The beginnings of Slavic settlement east of the river Elbe

Abstract

Did the Slavs invade eastern Europe and settle there? The traditional verdict of placename and historical studies is “yes – in the sixth century”, and the archaeological evidence once seemed to fit this model too. Now Sebastian Brather presents some new archaeological thinking about the area: the cultural zones represented by pottery and burial practice are different from each other and must have other causes than invasion by homogeneous cultural groups; while new dating of the hillforts places them in the late eighth to the tenth century. Welcome to an exciting new world of local cultural diversity …