Slavs in Theophylact Simocatta’s „Universal History” – a Byzantine axiological perspective Cover Image

Słowianie w Historii powszechnej Teofilakta Simokatty – bizantyńska perspektywa aksjologiczna
Slavs in Theophylact Simocatta’s „Universal History” – a Byzantine axiological perspective

Author(s): Anna Kotłowska
Subject(s): Archaeology, Social history, Ancient World
Published by: Instytut Slawistyki Polskiej Akademii Nauk
Keywords: Early Slavs; Theophylact Simocatta; Byzantine historiography

Summary/Abstract: The Universal History of Theophylact Simocatta constitutes a very important source for the history of the Later Roman Empire, especially within the context of appearance of the Avars and the Slavs in the Balkans. This article confirms the high reliability and great value of Theophylact’ s narrative concerning the Slavs in the last two decades of the sixth century. In the second part, some new remarks have been given, which argue for the authenticity of the famous episode about Slavs “living at the end of the Western Ocean” (6.2). Moreover, the author is firmly convinced that the so-called Western Ocean should be identified with the Baltic Sea.

  • Issue Year: 2017
  • Issue No: 17
  • Page Range: 1-15
  • Page Count: 15
  • Language: Polish