V lkerwanderung
The Migrations Period, (German: Völkerwanderung , lit. The Migration of Peoples), is chacterized by the migration of Germanic, Slavic and other tribes on the European continent during the period AD 300-900.
German historians in the
19th century used the term
Völkerwanderung (pronounced: 'fœl ker 'van der ung) to describe the
migrations of the
Goths,
Vandals,
Franks and other Germanic tribes triggered by the incursions of the
Huns. They saw these migrations as a contributing factor leading to the break-up of the
Roman Empire.
The expansion of Germanic tribes into France, England, Northern Italy and elsewhere allegedly indicated the energy and dynamism of those so-called "barbarian" peoples. This became associated with 19th century German nationalism and the Eastern expansion of Germany (Drang nach Osten, Urge to move East), and later contributed to the Nazi ideology of Lebensraum, or "living space", the theory that the Germans had a mission to expand their population beyond the national borders of Germany.
Modern historians divide the migration movement into two phases. The first phase, between AD300 and 500, saw the movement of Germanic, Turkish and other tribes and resulted in putting Germanic peoples in control of most areas of the former Western Roman Empire. (See also: Ostrogoths, Visigoths, Burgundians, Langobards, Angles, Saxons, Jutes, Suebi, Alamanni).
The second phase, between AD 500 and 900, saw Slavic, Turkish and other tribes on the move, re-settling in Eastern Europe and gradually making it predominantly Slavic. See also: Avars, Huns, Arabs, Vikings, Varangians. The last phase of the migrations saw the coming of the Hungarians to Pannonia.
Other migrations that happened later in the history of Europe generally did not give rise to new states (except for Turkey, for example) and comprised mainly temporary invasions.
An earlier migration from Asia to Europe brought the Indoeuropeans.
For modern historical views see Human migration.
