04-05-2016, 09:16 PM
Hi, Adrian
I'd say the Greutungi would be considered a steppe tribe, having intermarried and associated with the Alans. The Tyrfingi also might be considered a steppe tribe, having adopted some aspects of Alan/Taifali religion. These are cultural connections, but there are others-- such as the absence of nomadism. We are discovering many steppe tribes were not actually nomads ("wanderers") but lived a sedentary life when conditions permitted. The Yuezhi and Alans would be perfect examples, the former living along the Altai periphery for half a millennium (where they cultivated millet, wheat, coriander, and marijuana); and the Alans settled in the Caucasus where they remain today. I don't see where the Greutungi and Tyrfingi were any different, basically living on the steppe along the edge of the forest zone. This specific location-- forest plus steppe-- was the ideal area to conduct hunting and farming.
Speaking of Alans, I don't have full details... but in 336 AD, the Alan king Sanesan used battering-rams during his siege of the Armenian capital.
I'd say the Greutungi would be considered a steppe tribe, having intermarried and associated with the Alans. The Tyrfingi also might be considered a steppe tribe, having adopted some aspects of Alan/Taifali religion. These are cultural connections, but there are others-- such as the absence of nomadism. We are discovering many steppe tribes were not actually nomads ("wanderers") but lived a sedentary life when conditions permitted. The Yuezhi and Alans would be perfect examples, the former living along the Altai periphery for half a millennium (where they cultivated millet, wheat, coriander, and marijuana); and the Alans settled in the Caucasus where they remain today. I don't see where the Greutungi and Tyrfingi were any different, basically living on the steppe along the edge of the forest zone. This specific location-- forest plus steppe-- was the ideal area to conduct hunting and farming.
Speaking of Alans, I don't have full details... but in 336 AD, the Alan king Sanesan used battering-rams during his siege of the Armenian capital.
Alan J. Campbell
member of Legio III Cyrenaica and the Uncouth Barbarians
Author of:
The Demon's Door Bolt (2011)
Forging the Blade (2012)
"It's good to be king. Even when you're dead!"
Old Yuezhi/Pazyrk proverb
member of Legio III Cyrenaica and the Uncouth Barbarians
Author of:
The Demon's Door Bolt (2011)
Forging the Blade (2012)
"It's good to be king. Even when you're dead!"
Old Yuezhi/Pazyrk proverb
