Thracians

The Thracians (/ˈθreɪʃənz/; Ancient Greek: Θρᾷκες Thrāikes;

Latin: Thraci) were an Indo-European speaking people who
inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient
history.[1][2] Thracians resided mainly in the Balkans (Mostly
modern day Bulgaria, Turkey and Greece) but were also located in
Anatolia (Asia Minor) and other locations in Eastern Europe.

The exact origin of Thracians is unknown, but it is believed that

proto-Thracians descended from a purported mixture of Proto-Indo-
Europeans and Early European Farmers, arriving from the rest of
Asia and Africa thru the Asia Minor (Anatolia). [3] The proto-
Thracian culture developed into the Dacian, Getae, and several
other smaller Thracian cultures.

Thracian culture was described as tribal by the Greeks and

Romans. They remained largely disunited, with their first
permanent state being the Odrysian kingdom in the fifth century
Bronze head of Seuthes III from his
BC. They faced subjugation by the Achaemenid Empire around the
tomb.
same time. Thracians experienced a short period of peace after the
Persians were defeated by the Greeks in the Persian Wars. The
Odrysian kingdom lost independence to Macedonia in the late 4th century BC, and never regained total
independence following Alexander the Great's death.

The Thracians faced conquest by the Romans in the mid second century BC under whom they faced
internal strife. They composed major parts of rebellions against the Romans along with the Macedonians
until the Third Macedonian War. Thracians were integrated into Roman society and later converted to
Christianity. The last reported use of a Thracian language was by monks in the sixth century AD.

Thracians were described as "warlike" and "barbarians" by the Greeks and Romans and were favored as
mercenaries. Ancient descriptions of a vicious people are disputed and archaeology has been used since the
mid-twentieth century in southern Bulgaria to identify more about them. Both Romans and Greeks called
them barbarians since they were neither Romans nor Greeks, and to the perceived backwardness of their
culture. The perceived primitiveness may be related to their living simple lives in open villages. Some
authors noted that even after the introduction of Latin they still kept their "barbarous" ways.[4] While the
Thracians were perceived as unsophisticated by their contemporaries, they reportedly "had in fact a fairly
advanced culture that was especially noted for its poetry and music."[5]

Thracians spoke the extinct Thracian language and shared a common culture.[1] The Thracians made
cultural interaction with the people surrounding them; Greeks, Persians, Scythians, Celts and later on Turks,
but although they were indeed influenced by each of these cultures, this influence affected only the circles
of the aristocratic elite, not Thracian culture as a whole.[6] Among their customs was tattooing, common
among both males and females.[7] They followed a polytheistic religion. The study of the Thracians is
known as Thracology.

Contents
Etymology
Mythological foundation
Origins
Identity and distribution
History
Homeric period
Archaic period
Achaemenid Thrace
Odrysian Kingdom
Macedonian Thrace
Roman Thrace
Roman rule
Barbarians
Aftermath and legacy
Culture
Language
Religion
Marriage
Warfare
Physical appearance
Notable people
Thracology
Archaeology
Genetics
Gallery
See also
References
Sources
Further reading
External links

Etymology
The first historical record of the Thracians is found in the Iliad, where they are described as allies of the
Trojans in the Trojan War against the Ancient Greeks.[8] The ethnonym Thracian comes from Ancient
Greek Θρᾷξ (plural Θρᾷκες; Thrāix, Thrāikes) or Θρᾴκιος (Thrāikios; Ionic: Θρηίκιος, Thrēikios), and
the toponym Thrace comes from Θρᾴκη (Thrāikē; Ionic: Θρῄκη, Thrēikē).[9] These forms are all exonyms
as applied by the Greeks.[10]

Mythological foundation
In Greek mythology, Thrax (by his name simply the quintessential Thracian) was regarded as one of the
reputed sons of the god Ares.[11] In the Alcestis, Euripides mentions that one of the names of Ares himself
was "Thrax" since he was regarded as the patron of Thrace (his golden or gilded shield was kept in his
temple at Bistonia in Thrace).[12]

Origins
The origins of the Thracians remain obscure, in the absence of
written historical records. Evidence of proto-Thracians in the
prehistoric period depends on artifacts of material culture. Leo
Klejn identifies proto-Thracians with the multi-cordoned ware
culture that was pushed away from Ukraine by the advancing
timber grave culture or Srubnaya. It is generally proposed that
a 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[13]
when the latter, around 1500 BC, mixed with indigenous
peoples.[14] During the Iron Age (about 1000 BC) Dacians
and Thracians began developing from proto-Thracians.[15]

Ancient Greek and Roman historians agreed that the ancient

Thracians, who were of Indo-European stock and language,
were superior fighters; only their constant political
fragmentation prevented them from overrunning the lands
around the northeastern Mediterranean. Although these
historians characterized the Thracians as primitive partly Illustration of 5th–4th century BC Thracian
because they lived in simple, open villages, the Thracians in peltast.
fact had a fairly advanced culture that was especially noted for
its poetry and music. Their soldiers were valued as
mercenaries, particularly by the Macedonians and Romans.

Identity and distribution

Divided into separate tribes, the Thracians did not manage to
form a lasting political organization until the Odrysian state
was founded in the fifth century BC. A strong Dacian state
appeared in the first century BC, during the reign of King
Burebista. The mountainous regions were home to various
peoples, including the Illyrians, regarded as warlike and
ferocious Thracian tribes, while the plains peoples were
apparently regarded as more peaceable.

Thracians inhabited parts of the ancient provinces of Thrace,

The Odrysian kingdom in its maximum
Moesia, Macedonia, Beotia, Attica, Dacia, Scythia Minor,
extent under Sitalces (431-424 BC).[16]
Sarmatia, Bithynia, Mysia, Pannonia, and other regions of the
Balkans and Anatolia. This area extended over most of the
Balkans region, and the Getae north of the Danube as far as beyond the Bug and including Pannonia in the
west.[17]
There were about 200 Thracian tribes.[18]

History
Homeric period

The Thracians are mentioned in Homer's Iliad, meaning that

they were already present in the eighth century BC.[19][20]

Archaic period

The first Greek colonies along the Thracian coasts (first the
Aegean, then the Marmara and Black Seas) were founded in
the eighth century BC.[16] Thracians and Greeks lived side-
by-side. Ancient sources record a Thracian presence on the Dacia during the reign of Burebista
Aegean islands and in Hellas (the broader "land of the
Hellenes").[21]

At some point in the 7th century BCE, a portion of the Thracian Treres tribe migrated across the Thracian
Bosporus and invaded Anatolia.[22] In 637 BCE, the Treres under their king Kobos (Ancient Greek:
Κώβος Kṓbos; Latin: Cobus), in alliance with the Cimmerians and the Lycians, attacked the kingdom of
Lydia during the seventh year of the reign of the Lydian king Ardys.[23] They defeated the Lydians and
captured the capital city of Lydia, Sardis, except for its citadel, and Ardys might have been killed in this
attack.[24] Ardys's son and successor, Sadyattes, might possibly also have been killed in another Cimmerian
attack on Lydia.[24] Soon after 635 BCE, with Assyrian approval[25] the Scythians under Madyes entered
Anatolia. In alliance with Sadyattes's son, the Lydian king Alyattes,[26][27] Madyes expelled the Treres
from Asia Minor and defeated the Cimmerians so that they no longer constituted a threat again, following
which the Scythians extended their domination to Central Anatolia[28] until they were themselves expelled
by the Medes from Western Asia in the 590s BCE.[23]

Achaemenid Thrace

In the 6th century BCE the Persian Achaemenid Empire conquered

Thrace, starting in 513 BCE, when the Achaemenid king Darius I
amassed an army and marched from Achaemenid-ruled Anatolia into
Thrace, and from there he crossed the Arteskos river and then proceeded
through the valley-route of the Hebros river. This was an act of conquest
by Darius I, who sought to create a new satrapy in the Balkans, and had
during his march sent emissaries to the Thracians found on the path of his
army as well as to the many other Thracian tribes over a wide area. All
these peoples of Thrace, including the Odrysae, submitted to the
Achaemenid king until his army reached the territory of Thracian tribe of
the Getae who lived just south of the Danube river and who in vain
attempted to resist the Achaemenid conquest. After the resistance of the
Getae was defeated and they were forced to provide the Achaemenid
army with soldiers, all the Thracian tribes between the Aegean Sea and
the Danube river had been subjected by the Achaemenid Empire. Once
Darius had reached the Danube, he crossed the river and campaigned
against the Scythians, after which he returned back to Anatolia through
Thrace and left a large army in Europe under the command of his general Skudrian (Thracian) soldier of
the Achaemenid army, c. 480
Megabazus.[29]
BCE. Xerxes I tomb relief.
Following Darius I's orders to create a new satrapy for the Achaemenid Empire in the Balkans, Megabazus
forced the Greek cities who had refused to submit to the Achaemenid Empire, starting with Perinthus, after
which led military campaigns throughout Thrace to impose Achaemenid rule over every city and tribe in
the area. With the help of Thracian guides, Megabazus was able to conquer Paeonia up to but not including
the area of Lake Prasias, and he gave the lands of the Paeonians inhabiting these regions up to the Lake
Prasias to Thracians loyal to the Achaemenid Empire. The last endeavours of Megabazus included his the
conquest of the area between the Strymon and Axius rivers, and at the end of his campaign, the king of
Macedonia, Amyntas I, accepted to become a vassal of the Achaemenid Empire. Within the satrapy itself,
the Achaemenid king Darius granted to the tyrant Histiaeus of Miletus the district of Myrcinus on the
Strymon's east bank until Megabazus persuaded him to recall Histiaeus after he returned to Asia Minor,
after which the Thracian tribe of the Edoni retook control of Myrcinus.[29] The new satrapy, once created,
was named Skudra (𐎿𐎤𐎢𐎭𐎼), derived from Scythian the name Skuδa, which was the self-
designation of the Scythians who inhabited the northern parts of the satrapy.[30] Once Megabazus had
returned to Asia Minor, he was succeeded in Skudra by a governor whose name is unknown, and Darius
appointed the general Otanes to oversee the administrative division of the Hellespont, which extended on
both sides of the sea and included the Bosporus, the Propontis, and the Hellespont proper and its
approaches. Otanes then proceeded to capture Byzantium, Chalcedon, Antandrus, Lamponeia, Imbros, and
Lemnos for the Achaemenid Empire.[29]

The area included within the satrapy of Skudra included both the Aegean coast of Thrace, as well as its
Pontic coast till the Danube. In the interior, the Western border of the satrapy consisted of the Axius river
and the Belasica-Pirin-Rila mountain ranges till the site of modern-day Kostenets. The importance of this
satrapy rested in that it contained the Hebros river, where a route in the river valley connected the
permanent Persian settlement of Doriscus with the Aegean coast, as well as with the port-cities of
Apollonia, Mesembria and Odessos on the Black Sea, and with the central Thracian plain, which gave this
region an important strategic value. Persian sources describe the province as being populated by three
groups: the Saka Paradraya ("Saka beyond the sea", the Persian term for all Scythian peoples to the north
of the Caspian and Black Seas [31][32]); the Skudra themselves (most likely the Thracian tribes), and Yauna
Takabara. The latter term, which translates as "Ionians with shield-like hats", is believed to refer to
Macedonians. The three ethnicities (Saka, Macedonian, Thracian) enrolled in the Achaemenid army, as
shown in the Imperial tomb reliefs of Naqsh-e Rostam, and participated in the Second Persian invasion of
Greece on the Achaemenid side.[33]

When Achaemenid control over its European possessions collapsed once the Ionian Revolt started, the
Thracians did not help the Greek rebels, and they instead saw Achaemenid rule as more favourable because
the latter had treated the Thracians with favour and even given them more land, and also because they
realised that Achaemenid rule was a bulwark against Greek expansion and Scythian attacks. During the
revolt, Aristagoras of Miletus captured Myrcinus from the Edones and died trying to attack another
Thracian city.[29]

Once the Ionian Revolt had been fully quelled, the Achaemenid general Mardonius crossed the Hellespont
with a large fleet and army, re-subjugated Thrace without any effort and made Macedonia full part of the
satrapy of Skudra. Mardonius was however attacked at night by the Bryges in the area of Lake Doiran and
modern-day Valandovo, but he was able to defeat and submit them as well. Herodotus's list of tribes who
provided the Achaemenid army with soldiers included Thracians from both the coast and from the central
Thracian plain, attesting that Mardonius's campaign had reconquered all the Thracian areas which were
under Achaemenid rule before the Ionian Revolt.[29]

When the Greeks defeated a second invasion attempt by the Persian Empire in 479 BCE, they started
attacking the satrapy of Skudra, which was resisted by both the Thracians and the Persian forces. The
Thracians kept on sending supplies to the governor of Eion when the Greeks besieged it. When the city fell
to the Greeks in 475 BCE, Cimon gave its land to Athens for colonisation. Although Athens was now in
control of the Aegean Sea and the Hellespont following the defeat of the Persian invasion, the Persians
were still able to control the southern coast of Thrace from a base in central Thrace and with the support of
the Thracians. Thanks to the Thracians co-operating with the Persians by sending supplies and military
reinforcements down the Hebrus river route, Achaemenid authority in central Thrace lasted until around
465 BCE, and the governor Mascames managed to resist many Greek attacks in Doriscus until then.[29]

Around this time, Teres I, the king of the Odrysae tribe, in whose territory the Hebrus flowed, was starting
to organise the rise of his kingdom into a powerful state. With the end of Achaemenid power in the
Balkans, the Thracian Odrysian kingdom, the kingdom of Macedonia, and the Athenian thalassocracy
filled the ensuing power vacuum and formed their own spheres of influence in the area.[29]

Odrysian Kingdom

The Odrysian Kingdom was a state union of over 40 Thracian tribes[34] and 22 kingdoms[35] that existed
between the 5th century BC and the 1st century AD. It consisted mainly of present-day Bulgaria, spreading
to parts of Southeastern Romania (Northern Dobruja), parts of Northern Greece and parts of modern-day
European Turkey.

By the fifth century BC, the Thracian population was large enough that Herodotus called them the second-
most numerous people in the part of the world known by him (after the Indians), and potentially the most
powerful, if not for their lack of unity.[36] The Thracians in classical times were broken up into a large
number of groups and tribes, though a number of powerful Thracian states were organized, the most
important being the Odrysian kingdom of Thrace, and also the short lived Dacian kingdom of Burebista.
The peltast, a type of soldier of this period, probably originated in Thrace.

During this period, a subculture of celibate ascetics called the "ctistae" lived in Thrace, where they served
as philosophers, priests and prophets.

Macedonian Thrace

During this period, contacts between the Thracians and Classical Greece intensified.

After the Persians withdrew from Europe and before the expansion of the Kingdom of Macedon, Thrace
was divided into three regions (east, central, and west). A notable ruler of the East Thracians was
Cersobleptes, who attempted to expand his authority over many of the Thracian tribes. He was eventually
defeated by the Macedonians.

The Thracians were typically not city-builders[37][38] and their only polis was Seuthopolis.[39][40]

The conquest of the southern part of Thrace by Philip II of Macedon in the fourth century BC made the
Odrysian kingdom extinct for several years. After the kingdom was reestablished, it was a vassal state of
Macedon for several decades under generals such as Lysimachus of the Diadochi.

In 279 BC, Celtic Gauls advanced into Macedonia, southern Greece and Thrace. They were soon forced
out of Macedonia and southern Greece, but they remained in Thrace until the end of the third century BC.
From Thrace, three Celtic tribes advanced into Anatolia and established the kingdom of Galatia.

In western parts of Moesia, Celts (Scordisci) and Thracians lived alongside each other, as evident from the
archaeological findings of pits and treasures, spanning from the third century BC to the first century BC.[41]

Roman Thrace
During the Macedonian Wars, conflict between Rome
and Thrace was unavoidable. The rulers of Macedonia
were weak, and Thracian tribal authority resurged. But
after the Battle of Pydna in 168 BC, Roman authority
over Macedonia seemed inevitable, and the
governance of Thrace passed to Rome.

Initially, Thracians and Macedonians revolted against

Roman rule. For example, the revolt of Andriscus, in
149 BC, drew the bulk of its support from Thrace.
Incursions by local tribes into Macedonia continued
for many years, though a few tribes, such as the
Deneletae and the Bessi, willingly allied with Rome.

After the Third Macedonian War, Thrace

acknowledged Roman authority. The client state of
Thracia comprised several tribes.
Southeastern Europe in the second century BC.

Roman rule

The next century and a half saw the slow development of Thracia
into a permanent Roman client state. The Sapaei tribe came to the
forefront initially under the rule of Rhascuporis. He was known to
have granted assistance to both Pompey and Caesar, and later
supported the Republican armies against Mark Antony and
Octavian in the final days of the Republic.

The heirs of Rhascuporis became as deeply enmeshed in political

scandal and murder as were their Roman masters. A series of royal The province of Thracia within the
assassinations altered the ruling landscape for several years in the Roman Empire, c. 116 AD
early Roman imperial period. Various factions took control with the
support of the Roman Emperor. The turmoil would eventually end
with one final assassination.

After Rhoemetalces III of the Thracian Kingdom of Sapes was murdered in AD 46 by his wife, Thracia
was incorporated as an official Roman province to be governed by Procurators, and later Praetorian
prefects. The central governing authority of Rome was in Perinthus, but regions within the province were
under the command of military subordinates to the governor. The lack of large urban centers made Thracia
a difficult place to manage, but eventually the province flourished under Roman rule. However,
Romanization was not attempted in the province of Thracia. The Balkan Sprachbund does not support
Hellenization.

Roman authority in Thracia rested mainly with the legions stationed in Moesia. The rural nature of
Thracia's populations, and distance from Roman authority, certainly inspired local troops to support
Moesia's legions. Over the next few centuries, the province was periodically and increasingly attacked by
migrating Germanic tribes. The reign of Justinian saw the construction of over 100 legionary fortresses to
supplement the defense.

Thracians in Moesia were Romanized. Those in Thrace and surrounding areas would come to be known as
the Bessi. In the 6th century AD the Bessian (i.e. Thracian) language was reportedly still in use by monks
at a Mount Sinai monastery.[42][43]
Barbarians

Thracians were regarded by other peoples as warlike, ferocious, bloodthirsty, and barbarian.[44][45][4] They
were seen as "barbarians" by ancient Greeks and Romans. Plato in his Republic groups them with the
Scythians,[46] calling them extravagant and high spirited; and his Laws portrays them as a warlike nation,
grouping them with Celts, Persians, Scythians, Iberians and Carthaginians.[47] Polybius wrote of Cotys's
sober and gentle character being unlike that of most Thracians.[48] Tacitus in his Annals writes of them
being wild, savage and impatient, disobedient even to their own kings.[49] The Thracians have been said to
have "tattooed their bodies, obtained their wives by purchase, and often sold their children."[4] Victor
Duruy further notes that they "considered husbandry unworthy of a warrior, and knew no source of gain
but war and theft,"[4] and that they practiced human sacrifice,[4] which has been confirmed by
archaeological evidence.[50]

Polyaenus and Strabo write how the Thracians broke their pacts of truce with trickery.[51][52] The
Thracians struck their weapons against each other before battle, "in the Thracian manner," as Polyaneus
testifies.[53] Diegylis was considered one of the most bloodthirsty chieftains by Diodorus Siculus. An
Athenian club for lawless youths was named after the Triballi.[54]

According to ancient Roman sources, the Dii[55] were responsible for the worst[56] atrocities of the
Peloponnesian War, killing every living thing, including children and dogs in Tanagra and Mycalessos.[55]
Thracians would impale Roman heads on their spears and rhomphaias such as in the Kallinikos skirmish at
171 BC.[56]

Herodotus writes that "they sell their children and let their maidens commerce with whatever men they
please".[57]

The accuracy and impartiality of these descriptions have been called into question in modern times, given
the seeming embellishments in Herodotus's histories, for one.[58] Strabo treated the Thracians as barbarians,
and held that they spoke the same language as the Getae.[59] Archaeologists have attempted to piece
together a fuller understanding of Thracian culture through study of their artifacts.[60]

Aftermath and legacy

The ancient languages of these people and their cultural influence were highly reduced due to the repeated
invasions of the Balkans by, Romans, Celts, Huns, Goths, Scythians, Sarmatians and Slavs, accompanied
by, hellenization, romanization and later slavicisation. However, the Thracians as a group did not entirely
disappear, with the Bessi surviving at least until the late 4th century. Towards the end of the 4th century,
Nicetas the Bishop of Remesiana brought the gospel to "those mountain wolves", the Bessi.[61] Reportedly
his mission was successful, and the worship of Dionysus and other Thracian gods was eventually replaced
by Christianity. In 570, Antoninus Placentius said that in the valleys of Mount Sinai there was a monastery
in which the monks spoke Greek, Latin, Syriac, Egyptian and Bessian. The origin of the monasteries is
explained in a medieval hagiography written by Simeon Metaphrastes, in Vita Sancti Theodosii
Coenobiarchae in which he wrote that Theodosius the Cenobiarch founded on the shore of the Dead Sea a
monastery with four churches, in each being spoken a different language, among which Bessian was
found. The place where the monasteries were founded was called "Cutila", which may be a Thracian
name.[62] The further fate of the Thracians is a matter of dispute. Gottfried Schramm derived the Albanians
from the Christian Bessi, or Bessians, an early Thracian people who were pushed westwards into
Albania.[61] However, from a linguistic point of view it emerges that the Thracian-Bessian hypothesis of
the origin of Albanian should be rejected, since only very little comparative linguistic material is available
(the Thracian is attested only marginally, while the Bessian is completely unknown), but at the same time
the individual phonetic history of Albanian and Thracian clearly indicates a very different sound
development that cannot be considered as the result of one language. Furthermore, the Christian vocabulary
of Albanian is mainly Latin, which speaks against the construct of a "Thracian-Bessian church
language".[63] Most probably the remnants of the Thracians were assimilated into the Roman and later in
the Byzantine society and became part of the ancestral groups of the modern Southeastern Europeans.

Culture

Language

Religion

One notable cult that existed in Thrace, Moesia and Scythia

Minor was that of the "Thracian horseman", also known as the
"Thracian Heros", at Odessos (near Varna) known by a
Thracian name as Heros Karabazmos, a god of the
underworld, who was usually depicted on funeral statues as a
horseman slaying a beast with a spear.[64][65][66] Dacians had
Tribes in Thrace
a monotheistic religion based on the god Zalmoxis.[67] The
supreme Balkan thunder god Perkon was part of the Thracian
pantheon, although cults of Orpheus and Zalmoxis likely
overshadowed his.[68]

Some think that the Greek god Dionysus evolved from the Thracian god Sabazios.[69]

Marriage

The Thracians were polygamous. Menander puts it: "All Thracians, especially us and the Getae, are not
much abstaining, because no one takes less than ten, eleven, twelve wives, some even more. If one dies and
has only four or five wives he is called ill-fated, unhappy and unmarried."[70] According to Herodotus
virginity among women was not valued, and unmarried Thracian women could have sex with any man
they wished to.[70] There were men perceived as holy Thracians, who lived without women and were
called "ktisti".[70] In myth Orpheus became attracted to men after the death of Eurydice and is thought of as
the establisher of homosexuality among Thracian men. Because he advocated love between men and
turning away from loving women he was killed by the Bistones women.[70]

Warfare

The Thracians were a warrior people, known as both horsemen and lightly armed skirmishers with
javelins.[71] Thracian peltasts had a notable influence in Ancient Greece.[72]

The history of Thracian warfare spans from c. 10th century BC up to the 1st century AD in the region
defined by Ancient Greek and Latin historians as Thrace. It concerns the armed conflicts of the Thracian
tribes and their kingdoms in the Balkans and in the Dacian territories. Emperor Traianus, also known as
Trajan, conquered Dacia after two wars in the 2nd century AD. The wars ended with the occupation of the
fortress of Sarmisegetusa and the death of the king Decebalus. Besides conflicts between Thracians and
neighboring nations and tribes, numerous wars were recorded among Thracian tribes too.
Physical appearance
Several Thracian graves or
tombstones have the name
Rufus inscribed on them,
meaning "redhead" – a
common name given to
people with red hair[73]
which led to associating the
name with slaves when the
Romans enslaved this
Thracian king and queen. Thracian
particular group.[74]
A fresco of a woman in the Ostrusha Tomb of Kazanlak, 4th century BCE.
Ancient Greek artwork
Mound in central Bulgaria.
often depicts Thracians as
redheads.[75] Rhesus of
Thrace, a mythological Thracian king, was so named because of
his red hair and is depicted on Greek pottery as having red hair and a red beard.[75]
Ancient Greek writers
also described the Thracians as red-haired. A fragment by the Greek poet Xenophanes describes the
Thracians as blue-eyed and red haired:

...Men make gods in their own image; those of the Ethiopians are black and snub-nosed, those
of the Thracians have blue eyes and red hair.[76]

Bacchylides described Theseus as wearing a hat with red hair, which classicists believe was Thracian in
origin.[77] Other ancient writers who described the hair of the Thracians as red include Hecataeus of
Miletus,[78] Galen,[79] Clement of Alexandria,[80] and Julius Firmicus Maternus.[81]

Nevertheless, academic studies have concluded that people often had different physical features from those
described by primary sources. Ancient authors described as red-haired several groups of people. They
claimed that all Slavs had red hair, and likewise described the Scythians as red haired. According to Dr.
Beth Cohen, Thracians had "the same dark hair and the same facial features as the Ancient Greeks."[82] On
the other hand, Dr. Aris N. Poulianos states that Thracians, like modern Bulgarians, belonged mainly to the
Aegean anthropological type.[83]

Notable people
This is a list of historically important personalities being entirely or partly of Thracian ancestry:

Orpheus, mythological figure considered chief among poets and musicians; king of the
Thracian tribe of Cicones
Spartacus, Thracian gladiator who led a large slave uprising in Southern Italy in 73–71 BC
and defeated several Roman legions in what is known as the Third Servile War
Amadocus, Thracian King, the Amadok Point was named after him
Teres I, Thracian King who united many tribes of Thrace under the banner of the Odrysian
state
Seuthes I
Seuthes II
Seuthes III
 Rhesus of Thrace
Cotys I
Sitalces, King of the Odrysian state; an ally of the Athenians during the Peloponnesian War
Burebista, King of Dacia
Decebalus, King of Dacia
Maximinus Thrax, Roman Emperor from 235 to 238.[84]
Aureolus, Roman military commander
Galerius, Roman Emperor from 305 to 311; born to a Thracian father and Dacian mother
Licinius, Roman Emperor from 308 to 324
Maximinus Daia or Maximinus Daza, Roman Emperor from 308 to 313
Justin I, Eastern Roman Emperor and founder of the Justinian dynasty
Justinian the Great, Eastern Roman Emperor; either Illyrian or Thracian, born in Dardania
Belisarius, Eastern Roman general of reputed Illyrian or Thracian origin
Marcian, Eastern Roman Emperor from 450 to 457; either Illyrian or Thracian
Leo I the Thracian, Eastern Roman Emperor from 457 to 474
Bouzes or Buzes, Eastern Roman general active during the reign of Justinian the Great (r.
527–565)
Coutzes or Cutzes, general of the Byzantine Empire during the reign of Emperor Justinian I

Thracology

Archaeology

The branch of science that studies the ancient Thracians and Thrace is called Thracology. Archaeological
research on the Thracian culture started in the 20th century, especially after World War II, mainly in
southern Bulgaria. As a result of intensive excavations in the 1960s and 1970s a number of Thracian tombs
and sanctuaries were discovered. Most significant among them are: the Tomb of Sveshtari, the Tomb of
Kazanlak, Tatul, Seuthopolis, Perperikon the Tomb of Aleksandrovo in Bulgaria and Sarmizegetusa in
Romania and others.

Also a large number of elaborately crafted gold and silver treasure sets from the 5th and 4th century BC
were unearthed. In the following decades, those were exhibited in museums around the world, thus calling
attention to ancient Thracian culture. Since the year 2000, Bulgarian archaeologist Georgi Kitov has made
discoveries in Central Bulgaria, in an area now known as "The Valley of the Thracian Kings". The
residence of the Odrysian kings was found in Starosel in the Sredna Gora mountains.[85][86] A 1922
Bulgarian study claimed that there were at least 6,269 necropolises in Bulgaria.[87]

Panagyurishte Treasure
Rogozen Treasure
Valchitran Treasure
Borovo Treasure

Genetics
A genetic study published in Scientific Reports in April 2019 examined the mtDNA of 25 Thracian remains
in Bulgaria from the 3rd and 2nd millennia BC. They were found to harbor a mixture of ancestry from
Western Steppe Herders (WSHs) and Early European Farmers (EEFs).[3]
Gallery

Thracian tribes and Map of the territory Kingdom of Golden Dacian

heroes. of Philip II of Lysimachus and the helmet of
Macedon. Diadochi. Cotofenesti, in
Romania.

Gold coins that have Map of the Diocese Thracian Roman era Coin of Bergaios, a
been minted by the of Thrace (Dioecesis "heros" (Sabazius) local Thracian king
Dacians, with the Thraciae) c. 400 AD. stele. in the Pangaian
legend ΚΟΣΩΝ. District, Greece.


A gold Thracian Thracian tomb The Thracian Tomb The interior of the
treasure from Shushmanets built of Sveshtari Sveshtari tomb
Panagyurishte, in 4th century BC
Bulgaria.

Thracian Tomb of Bronze head of Tomb of Seuthes III Interior of Tomb of

Kazanlak Seuthes III Seuthes III

See also
Akrokomai
Bosporan Kingdom
Cimmerians
Dacia and Dacians
Illyria and Illyrians
List of rulers of Thrace and Dacia
List of Thracian tribes
List of ancient Daco-Thracian peoples and tribes
Odrysian kingdom
Orphism (religion)
Paeonia (kingdom)
Scythians
Thracian warfare
Thraco-Cimmerian
Thraco-Dacian
Thraco-Illyrian
Tiras

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Webber, Christopher (2001). The Thracians, 700 BC - AD 46 (https://books.google.com/book
s?id=gHVSvgAACAAJ). Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84176-329-3.
Webber, Christopher (2011). The Gods of Battle, The Thracians at War 1500 BC- 150 AD.
Barnsley: Pen & Sword Books. ISBN 978-1-84415-835-5.

Further reading
Kaul, Flemming (2011). "The Gundestrup Cauldron: Thracian Art, Celtic Motifs". Études
Celtiques. 37 (1): 81–110. doi:10.3406/ecelt.2011.2326 (https://doi.org/10.3406%2Fecelt.20
11.2326).

External links
Thrace and the Thracians (700 BC to 46 AD) (https://web.archive.org/web/2016062711214
7/http://home.exetel.com.au/thrace/welcome.htm)
Ancient Thracians. Art, Culture, History, Treasures (http://ancient-treasure.info/)
 Information on Ancient Thrace (http://www.thracian.info)
video about the Thracians and Thracian warfare (https://youtube.com/c3hxnGPqCBo)

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