Different Gentes, Same Amazons

Abstract

This article aims to examine the narrative of the Amazons as part of a political and ethnic discourse. It pays particular attention to the connection between the tale of the Amazons and the history of the origins of the Goths. The Historia Augusta and Jordanes’ Getica are among the most significant sources for shedding light on the versatility and the popularity of the saga of the Amazons. It also highlights the authors’ lexical strategy of identifying the ancient Amazons with one or more barbaric groups. This cultural operation allowed them to integrate the old story of women warriors into their historical narrative. In the last part of this article, the Gesta Hammaburgensis ecclesiae pontificum is taken into consideration, stressing continuities and discontinuities in Adam of Bremen’s use of the tale of the Amazons.