Gepids

The Gepids (Latin: Gepidae, Gipedae; Ancient Greek: Γήπαιδες, romanized: Gḗpaides) were an East Germanic tribe who lived in the area of modern Romania, Hungary, and Serbia, roughly between the Tisza, Sava, and Carpathian Mountains. They were said to share the religion and language of the Goths and Vandals.

They are first mentioned by Roman sources in the third century. In the fourth century, they were among the peoples incorporated into the Hunnic Empire, within which they formed an important part. After the death of Attila, the Gepids under their leader Ardaric, led an alliance of other peoples who had been in the empire, and defeated the sons of Attila and their remaining allies at the Battle of Nedao in 454. The Gepids and their allies subsequently founded kingdoms on the Middle Danube, bordering on the Roman Empire.

The Gepids were defeated by the Lombards and Avars a century later in 567, when Constantinople gave no support to them. Some Gepids joined the Lombards in their subsequent conquest of Italy, some moved into Roman territory, and other Gepids still lived in the area of the old kingdom after it was conquered by the Avars.

Name

See also: Name of the Goths

The Gepids were known by different spellings in old Latin and Greek texts, such as Gepidae or Gipidae. Some writers thought the name might be an unkind nickname meaning "slow." Others believed it meant they fought on foot instead of riding horses. Historians debate whether an old map showing a group called "Piti" near Porolissum might actually refer to the Gepids.

Language

There is not much direct information about the original language of the Gepids. However, during the time the Romans wrote about them, the Gepids shared a culture similar to the Goths. It is most likely that the Gepids spoke a language very similar to the Goths, but perhaps with some differences. The Byzantine writer Procopius, who lived in the 6th century, described the Gepids as part of the "Gothic peoples." He said they shared the same language, had light skin, blond hair, and practiced a form of Christianity called Arian. After the 7th century, the Gepids' language was no longer recorded, and it probably disappeared around that time. The Gepids had difficult political relationships with other related groups, the Goths and Vandals.

History

The Gepids were an East Germanic tribe who lived in areas of modern-day Romania, Hungary, and Serbia, between the Tisza, Sava, and Carpathian Mountains. They shared religion and language with the Goths and Vandals. Roman sources first mentioned them in the third century.

Stories about the Gepids' beginnings come from old Gothic tales written down by Jordanes after 550. These tales say the Gepids and Goths started from the northern island of "Scandza" (linked to Sweden today). They left in three boats led by Berig, with the Gepids in the slowest boat, earning their name "Gepids" meaning "slow." They settled near the Baltic Sea at the mouth of the Vistula River.

For a long time, the Gepids were not well known. They first appear in history in the late third century, already living near where they stayed for the rest of their known history. They were part of groups that fought against the Roman Empire and later joined forces with the Huns. After the Huns fell, the Gepids became powerful, ruling a kingdom in the Carpathian Basin. Their kingdom grew strong but was later defeated by the Lombards and Avars. Some Gepids moved to Italy, while others stayed behind.

Archaeological sites

Many places show evidence of the Gepids, an ancient group of people. Scientists first studied one of these places at Band in 1906 and 1907. It can be hard to know exactly which group of people used these old items.

Burial places show that important people with valuable items were first found in northwestern Transylvania in the fifth century, and later in the sixth century in areas of the Hungarian Plain. These important Gepids had special items like brooches, amber beads, and belt buckles, especially in the graves of women. This shows they had connections with places like Scandinavia, Thuringia, Crimea, and the Baltic coast.

In Vlaha, Cluj County, Romania, scientists found a large group of graves from the sixth century AD in 2004. Most of these graves had been opened long ago, but some items like pottery, bronze objects, and weapons were still there. Another rich group of graves was found in Miercurea Sibiului, Romania.

Other important grave sites in Romania include:

• Morești, Mureș County
• Noșlac, Alba County
• Brateiu, Sibiu County
• Șeica Mică, Sibiu County
• Timișoara Freidorf site
• Apahida necropolis
• Turda: here is the richest Germanic tomb found in Romania, called the “Franziska” tomb, from a Roman site dated to the fifth century AD.

Gepid treasures were also found at Someșeni and Șimleu Silvaniei.

Genetic research

Further information: Goths § Genetics, Lombards § Genetics, Baiuvarii § Genetics, Visigoths § Genetics, and Alemanni § Genetics

In 2022, scientists looked at the DNA from old Gepidian people found in three places in Transylvania, Romania. They discovered that most of these people came from families in Northwestern Europe. They also found that these people were very similar to people from the Wielbark Culture and to early Anglo-Saxon and Lombard people. Only one out of forty-six people had DNA that came from Asia, showing that very few people from places like the Huns mixed with the Gepids.

Another study in December 2023 looked at the DNA of four people from a place in Serbia that was thought to be a Gepid burial site. Two of these people seemed to come from the Balkans, while the other two had mixed DNA from Europe and people from Sarmatian and Scythian backgrounds. This mixing likely happened before these groups moved into the Roman Empire. The DNA tests showed different family lines that these people belonged to.