Sarmatism (pseudohistory)

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In Lithuanian history, Sarmatism is a term used to refer to various nationalist pseudohistorical theories which seek to refute traditional understanding of the history of Lithuania and propose that the medieval Grand Duchy of Lithuania is a continuation of states and ethnic groups in Eastern Europe attested before the first mention of the name of Lithuania recorded in the Annals of Quedlinburg in 1009. [1] The name comes from Sarmatia, a term used in Greco-Roman cartography, notably the Geography of Ptolemy, to label all of Eastern Europe, and which is generally believed by Sarmatist historians to refer to the extent of Antiquity-era Lithuania.

Contents

These theories lack support in the Lithuanian historical community, and are criticized for amateurish linguistics, selective use of historical data, and extreme nationalism. [2]

Background

Sarmatist interpretation of Lithuanian history was started by diplomat, translator, polyglot and historian Česlovas Gedgaudas, detailed in the book Mūsų praeities beieškant (Searching for Our Past). It was published in Mexico City in 1972. This book was published in response to History of the Lithuanian SSR, edited by Juozas Žiugžda  [ lt ] in 1957 – Gedgaudas perceived it as having misrepresented the past of the Lithuanian peoples and wrote his work as a supposed authentic representation of ancient Lithuanian history. [3]

Mūsų praeities beieškant was published in Lithuania after the fall of the Soviet Union and became a seminal work among the community. Jurate Rosales refers to Gedgaudas in her works, and is herself referenced in Mūsų praeities beieškant for her systematic comparison of Baltic languages and the Spanish language to prove the Baltic origins of the Visigoths. [4]

Interest in Sarmatist theory was renewed by the 1000th anniversary of the first mention of the name of Lithuania in the Annals of Quedlinburg in 2009. This anniversary was criticised by Aivaras Lileika for dismissing the history of Lithuania prior to 1009 as well as the refusal to accept the connection between Lithuania and Antiquity-era Sarmatia. [5] Lileika also proposed renaming the country of Lithuania to Sarmatia. [6]

Sarmatist-influenced works were published during the following decade, such as a study of the use of "European Sarmatia" as a name for Eastern Europe in Greco-Roman cartography by Romualdas Girkus and Viktoras Lukoševičius and the works of Lithuanian-born Venezuelan journalist Jurate Rosales. [7]

Sarmatas (The Sarmatian) was founded as a news site in 2010 and continues to exist today. [8] It presents itself as an alternative media site and has been criticized for spreading anti-vaccine, [9] anti-LGBT rhetoric. [10]

Key traits

The primary goal of Sarmatist historians is to find connections between the Lithuanian peoples and ethnic groups attested in Early Medieval and ancient texts and establish continuity between the medieval Grand Duchy of Lithuania and previous eras, and generally state:

Adherents

See also

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References

  1. ↑ Karpavičienė, Dalia (2010). "Apie Lietuvą, kuriai daugiau nei tūkstantis metų (About Lithuania, which is more than a millennium old)". Šiaulių kraštas.
  2. ↑ Butkus, Alvydas; Lanza, Stefano M. (2012). "Kaip baltai tampa gotais (How Balts become Goths)". alkas.lt.
  3. ↑ Krušinskas, Leopoldas (2018). "Pristatyta papildyto ir pataisyto leidimo knyga "Mūsų praeities beieškant" (Updated and edited version of "Mūsų praeities beieškant" presented)". ekspertai.eu.
  4. ↑ Gedgaudas, Česlovas (1994). Mūsų praeities beieškant. Kaunas: Aušra. p. 68. ISBN   978-9986407119.
  5. ↑ Samoškaitė, Edita (2010). "Istorikas: gėda Lietuvai, kuri savo karalius nužemintai vadina kunigaikščiais (Historian: Shame for Lithuania, which refuses to call its Grand Dukes "Kings")". Delfi.
  6. ↑ Šeibak, Loreta (2008). ""Sarmata", kad Lietuva nesivadina Sarmatija (Shame, that Lithuania does not call itself Sarmatia)". Klaipėdos diena.
  7. ↑ Girkus, Romualdas; Lukoševičius, Viktoras (2010). "Reflection of "European Sarmatia" in Early Cartography". Geodesy and Cartography. Vilnius Gediminas Technical University. doi:10.3846/gc.2010.20. S2CID   129855390.
  8. ↑ "Sarmatai". www.sarmatas.lt (in Lithuanian). 27 January 2010. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  9. ↑ "Sarmatas.lt publikacijoje – ir vėl apstu melagingos informacijos: fantazuoja, kad pandemijos nėra, o PGR testai meluoja (Sarmatas.lt is again full of fake news: fantasizes that COVID does not exist, claims that PGR tests are lying)". Delfi.
  10. ↑ "Sarmatas.lt publikacijoje gausu klaidinančios informacijos apie translyčius (Sarmatas.lt is full of misleading information about transgender people)". Gayline.lt. 2021.
  11. ↑ Gedgaudas, Česlovas (1994). Mūsų praeities beieškant. Kaunas: Aušra. pp. 36–38. ISBN   978-9986407119.
  12. ↑ Gedgaudas, Česlovas (1994). Mūsų praeities beieškant. Kaunas: Aušra. p. 18. ISBN   978-9986407119.
  13. ↑ Gedgaudas, Česlovas (1994). Mūsų praeities beieškant. Kaunas: Aušra. p. 327. ISBN   978-9986407119.
  14. ↑ Gedgaudas, Česlovas (1994). Mūsų praeities beieškant. Kaunas: Aušra. pp. 3–13. ISBN   978-9986407119.
  15. ↑ Zinkevičius, Zigmas (2011). "Jūratė Statkutė de Rosales ir gotų istorija". Lituanistica (in Lithuanian). 4 (86): 474. ISSN   2424-4716.
  16. ↑ Girkus, Romualdas; Lukoševičius, Viktoras (2010). "Reflection of "European Sarmatia" in Early Cartography". Geodesy and Cartography. Vilnius Gediminas Technical University. doi:10.3846/gc.2010.20. S2CID   129855390.
  17. ↑ Zinkevičius, Zigmas (2011). Jūratė Statkutė de Rosales ir gotų istorija. Vol. 4. Lithuanian Academy of Sciences. pp. 472–475.
  18. ↑ Matulis, Rimantas (2016). "Ptolemėjo geografija ir baltų tautos (Ptolemy's geography and the Baltic nations)". alkas.lt.
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