Dacians - Origins and Ethnogenesis

Origins and Ethnogenesis

In the absence of written historical records, the origins of the Dacians (and Thracians) remain obscure. Evidence of proto-Thracians or proto-Dacians in the prehistoric period depends on the remains of material culture. It is generally proposed that a proto-Dacian or proto-Thracian people developed from a mixture of indigenous peoples and Indo-Europeans from the time of Proto-Indo-European expansion in the Early Bronze Age(3,300–3,000 BCE) when the latter, around 1500 BCE, conquered the indigenous peoples. The indigenous people were the Danubian farmers, and the invading people of the BCE 3rd millennium were the Kurgan warrior-herders from the Ukrainian and Russian steppes.

Indo-Europeanization was complete by the beginning of the Bronze Age. The people of that time are best described as proto-Thracians, from whom there developed in the Iron Age Danubian-Carpathian Geto-Dacians on the one hand, and Thracians of the eastern Balkan Peninsula on the other.

The eastern branch, who lived between the Isker, Yantra and Danube rivers, were called the Getae, and the western group became known as Dacian. They all spoke a Thracian dialect of Indo-European, and were mainly sedentary grain farmers who also mined gold, silver and later iron. The tribes were headed by chieftains with religious responsibilities and practice similar to the Brahmins of India, the magi of the Persians and the druids of Ireland.

Between BCE 15th-12th century, the Dacian-Getae culture was influenced by the Bronze Age Tumulus-Urnfield warriors who were on their way through the Balkans to Anatolia.

When the La Tene Celts arrived in BCE 4th century, the Dacians were under the influence of the Scythians.

Alexander the Great attacked the Getae in BCE 335 on the lower Danube, but by BCE 300 they had formed a state founded on a military democracy, and began a period of conquest.

More Celts arrived during the BCE 3rd century, and in BCE 1st century the people of Boii tried to conquer some of the Dacians’ territory, on the eastern side of the Teiss river. The Dacians drove the Boii south across the Danube and out of their territory, at which point the Boii abandoned any further plans for invasion.