How do Balts perceive Belarusians?

Belarus has many sacred stones. Some people put fences around sacred stones . There are some sacred stones in the museum of stones. Some sacred stones were exploded by commies during Soviet era. Zalktis is also a sacred snake in Belarusian folklore. There are legends and beliefs about this snake. An ethnographer recorded in mid 19th century how common Belarusians were keeping zaltkis as a pet at home.
 
Volat said:
Belarus has many sacred stones. Some people put fences around sacred stones . There are some sacred stones in the museum of stones. Some sacred stones were exploded by commies during Soviet era. Zalktis is also a sacred snake in Belarusian folklore. There are legends and beliefs about this snake. An ethnographer recorded in mid 19th century how common Belarusians were keeping zaltkis as a pet at home.
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Doesn't Zaltkis sound Lithuanian?
 
Speaking of physical anthropology Belarusians are most similar to eastern Lithuanians, western Russians/north-western Lithuanians, eastern Latvians . In this order.


The plot is based on 18 anthropological variants provided by Russian anthropologist Deryabin of Moscow State University. Large sample size were used in the study.



alheuu.png
 
Volat said:
Speaking of physical anthropology Belarusians are most similar to eastern Lithuanians, western Russians/north-western Lithuanians, eastern Latvians . In this order.


The plot is based on 18 anthropological variants provided by Russian anthropologist Deryabin of Moscow State University. Large sample size were used in the study.



alheuu.png
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Where are Polish, especially Mazowians and Podlasians in relation to Belarusians?
 
Volat said:
It is a Lithuanian word.
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Does that mean that this part of pagan religion was influenced by pagan Lithuanians in times of Great Lithuanian Principality? Or earlier Slavs conquering Lithuanian/Baltic tribes in area of Belarus, but in the process assimilating parts of their religion?
 
LeBrok said:
Where are Polish, especially Mazowians and Polesians in relation to Belarusians?
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They were not included in the study. Poles of Belarus and eastern Lithuania are similar to Belarusians and eastern Lithuanians, because most of their ancestors were polonised. People of Polessia is a marginal group. There are some differences in physical appearance between Polessians and the rest of Belarusians. Polessians are our most brunette people according to anthropologists.


Brest city. People of Polessia.


 
Spirituality of old Slavs and Balts was similar as Peru shamanism

Lectures of Amazonian / Peru shamanism english
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvFPMHRt0hA

Lectures of Amazonian / Peru shamanism russian
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6z6RLeggU_Q
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5V9GSPw-hVU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PH4OU4J2_qE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tSytaRDtp0

Similarity is not only between Slavs and Andes shamanism. Petr Chobot travelled on whole world and shamanic cultures have surprisingly very similar spiritual system
 
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Volat said:
There are some differences in physical appearance between Polessians and the rest of Belarusians. Polessians are our most brunette people according to anthropologists.
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Perhaps, Polessians are our most Slavic people. They received plenty of attention from ethnographers in the last 100 years. Academic papers on Slavic ethnography from Belarus would discuss the Polessians. As if they were only people living in Belarus. In early 90s there was a separatist movement among few Belarusian Polessians. Belarusian people and authorities stated that our Poleshuks (Polessians) are Belarusians . That was the end of story. :) Today, Belarusian Polessians identify themselves as Belarusians.
 
Sloven-Vened said:
It is very interesting what you speak about grass snake. Ethnologists say the same about Slavs, Slavs believed in the same about grass snake
images
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Our grass snakes have yellowish bottom side. IMO Lithuania Zaltkis (the name of the snake) is related to Slavic 'yellow' or 'golden'
 
LeBrok said:
Does that mean that this part of pagan religion was influenced by pagan Lithuanians in times of Great Lithuanian Principality? Or earlier Slavs conquering Lithuanian/Baltic tribes in area of Belarus, but in the process assimilating parts of their religion?
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He used the Latvian term for snake. Belarussian one is uzh or similar.
 
In Lt. žaltys or žalktys relates to the word žalias (green), with etymology of the word - a colour with glittering greenish, yellowish, brownish hues... It is interesting that there is also a similar word in Estonian "haljas" meaning glittering, glittering green.
 
LeBrok said:
Does that mean that this part of pagan religion was influenced by pagan Lithuanians in times of Great Lithuanian Principality? Or earlier Slavs conquering Lithuanian/Baltic tribes in area of Belarus, but in the process assimilating parts of their religion?
Click to expand...

I think the connection may be older - there are theories that people who lived in most parts of current Belarus up to X century where originally baltic. Only later with more slavic influence they become slavic. Besides, according to Marija Gimbutas the Milograd culture was also Baltic.

(From ENG wiki The Milograd culture is an archaeological culture, lasting from about the 7th century BC to the 1st century AD. Geographically, it corresponds to present day southern Belarus and northern Ukraine, in the area of the confluence of the Dnieper and the Pripyat, north of Kiev. Their ethnic origins is uncertain.)
 
Dagne said:
I think the connection may be older - there are theories that people who lived in most parts of current Belarus up to X century where originally baltic. Only later with more slavic influence they become slavic. Besides, according to Marija Gimbutas the Milograd culture was also Baltic.

(From ENG wiki The Milograd culture is an archaeological culture, lasting from about the 7th century BC to the 1st century AD. Geographically, it corresponds to present day southern Belarus and northern Ukraine, in the area of the confluence of the Dnieper and the Pripyat, north of Kiev. Their ethnic origins is uncertain.)
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Interestingly the same area is implicated as Slavic homeland before expansion. Only future genetic testing can answer this conundrum.
 
LeBrok said:
Interestingly the same area is implicated as Slavic homeland before expansion. Only future genetic testing can answer this conundrum.
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Yes, I agree. in any case, Baltic and Slavic cultures seem to be similar. For instance, pagan slavic deities sound very much like baltic Perun (Perkūnas, literary `thunder', Veles - velnias(literary devil) or vėlė (literary, spirit of the deceased), which of course is because they both take origin from common Indo-european myths.
 
I don't think genetic studies of the Milograd or other cultures will answer all our questions. Because Balts were likely not genetically homogeneous settling in vast areas. Even today we see some differences between southern Lithuanians and northern Lithuanians. There are probably differences between western Latvians and eastern Latvians.
 
Dagne said:
I think the connection may be older - there are theories that people who lived in most parts of current Belarus up to X century where originally baltic. Only later with more slavic influence they become slavic. Besides, according to Marija Gimbutas the Milograd culture was also Baltic.

(From ENG wiki The Milograd culture is an archaeological culture, lasting from about the 7th century BC to the 1st century AD. Geographically, it corresponds to present day southern Belarus and northern Ukraine, in the area of the confluence of the Dnieper and the Pripyat, north of Kiev. Their ethnic origins is uncertain.)
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Many linguists say that at some time all the way to Moscow Baltic language was spoken,later replaced by Slavic according to toponyms.
I guess it wasn't so hard for Baltic speaker to adopt Slavic language,the 10th century seem plausible with Christianisation,Old Church Slavic was liturgic language,recognized and with it's own alphabet,whereas the Baltic speakers were marginalized.
 
LeBrok said:
Interestingly the same area is implicated as Slavic homeland before expansion. Only future genetic testing can answer this conundrum.
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Yes. In this scientific work write about genetic analyze archeological cultures. Genetic research of archeological cultures is so far, in very small range. Next researches are necessary

Massive migration from the steppe is a source for Indo-European languages in Europe
http://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/1502/1502.02783.pdf
 
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