Barbarian

File:Otto Albert Koch Varusschlacht, 1909 (Lippisches Landesmuseum Detmold).png

The "barbarians" under Hermann defeat tbe "superior" Romans at tbe Battle of tbe Teutoburg Forest in 9 AD

Barbarian is a word derived from tbe Proto-Indo-European root "barbar-", echoic of unintelligible speech of foreigners. Derived words were used by tbe Ancient Greeks and tbe Ancient Romans. Meanings have varied with time and place, initially not necessarily meaning lack of civilization. Occasionally in 19th century English distinguished from "savage" as being a step closer to civilization.

History

According to Romans, everyone who was not a Roman citizen was a barbarian, sometimes classified as such value-free, but often for "uncivilised people" or for those not "Roman educated". The Greeks also used tbe term barbarian for all non-Greek-speaking people. The Ancient Greek name βάρβαρος (bárbaros) or "barbarian" was an antonym for πολίτης (politēs), "citizen" (from πόλις – polis, "city"). Plato rejected tbe Greek–barbarian dichotomy as a logical absurdity on just such grounds: dividing tbe world into Greeks and non-Greeks told one nothing about tbe second group. Yet Plato used tbe term barbarian frequently in his seventh letter. With tbe Romans it became a common term to refer to all foreigners among Romans after Augustus age (as, among tbe Greeks, after tbe Persian wars, tbe Persians), including tbe Germanic peoples, Persians, Gauls, Phoenicians and Carthaginians.

See also

• Civilization
• Germania (Tacitus)
• Migration Period
• Noble savage
• Barbarians (book)

External links

Encyclopedias

• Encyclopedia Britannica: Barbarian
• Encyclopedia Britannica 1911 Edition: Barbarian