Early Prussian Stuff

The Bronze Age Prussian culture, like other Bronze Age cultures, cam to be be strongly affected by the Iron Age technology of the La Tene Celtic culture as later as 400 BC.
The strength of the goddess Neringa wasn't protection enough in the face of the numbers in the Celtic migrations.

Scandinavian Viking began controlling trade in and through Prussian territory in about 890 AD. The Hill of Kaup near Wiskiauten may have been their first trading stronghold on the Prussian mainland. The wealth that this Scandinavian trade brought to the eastern isles of Scandinavia probably funded the beginning of the Swedish state.

Truso was an important trading center in Pomeranian Prussia long before the arrival of Scandinavians Viking. I suspect that amber trade with Rome moved through Truso.

Before 98 AD Romans found the Prussians to be more like Britains of that time then like the peoples of what the called Greater Germania. The Romans called the people they found on that Baltic coast Acstii. They noted that they still had very few iron weapons and tools, but still used mostly bronze and even stone.

Linguists believe that the evidence shows that Prussians are more closely related to Estonians, Latvians, and Lithuanians than to almost all other peoples.

My aim here as on all by blogs, is to start a conversation.
I'm interested in your questions, answers, comments, feelings, beliefs, thoughts,,,,,
You might ask, "What's Prussian?"
You might answer, "My aunt Millie."
You might comment, "Who cares about Balts."

You're really into this if you look for answers to:
Who knows a lot about the Nehugs-Kurisch language? or
How did the Sambians affect the Old Prussians in what became the Duchy of East Prussia.

West Balt to Prussian

The old West Balt language of what became Prussia seems closely related to Lithuanian and Latvian. some see it as coming from Proto-Slavic language. However, it shows some relationship to Sanskrit, Ancient Greek, and Gothic; English does too, doesn't it.

Two more recent Prussians of note are Copernicus and Kant. The Polish and German influence are see through these two greats.

One might think of the existence of a Prussian identity as beginning with year one. However, it was about 180 AD before the West Baltic tribes like Galindai, and Soudinnoi are mentioned by Claudius Polemacus. Romans tended to call those Balts the Western People. Cornelius Tacitus in his Germania XLV calls the west Baltic tribes Aestiorum gente. They were given names like Hesti, Aesti, Estum by persons like Cassiodoris in about AD 524, Jordanus in 550 Ad, Einbert in 831, and Walsta in 890. Don't make any big bets on my spelling. Others might be sure that a Prussian identity began shortly after acquisition by the Hobenzollerns in 1414 AD

In the 5th through the 9th century Prussians carried on trade(notably amber products)along the 'amber way' up to Pannonia and Trusa, the center of Prussian trade in the north,

Prussians may well call the lands along the Baltic Sea from the Gulf of Riga to the Bay of Danzig. They may once have occupied lands between Moscow and Kiev, Warsaw and West Finland, and may have ranged from Tallinn to Berlin. Others may say that it was a bit of land-locked sand outside Berlin.

West Balt

I'll probably post a bit of the history, recent and long past, of Prussia, Poland, and Germany, as well as of Ireland and the US, should I live long enough. Then again I might just begin to post some semi-curious information about the the Prussians, Poles, Germans, Norwegians, and Irish and leave it at that.

Not all that long ago Prussia disappeared, with the help of Russia and others, into the lands of Poland and Germany. "Prussia" may sound like Russia, but a Prussian is not a Russian, a German or a Pole. Prussians have rarely like Russians, nor the Russians, Prussians.
Some have said that Prussians are really a kind of German. Some, including some Germans, say that the German state began in Prussia, but It bares repeating, a Prussian is not a German.

In very recent years Prussians have begun to show a renewed spirit of unity where once even existence may have been doubted.
Once Prussians traded and fought in dignity with Romans, vikings and Swedes. Later for a time, they found it difficult to maintain their independence in the face of German, Polish, Lithuanian, and Russian onslaughts. At times they found support from Lithuanians and learned from Poles and Germans. Of Course Germans, Poles, and Lithuanians learned from the Prussians. Prussians learned little love for Russians, but very likely share some Slavic cousins with them.

If you can find north-west Europe on your map, you can probably find the Baltic Sea. The people on the eastern shore of that sea were long called West Balts. Prussians came from these people and their lands are still along that same shore.
The Prussian language, like other languages, has changed over time. Languages disappear and Prussian has come very close to doing so. The Old Baltic language of the Prussians is one of the oldest in Europe.