by Lulzim Osmanaj. Translation Petrit Latifi

Abstract

This study examines the presence and influence of the Illyrian language in Upper Austria, emphasizing its enduring traces in regional toponyms, river names, and tribal designations. The Illyrians, recognized as the earliest named inhabitants of the region, played a key role in mediating the Hallstatt culture throughout the Eastern Alps. Despite subsequent Celtic migrations and the spread of La Tène culture, Illyrian linguistic and cultural elements persisted in Upper Austria, particularly in place names such as Aist, Attersee, and Schwanenstadt. This paper situates Upper Austria within a broader cultural and linguistic network spanning southern Germany, the Eastern Alps, and the western Balkans.

I: The Illyrian Language in Upper Austria

The Illyrians constitute the earliest people we know by name in the territory of Upper Austria. Their presence is attested not only by archaeological sources, but also by traces of the Illyrian language preserved in the names of rivers, settlements and regions. The first people we know by name in the land of Upper Austria are the Illyrians.

However, Hallstatt itself was not the starting point of the new culture, but rather the Eastern Alps, where, according to ancient tradition, an Illyrian-speaking people lived. These Illyrians must have been, if not the bearers, then at least the intermediaries of the Hallstatt culture in our region as well.

Their language and culture dominated a large area that included southern Germany, the Sudetenland, the Eastern Alps, the western Balkans and the opposite coast of the Adriatic. Within this region, Upper Austria formed an inland district, very similar to the German-speaking world today.

Remnants of the Illyrian language in Upper Austria are rare but present: the name of the river Agista, today Aist; the tribal name Narister, or Varister, which referred to the inhabitants of the Mühlviertel region; the place name Tergolape, today Schwanenstadt; and finally, the root Adra-Atter in Attergau, Attersee. Upper Austria has the distinction of having given its name to the culture that the Illyrians developed most significantly: the Hallstatt culture.

From 400 BC onwards, Celtic warriors and farmers, the closest relatives of the Germanic tribes, descended to the Danube in dense masses. They migrated in numerous waves along the Danube valley, gradually spreading from there into the Alpine interior and north. To the north, they encountered another great migration of their own people, the Boii, who had conquered the Sudetenland.

Downstream, the Celts conquered Lower Austria and Burgenland, while strong clans settled in Hungary and the Balkans. This Celtic migration closely resembles the later Germanic migration, sharing with it the eastern edge of the adjacent territory, as well as the vast linguistic islands in the Carpathian Basin and the Balkans, and the conquest of the Sudetes.

The Celts brought about a significant increase in the population of Upper Austria on both sides of the Danube, as well as a cultural change, as the Hallstatt culture was gradually replaced by their own, which, according to a Swiss archaeological site, is called La Tène. This La Tène culture, in all its phases, is represented in Upper Austria, as is the Hallstatt culture.

Celtic blood can be considered a valuable contribution to the development of the population of Upper Austria. Numerous geographical names are of Celtic origin, such as the names of the rivers Agira-Ager, Anisus-Enns, Epia-Ipf, Isla-Ischl, Matuca-Mattig, Truna-Druna-Traun, as well as the towns in the Danube valley: Boio-durum, which means “castle of a Boius”, and Innstadt near the border of Upper Austria.

II. The most famous place for this early Iron Age is Hallstatt in Upper Austria, which owed its wealth and importance to the vital source of salt.

However, Hallstatt itself was not the starting point of the new culture, but rather the Eastern Alps, where, according to ancient tradition, an Illyrian-speaking people lived. These Illyrians must have been, if not the bearers, then at least the intermediaries of the Hallstatt culture in our region as well.

Their language still echoes in several place names today: Foetibus (Füssen) and Likias (Lech); in the Inn Valley, Umiste (Imst) and Veldidena (Wilten); in the mountains, Scarbia (Scharnitz) and Parthanum (Partenkirchen). Even the name of the Inn River, Aenus, may be of Illyrian origin.

Grave finds yield particularly beautiful clay vessels; But bronze casting also reached its peak at this time, as evidenced by the magnificent beaked vessel from Dürrnberg near Hallein with its almost baroque decorative forms.

References

Association of Upper Austrian Museums, Association for Regional Studies, download at http://www.biologiezentrum.at

Rudolf Egger

zobodat.at