Liburnia
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Liburnia (
Classical Liburnia
The Liburnian cultural group developed at the end of the
Liburnian culture had distinct features and differed considerably from those of its neighbors. Its isolation and special qualities resulted primarily from its geographical isolation from the hinterland and its seaward orientation, important for traffic circulation and territorial connection. Maritime focus shaped Liburnian ethnic development on the Indo-European basis with the transfer of Mediterranean cultural traditions into an independent ethnic community, separated from neighboring peoples, but having evident similarities and links with the wider Illyrian and Adriatic territories.[7] The Liburnians' skillful seamanship allowed them to hold navigable routes along the eastern Adriatic coast with strategic points, such as the islands of Hvar and Lastovo in the central Adriatic and Corfu (8th century BC) in the Ionian Sea, while they already had colonies at the western Adriatic coast, especially in region of Picenum, from the beginning of the Iron Age. From the 9th to the 6th century there was certain koine - cultural unity in the Adriatic, with the general Liburninan seal, whose naval supremacy meant both political and economical authority in the Adriatic Sea through several centuries.[8]
According to
Archaeology has confirmed that the narrow region of the Liburnian ethnic nucleus was at the eastern Adriatic coast between Krka and Raša rivers, in "Classical Liburnia", especially between Krka and Zrmanja rivers, where the material remains of their culture and settlements were the most frequently distributed, while their cities were urbanized at certain degree even in pre-Roman ages. By the material remains it's obvious that they didn't settle the eastern Adriatic coast to the south-east of Krka river; their supremacy on the islands to the south of their ethnic region should not be understood necessarily as their ethnic dominion in the southern Adriatic archipelagos (Hvar, Brač, Vis, Lastovo, etc.), but rather as their organized military-naval region based on the island outposts, by which they maintained control of the navigable route to the south.[10]
In the 6th century BC their domination of the Adriatic Sea coasts started to diminish. They lost their trade colonies in the Western Adriatic coast due to invasion of the Umbri and the Gauls, caused by expansion of the Etruscan union in the basin of Po river. The 5th century BC saw Greek colonization in the south Adriatic, and final Liburnian retreat to Liburnia was caused by military and political activities of Dionysius the Elder of Syracuse in the 4th century BC. Liburnia was strongly held, but Greek colonization reached Liburnian strategic possessions in the central Adriatic, Issa (on the island of Vis) and Pharos (Starigrad, Hvar), a colony of the Greeks from Paros.[11] Celtic invasion from the west bypassed Liburnia in the 4th century BC, but their northern neighbors the Iapodes were under considerably more pressure. The Liburnians took the opportunity to spread their territory to the Kvarner archipelago and the eastern coast of Istria to the river Raša,[12] previously held by Iapodes, thus making the Histri their new neighbors to the west. On the basis of ancient records, the Iapodes inhabited the coast between Albona (Labin) and Lopsica (Sv. Juraj, south from Senj) and island Curycta (Krk) to the end of the 4th century BC. Material remains from the Early Iron Age in that region have alternately shown Histrian provenance, not necessarily Liburnian, but often ascribed to the Liburnians from the 4th century BC to the age of Roman conquest.[13] Although archaeology of the region has not strictly confirmed the earlier presence of Iapodian material culture[14][15] the group's presence and strong influence on the region is evident.[16][17][18] They surely broke to Kvarner in the 20s of the 3rd century BC and the border between Iapodia and Liburnia was the river Telavius (Žrnovnica, Velebit Channel). It’s not certain how long they ruled these coasts (some propose until the 1st century BC) and when exactly they retreated to their main historical lands.[19] Borders of Liburnia didn’t change until its conflict with Dalmatae in 51 BC, when the Liburnians lost their city Promona (Tepljuh, Drniš) in the south and probably some lands around Krka river. By that time the Romans were already engaged in centuries long wars against Liburnian neighbors, Histri, Dalmatae and other Illyrians.
Roman Liburnia
When
After the Roman conquest, the delineation of Liburnia as a region became more settled.
He listed the cities along the coast from north to the south: Alvona (Labin), Flanona (Plomin), Tarsatica (Rijeka), Senia (Senj), Lopsica (Sv. Juraj, south from Senj), Ortoplinia (probably Stinica, in Velebit), Vegium (Karlobag), Argyruntum (Starigrad), Corinium (Karin Donji), Aenona (Nin), civitas Pasini (in Ražanac – Vinjerac – Posedarje range), important island cities Absortium (Apsorus – Osor), Arba (Rab), Crexi (Cres), Gissa (Cissa, Caska near Novalja, Pag), Portunata (Novalja, older was Gissa portu nota – Cissa known by its port Novalja), by the coast colonia Iader (Zadar with status of Roman colony), Colentum insula (Murter, city and island).[21]
Liburnia was a part of the
Medieval Liburnia
After the fall of the Roman Empire and probably already from 490 AD, Liburnia within Dalmatia passed to the rule of the
The Goths lost the most of Dalmatia and a part of Liburnia in the south-east around Skradin in 536 AD, in war against the
From 550 and 551 AD, the Slavs (Sclabenoi) started to break into Illyria and Dalmatia, as recorded by Procopius; by some thinking it was beginning of Slavic colonization there, which lasted during the next few centuries. Initial ethnic nucleus under Croatian name originated in Liburnian inland from where it soon spread to all Liburnia and from there to the other regions of former Illyricum province. In the pre-Roman ages, the Liburnians had been organized in 14 municipalities (tetradekapolis), the Croats probably used existing Illyrian municipality structure and had 14 županijas, Old Croatian political-jurisdictional forms (municipalities), as reported by Constantine Porphyrogenitus, while many of twelve Old Croatian tribes were settled in Liburnia. In the next centuries Croatian language overlaid Dalmatian language spoken in Liburnia and Dalmatia[29] and already by the end of the 9th century, in the islands of Zadar aquatory, more than 70% of toponyms were Slavic forms.[30]
From the 6th to 9th century, names Liburnia and Dalmatia were continually used for separate specifics in the sources, not necessarily meaning that Liburnia was a separate political unit, but it was certainly used as for Classical Liburnia territorial range. At the end of the 8th century
Later usage of the name Liburnia
In later phases of the Middle Ages, the name Liburnia was used periodically to refer to the eastern coast of Istria and northern Dalmatia around the plain of
See also
References
Citations
- ^ Procopius, History of the Wars, §5.15
- ^ M. Fluss, Liburni, PWRE, Suppl. Bd. V, 582
- ^ M. Suić, Granice Liburnije kroz stoljeća, Radovi inst. JAZU, 2, Zadar 1955, 273
- ^ M. Zaninović, Liburnia Militaris, Filozofski fakultet Zagreb, UDK 904.930,2(497.13)>65<, page 43
- ISBN 953-6419-50-5, page 16
- ^ Š. Batović, Liburnska grupa, Praistorija jugoslavenskih zemalja V, page 386
- ISBN 953-6419-50-5, pages 5, 6, 95
- ^ M. Zaninović, Liburnia Militaris, Opusc. Archeol. 13, 43-67 (1988), UDK 904.930.2(497.13)>>65<<, page 47
- ^ M. Blečić, Prilog poznavanju antičke Tarsatike, VAMZ, 3.s., XXXIV 65-122 (2001), UDK 904:72.032 (3:497.5), page 69
- ^ M. Zaninović, Liburnia Militaris, Opusc. Archeol. 13, 43-67 (1988), UDK 904.930.2(497.13)>>65<<, pages 44, 45
- ^ M. Zaninović, Liburnia Militaris, Filozofski fakultet Zagreb, UDK 904.930,2(497.13)>>65<<, pages 59
- ^ A. Stipčević, Iliri, Školska knjiga, Zagreb, 1974, page 39
- ^ M. Blečić, Prilog poznavanju antičke Tarsatike, VAMZ, 3.s., XXXIV 65-122 (2001), UDK 904:72.032 (3:497.5), pages 70, 71
- ^ R. Drechsler – Bižić, Japodska grupa, Praistorija jugoslavenskih zemalja V, page 393
- ^ Š. Batović, Aleksandar Stipčević, page 178
- ^ R. Matejčić, Predhistorijska nekropola Mišinac u Kastvu, Liburnijske teme (Opatija), 1/1974, pages 66, 68, 70
- ^ Š. Batović, Liburnska grupa, PJZ, V. Djela CBI, 1987, pages 339-390
- ^ Ž. Cetinić, 1989 – Grobišće/Grobnik, AP, 7957(1989), 1989, page 94
- ^ M. Blečić, Prilog poznavanju antičke Tarsatike, VAMZ, 3.s., XXXIV 65-122 (2001), UDK 904:72.032 (3:497.5), page 71
- ^ M. Zaninović, Liburnia Militaris, Filozofski fakultet Zagreb, UDK 904.930,2(497.13)>>65<<, pages 59, 60
- ^ S. Čače, Broj liburnskih općina i vjerodostojnost Plinija(Nat. hist. 3, 130; 139-141), Radovi Filozofskog fakulteta u Zadru, 32, Zadar 1993., pages 1-36
- ^ M. Suić, Zadar u starom vijeku, Filozofski fakultet u Zadru, Zadar, 1981, pages 225-228
- ^ J. Medini, Provincia Liburnia, Diadora, vol. 9, Zadar, 1980, page 433
- ^ A. Uglešić, Nakit istočnih Gota na području rimske provincije Dalmacije, Hrvati Goti, Marjan tisak, Split, 2003, pages 17-18, 99-100
- ^ S. Antoljak, Zadar pod vlašću istočnih Gota, Zadarska revija, XX/1971, pages 139-146
- ^ N. Klaić, Povijest Hrvata u srednjem vijeku, page 16
- ^ M. Suić, Liburnia Tarsaticencis, Adriatica prehistorica et antique, Zbornik G. Novak, Filozofski fakultet u Zagrebu, Zagreb, 1970, pages 706-716
- ^ J. Medini, Provincia Liburnia, Diadora, vol. 9, Zadar, 1980, pages 395, 414
- ^ I. Mužić, Hrvatska povijest IX stoljeća, Naklada Bošković, Split, 2007, page 117, 145
- ^ Nada Klaić, Ivo Petricioli, Prošlost Zadra – knjiga II, Zadar u srednjem vijeku do 1409., Filozofski fakultet Zadar, 1976, page 59
- ^ I. Mužić, Hrvatska povijest IX stoljeća, Naklada Bošković, Split, 2007, pages 82, 83
- ^ I. Guberina, Državna politika, I., page 158