Words and Swords: People and Power along the Solent in the 5th Century

J. Hawkins
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Abstract

The years between the withdrawal from Britain of Roman Imperial power and the establishment of the early Anglo-Saxon kingdoms have long provoked interest among historians and archaeologists as to what was actually happening. One reason for this perennial fascination must be the lack of evidence, which allows theories to develop: none of the (few) written sources is impartial, and any concrete archaeological evidence will suggest an historical belief according to the believer. As David Mattingly puts it succinctly, “The ending of Roman Britain is a subject of few facts and many theories.”1 When we develop a theory, we bring our own prior knowledge and interests, hoping to add just that little bit extra to what has been proposed before. And thus it is here. Where written sources, archaeology or landscape offer little to work on, place-names may provide evidence, by indicating who first used the elements in those place-names and passed them on in the names which survive even to the present day. However, even place-names can become traps for the unwary.2 No contextual evidence should be ignored. Just as it has been stressed that context and local factors were, and are, important where names are first used, it is also important to consider why names survive. The history of an area will help to discover reasons for name survival: likewise name survival will contribute to what is known of the area’s history. Thus here, not only place-names, but also history and archaeology too take their place in understanding what was happening in the Solent area in the pre-Roman and Roman times, and during the events of the 5th and 6th centuries. The Solent appears to have been a waterway of ancient and continued importance, and the people who lived on its shores to have been people of some standing. Coastal change would have affected trade and lifestyle as the years progressed. In the area here under consideration, i.e. the Solent coast between Southampton Water and Bognor, together with the north coast of the Isle of Wight, geological and landscape
《言语与剑:5世纪索伦特沿岸的人民与权力》
从罗马帝国退出不列颠到早期盎格鲁-撒克逊王国建立之间的这段时间,一直引起历史学家和考古学家的兴趣,他们想知道到底发生了什么。这种长期的迷恋的一个原因一定是缺乏证据,这使得理论得以发展:没有一个(少数)书面来源是公正的,任何具体的考古证据都将根据信徒的历史信仰来提出一个历史信仰。正如大卫·马丁利(David martin)简洁地指出的那样,“罗马不列颠的终结是一个事实很少、理论很多的主题。”“当我们发展一个理论时,我们会带来自己的先验知识和兴趣,希望在之前提出的理论基础上增加一点额外的东西。这里就是这样。在文字资料、考古学或景观方面没有什么可研究的地方,地名可以提供证据,表明是谁首先使用了这些地名中的元素,并以流传至今的地名将它们传承了下来。然而,即使是地名也会成为粗心者的陷阱任何背景证据都不应被忽视。正如已经强调的,在名字最初使用的地方,背景和当地因素过去和现在都很重要一样,考虑名字为什么能流传下来也很重要。一个地区的历史将有助于发现名称存在的原因,同样,名称存在将有助于了解该地区的历史。因此,在这里,不仅地名,而且历史和考古学也在理解前罗马时代和罗马时代,以及5世纪和6世纪的事件期间,索伦特地区发生了什么。索伦特河似乎是一条古老而重要的水道,居住在岸边的人也有一定的地位。随着时间的推移,海岸的变化会影响贸易和生活方式。在这里考虑的区域,即南安普敦水域和博格诺之间的索伦特海岸,以及怀特岛的北海岸,地质和景观
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