View source for Prehistory and protohistory of Poland

{{Short description|Poland before the 10th century AD}}
{{History of Poland}}

The '''prehistory and protohistory of Poland''' can be traced from the first appearance of [[Homo]] species on the territory of modern-day [[Poland]], to the establishment of the Polish [[Sovereign state|state]] in the 10th century AD, a span of roughly 500,000 years.

The area of present-day Poland went through the stages of socio-technical development known as the [[Stone Age|Stone]], [[Bronze Age|Bronze]] and [[Iron Age]]s after experiencing the [[climate|climatic]] shifts of the [[glacial period]]s. The best known [[archeology|archeological]] discovery from the prehistoric period is the [[Lusatian culture|Lusatian-culture]] [[Biskupin]] [[grad (Slavic settlement)|fortified settlement]]. As [[classical antiquity|ancient]] civilizations began to appear in southern and western [[Europe]], the [[archaeological culture|cultures]] of the area of present-day Poland were influenced by them to various degrees.

Among the peoples that inhabited various parts of Poland up to the Iron Age stage of development were [[Scythians|Scythian]], [[Celts|Celtic]], [[Germanic people|Germanic]], [[Sarmatians|Sarmatian]], [[Italic peoples|Roman]], [[Avars (Caucasus)|Avar]], [[Vlachs|Vlach]] and [[Balts|Baltic]] [[tribe]]s. In the [[Early Middle Ages]], the area came to be dominated by [[West Slavs|West Slavic]] tribes and finally became home to a number of [[Lechites|Lechitic]] [[Polish tribes]] that formed small states in the region beginning in the 8th century.

== Historiography ==
As with other early periods areas of [[human history]], knowledge of these times is limited, since few written ancient and medieval sources are available; research therefore relies primarily on [[archeology]]. [[Written language]] came to the Poles only after 966 AD, when the ruler of the Polish lands, Duke [[Mieszko I of Poland|Mieszko I]], converted to [[Christianity]] and educated foreign clerics arrived.<ref>''Archeologia Żywa'' (Living Archeology), special English issue 2005; a publication commissioned by the [[Centre for the Protection of the Archaeological Heritage]] in [[Warsaw]]</ref> 

== Stone Age ==
{{main|Stone Age Poland}}

Poland's [[Stone Age]] is divided into the [[Paleolithic]], [[Mesolithic]] and [[Neolithic]] eras.

The Paleolithic era extended from c. 500,000 BC to 8,000 BC and is subdivided into four periods: the [[Lower Paleolithic]], c. 500,000 to 350,000 BC; the [[Middle Paleolithic]], c. 350,000 to 40,000 BC; the [[Upper Paleolithic]], c. 40,000 to 10,000 BC; and the Final Paleolithic, c. 10,000 to 8000 BC.

The Mesolithic era lasted from c. 8000 to 5500 BC and the Neolithic from c. 5500 to 2300 BC.

The Neolithic is subdivided into the Neolithic proper, c. 5500 – 2900 BC, and the [[Copper Age]], c. 2900 – 2300 BC.<ref name="Chronology 8"/>

Poland's Stone Age lasted approximately 500,000 years and saw the appearance of three distinct [[Homo (genus)|Homo species]]: ''[[Homo erectus]]'', ''[[Homo neanderthalensis]]'' and ''[[Homo sapiens]] ([[humans]])''. The Stone Age cultures ranged from early human groups with primitive tools to advanced [[Agriculture|agricultural]] and stratified societies that used sophisticated [[stone tool]]s, built fortified settlements and developed [[copper]] [[metallurgy]].

As elsewhere in [[Central Europe]], the Paleolithic, Mesolithic and Neolithic stages of Poland's Stone Age were each characterized by refinements in stone-tool-making techniques. Paleolithic human activities (whose earliest sites are 500,000 years old) were intermittent because of recurring [[glacier|glaciation]]s. A general [[climate]] warming and a resulting increase in [[ecology|ecologic]] diversity were characteristic of the Mesolithic era (9000–8000 BC).

The Neolithic era ushered in the first settled agricultural communities, whose founders had migrated from the [[Danube River]] area beginning about 5500 BC. Later, the native post-Mesolithic populations would also adopt and further develop the agricultural way of life (between 4400 and about 2000 BC).<ref>Various authors, ed. [[Marek Derwich]] and [[Adam Żurek]], ''U źródeł Polski (do roku 1038)'' (Foundations of Poland (until year 1038)), [[Wydawnictwo Dolnośląskie]], Wrocław 2002, {{ISBN|83-7023-954-4}}, pp. 8-53.</ref>

== Bronze and Iron Ages ==
{{main|Bronze and Iron Age Poland}}

Poland's [[Bronze Age]] comprised Period I, c. 2300–1600 BC; Period II, c. 1600–1350 BC; Period III, c. 1350–1100 BC; Period IV, c. 1100–900 BC; and Period V, c. 900–700 BC. The Early [[Iron Age]] included [[Hallstatt culture|Hallstatt]] Period C, c. 700–600 BC, and Hallstatt Period D, c. 600–450 BC.<ref name="Chronology 8"/>

[[Image:Biskupin brama od wewnatrz.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Reconstructed [[Biskupin]]]]
Poland's Bronze- and Iron-Age cultures are known mainly from [[archaeology|archeological]] research. Poland's Early Bronze Age cultures began around 2300-2400 BC,<ref>''U źródeł Polski'', p. 55, [[Sławomir Kadrow]]</ref> whereas the [[Iron Age]] commenced c. 700-750 BC.<ref>''U źródeł Polski'', p. 68, [[Bogusław Gediga]].</ref> By the beginning of the [[Common Era]], the Iron Age archeological cultures described in the main article no longer existed. Given the absence of written records, the [[ethnic group|ethnicities]] and linguistic affiliations of the groups living in [[Central Europe|Central]] and [[Eastern Europe]] at that time are speculative; there is considerable disagreement about their identities. In Poland, the [[Lusatian culture]], which spanned the Bronze and Iron Ages, became particularly prominent. The most famous archeological discovery from that period is the [[Biskupin]] fortified settlement (''[[grad (Slavic settlement)|gród]]'') that represented early-Iron-Age Lusatian culture.<ref>''U źródeł Polski'', pp. 54-85.</ref>

Bronze objects were brought to Poland around 2300 BC from the [[Pannonian Basin|Carpathian Basin]]. The native Early Bronze Age that followed was dominated by the innovative [[Unetice culture]] in western Poland and the conservative [[Mierzanowice culture]] in eastern Poland. These were replaced in their respective territories for the duration of the subsequent Older Bronze Period by the (pre-Lusatian) [[Tumulus culture]] and the [[Trzciniec culture]].

Characteristic of the remaining bronze periods were the [[Urnfield culture]]s, in which skeletal burials were replaced by cremation throughout much of [[Europe]]. In Poland, the [[Lusatian culture]] settlements dominated the landscape for nearly a thousand years, continuing into the Early Iron Age. A series of [[Scythians|Scythian]] invasions beginning in the 6th century BC, precipitated their demise. The Hallstatt Period D was a time of expansion for the [[Pomeranian culture]], while the Western Baltic [[Kurgan culture]] dominated Poland's [[Masuria]]-[[Warmia]] region.<ref>''Kalendarium dziejów Polski'' (Chronology of Polish History), ed. Andrzej Chwalba, pp. 10-11, Jacek Poleski.</ref><ref>''U źródeł Polski'', pp. 54-83, Sławomir Kadrow, Bogusław Gediga.</ref>

== Antiquity ==
{{main|Poland in antiquity}}

The period of the [[La Tène culture]] is subdivided into ''La Tène A'', c. 450–400 BC; ''La Tène B'', c. 400–250 BC; ''La Tène C'', c. 250–150 BC; and ''La Tène D'', c. 150–0 BC. The period from 200 to 0 BC may also be considered a younger pre-[[Ancient Rome|Roman]] period. It was followed by a period of Roman influence whose early stage lasted from c. 0 to 150 AD and its later stage from c. 150 to 375 AD. The period from 375 to 500 AD constitutes the (pre-[[Slavic peoples|Slavic]]) [[Migration Period]].<ref name="Chronology 8"/>

Peoples belonging to numerous [[archaeological culture|archeological cultures]] identified with [[Celts|Celtic]], [[Germanic people|Germanic]], [[Balts|Baltic]], and in some regions [[Slavs|Slavic]]<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Brather | first1 = Sebastian | year = 2004 | title = The Archaeology of the Northwestern Slavs (Seventh To Ninth Centuries) | journal = East Central Europe | volume = 31 | issue = 1| pages = 78–81 | doi = 10.1163/187633004x00116}}</ref><ref>Trubačev, O. N. 1985. ''Linguistics and Ethnogenesis of the Slavs: The Ancient Slavs as Evidenced by Etymology and Onomastics''. [http://www.jies.org/ ''Journal of Indo-European Studies'' (JIES)], 13: 203–256.</ref><ref name=Kobyliński>{{cite book |last=Kobyliński |first=Zbigniew |chapter=The Slavs |editor=Fouracre, Paul |title=The New Cambridge Medieval History, Volume 1: c.500–c.700 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2005 |pages=525–526 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JcmwuoTsKO0C |isbn=978-0-521-36291-7}}</ref> tribes inhabited parts of Poland during the era of [[classical antiquity]], from about 400 BC to 450-500 AD. Other groups, difficult to identify, were most likely also present, as the [[ethnic group|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 [[human migration|migration]], often involving large groups of people.<ref>''U źródeł Polski'', pp. 86-121.</ref>

Celtic peoples established settlements beginning in the early 4th century BC, mostly in southern Poland, the outer limit of their expansion, as representatives of the [[La Tène culture]]. With their developed economy and crafts, they exerted a lasting cultural influence disproportionate to their small numbers in the region.<ref>''U źródeł Polski'', pp. 86-93.</ref>

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 Europe|Eastern]] and [[Central Europe]] for the safer and wealthier southern and western parts of the [[Europe|European continent]].<ref>''U źródeł Polski'', pp. 94-115.</ref> According to [[Tacitus]] and [[Ptolemy]], the [[Goths]] left the lower [[Vistula]] region in the mid-2nd century AD.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lampe |first1=G. W. |title=The Cambridge History of the Bible: Volume 2, The West from the Fathers to the Reformation |date=1975 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |page=338 |chapter=The vernacular scriptures. The Gothic Bible.}}</ref>

The northeast corner of what is now Poland remained populated by [[Balts|Baltic tribes]]. They were at the outer limits of any substantial cultural influence from the Roman Empire.<ref>''U źródeł Polski'', pp. 116-119.</ref>

[[Early Slavs|Slavic peoples]] may have lived in the southern and southeastern regions, some perhaps associated with the ancient [[Przeworsk culture|Przeworsk]] and [[Zarubintsy culture|Zarubintsy]] cultures of the 3rd century BC<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Brather | first1 = Sebastian | year = 2004 | title = The Archaeology of the Northwestern Slavs (Seventh To Ninth Centuries) | journal = East Central Europe | volume = 31 | issue = 1| pages = 78–81 | doi = 10.1163/187633004x00116}}</ref><ref>Trubačev, O. N. 1985. ''Linguistics and Ethnogenesis of the Slavs: The Ancient Slavs as Evidenced by Etymology and Onomastics''. [http://www.jies.org/ ''Journal of Indo-European Studies'' (JIES)], 13: 203–256.</ref> (with the Przeworsk culture being considered likely of Slavic or of mixed Slavic and Germanic origin<ref>J. P. Mallory: Przeworsk culture. W: J. P. Mallory, D. Adams: Encyclopedia Of Indo-European Culture. Routledge, 1997, s. 470. {{ISBN|1-884964-98-2}}.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/content/BPL_Images/Content_store/Sample_chapter/1405117141/Todd_sample%20chapter_The%20early%20germans.pdf |title=Land and People, p.25 |accessdate=July 30, 2005 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070926222716/http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/content/BPL_Images/Content_store/Sample_chapter/1405117141/Todd_sample%20chapter_The%20early%20germans.pdf |archivedate=September 26, 2007 }}</ref><ref>Pronk-Tiethoff, Saskia. New York 2013. [https://books.google.com/books?id=0iWLAgAAQBAJ&dq=Przeworsk+culture+veneti&pg=PA64 ''The Germanic loanwords in Proto-Slavic'']. "The Przeworsk Culture has most often been considered to be Germanic or of mixed Slavic and Germanic nature." Page 64.</ref>). It has been suggested that the early Slavic peoples and languages may have originated in the region of [[Polesia]], which includes the area around the Belarus–Ukraine border, parts of Western Russia, and parts of far Eastern Poland.<ref name=Kobyliński /> More of Poland would be settled by Slavic tribes in later periods, in the early centuries of the common era.

==See also==
{{Portal|Poland}}
*[[Tunel Wielki]]
*[[Periodization of Polish history]]

==References==
{{reflist|refs=<ref name="Chronology 8">[[Andrzej Chwalba]], ed., ''Kalendarium dziejów Polski'' (Chronology of Polish History), [[Jacek Poleski]], p. 8, [[Kraków]], [[Wydawnictwo Literackie]], 1999, {{ISBN|83-08-02855-1}}.</ref>}}

==Further reading==
{{Main|Bibliography of the history of Poland}}

*{{in lang|pl}} Various authors, ed. Marek Derwich and Adam Żurek, ''U źródeł Polski (do roku 1038)'' (Foundations of Poland (until year 1038)), [[Wydawnictwo Dolnośląskie]], Wrocław 2002, {{ISBN|83-7023-954-4}}
*{{in lang|pl}} Piotr Kaczanowski, Janusz Krzysztof Kozłowski - ''Najdawniejsze dzieje ziem polskich (do VII w.)'' (Oldest history of Polish lands, up to the 7th century CE.), Fogra, Kraków 1998, {{ISBN|83-85719-34-2}}

==External links==
{{commonscat|Prehistoric Poland}}

{{Poland topics}}
{{Prehistoric Europe}}
{{Europe topic |Prehistory of}}

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