Much of the history of pre-modern European society was shaped by the migration of various groups of peoples into and across the European landscape. The Celts moved from their homeland in Central Europe and settled throughout much of Western Europe, bringing their language and culture with them. The Romans were yet another migrant group, and undoubtedly one of the most culturally impactful groups because they enforced their political, legal, and religious customs in the territories they settled. Similarly, the German-speaking tribes who moved into Roman territory as the Roman Empire fell; the Vikings, who emerged from Scandinavia in the late 8th century CE and settled throughout much of Western Europe; and Muslim peoples, who emerged from the Arabian Peninsula in the mid-7th century CE and settled in Spain and Sicily, had a significant influence on the formation of early European culture. We'll examine all of these groups and their impact on the history and culture of Western Europe in the pre-modern period.

1. Pre-modern European Migrations:
Celtic Migrations
• Overview of pre-modern European migrations
• Early theories about folk movements in Europe
• “Invasionist” theories—conquest or colonization
• All innovation in agriculture, art, and technology came from the east
• Modern theories
• Conquest and colonization sometimes a factor, but also folk movements
due to economic, social, and religious factors (overpopulation and/or
famine; a desire to engage directly in the economic life of other regions; a
desire to explore; a desire to establish a new religious settlement; a desire
for protection from more powerful groups)

2. Pre-modern European Migrations:
Celtic Migrations
• Means of tracking movement of people, culture, and technology
• Study of archaeological finds—objects, land use patterns, and structures can
demonstrate movement of people, exchange of gifts between different groups, or
the embracing of new artistic styles or technology
• Study of burials—DNA testing of human remains can reveal the genetic history of the
individual; analysis of oxygen and strontium in human teeth can identify the region
an individual came from, as opposed to where that individual was buried
• Study of living humans—DNA testing of individuals can help to trace their ancestry to
specific groups or locations
• Limitations on understanding folk movements
• Lack of documentary records or mythologized records; lack of knowledge regarding
how or why objects reached their final destination; lack of knowledge regarding how
artistic or technological styles reached point B from point A

3. Pre-modern European Migrations:
Celtic Migrations
• Beaker Folk, circa 2800-1800 BC
• Arrival of Beaker Folk in British Isles c. 2500 BC, based on finds of corded ware
• Construction of Stonehenge dates from this period; burials around
Stonehenge (2000-1400 BC) developed from Beaker Folk single burials
• Lifetime of “Cherchen Man” and other Caucasoid peoples in the
Taklamakan Desert, Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region in Western
China, c. 1000 BC
• Urnfield Culture, circa 1300-750 BC

4. Maps of Beaker Folk culture.
Left map from Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza, The History and Geography of Human Genes;
right map from Barry Cunliffe, Europe Between the Oceans, 9000 BC-AD 1000.

5. Beaker grave items (including wrist-guard and arrow heads) from Culduthel,
Inverness-shire, Scotland, held in the National Museums of Scotland.

6. Urnfield Culture maps (left—area in tan; right—shaded area).
Left map from Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza, The History and Geography of Human Genes;
right map from Barry Cunliffe, Europe Between the Oceans, 9000 BC-AD 1000.

7. Urnfield Culture burial urns. Held in the Universitätsmuseum
für Kulturgeschichte, Marburg, Hesse, Germany.

8. Pre-modern European Migrations:
Celtic Migrations
• Hallstatt culture, 800-500 BC
• First definitively Celtic culture
• Main sites in central Europe
• La Tene culture, 500 BC-500 AD
• Early sites west of Hallstatt sites; other sites spread throughout Europe
• First definitively Celtic culture in Britain and Ireland

9. Maps of Hallstatt (left) and La Tene (right) cultures. Maps from Barry
Cunliffe, Europe Between the Oceans, 9000 BC-AD 1000.

10. Illustration of Hallstatt graves, discovered in 1846 in Austria. Illustration
from Christiane Eluère, The Celts: First Masters of Europe.

11. The Hochdorf burial, 6th century BC. Discovered near Hochdorf an der
Enz, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany. Some pieces at the on site
museum, others at the Kunst der Kelten, Historiches Museum, Bern.

12. Hochdorf crater, with lion decoration.