Naming and Identities of Germanic Immigrants in the Eastern Roman Empire (5th–6th Centuries)

Abstract

The article studies naming conventions among Germanic immigrants who settled in the Eastern Roman empire during the Migration Period. The author uses information from both narrative and epigraphic sources. Many immigrants, finding themselves in a cultural environment alien to them, sought to preserve their own identities. As a means of maintaining family memory, some Goths who lived in Byzantium gave their children names that would testify to their Kinsmanship. This was typical of some families among the highest Byzantine nobility having barbarian origins. This indicates that the social environment of these immigrants and their descendants generally treated them favorably. However, since the second half of the 6th century, members of such families began to appear mainly under Greek and Latin names, which can be stemmed from the growth of religiosity in the aristocratic circles. The processes of integration and assimilation for ordinary migrants largely depended on the social environment and the nature of contacts with it. Thus, many Goths who lived in Thrace retained their identities at least until the end of the 6th century. In all likelihood, they lived apart from the indigenous people. As a result, the tradition of naming their own descendants by Germanic names existed among them for a long time. Finally, Goths, whose military service took place in Asia Minor, quickly assimilated to the new environment. In all cases known to us, their sons received non-Germanic names.