Aesti
Sign in to savethumb|The Aesti were located around the Baltic Sea. The Aesti (also Aestii, Astui or Aests) were an ancient people first described by the Roman historian Tacitus in his treatise Germania (circa 98 AD). According to Tacitus, the territory of Aesti was located somewhere east of the Suiones (Swedes).
~9 min read
Article
11 sectionsContents
- Overview
- Historical sources
- Tacitus
- Cassiodorus
- Jordanes
- Alfred the Great
- Adam of Bremen
- See also
- Notes, citations and references
- Cited sources
- Further reading
thumb|The Aesti were located around the Baltic Sea. The Aesti (also Aestii, Astui or Aests) were an ancient people first described by the Roman historian Tacitus in his treatise Germania (circa 98 AD). According to Tacitus, the territory of Aesti was located somewhere east of the Suiones (Swedes).
==Overview== Tacitus described the Aesti as having lived "upon the right of the Suevian Sea" and had the same customs and attire as the Germanic Suevi. It has been suggested that the Aesti worshipped the mother of the gods, similar to the Nerthus cult among northern Germanic peoples. Though they were most likely of Baltic origin, they had extensively intermingled with the neighbouring Gothic tribes.