes.

One of these tribal unions, as historians believe, was the unification of the Slavs around the Ros (or Rus) tribe, who lived on the Ros River (a tributary of the Dnieper). Later, according to one of the theories of the origin of the Slavs, this name passed on to all Eastern Slavs, who received the common name “Rus”, and the entire territory became Russian land, or Russia.

Neighbors of the Eastern Slavs

In the 1st millennium BC, in the Northern Black Sea region, the neighbors of the Slavs were the Cimmerians, but after a few centuries they were supplanted by the Scythians, who founded their own state on these lands - the Scythian kingdom. Subsequently, the Sarmatians came from the east to the Don and the Northern Black Sea region.

During the Great Migration of Peoples, the East German tribes of the Goths passed through these lands, then the Huns. All this movement was accompanied by robbery and destruction, which contributed to the resettlement of the Slavs to the north.

Another factor in the resettlement and formation of Slavic tribes were the Turks. It was they who formed the Turkic Kaganate on a vast territory from Mongolia to the Volga.

The movement of various neighbors in the southern lands contributed to the fact that the Eastern Slavs occupied territories dominated by forest-steppes and swamps. Communities were created here that were more reliably protected from alien attacks.

In the VI-IX centuries, the lands of the Eastern Slavs were located from the Oka to the Carpathians and from the Middle Dnieper to the Neva.

Nomad raids

The movement of nomads created a constant danger for the Eastern Slavs. The nomads seized grain and livestock and burned houses. Men, women, and children were taken into slavery. All this required the Slavs to be in constant readiness to repel raids. Every Slavic man was also a part-time warrior. Sometimes they plowed the land armed. History shows that the Slavs successfully coped with the constant onslaught of nomadic tribes and defended their independence.

Customs and beliefs of the Eastern Slavs

The Eastern Slavs were pagans who deified the forces of nature. They worshiped the elements, believed in kinship with various animals, and made sacrifices. The Slavs had a clear annual cycle of agricultural holidays in honor of the sun and the change of seasons. All rituals were aimed at ensuring high yields, as well as the health of people and livestock. The Eastern Slavs did not have uniform ideas about God.

The ancient Slavs did not have temples. All rituals were carried out at stone idols, in groves, meadows and other places revered by them as sacred. We must not forget that all the heroes of fabulous Russian folklore come from that time. The goblin, the brownie, mermaids, mermen and other characters were well known to the Eastern Slavs.

In the divine pantheon of the Eastern Slavs, the leading places were occupied by the following gods. Dazhbog - the god of the Sun, sunlight and fertility, Svarog is the blacksmith god (according to some sources, supreme god Slavs), Stribog - the god of wind and air, Mokosh - the female goddess, Perun - the god of lightning and war. A special place was given to the god of earth and fertility, Veles.

The main pagan priests of the Eastern Slavs were the Magi. They performed all the rituals in the sanctuaries and turned to the gods with various requests. The Magi made various male and female amulets with different spell symbols.

Paganism was a clear reflection of the activities of the Slavs. It was the admiration for the elements and everything connected with it that determined the attitude of the Slavs to agriculture as the main way of life.

Over time, the myths and meanings of pagan culture began to be forgotten, but much has survived to this day in folk art, customs, and traditions.