Indo-European

Indo-European was originally a purely linguistic term, referring to the Indo-European language family. By extension, it became a collective name for cultures and religions associated with these languages. Hypothetically, these cultures arose from the expansion of an ancient people, the Proto-Indo-Europeans, from a homeland that has remained obscured, although opinion is generally divided between southern Russia and Anatolia.

Proto-Indo-Europeans

See main article Proto-Indo-Europeans.

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Origins

The scholars of the 19th century that originally tackled the question of the original homeland of the Indo-Europeans (also called Urheimat after the German term), were essentially confined to linguistic evidence. A rough localization was attempted by reconstructing the names of plants and animals as well as the culture and technology. The scholarly opinions became basically divided between a European hypothesis, positing migration from Europe to Asia, and an Asian hypothesis, holding that the migration took place in the opposite direction.

Related Topics:
19th century - Urheimat

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However, from its early days, the controversy was tainted by romantic, nationalistic notions of heroic invaders at best and by imperialist and racist agendas at worst. The question is still the source of much contention.

Related Topics:
Romantic - Nationalistic - Imperialist - Racist

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In the twentieth century, Marija Gimbutas (1956) created a modern variation on the traditional invasion theory (the Kurgan hypothesis) which regards the Indo-Europeans as a nomadic tribe in what is today South Russia and Eastern Ukraine, expanding in several waves during the 3rd millennium BC. Colin Renfrew (1987) is the main propagator for another theory according to which the Indo-Europeans were farmers in Asia Minor who migrated peacefully into southeast Europe from around 7000 BC where they assimilated the Preindoeuropeans.

Related Topics:
Marija Gimbutas - 1956 - Kurgan - Nomad - Russia - Ukraine - 3rd millennium BC - Colin Renfrew - 1987 - Asia Minor - 7000 BC - Preindoeuropean

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The rise of Archaeogenetic evidence, which uses genetic analysis to trace migration patterns, added new elements to the puzzle. Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza recently used genetic evidence to in some ways combine Gimbutas' and Renfrew's theory.

Related Topics:
Archaeogenetic - Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza

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Religion

Main article: Proto-Indo-European religion

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The hypothetical PIE religion was centered on sacrificial rituals where animals were slaughtered to establish good relations with the gods. The chief god of the Proto-Indo-European pantheon, probably mirroring the position of the king in human society, was the sky-god *Dyeus.

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