Who were the Suebi?

Imperial Rome - a familiar topic, which many of us apparently think about with great regularity. The empire is well known to us, and well defined: However, what is less clear to us is the world beyond Rome’s borders, particularly in those regions where there lived so called uncivilised ‘barbarians’.
One name can be seen with great regularity in the Roman sources concerning these lands: Suebi. If the name seems familiar, it maybe because it is, for it was this group of Germanic tribes which lend their name to the German region of Swabia. But who were the Suebi? Were they simply yet another violent group of forest-dwelling tribesman, intent on Rome’s downfall? Or is there more to this little known people? Today we will discover just that, and attempt to answer the question: Who were the Suebi?
With thanks to my Patreon patrons, Bryce Carlyle and Shauna K!
Music:
Shadows and Dust - Scott Buckley
The Long Dark - Scott Buckley
Balefire - Scott Buckley
The Distant Sun - Scott Buckley
Filaments - Scott Buckley
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All materials are used under fair use for education and commentary.
0:00 - Intro
1:29 - Problems of Classification
4:06 - Geography
9:20 - Military
11:10 - Wars with Rome
16:11 - Language
17:43 - Culture
21:06 - Religion
24:29 - Migration Period

[@mueezadam8438]

I think it’s kinda cute that Caesar saw all these clearly mid-migration tribes and was like “yes they eat their pack animals and don’t trade much.”

[@DISTurbedwaffle918]

"Well look at all this! Wouldn't you believe all this I'm seeing here? By gabagool this is something I am witnissing here!" -Julius Caesar _De Bello Gallico_

[@Historian212]

Yes, Julius Caesar is often said to have been “cute,” lol.

[@conlangknow8787]

​@@Historian212I love his cute lil totally not balding head 🥰🥰🥰😍😍🤩

[@McBrannon1000]

​@@DISTurbedwaffle918great. Now I'm imagining Caesar talking like the Sopranos. "Hey, Mark 'Tone, you seein' this?"

[@bigbubble4282]

@@McBrannon1000 "He conquered Gaul is what he did! He was a great Roman general! And in this house Julius Caesar is a hero! End of story!"

[@proto566]

As a barbarian myself, i feel quite informed.

[@lukealadeen7836]

now please shave your beard and put on a toga

[@ReidHenderson]

Same here❤

[@jasrajsandhu1658]

Nah, you aren't one, because 1 you are the same genetically as them 2 you don't have the same facial features as them nor are blond as them

[@randomcamus9445]

😮🤓

[@g.dalfleblanc63]

@@lukealadeen7836The reason why the ancient Romans loved bathing is because the cities stank of human excrement.

[@_SpamMe]

Their history as a migratory tribe is of course still visible today in the obsession with building Porsches and Mercedeses.

[@acaydia2982]

😂

[@firstjedi2]

I don't get it

[@_SpamMe]

@@firstjedi2 Mercedes and Porsche are based in Stuttgart, which is in Schwaben, a German region that has its name from the Suebi (people are called the same). Cars, movement, migration, that sorta connection.

[@OzzieMozzie777]

Mercedeseses

[@thekillers1stfan]

Are you Portuguese? That's where the Suebi ended up

[@Drewe223]

Thank you for not putting super dramatic obnoxious music in this video.

[@smothdude]

I agree with you. I love to watch these types of video late at night, the over the top music makes it so much harder to relax and just enjoy. So, I appreciate this a lot!

[@mirekbns]

The slang term for Germans used by the Poles to this day is "Szwaby" (pronunciation is very close to "Suebi"). Not considered a very polite term but then again we've been such great neighbors.

[@acaydia2982]

😂

[@petergeramin7195]

Can you translate what insult it's supposed to mean

[@amarcord1988]

In Croatia we do the same - Švabe.

[@mirekbns]

@@petergeramin7195 It translates to "Germans".

[@user-yr3zp2br3y]

My bulgarian grandfather used to call germans "Шваби" (Shvabi) as well. Usually when he talked about them angrily, if not he called them just "Немци" or, more rarely, "Германци".

[@SamuelViana]

As portuguese, I have to remember the suebs on Iberia were converted by Martinho de Dume, the bishop of would-be named Braga, which was the suebs capital. He also changed the names of weekdays names from latin to new ones, which were retained on modern portiguese (segunda-feira for Monday, terca-feira for Tuesday, etc), which is different from Castilian, which retained the old latin names (Lunes, Miercoles).

[@margraveofgadsden8997]

So, what happened to prima-feira?

[@fuferito]

So, wait, Portuguese weekdays begin with Sunday, like in English (at least, traditionally)?

[@crqf2010ruler]

@@fuferito Domingo Segunda Terça Quarta Quinta Sexta Sábado.

[@william6223]

​@@crqf2010rulerObrigado por nos educar.

[@staceysoltoff]

Hebrew (and I'm presuming Arabic) just number the days of the week except for their rest day. I didn't know there were European languages that did as well.

[@Empire-Builders]

Love your style: the thumbnails, assets, maps, etc. come together really well. This channel needs more attention.

[@jayhuxley2559]

The Swabians were integrated in Northwest Iberia, they made Braga their capital and the social organization of the people of Minho was based in the Swabians and that was one of the main reasons why Portugal became independent of Spain.

[@robert9016]

It’s a great accompaniment to your own channel :)

[@thekillers1stfan]

Agreed aside from the weird AI images spliced in every once in a while

[@macrosense]

Krauts. Jerries. Goosesteppers

[@AntonioBrandao]

I am from Braga, the old Suebi capital. We still have much of their legacy around, mixed in with the Roman.

[@rohitrai6187]

Are there any descendants who can trace themselves to Suebi?

[@AntonioBrandao]

@@rohitrai6187 all I can say from observation is that in the countryside outside the city, there is a high proportion of country folk who look blonde / Germanic. Distinct from the typical Portuguese which is the majority in the city. We also have references to the Suebi written in walls of old churches.

[@AntonioBrandao]

@@rohitrai6187 so I would say, very likely yes. I have one friend in particular who I call “the Suebi” because he’s so differently built and blonde. It’s funny because if you get in a car and drive to the countryside, you start seeing mostly blonde, Germanic-looking people.

[@lost_porkchop]

Don't you love how the video says they settled in Northwestern Spain instead of northwestern Iberia 🙄

[@lost_porkchop]

​@@rohitrai6187Yes, the whole country

[@kwitshadie6539]

Please do more Celti-Germanic tribes. The specific tribes get overlooked way too often and you did a phenomenal job. 🤩

[@antonyreyn]

Cool video, the town of Swaffam England is conjectured to come from the Swabians, also Tacitus even refers to the Angles as Suebi Angli. Cheers from Mercia

[@JustAnotherHistoryChannel]

I have been to Swaffham and I had no idea about this! Very interesting

[@brittakriep2938]

I am Brittas boyfriend, being member of current Schwaben, prefering speaking my dialect over speaking Standard German. In case of of settlements many current towns or villages date back to Alemannic tribal age ( graveyards). A typical settlements name ends with -ingen. Somewhere i read, this - ingen and british -ingham have the same root.

[@antonyreyn]

Cool i am in Nottingham, but i also think about the Rune Ing and the language Ingaevonic which Anglo Saxon is part of. Cheers

[@brittakriep2938]

@@antonyreyn : Somewhere i read , that in current english Nottingham would mean Nott's Farm. In my swabian homeregion there is a villlage Notzingen, according to an accademic person , who told me, this - ingen ending means: settlement of ....'s men/followers, and ... is a no more known name of a local leader. So the family/ clan leader , who founded Notzingen could have Had also the name Nott or Notz. A in my Homeregion often told story, that a man from Baltmannsweiler founded Baltimore is of course a joke,

[@duke_vdun]

@@brittakriep2938about the „Ingen“ and the „Heim“ I know something, that I found out in a Museum about the Alemanni (Swabians). Apparently, the ending „Ingen“ like in „Bissingen“ was used for settlements on good land, that was fertile. The ending „Heim“ like in „Höpfigheim“ was used for settlements that had been built on less fertile ground, second class settlements so to say. 😂 I dont know if this is 100% true, its what was written in the text of the Museum in „Ellwangen“.

[@notsans9995]

The real Suebi were the friends we made along the way.

[@tikimillie]

Thank you totally not sans, very cool

[@Civilis1980]

This is the content I crave. Actual information

[@Thekoryostribalpodcast]

Never forget about your ancestors.......We are them, they were not savages, they knew how to live off the land, and they were warriors, and werent afraid to fight for it. The system, and the elites would love for you to believe your ancestors were savages, and that nothing they did was of importance. A people is defined by what times they live through. Thise were dangerous times, and our people adapted to that. We are in times now where we will have to adapt again and fight for our own. Our ancestors are right with us. Slainte!

[@jasrajsandhu1658]

Nah our ancestors took over other people's lands, get over it, they weren't tree hugging peace loving people, they enjoyed war

[@annepoitrineau5650]

Governments wanting to colonise an area will do that (try to convince you your ancestors were barbarians without any culture worth remembering or keeping alive), not the system. Thus, the French, English etc claimed they were civilising their colonies and refused to consider these colonies too had a proud and very interesting history and culture. There is the other extreme: a government that emphasises the past glory of a culture (like the Uk government at the moment) in order to advocate for that silly act of self-harm called Brexit, or the French far right trying to make the people believe the French are going to be swamped by invaders and must save their civilisation. The best way to save a civilisation is to seduce: the Romans managed it (as we could hear from the way some Suevi joined the Romans) to make people want to become Roman citizens. Seduction :). A lot of what the Romans were about is carried further by western Europe, because of this "seduction". It would be easy to resent it...but at the same time, they did write about the people they subjected, and there was a form of respect in their descriptions.

[@Thekoryostribalpodcast]

@@jasrajsandhu1658 What did í just say in my comment? Can you read? I said they were not savages. They adapted, and they were warriors, they fought hard for their people. Where did í say they were tree huggers? They were quick to war. And fighting just like some of us are today. But that doesn't equate to savages. They were also family oriented, and despised degeneracy. Read it again. 1.4.8.8.⚡️⚡️

[@Thekoryostribalpodcast]

@@annepoitrineau5650 Agreed. There are alot of parallels between ancient Rome, and what is going today. Except today this is about whether our people die out or not. If we don't wake up, there won't be a European people to speak of. They are using many tools to destroy and erase us.

[@Thekoryostribalpodcast]

@@jasrajsandhu1658 Where did í say they were tree huggers? Can you read?

[@koroshitchy]

The Suebi originated in southern Sweden, then migrated east to the Baltic area, then west to what today is northwestern Germany (Hamburg) and then south to the limes of the empire (say Stuttgart). This migration pattern is based largely on genetic studies and may explain the confusion. The Stuttgart area was occupied at the time by a large Germanic coalition led by the Alemanni. The Suebi initially became subjects of the Alemanni king, but they took advantage from the succession war that followed the death of the king to give a coup and supplant the Alemanni as leaders of the coalition, which, from them onwards, always had a Suebi ruler. Note that the name Alemanni gave rise to the French and Spanish words for German and Germany. So yes, the Suebi became and large coalition of tribes more or less assimilated into the Suebi label. These migrations also explain the geographical confusion. For other sources on the Suebi, check Hydatius: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydatius Hydatius describes the Suebi that arrived to Galicia to establish a kingdom.

[@ziloj-perezivat]

Ok ty

[@nicoalavi]

I am kurdish and we call Germany alman

[@admontblanc]

What are your sources for these wars and so on? On another note that would explain the discrepancies between different Roman authors better than the very simplistic assumption that the German lands remained politically static for centuries until the Great Migration period started.

[@ryanshaw4250]

As a student of linguistics, I thank you for the linguistic information on the changes of suebi linguistically as it turned me onto a realization and tell of human progress. Languages transform as seen in the francification of english after the norman conquest, the katakanization aka europeanization of Japanese after the Boshin war, and numerous other examples. These changes in the ancient world reflect the clear introduction of the powerhouse Latin into the region. The inference that I make is that there is a very clearly defined window after this linguistic change where the language changes if we look at it also reflects then again into where these people end up roughly 300 years from that linguistic change. Put plainly, linguistic changes are like rings on a tree which reflect the interaction of some major regional connection and then predate the revirbiration of the afterparty. Grewat work tying so much multi science layering into your video.

[@Freddex4LYF]

Amazing

[@clarkstartrek]

The Suebi faced frequent attacks from other Germanic tribes, as well as from the Visigoths, who eventually conquered their kingdom in the 6th century. After their defeat, the Suebi gradually assimilated into the larger Visigothic society, and their culture and language disappeared. Despite being a conquered population, the Suevi are generally left in peace in Gallaecia, and they eventually blend into the general population of Iberia. 712 A.D. TO 725 A.D.; The descendants of the Suevi remain relatively free of Islamic influence in north-western Iberia during the early years of occupation. Around 725 they are appended to the recently-formed Christian kingdom of Asturias, which is based a little to the east, on the Bay of Biscay.

[@aful3091]

This was a great video, from the narration to the writing to the maps showing geographical features often omitted such as the thick forests that served as soft borders between Rome and the Germans. Instant sub and highly encourage you to continue.

[@boa1793]

Thanks for all that research and compilation. Your delivery is excellent.

[@andychap6283]

Really interesting video, always excited to see an upload from this channel.

[@maxsauer2623]

That was one of the best historical videos I’ve ever seen on KZbin. Subscribed.

[@savannahshepherd2283]

I love hearing about more obscure history, im super pleased to have found your channel! :D

[@redfoxtress]

Great and informative video. I'm really glad KZbin recommended it to me. That's one well earned subscription for you

[@sosa_prodigy_not]

This is exactly the video I was looking for. Thank you!!

[@Lou.B]

Best presentation of the period that I've seen! Well done!

[@danielferguson3784]

Don't forget, the Roman writers often used the 'barbarians' as examples of toughness, in deliberate contrast to Romes soft & effete leaders, the noble Senators etc who had subjected themselves to tyranical Emperors. They were actually 'bigging up' the barbarians, so their descriptions stress the more virtuous, if somewhat chaotic, way of life of such people. The Roman attitude to the 'barbarians' did not have the negative connotation most people think, but they were admired, as examples of people living a more natural life than that of the City dwellers. They were regarded as the 'noble savage', worthy warriors, often better than the degenerate Citizens of Rome.

[@StoicHistorian]

Great video! Love your stuff man

[@Aujax92]

Great video, my new favorite channel since Cambrian Chronicles

[@GemsOnVHS]

It is worth noting that a military general's observation of a people he is regularly only in contact with to kill is obviously going to be painted in a certain light. Imagine Caesar coming home and writing a book about how chill all the natives were, about the women/children they massacred, or how uneventful the trip was lol. Wouldn't exactly make for a thrilling narrative that pushes ones career forward.

[@admontblanc]

On the other hand, given his position Caesar was likely to have interacted with these people directly whereas scholars were procuring second hand information mostly. Notwithstanding Caesar's biases his accounts should be taken as more direct knowledge than that of the average scholar.

[@Stevie-J]

The fair descriptions of the sources is so great. I also love the maps. I dislike when creators fact dump and focus on "the vibe" without including maps

[@annepoitrineau5650]

You can never have enough maps!

[@sppl623]

this production quality made me think you had 100s of thousands of subs this is so next level!!

[@Odanti]

I enjoyed your video. You have a great voice. That voice kept me to stay and watch to the end. I love history. Thank you ❤️🙏❤️

[@BK-rd7qp]

Very good video, smoothly presented & executed, with appropriate attribution to sources and analysis. Top shelf, subscribed & look forward to more like this. So many "barbarian" tribes, voluminous potential.

[@user-zg3yk3we4x]

Really interesting. Good video. Lots of info but not boring.

[@Wra7hofAchilles]

Terrific video. Well structured, good pacing, and informative. I feel like this was done well enough both for the amateur and the more learned. Earned a sub! It'd be great if in the video description you listed your notes/sources for those who want to try and dig up more info. Looking forward to more videos like this!

[@timothymcgee5041]

Very well done. Thank you.

[@THINKincessantly]

Perfect Podcast Voice….

[@scoon2117]

Love your aesthetic here

[@klmn48]

We had in region Banat of Romania, Suebi. They were called Shvabs! They were colonized in 17 siecle and all left for Germany after 1990!

[@lowersaxon]

Yes, the „Banater Schwaben“ in German.

[@antonpressing]

Die Siebenbürger Sachsen ?

[@chegu613]

​@@antonpressingBanater Schwaben and Siebenbürger Sachsen are not the same!

[@antonpressing]

@@chegu613 Die Siebenbürger Sachsen (Deutsch. Orden 13.Jh.) are not all Saxons. The Donauschwaben (KuK Monarchie 18.Jh.) are from allover Germany / Austria.

[@Hamter_mental_counseling]

Hi this was an interesting video. I think it would benefit from having more depictions (paintings or otherwise) of the Suevi and their lifestyle. For example, the painting of the settlement in the forest at the beginning was impressive and it helps relate to the content. The first bit about categorisation I thought could have been shorter and instead spend more time describing these people and their lifestyle

[@flightskoo]

Comfy video ❤❤❤ wish there was more of this on KZbin

[@onetwothreefourfive12345]

Great vid. Subbed

[@user-rj5db6nt4i]

The Suebi persist now in North Africa as the Zveva/Zwewa clan of the Amazigh tribes of Algeria. One of the Zwewa group used to work as Hitmen for other tribes. They kept some germanic traits in the behavior and even in physical traits .....red hair blue eyed North Africans.

[@antonyreyn]

That's cool. Some Icelandic slaves were also taken to Algeria during the Muslim pirate state so more Germanic DNA there. Cheers from Mercia

[@user-rj5db6nt4i]

@@antonyreyn normandic genepool too all over the Coast of Tunisia...beautiful celestial Blue eyed girls....and I am more a fan of darker skin ....but those eyes are unbelievable even by Caucasian standards.....btw ...All of them are Muslims hé hé hé

[@ancientillyrian6385]

Interesting. I know many went into Portugal and Spain. The Danube Swabians settled Austro-Hungary, Romania, and the Balkans..... Alemanni in general

[@duke_vdun]

First and Foremost they are of course still in Germany, and some ancestral dna is also found in Portugal, but thats really interesting.

[@BloingDidoing]

are you sure that those are the decendents of the Suebi and not rather of the vandals? You have to remember that the Vandals conquered and ruled and reigned over North Africa for many generations.

[@MistressQueenBee]

Well done, indeed! Hope this channel grows and more people are exposed to your works.

[@mauganra2589]

“The large phallus is from a Suebi I killed in the Rhinelands, a strong, fierce people” - Lucius Vorenus 😆

[@raul88.88]

In the West of Romania we have a germanic minority called "Șvabi" (in Banat), related to "Sași" from the center of Transylavia. I think they might be the same or related to "Suebi". Or perhaps a name coincidence.

[@oskar6607]

Likely just a name meaning “Germans”

[@stancalung5186]

they are the descendants of settlers colonised at the end of the 18th century by the Habsburgs. In Germany they are known as the "Banatenschwaben" (the Swabians from Banat). And they came not only from Swabia, but also from Alsace, Lotharingia, the (Rhein) Palatinate. So, they are "related" to the Suebi, like all other Germans living in South Germany today, but didn´t came in the region in the antique period. And they have nothing in common with the Transylvanian Saxons, who came (also as colonists) in the 13th century: they speak different dialects, have different religions (most of the Saxons are lutheran, the Schwabs are almost all catholic) etc.

[@kristofschneider601]

@@stancalung5186 All relevant facts, thank you!

[@18Carlx]

Good work.

[@Uthandol]

loved it. subd and liked!

[@victoriaburkhardt9974]

Very interesting. Thank you.

[@BenSHammonds]

it seems as tho they were more in tune with their Steppe roots of Indo-European cultures

[@user-rq7el8nh6q]

They must have come from the north and displaced or mingled with the bell breaker Celts

[@jasrajsandhu1658]

​@@user-rq7el8nh6qnope, zero proof of that, they never mixed with celts or beakers LMAO

[@user-rq7el8nh6q]

@@jasrajsandhu1658 Bavaria looks half Celt to me. It's hard to turn down Celtic women

[@alinaanto]

I liked your video. One observation: since in Latin writing the letters U and V are written the same, Suebi could just as well be more Svebi. Seeing how the Germans known as Schwaben (pronounced shvaben) have made it through all these centuries into the modern days, I find it more likely that the original pronunciation was closer to Svebi.

[@lucadefranco3420]

V would have been pronounced as U in Latin though

[@alinaanto]

@@lucadefranco3420 not always, for example the word victory. Sometimes U, sometimes V

[@johnking6252]

Great story, the time frame was a bit scattered but informative overall. Thx. for the info. 👍

[@johnbeans2000]

Thanks! Love ancient history!

[@swedhgemoni8092]

They still exist. Every German knows the Swabians.

[@alexandrutita4850]

They exista even in Romania

[@busch_ii7450]

Gotta tell you most germans dont. Its also bot really part of the school curriculum

[@swedhgemoni8092]

@@busch_ii7450 You're telling me Germans within the country don't know about Saxons, Bavarians, Prussians, Swabians etc.?

[@busch_ii7450]

@@swedhgemoni8092 yes. In order of probability: Bavarians>Saxons>Swabians>Prussians Bavaria and Saxony are still federal states so people will know about them Way more then the other two. Prussia isnt around for a long time so you will be hard pressed to find anyone who knows them except people who are interested in history. For many their history knowledge starts at WW1. For some WW2 even.

[@swedhgemoni8092]

@@busch_ii7450 Sigh, this is actually sad. They didn't even properly celebrate the 2000 year anniversary of the Battle of Teutoberg Forest.

[@noelwitaseck9697]

Fun Fact: some of the suebi have migrated eaven further east and now occupy the territory between bornholmer straße and torstraße

[@hohetannen4703]

The ominous blood red on the black background in the fraktur script is going to trigger someone lol.

[@FABIO_MARTINSS]

I'm Brazilian and I tested positive for Haplogroup I-m253 ( my father too), which is found mainly in Nordic men (35% Sweden, 50% Gotland) even more than in Germany (16%). My grandfather came from the North of Portugal (Suebi territory in the past) to Brazil. Paternal Y DNA is passed from father to son over millennia without significant mutations, so you see exactly who your male ancestors were without error. In my case, my male ancestors are Suebi.

[@kristofschneider601]

Or your grandfather was a sailor.

[@FABIO_MARTINSS]

@@kristofschneider601 that's a possibility

[@Les-jl2tn]

I wonder if there is any connection between "suebi" or "suabi" and the term "swoi". The word "swoi" in Polish is quite peculiar. It has translation into English that can be rendered "our own" or in German "unser eigenes". It is known to be used by local persons living in a particular area as the self-description when those persons have not felt particular association with their country/rulers. In some remote locations it was used even as long as in 20th century for locals living in a particular location for many generations to distinguish themselves from the overlords who would come and go. It is common that the tribes names, or even later country names are not the invention of their own members but come from the foreigners who they had contact with. When they would be asked "who you are" they often had different name than those which were passed by historians etc. Possibly some word similar to "swoi" or "suebi" was commonly used back in the day by lots of people who later became classified as Germans, Slavs or other.

[@alexandervanhove7327]

In Farsi and English bad has the same meaning and almost pronunciation. But the two "bads" couldn't possible be related because of the consonant switches in old Germanic. So you must always be careful when two words look the same and have similar meanings. It could be coincidence, or it might even be folk etymology, with people changing the meaning of a phrase because it looks like something they know from another language. But the good news is that 90% of all etymologists believe you are right. Suebi and swoyi are related. Swoje and swoyi are also used in Russian by the way, and even so more many years ago, before "nashi" became the normal word for "our own people". Today Russians seem to use nashi more and more to mean Slavic-speaking people who were BORN outside of Russia, BUT in the former Soviet Union. Since Russian-speaking Buryats are not really "nashi" will they again become "swoyi" one day? The other 10% of etymologists believe that Suebi is derived from a Celtic word meaning vagabond or nomad. it could therefore be an insult, like "niemiec".

[@clemfandango6969]

Can you please do videos on the other Germanic tribes?

[@JustAnotherHistoryChannel]

Definitely, I have some more planned

[@joserodrigues46]

The Suebi kingdom of the Northwest Iberian Peninsula is the root of the future kingdom of Portugal. Northern Portugal has the highest concentration of Germanic place names. The Portuguese city of Braga was the capital of the Suebi Kingdom.

[@vercingetorixwulf9298]

Excellent

[@cordeliaadams4898]

Very interesting.

[@odinfireful]

very good, interesting

[@baggelis_aikaterinis]

EB in a nutshell XD Subed 👍

[@waynemcauliffe-fv5yf]

Cheers mate

[@MrOx85]

I think it's possible that "Suebi" could be a term like "Vikingr".I remember reading that they were gifted land bordering Gaul and paid by Caeser to keep the Celts in check.So they were probably raiding in the area before happening upon the Romans.I can imagine Caesar asking who they were and a tribesman replying we are "Suebi" meaning raiders/raiding and the name stuck.Its possible just saying.So many terms have been used to refer to Germanic tribes, yet I think some were lost in translation.

[@bobopopo444]

Two towns in Flanders called 'Zwevegem' and 'Zwevezele'.

[@LesangdesdieuX]

It as always been a source of confusion how germanic confederations included tribes and people that changed over time. They are often made up of closely related tribes but sometimes they just stick together after being neibors and allies as generations goes and geopilitics changes. As so the same confederation can include different peoples over time or even split in different directions with migrations and conquest.

[@ancientillyrian6385]

They didn't want to be conquered, controlled, taxed and confined by the empire, so they were labeled uncivilized Barbarians. How dare they strive for independence and freedom.

[@RobertWF42]

I don't think we can label the Germans as good guys and the Romans as the villains. The Germans initiated many of the wars. One of the most devastating was the Cimbrian War of 113 to 101 B.C. (not mentioned in this video).

[@ancientillyrian6385]

@@RobertWF42 The Germans were tribal and localized. They were not an ever expanding empire that tried to subjugate all under their authority. They broke up into various tribes illustrating this. They only united to throw off the yoke. The Germanic Franks were infiltrated. They turned on them and made sure the Alemanni all fell under the HRE. This fact, and WWII is why there is animosity between many Germans and French (Germanic) today. The eagle of Rome has landed in many places.

[@rpinter677]

Which empire was expanding and controlling many people in much of Europe and the Mediterranean for over 500 years???

[@ancientillyrian6385]

@@RobertWF42 The American Indians (Indigenous peoples-like the Alemanni) initiated many conflicts as their lands were being overrun . The calvary (as Rome) defeated them although they won many battles. Rome used the Franks (an Alemanni tribe) to subdue the Germanic tribes and instituted the HRE. The Indigenous (Old Europeans) were largely replaced by the Indo-Europeans. The eagle of Rome came to the Americas as well. The aim is the same.

[@ancientillyrian6385]

@@RobertWF42 There were no Germans at the time. They were not confederate. They were loose tribes of Germanic peoples called the Alemanni Deutsch.

[@danielferguson3784]

There were a number of Swabian units, Cohorts & Numeri, in northern Britain around Hadrian's Wall, from the 2nd/3rd centuries.

[@shipmcgree6367]

Researching about the faceless factions dealt with in Total War is so interesting.

[@mattjswaby]

Amazing

[@Erick_Bloodaxe]

I think it’s likely the Chatti of Caesar’s time were in allegiance with the Suebi and therefore he was deferred to them. Caesar had German horsemen in his army, the nuances wouldn’t have been lost on him if they were relevant to the time. The century and half later when Tacitus was writing it was a different political situation among the tribes.

[@patrickhamilton5829]

Markomanni means border-men or forest/wilderness-men. Forests and wilderness areas were often natural borders separating different tribes. Compare «Markland» the name given to Newfoundland by Leiv Eriksson. As well as the modern Norwegian counties Hedmark and Finnmark.

[@danielferguson3784]

The English Kingdom of Mercia, & the Marches of Wales & the Scottish borders are of the same root.

[@iamperplexed4695]

It is interesting that both high german and low german are spoken regularily today, although I never really understood the monikers of high and low.

[@jeremycline9542]

It seems like where they were in Iberia later became Portuguese speaking. Did they have an influence on that in some way?

[@miguelsilva1446]

Yeah their main area of influence was northern portugal and galicia wich ended up with a distint culture very simililar to each other(have been sister nations to the modern day even, but it's changing with the depopulation of galicia, and young peple adopting castilian over their motger tongue for more opportunities these days) And some say the suebi kingdom may have been a proto portugal/Galicia of sorts Also an interesting fact is that portuguese can sound slavic to some people and its theorized it may be suevi influence

[@drakkendragunov4761]

Kingdom of de Suebi in Spain is Galizia, Asturias, Leon, Salamanca, Zamora y North Portugal post with Visi Goths is Kingdom (VisiGoth) of Leon. And post is Kingdom de Leon and Castilla.

[@matthewmoua8494]

Maroboduus was also a Roman educated German like Armenius. I was surprised how he was able to craft what was basically the first Germanic state with a pseudo capital named after himself.

[@KelsaRavenlock]

So Arius gets slapped by Nicholas, Alexandria gets sidelined, and German converts are deemed heretics for believing that God and Jesus are not co-eternal. And yet they adopt the Nicene creed that states that the father begat the son just before the start of time. Alot of eventual chaos and death for a minor rewording of the same idea.

[@giw_jones]

It's not the same idea, I'm not very well versed in theology but those who are will tell you that the father begetting the son is outside of time. The existence of the son necessitates that there is a father and vice versa, not that the father spawned the son after his own being.

[@user-fl5mq9kp7g]

​@@giw_jones Jesus: What is this pagan heresy? God is like humans, prophets and angels. They will disagree with you 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@FilipeCardoso1]

Bom documentário! Os Suevos fazem parte da história galaico-portuguesa!💯

[@baronghede2365]

I think about Rome with skepticism and amazement, Blessed Be.

[@oskar6607]

It would have been interesting with some etymological analysis is Suebi, if possible. What did the name mean to them?

[@tommyschmierer4627]

Serbians often call germans Schwabi... Шваби in Cyrillic ... Just thought I'd throw that out there since I'm a Serbian/Hungarian person myself ...

[@milansimonovic8267]

Dud Suebi are Srbi, because the Latins can't pronaunce 3 consonant one after the other they changed R to UE. And it is common that B changed to V in Greek and Latin.

[@Andy_Babb]

I wish this was longer lol

[@gewber4045]

Where's the music?

[@Ikee85]

“Which many of us think about regularly”😭💀

[@thebrocialist8300]

Excellent presentation

[@MrDisasterboy]

DId the Swabian Language make Galician & Portuguese different from Spanish and Catalan?

[@henryc3067]

The Suebi were a confederacy of tribes. The Saxons for instance were also not a tribe but a confederacy of four tribes. Its a large mistake that many historian refer to Germanic groups as tribes when the grouping they mention is the name of the confederacy many tribes are apart of. To simplify the subject Germanic people had clans (families) which made up tribes; this tribes would form confederacies. Some of the "tribes" people mention today are actually confederacies or clans.

[@Janeka-xj2bv]

It was the way the Suebi learned the Vulgar Latin spoken in the Northwestern Iberian Peninsula that made the difference between the future languages Portuguese and Castillian, aka Spanish.

[@breohtbrusmid489]

A place here in Norfolk is still named after the Suebi who lived there, Swaffham.

[@martell9882]

the suebi are my favourit tribe. Semnones, Langobardians, Markomanni, Quadi, Warni, Suardones, Nuitones, Triboker, Neckarsuebi, Hermunduri many southgerman like Thüringer, Allemannen and Bajuwaren are thhe descedent of them

[@besina1563]

Thank you for that , greetings !

[@Siddich]

Osterby is not in Southern germany as mentioned in the video. it is in northern germany.

[@Fatherofheroesandheroines]

I think he got confused with the area in Denmark with a similar name. As modern Denmark was in what the Romans called Germania, technically, he's right that way, though in a modern sense, yes, he's wrong.

[@grafneun]

My family is from Swabia which originated the word from suebia

[@user-pp6fx7si4g]

Who was savage and warlike?? First and foremost the Romans!

[@Davidium84]

Sweden in Swedish is actually Sve Rige or Svea Rike but in old norse it would be pronounced “Suei Rike” (meaning kingdom of Suei) later the u was changed into a “v” but it all checks out. We find alot of treasure from all over Europe in Sweden from working against AND with the Romans from very early on at the turn of the millenia.

[@Brakvash]

Huh, seems the geats/goths (götar) was already at large in continental europe, and the suebe may have been the descendants of swedes (sitones/suiones)? Interesting how there was a shared culture in the suebi which reached up to sweden. It's common historical knowledge in sweden that the swedish peninsula once had 2 dominant peoples - the swedes (svear) and the geats (götar) - and they fought for dominance. The swedes eventually won and the geats mysteriously disappeared from sagas and records. Many speculate the surviving geats fled to continental europe and became the goths. Mayhaps some swedes also fled and became the suebi...

[@oliwwer]

Considering i am from västra götaland and we have laws stating the alliance between götar and svear. The law also describes how the king of the swedes would have to be from götaland or the alliance would break, easily proves we didnt ”disappear” sweden is also called the 3 crowns,3 kingdoms combined.

[@reynardus1359]

An excellent discussion on a complex subject. As we know a single Alpine canton called Swiss gave a name to the entire nation. Originally, funny sounding name Swiss was applied in a derogatory way to the entire confederation by their enemies but, of course, after they discovered there was nothing funny about fighting them, the name became a source of pride. Most Slavic countries call Germans after the German tribe Nemetes, Spanish call them after the tribe Alemani and in the Balkans some still call Germans Schwabs.

[@metanoian965]

A single tribe, Polanie, gave a name to the Ethnic Lech tribes in Central Europe. The Kingdom of Lechia referred to Poland. Lechia or Lehistan is still used in some countries. "Nemetes", is problematic. In most Slavic countries it means, 'the dumb ones', not understood. This Germanic tribe was far to the West. However, if the name was adapted to mean Germanic, then perhaps, Slavia was expansive.

[@reynardus1359]

@@metanoian965 @metanoian965 Polanie - field dwellers if I am correct. As for Nemetes, the name interpretation you're referring to is rather modern and is most likely coincidental rather than causative. Not every Slavic nation has that word for dumb/mute. Romanians use it without any linguistic reason. Most importantly, Nemetis was a tribe known by that name to the Romans where the Slavic linguistic interpretation would not have been a factor. And finally, it would be very unusual to call a tribe by a name other than the one it used to introduce itself. Granted, more often than not, the name itself may become corrupted in the language of the foreign nation/ tribe but that doesn't change the origin of the name itself.

[@metanoian965]

@@reynardus1359 Romanians not S

[@reynardus1359]

@@metanoian965 That is my point. Romanian (non-slavic) word for Germans - nemtesc. So Nemtsi word origins have nothing to do with the coincidental meaning of the word of some Slavic tribes.

[@HeyCupertino]

Thank god for folk music

[@conradnelson5283]

Lotta stuff I did not know

[@elijahdjinn2304]

Food for thought at any point did the Romans use the term suebi as a derogatory for other German inhabitants at the time??

[@kristofschneider601]

That is what this video says to me. One single germanic tribe (or coalition of tribes) existing over 5 centuries is simply not possible.