Emerging Ethnonyms, Ethnicity and Archaeology. The Case of “Finns” in Northern Europe*

Thomas Wallerström

 

  Ethnonyms are often abstract analytical units that are often employed "automatically" in historical and archaeological studies. This supposed quality is challanged in this article. The ethnonym "Finne" or Fin" and the territorial designations "Finland", "Finnmark" and Finnveden" are analyzed. The ethnonym was used by Tacitus in 98 A.D. while the geographical designations came in to use during the second part of the first millennium A.D. The use of the prefix "Finn" signals that all of these geographical terms have something in common with the ethnonym when they appear in written sources. A comparative anlysis is performed in order to determine when and under what conditions the meaning of this ethnonym changed. Originally it was a term that characterize "hunters, collectors, wanderers", a meaning that appears in Anglo Saxon England term "Herefinnas".

Changes in the meaning of these categories were brought about by new economic and administrative systems, writing and through the need to assert historical legitimity by appropriating old ethnonyms. Their meanings seem to change when new hegenomies appear. It is also suggested that archaic ethnonyms, hidden in ancient territorial names that came into use during Medieval times in Sweden, to some extent, represent those peoples who were forced to relinquish their independance to a growing royal and/or ecclesiastic centralism - the emerging state. Ethnonyms are by no means static. They are constructs that signify changing power relations. In historical archaeology, these "natural analytical units" must be used with outmost care.

  

 

Introduction

 

The changeable significance of ethnonyms deserves attention. Many researchers have noted that the same ethnonym signified different things, Goths being a prominent example [1] . On the other hand, there are examples where the same group have had quite different designations depending on the observer´s position and language [2] . Others have noted that ethnonyms are frequently coined by conquerors, colonisers, administrators or neighbours and that to them ”the other” is given offensive, pejorative designations, especially in latent or open conflict situations [3] . If the uncritical scholar adopts such perceptions making them his own, he thereby confirms ethnocentrism and the vagueness of his ethnographical knowledge [4] . Ethnonyms are often regarded as the ”automatic” or ”self-evident” analytical unit in the study of bygone times.

 

In this article some reasons for changes over time in specific ethnonyms, taken to mean the designation of a human collective, will be examined. The task might seem somewhat superfluous from a “common sense” point of view as everyone knows that material things change considerably over time though the words to describe them remain the same (as in “book” or “house” for instance). Similarly, a contemporary finne in Swedish (Finn in English) clearly does not denote exactly the same phenomenon as hundreds of years ago. Unfortunately, such evidence has not hampered the use of old collective designations from long ago as comparable with more recent populations. Concepts of human collectives, once coined, give the impression that their “content” remains unchanged. The use and misuse of early written sources and archaeology by combining archaeological evidence and written records urge us to develop a better understanding of the changeable significance of ethnonyms and - hence – of cultural identities or ethnicity in history [5] .

 

Ethnonyms here are studied by a comparative analysis of a specific semantic element appearing within them as well as in associated provincial names. The concept of finne will be investigated as it appears throughout different geographical and cultural conditions, beginning in the Iron Age. Such an archaeological investigation of a concept, a word, is by no means a first. Giving meaning or ”flesh and form” to poorly understood words or concepts is one of the oldest traditions in historical archaeology [6] . This  ethnonym is constructed by people of flesh and blood, recorded in documents, read over and over again, reused and given new meanings, or, as in this study, deconstructed. What are the conceptual prerequisites of the very word finne (Finn)?

 

Changing ethnonyms are sometimes, I suggest, of political significance, indicating changing hegemonies or “europeanization”. Ethnonyms change meaning at the same pace as users of the words change their ideas. Human collectives, nations for instance, often signify themselves using concepts derived from history. Finally, some ethnonyms disappeared from official use, and it is worth considering what happened to precipitate this.

 

 

Method 

 

In everyday language in Sweden, the ethnonym finne means a male from the Republic of Finland (Suomi), especially if this person is Finnish speaking. The denomination Finlander is preferred for citizens [7] generally, regardless of mother tongues (there are two official languages in Finland). In the northernmost province of Norway in Finnmark and in the adjoining provinces of Troms and Nordland, the Saami population traditionally is denoted finner. In Sweden, though, they are called lappar and they are lappalainen in Finnish. The Swedish and Finnish designations were adopted into Russian [8] . The people signify themselves Saamis, a designation recorded at the end of the 13th century meaning  ”man, i.e. human being” [9] . The Saamis live in four different countries, Sápmi.

 

This paper is about the population of Finland and Finnmark but another area is also to be taken into consideration, that is, Finnveden in the Southscandinavian highlands, in the province of Småland, ”the small lands”. Finnveden was one of these ancient ”small lands” [10] . These three areas (Fig. 1 a-b) have something in common, as indicated by the prefix, Finn-, but they were not interconnected culturally, politically or socially. Finland was part of Sweden until 1809, then lost to the Russians, and newly independent in 1917. Norway, on the other hand, was in union with Sweden from 1814-1905 after centuries as a part of Denmark. Finnveden was at the southern fringe of medieval Sweden, adjoining Denmark.

This situation offers a unique opportunity to plot the biography of an ethnonym from its birth in three separate and different areas. The relevant settlement history is well known from historical and archaeological investigations and in some cases palaeoecological studies. This paper will continue as follows: firstly, discussion of various interpretations for the word “finns”, trying to discover its original meaning. Secondly, an attempt to find out the driving forces behind changes in context for its use. But initially, the earliest recorded evidence will be examined as a prelude to considering the semantics of ”finne”, ”Finland”, ”Finnmark” and ”Finnveden”.

 

 

The concept of ”finne” (Finn)

 

Tacitus [11] , Ptolomaios [12] and Jordanes [13]   refer to what is generally understood as the Saami people inhabiting the northern part of Scandinavia [14] . Tacitus calls them Finnae, Ptolemaios Phinnooi and Jordanes (Sc)Rerefennae and Finni mitissimi. They are described as the wild people of the North, a description that is repeated by Procopius [15] .

 

The first time the ethnonym Finn appears in written records is in Tacitus´ Germania, A.D. 98. Ptolemaios from Alexandria wrote about two phinnoi-peoples in the second century, one at the Weichsel and one at the northern end of the Scandia “island”. Prokopios wrote about skrithiphinnoi about 550 as well as Paulus Diaconus (c. 780). These notes are possibly historical evidence about the Saamis, but the designation “finne” as such is probably best not considered to be an ethnic one until later. The fact that Finnveden (finnaithae) was mentioned by Jordanes in the sixth century and, additionally, is represented on three runic stones from the 10th C [16] makes it difficult to equate finner with the Saamis, it is too far south [17] .

 

The first time we hear about a ”Finland” undoubtedly situated between the Bothnian Sea and the Gulf of Finland, is when the poet Sigvat Skald, at the court of the Norwegian king Olav Haraldsen (1015-28), S:t Olav, designates the inhabitants of southern Finland ”finnlänningar” (i.e. Finlanders). In doing so he probably wanted to avoid confusion with the Norwegian word for a Lapp (finne). This was as early as c.1020-1030 [18] . According to the finno-ugrist Björn Collinder [19] , there is no corroboration that the word finn in antiquity was the same as ”suomalainen”, i.e. the current finnish word for Finlander.

 

The concept of ”Finland” originally denoted the south western province of the present country, Varsinais-Suomi, i.e. Finland Proper (Sw. Egentliga Finland). ”Egentliga Finland” was introduced in Latin in the 17th century by geographers and introduced into Swedish from Latin. Beginning in the 14th century and up to 1525 the territory of the present republic, usually comprising the medieval diocese of Turku/Åbo, was called Finlandia et partes orientales and partes orientales, Sw. ”Österland” or ”Österlanden”, the land (or lands) in the east. The concept of Suomi (Sum in early Russian sources) appears in 1240 for the first time and Finland (Fialanda) in 1209. In the later part of the 14th century the term Finland started to refer to the whole eastern province, as the diocese of Turku/Åbo was established. [20]

 

Finnveden [21] is one of the former small lands of the province of Småland in the late Middle Ages, included in the jurisdiction of Tiohärad (i.e. the ten hundreds). About a thousand years ago or more, in the Iron Age, the ”Small lands” consisted of a few more or less isolated Iron Age settlements. Finnveden was distinguished from Njudung and Värend and some other ”lands”, each with their distinctive burial customs [22] . Many researchers believe that Jordanes´ Finnaithae signified that area though the element -aithae is problematic. The position of  Finnaithae in the hypothesis sits well with the Finnveden-attribution [23] . Collinder [24] proposes it refers to ”roving Gothic hunters”. At any rate, the prefix has something in common with the Saami/finner and Finlander/Finns.

 

Facing north, the Saamis of Northern Norway, are today accepted as an indigenous population. Finnmark was more far-reaching in the Middle Ages than is suggested by the present map [25] . Probably it denoted the huge area where the finner lived, down to northern Tröndelag and Jämtland and west of the Kölen (the mountain ridge between present Norway and Sweden). At the coast there was a prospering late Iron Age settlement [26] . Many placenames in Finland, Norway and Sweden beginning with Finn- or Lapp- surely refer to the Saamis. The finn-names occur not only in the present Saami areas of Norway but in the southern part as well. According to the Norwegian historian Leiv Olsen, there are eight different interpretations of Finn- as a place name element [27] . In his critical examination, Olsen concludes that many of the Finn-placenames in Northern and Middle Scandinavia denote Saami settlement (in many cases medieval), with other alternatives being more or less out of  the question [28] . For the rest of this paper, the ethnonyms used by the ancient writers (Finnae, Phinnooi, (Sc)Rerefennae, Finni mitissimi and phinnoi) or elsewhere will be simplified as finner and Finns.

 

Discussion

 

There is some controversy about the word finne but it has traditionally been connected with a derivative of the Germanic verbal root *fenþ- (as in Gothic finþan, Old English, Old High German findan ,to find´) with n-infix (Germanic *finþnan) with the sense, hunter, collector, wanderer´ [29] . Insley [30] has recently discussed the the ethnonym Herefinnas, mentioned in the 7th/8th century Anglo-Saxon tribute list known as the Tribal Hidage, arguing it makes no sense to associate the Herefinnas in the Anglo Saxon realm with Finns or Lapps and he interprets the designation as ”a group of warrior-hunters”.

 

It seems reasonable to believe that the word “finne” at the outset signified a person, male or female, living by hunting and gathering, this latter the predominant feature as seen through the eyes of neighbours or visitors. Such ethnonyms which refer to ways of living are not exceptional [31] , but can the interpretation of the very word “finne” be corroborated? Is it believable that at least some of the old “informants” talked about people as associated with a specific way of living?

One has to keep in mind that historical records, like Jordanes´ Getica, create collective identifications [32] . Auctors coined ethnonyms by writing about human collectives. Thereby  documents read over and over again for centuries introduce concepts which were used, rewritten and reused, not necessarily with the same meaning as at the first reference. The name of Estonia, for instance, was introduced with the emerging nation in the second half of the 19th century but goes back to Latin forms used by Germans and Scandinavians in the 11th century in the way of Tacitus and followers (Cassiodorus, Jordanes, Einhard and Wulfstan). By Aesti and Aestiorium gentes those writers meant the Baltic (eastern Prussian) tribes [33] .

 

Words are invented, written down, read and re-read, reused [34] and finally, maybe, forgotten. If this interpretation is correct, in the eyes of visitors or neighbours the ethnonym finne did not necessarily signify a social group. But is it reasonable to believe that gathering and hunting was important for the population of Finland Proper, Finnmark and Finnveden as late as in the Iron Age? Or is the prefix Finn- a mere accident?

 

 

What does “finne” mean? - A comparative analysis I 

 

In the furthest part of northern Norway hunting economies have persisted until the modern day as well as in the inner parts of North Scandinavia, as long as there has been a population [35] . Ottar, a northern Norwegian chieftain at the court of Alfred the Great at the end of the 9th century, described the scridfinners hunting and fishing. There are many other records about the finner and scridfinners emphasising their hunting economy [36] . Those people were literally  “finns” in the ”gatherer-hunter-sense” though individuals moved into various specialisations in symbiosis with the emerging states in the Middle Ages and later on [37] . In Egentliga Finland/Finland Proper (and adjoining areas) recent research has demonstrated that there was some agriculture though hunting and fishing economies must have been dominant or – at least - very important well into the Merovingian period. The same seems to be true in the archipelago [38] . The frequency of fishing and hunting must have made the population comparatively mobile. This must have been remarkable in the eyes of many visitors.

 

What about the third area under consideration - Finnveden - when Jordanes recorded it for the first time? It is interesting to compare the ”hunting-fishing-gatherer-interpretation” of the ethnonym finnar with economic evidence from this area in the Iron Age. The Getica is an abstract of a Gothic history, written in AD 519 by a learned Roman, Cassiodorus, at the court of Theodoric the Great. Getica was probably written in 551 or possibly 552 but the note about the skridfinnar is, in its turn, adopted from an earlier source [39] . The late prehistoric picture (8th century and later) of Finnveden is one of restricted settlement mainly near the Lagan river, around Lake Bolmen and further to the west to the middle reaches of the Nissan river [40] . It was preceded by a much more heteregenous complex of settlement areas in the Early Iron Age. Johan Callmer does not contemplate any connection between the Jordanes finnaithae and the settlement areas since it seems to make for complications when considering the Migration Period [41] . However, Mats Burström states as a hypothesis that the spatially delimited settlement, Finnveden, emerged c. AD 550-1050 [42] .

 

Recent archaeological and paleoecological investigations reveal many insubstantial cairns in this area situated in present woodland. The stones were piled together during cultivation on a slash-and-burn basis. Some of them date back to 800-700 B.C. but most of them are from the first five centuries A.D. Areas with such cairns were cultivated from time to time and in some cases were still in use in the Middle Ages. There were no permanent limits for these fields. This kind of agriculture seems to have been replaced by cultivation in the adjoining river valleys at c. 800. This was quite another, more sedentary kind of agriculture and stock raising was important [43] . Such woodland agriculture in the days of Jordanes and his informant had very little in common with the more advanced agriculture of southern Europe where our observers had their references, ”Finnveden” is a contrasting designation given by more sedentary neighbours practising agriculture [44] . The mode of living might have given an impression of an ”underdeveloped” archaic economy for visitors at that time. The life of a cattle-tender with his cattle in the forest, was much the life of a ”finder” and he had to spend time in attempts to keep predators away. In historical times the richest hunting grounds of southern Sweden were situated in Finnveden [45] .. 

 

 

The life of an ethnonym - A comparative analysis II

 

The theory that the ethnonym  finner etc. originally meant gatherers and hunters can be regarded as reasonable (cf. the English words find and finder). Accordingly, the concept had nothing to with matters like ”race”, language or ethnicity at the time of Jordanes. This conclusion makes it more convenient to understand the much debated ”pecularities” or ”mistakes” in the discussions  of Jordanes and Adam of Bremen [46] . The ”exclusive” identification of finnar with the Saamis is based on the presumptation that hunting and fishing is an exclusive Saami preoccupation, and a lack of knowledge concerning the role of hunting and fishing in the Scandinavian Iron Age economy. People outside the agricultural areas have been observed and come to be associated with ”finding-economies”.

 

With the passing of time, however, this mode of living became equivalent with new identities: those of an ethnic minority in Northern Norway (the Saamis) and Finnish speaking persons and citizens of Finland. And, the concept of Finnveden changed too. It disappeared from common use in the late medieval period, displaced by administrative territorial units of härader (hundreds [47] ) as early as in the 15th century. The word “Finnveden” is, according to Härenstam [48] , simply used by scholars in the 16th  century. On the other hand, the situation was more permanent in North Scandinavia though the hunting economy was transformed into different kinds of specialisations. The connotations of find, finding and finder or hunting disappeared from public consciousness? Obviously, the changing meanings of finns, finner etc. spring from changing cultural and political conditions in the surrounding world, but to various degrees. What were these conditions?

 

To understand these influences in the period c. 900-1500 we can compare our ”Finn-areas” with regard to hack silver economy, silver neck rings, monasteries, towns, churches, royal castles, and money as means of payment. Most of these parameters are associated with ”europeanization” but the neck rings and hack silver need special comment. The distribution of Viking Age and early medieval silver neck rings and hack silver hoards is demonstrated (Fig. 2 and Fig. 3 a-b). The hack silver hoards are thought to represent collections of payments. They are abundant in Southern Scandinavia where the earliest hoards are found and, according to their distribution (Fig. 3 a), the economy spread gradually as far as southern Norway, middle Sweden and southern Finland [49] . There is evidence for a hack silver economy in northern Norway and Swedish Lapland too (Fig. 3 b) as weights and scales are found there, the “hack silver economist´s tools” [50] .

 

About a thousand years ago or a little more, the situation was much the same in the three different “finn-areas” [51] (cf. Fig. 4). They were all involved in the hack silver economy and/or silver neck rings were interchanged among the élites. But then there were changes, all associated with influences from Christian Europe and supra-regional kingdoms: churches and royal castles were built, money as means of payment was introduced by kings, the areas were integrated in far reaching economic networks and – in the case of Finland Proper – colonised by Swedish speaking people. Previously uncultivated areas were colonised changing the demographic situation. One of the prerequisites for agriculture is the existence of specific socioeconomic networks according to Erik R. Wolf´s classical study of peasantry in current and historical time [52] . The designation Finnveden disappeared giving way to royal administrative concepts.

The process of europeanization effectively penetrated into Finnveden and Finland Proper, but in distant northern Norway the situation was quite different. The breakthrough of europeanization in Finland [53] is dated to the 15th century though it began in the 14th. It is hardly possible to talk about similar ”breakthroughs” in the sparsely populated parts of distant northern Norway, but only near the coast [54] . Vast areas were left outside the “medieval world” with its castles, parish churches, towns and the administrators that produced the available written sources. According to Hansson, Christianity was introduced in the 11th-12th centuries but manifestations of kingdoms were later (14th century). In the 12th century the king patronised Nydala monastery which had land in Finnveden. The four royal castles are considerably later (14th century) with two probably established by Danish kings [55] . Henrik Klackenberg has noticed that Swedish coins do not become dominant until the latter part of the 14th century [56] . Money was used as means of payment long before that. ”The fourteenth century could be possibly said to have witnessed the breakthrough of medieval society” as Martin Hansson has put it [57] .

 

 

Some conclusions are evident. The life of this ethnonym started amongst neighbouring groups or were coined by external visitors, strangers impressed by the predominant way of life at the northern fringe of Europe. Then it was incorporated in documents, our written sources. These documents were copied over and over again. After a long time nobody really knew the original meaning of the concept ”finne” etc. or the political significance of concepts like rici, nationes and gens. References in old written sources made their history seem longer and, hence, more prestigious. “The older, the better”. Still, a further comment must be made. Introduction of agriculture or two-shift rotation and stock raising in the early Middle Ages [58]   did not mean that Finland or Finland Proper changed their names. Nor was there any variation in the designation of the inhabitants of that land. Of significance was their preservation in written records such as ecclesiastic and royal archives, where they were read and rewritten and hence reproduced over and over again. Once coined they kept their value though their cultural content changed. Territorial names are of considerable stability as well as ethnonyms, even though geographical borders are often less stable.

 

This effect is typical in the human mind. As the anthropologist Claude Lévi-Strauss noted in his famous study The Savage Mind, the reason for any classification is that reality thereby gets ordered and can be mastered intellectually. Any classification is superior to chaos [59] . Changing established categories - and getting the new ones generally accepted - is hardly possible unless the transformation is a slow one and, preferably, not too visible. [60] According to the ethnologist Lynn Åkesson, it is possible for us to accept the cloned sheep, Dolly, and its duplicates, but not cows that do not look like cows. Cows and sheep are well-established categories for us (to say the least). The public debate about the Belgian blue cows that have to be delivered by Caesarian section is another good example of this. The resistance to manipulation of genes is, according to Åkesson, due to a resistance to loss of “normal concepts”. Once settled, classifications take on a life of their own.

 

There are exceptions to this which are very interesting, however. Obviously, some ethnonyms did not reach any public records – our historical sources – and some maybe shared the fate of Finnveden, giving way to new ones as new administrative networks came into being. Ethnonyms which change or disappear may indicate old centralism. Maybe they denoted old, local political communities that lost out in the political game. This fits well with a general, European tendency where small political communities, not necessarily territorial units, gave way to bigger ones during the second millennium A.D.

 

Theoretically, all communities were labelled with one or other ethnonym as they all have neighbours, whether distant or close. But, as a general trend the number of political communities decreased with the emergence of wealthier and wealthier states. New political and administrative concepts emerged [61] . 

In the case of Finland, this led to the development of a national state with a name referring to Finns and suomalainen adopted from some common language and old written sources (cf. Sum [62] ). In northern Norway finner became a marginal group opposing the old designation. In southern Sweden, the Finnveden population became integrated in royal and ecclesiastic networks and the designation fell out of official use as the area was split up into härader (hundreds), the royal administrative network. The concept of Finland is associated with mighty, politically active élites in contrast to Finnmark where the denomination finner refers to a marginal population which is stigmatized and the word considered pejorative. It is replaced by the in-group designation Sameh. The same is true regarding the lappar and lappalainen in Sweden and Finland. The original Old Norse meaning of finner, Finns or the Old English herefinnas – all with its references to “hunter, collector, wanderer” - was generally forgotten.  

 

Conclusions

 

Carefully investigated in respect of their changing meaning, old ethnonyms deserve attention from everyone occupied by the archaeological study of central places and political geography in late Iron Age and medieval period. Denominations like Finnae (of Tacitus), Phinnooi (of Ptolomaios) or Screrefinni and Finni mitissimi (Jordanes) are artifacts invented to label groups living at the rim of ”civilization”. The changing significance of ethnonyms is, in this case, due to europeanization of a concept. Probably they are not isolated examples. An old word for a person from Estonia or of Estonian descent, an Estonian” is maarahvas, i.e. literally ‘country’ + ‘people’ or “inhabitants of the/this country”. As already noted, the concepts Estonians, Estonia were introduced with the emerging nation in the second half of the 19th century but goes back to Latin forms used by Germans and Scandinavians in the 11th century following Tacitus and others (Cassiodorus, Jordanes, Einhard and Wulfstan). By Aesti and Aestiorium gentes those writers were referring to the Baltic (eastern Prussian) tribes [63] . The situation is no less complicated in Lithuana, Lettland or the old province of Livland [64] . Designations of human collectives were transformed due to changing hegemonies.

 

The metamorphosis illuminated in this study is a warning to researchers who try to illuminate historical events associated with such ethnonyms, sometimes considered to be the ”self evident” unit of historical narratives and supposed to be unchanging over time. Etnonyms must be deconstructed before they are made the ”automatic” or ”selfevident” analytical unit in the study of bygone times. Careful study of etymologies gives information on important changes, new hegemonies, being in this case europeanization. The etymology signals a situation when the designations were invented, thus giving insight into the source writers´ view of the peoples mentioned and - probably - the peoples’ own views as reflected in the ethnonyms. Groups generally known by their own significations, were probably comparatively powerful. Those called by insulting nicknames were in a different situation. As noted above, there are many such designations among generally known (and officially used) named groups.

 

In-group ethnonyms (i.e.“people”, “man”, “member of the tribe” and such like) accepted by other people and recorded in written sources, are probably to be considered old political communities, petty kingdoms etc. based on a feeling of “we” or “us” in exercising hegemony over other groups.The etymology of Svear for example, a group that gave its name to “Svearike” , an “earlier version of Sweden” first mentioned in the Beowolf poem [65] , is suggested as denoting such an ”in-group” (though there are competing interpretations regarding the etymology). Also the Götar, that gave its name to “Götaland” [66] ,  is supposed to be an in-group designation. No doubt the Svear was an important factor in the emergence of Sweden as well as the Götar [67] .

 

Self-signifying groups were probably comparatively powerful. Some gave their names to powerful administrative units (like Svealand, Götaland), while others disappeared, as in Finnveden. Still more are to be identified by etymological analysis of the names for the härader [68] , the earliest known administrative organisation in Sweden. Anyhow, proper etymological and historical archaeological studies of ethnonyms will probably make it possible to identify poorly known groups which disappeared during the general centralisation of political power in the Middle Ages. It has been said before but deserves to be said again - ethnonyms are by no means static. Meanings change when new hegemonies appear and those changing meanings as concepts are of historical interest. Ethnonyms are constructs as well as ethnic groups in general [69] .

 

 

 

 

 

Aknowledgements

 

Chis Ball, Reading, Meredith Hardy, Washington, and Aaron Stutz, Lund, have kindly helped me with my English writing. I am obliged to professor Raimo Raag, Institute of Fenno-Ugric Languages, Uppsala, for helping me understand maarahvas. 

 

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FIGURES:

 

 

Fig. 1 a.  The Nordic Countries with Finland, Finland Proper and Finnmark. Finnveden is a part of Småland. (Map from Nordic Archaeological Abstracts 1997)

 

 

Fig. 1 b. Småland with its ancient, provincial namnes. Finnveden to the west was devided into three härader (i.e. hundreds). (Andersson 1982, 59)

 

 

Fig. 2. Distribution of silver neck rings (Hårdh 1996, 43)

 

 

Fig. 3 a. Distribution of hack silver hoards (Hårdh 1996, 85)

 

 

Fig. 3 b. Scales and weights in North Norwegian Iron Age graves (Stenvik 1980, 135) 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                            N.  Norway     Finland Proper      Finnveden

 

Silver neck rings                                     X                          X                        (X)

 

Hack silver economy                              X                          X                        (X)       

 

Money as means of payment     12th Cent?/13th Cent.    14th Cent.            13th Cent.

 

Royal Castles                                           1                            1                        2

 

Towns                                                       1                            2                       (1)

 

 Monastries                                               0                           3                       (1)

 

Churches                                        many (at the coast)    many                 many              

                                                

 

 

Fig. 4.  Manifestations of external networks in Viking Age and Medieval “Finn-areas”, Finnmark and Troms have been amalgamated. (Money as means of payment according to Skaare 1991, Klackenberg 1993, 183, Wallerström 1995, 197-202; royal castles: Eriksson 1995, Lovén 1996; churches and monasteries: Hansson 2001, Urbanczyk 1992, Törnblom 1993; towns: Andersson 1990, Urbanczyk 1992; hack silver economy: Hård 1996, Stenvik 1980; silver neck rings: Hårdh 1996)   

 

 

 

 


* The article is in print - Staecker, J. (ed.) The European Frontier. Conference, Lund 2000. CCC-papers. Lund 2003.

[1] We know, for example that if a source declares ”The Romans fought the Goths” it can be interpreted in four ways:

a: That a Roman army fought a small Gothic force; b: That a Roman army fought a large Gothic people; c: That a Gothic army, under Roman leadership fought other people who called themselves Goths; d: That Vandals, Herulians, Langobards under Roman leadership, fought other Vandals, Herulians, Langobards and others under Gothic leadership.

 

As Dick Harrison (1994, 6) presents the problem, the variations are indefinite. A special study of the ethnonym ”Langobards” as it was used by Greek, Syrian and Roman writers in the sixth century, shows for instance that the use differs depending upon what geographical area it concerns (Harrison 1991; 1993, 43).

[2] Wallerström 1997, 330f.

[3]   Hastrup & Ovesen 1982, 33f.

[4]   Wallerström 1997, 308f.

[5]   Ethnicity is all those social and psychological phenomena associated with a culturally constructed group identity. An ethnic group is each group of people regarding themselves as separate and/or regarded as separate by others with whom they are in contact because of their concept of social difference and/or their common background. Ethnic identity includes aspects of the individual image of one’s self that derives from the identification with a wider group in opposition to others. The individual’s image is based on observed cultural differentiation and/or a background in common. (Werbart 2000, 184 and quotations) 

[6]   cf. Andrén 1998, 113ff.

[7]   Nationalencyklopediens ordbok, Bd. 1, s.v. Finne and Finländare.

[8]   Vasmer 1955, 58.

[9] Gaski 1993, 41.

[10] Brink 1998, 299, 314f.

[11] Hades 1942.

[12] Collinder 1980, 197.

[13] Nordin 1997.

[14] cf. Zachrisson, Alexandersen, Gollwitzer, Iregren, Königsson, Siven, Strade & Sundström 1997, 159f.

[15] cf. Zachrisson et. al. 1997, 160. A comprehensive survey of the written evidence and its various interpretations is given by Zachrisson et. al. (1997, 158ff.).

[16] Burström 1991, 135 with quotations.

[17] cf. Zachrisson et. al. 1997. The book has an English summary “Encounters in Border Country. Saami and Germanic peoples in Central Scandinavia”. This is an interdisciplinary study and the principal aim is to present new arguments that the Saamis have a very long history, not only in the northern but also in central Scandinavia. Their role in the Iron and Middle Ages is also discussed. Recently, Ingvar Svanberg (1999) has investigated the origin of the Middle Scandinavian “Parish Lapps”. In the 17th C. they were hunters and gatherers with only a few reindeer (Svanberg 1999, 31).

[18] Gallén 1964, 125f.

[19] Collinder 1980, 198.

[20] Oja 1959.

[21] The last element –veden probably means woodland.

[22] Hansson 2001, 60f.

[23] cf. Hellquist 1949, Areskoug 1972, 4,  Nationalencyklopedin s.v. Finnveden.

[24] Collinder 1980, 196.

[25] Zachrisson et. al. 1997, 158f.

[26]   cf. for example Sjøvold 1974.

[27]   1: As a derivation of a personal name (male name Finnr, Finni, woman´s name Finna) or its compositions like Finnbogi etc.; 2: Genitives of the ethnonym finn (in one or other meaning: gatherers that find; as person from Finland, as denoting wizards or ancient, possibly pregermanic hunters); 3: As appellative of the word finn/finne meaning ”point, something that points out”; 4: Species of grass, often in compositions like finngras, finnskjegg etc.; 5: The river name Finna (which in its turn might have different origins); 6: Old Norwegian firn i.e. ”wilderness, that which is far from settled country”; 7: The verb find in one or other sense; 8: Possibly some place name element beginning with finn- might be derived from fen, i.e. swampy mire. (Olsen 1995, 107)

[28] cf. also Härenstam 1946, 3ff., 381ff.; Hald 1959; Collinder 1948; Itkonen 1959.

[29] Hellquist 1966, 211.

[30]   Insley 1999.

[31] We have for example beduins and khazars, meaning “desert dwellers” and “person without permanent residence” respectively. The latter were a conglomerate of several peoples rather than just one (Werbart 1996, Hubendick & Ovesen 1990).

[32] cf. Warren 2000, 16.

[33] Loit 1989.

[34] Jordanes’ accounts were used when the Swedish bishop Nicolaus Ragvaldi at the consilium in Basel (1434-36) claimed, in representing the Nordic countries, to be the true ancestor of the Gothic people, and therefore to have the right to be seated in the first row in the consilium (cf. Losman 1970).  

[35] cf. for example Forsberg 1996.

[36] cf. Zachrisson et. al. 1997, 158-172.

[37] cf. Hansen 1996; Wallerström 2000.

[38] cf. Edgren 1993, 261, Vasari et al 1996, 290ff.;  Pitkänen 1990, 160ff.; Tuovinen 1990, 67ff., Vuorela 1990, 130f.; Saloranta 2000, 38, Lehtonen 2000, 80.

[39] Svennung 1964, 70; Nordin 1997, 17f.

[40] Brink 1998, 315f.; Hansson 2000.

[41] Callmer 1991, 260.

[42] Burström 1991, 141f.

[43] Welinder, Pedersen & Widgren 1999, 282ff.; Lagerås 2000.

[44] Brink 1998, 315.

[45] Svennung 1964, 79 with quotations.

[46] Zachrisson et al 1997, 159ff. with quotations.

[47]   Sw. härad is not exactly the same as “hundare” and there are disagreements as to whether “hundaren” is to be regarded as equivalent to English “hundreds” or continental centenas (cf. Andersson 1982; Söderlind 1989).

[48] Härenstam 1946, 96f.

[49] Hårdh 1996, 123 f.

[50] Wallerström 2000, 14ff. with quotations.

[51] The evidence is, of course, one of coincidence or accident, but justifies the assumption that the systems at least were known.

[52] Wolf 1966.

[53] Drake 1996.

[54] Urbanczyk 1992, 216ff.

[55] Hansson 2001, 62f., 179f.

[56] Klackenberg 1992, 183.

[57] Hansson 2001, 271.

[58] Talve 1980, 5 (quoted by Saloranta 2000, 21).

[59] Lévi-Strauss 1966, 15.

[60] Åkesson 2000.

[61] According to the historian and sociologist, Charles Tilly (1990, p. 5), the origin of states in Europe is to be found in ”empires, city-states, federations of cities, networks of landlords, churches, religious orders, leagues of pirates, warrior bands”. Many other forms of governance prevailed in some parts of Europe at various times over the last thousand years.

[62] Oja 1959.

[63] Loit 1989. I am obliged to professor Raimo Raag, Institute of Fenno-Ugric Languages, Uppsala, for helping me understand maarahvas.

[64] cf. Birli 2001 a; 2001 b; Dini 2001.

[65] The age of the poem is debated and it is suggested to be from the end of the 9th C, the beginning of the 10th or the beginning of the 11th (Krag 1991, 32 f).

[66] cf. Ståhl 1976, 126ff. for an overview.

[67] cf. Arrhenius 2001; Sawyer & Sawyer 1993.

[68] cf. Andersson 1965; 2000.

[69] Jan Ovesen (1983) has exemplified how such concepts as international politics, religion, internal social organisation at various levels, and linguistic and anthropological research led to the distinction of ethnic identities in Afghanistan. An example (here cited from Stein 1990, 108) is how many millions of individuals in eastern Nigeria, through ideologues, ethnographers, and colonial administrators ”discovered” that they were Ibo during the English colonial period. This new ethnic group, once ”discovered”, then became the foundation for Biafra´s separatist aspirations a few years after Nigeria gained independence. Such examples as to how ethnicity is constructed could be multiplied.