Prehistory of Poland (until 966) - Antiquity

Antiquity

The La Tène culture period is subdivided into La Tène A, 450–400 BC; La Tène B, 400–250 BC; La Tène C, 250–150 BC; and La Tène D, 150–0 BC. The period from 200 to 0 BCE is also considered to be the younger pre-Roman period. It was followed by the period of Roman influence, whose early stage lasted from 0 to 150 AD, and the late stage from 150 to 375 AD. The period from 375 to 500 AD constitutes the (pre-Slavic) Migration Period.

Peoples belonging to numerous archeological cultures identified with Celtic, Germanic and Baltic tribes inhabited parts of Poland in Antiquity, from about 400 BC to 450-500 AD. Other groups, difficult to identify, were most likely also present, as the ethnic composition of archeological cultures is often poorly recognized. Short of using a written language to any appreciable degree, many of them developed a relatively advanced material culture and social organization, as evidenced by the archeological record, for example by richly furnished, dynastic "princely" graves. Characteristic of this period were high rates of migration, often involving large groups of people.

Celtic peoples established settlements, beginning in the early 4th century BC, mostly in southern Poland, the outer limit of their expansion. With their developed economy and crafts, they exerted a lasting cultural influence (La Tène culture) disproportionate to their small numbers in the region.

Germanic peoples lived in what is now Poland for several centuries, during which many of their tribes also migrated southward and eastward (see Wielbark culture). With the expansion of the Roman Empire, the Germanic tribes came under Roman cultural influence. Some written remarks by Roman authors that are relevant to developments on Polish lands have been preserved; they provide additional insights in conjunction with the archeological record. In the end, as the Roman Empire was nearing its collapse and the nomadic peoples invading from the east destroyed, damaged or destabilized the various Germanic cultures and societies, the Germanic peoples left Eastern and Central Europe for the safer and wealthier southern and western parts of the European continent.

The northeast corner of what is now Poland remained populated by Baltic tribes. They were at the outer limits of any substantial cultural influence from the Roman Empire.