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| '''Illyrians''' has come to refer to a broad, ill-defined group of peoples who inhabited the western ] (from northern ] to southern ]) and even perhaps parts of Southern ] in ancient times into the ]. | '''Illyrians''' has come to refer to a broad, ill-defined group of peoples who inhabited the western ] (from northern ] to southern ]) and even perhaps parts of Southern ] in ancient times into the ]. | ||
| It is, however, unclear whether in reality there was such a broad group that identified as ''Illyrians'', and some argue that the ] ''Illyres'' came to be applied to this large group of tribes by the ancient Greeks, ''Illyres'' having perhaps originally designated only a single tribe that came to be widely known to the Greeks due to proximity. This tribe, the '']'', are known to have occupied a small and well-defined part of the south Adriatic coast, around the Lake of Schodër astride the modern frontier between Albania and |
It is, however, unclear whether in reality there was such a broad group that identified as ''Illyrians'', and some argue that the ] ''Illyres'' came to be applied to this large group of tribes by the ancient Greeks, ''Illyres'' having perhaps originally designated only a single tribe that came to be widely known to the Greeks due to proximity. This tribe, the '']'', are known to have occupied a small and well-defined part of the south Adriatic coast, around the Lake of Schodër astride the modern frontier between ] and ]. | ||
| Evidence for this idea may be found in ]'s ''Illyrike'' and ]'s ''Natural History''. | Evidence for this idea may be found in ]'s ''Illyrike'' and ]'s ''Natural History''. | ||
Revision as of 03:38, 26 November 2005
Illyrians has come to refer to a broad, ill-defined group of peoples who inhabited the western Balkans (from northern Epirus to southern Pannonia) and even perhaps parts of Southern Italy in ancient times into the Common era.
It is, however, unclear whether in reality there was such a broad group that identified as Illyrians, and some argue that the ethnonym Illyres came to be applied to this large group of tribes by the ancient Greeks, Illyres having perhaps originally designated only a single tribe that came to be widely known to the Greeks due to proximity. This tribe, the Illyres, are known to have occupied a small and well-defined part of the south Adriatic coast, around the Lake of Schodër astride the modern frontier between Albania and Montenegro.
Evidence for this idea may be found in Appian's Illyrike and Pliny's Natural History.
The Illyrians may have appeared in the western part of the Balkan peninsula about 1000 BC, a period coinciding with the end of the Bronze age and the beginning of the Iron age. The Illyrians were not a unified body but a group of many different tribes. These tribes however had a common culture and spoke related languages.
Whether the Albanian language descends from an Illyrian language is disputed among scholars (see Origin of Albanians). The only attested Illyrian language may be Messapian, which is not closely related to Albanian.