Why didn't Balts expand during the Migration Period?

**Peterski** · 05-03-2018, 10:32 PM

Why didn't Baltic tribes expand west and south during the Migration Period?

**~~War Chef~~** · 05-03-2018, 10:37 PM

Originally Posted by Peterski

Why didn't Baltic tribes expand west and south during the Migration Period?

My theory:

They didn't have chernozem to sustain large population booms, unlike the Slavs.

Also, they did expand south, or try to at least, but there was a big forest in the way and they ended up stuck in Belarus.

**~~Bobby Martnen~~** · 05-03-2018, 10:38 PM

They tried to, but they got defeated by the Rethelite tribe during that Second Battle of the Facepalmowitz Mountains...

**Peterski** · 05-04-2018, 10:58 AM

Or maybe Balts were cowards too scared to start conquering Germanic lands even after most of them had emigrated to conquer Roman lands?

**Vlatko Vukovic** · 05-04-2018, 11:17 AM

Balts lived in swamps for a long time and they weren't in contact with Sarmatians, while Slavs were and it changed a bit their way of life.

**Peterski** · 05-04-2018, 01:12 PM

Originally Posted by Vlatko Vukovic

Balts lived in swamps for a long time

Are you claiming that Lithuania and Latvia had swamps, or that these people were not Balts?:

1. Early Bronze Age:

Spiginas2 (1 sample), Lithuania, 2130-1750 BC, R1a-Z280>CTS1211

2. Late BA & Iron Age:

Turlojiske3 (1 sample), Lithuania, 1010–800 BC, R1a-Z92>Y4459>YP617
Kivutkalns (3 samples), Latvia, 805–230 BC, R1a-Z280>CTS1211>YP1034>Y13467

**Vlatko Vukovic** · 05-04-2018, 01:18 PM

Surely, the Lithuanians and Latvians were isolated from other neighbours and that is reason why their language is very archaic and have big similarities with proto IE.

**Beauvais** · 05-04-2018, 02:55 PM

Originally Posted by Peterski

Why didn't Baltic tribes expand west and south during the Migration Period?

Balts are basically Uralic peoples that were brought to Indo-European speaking population. Which explains why they carry N1c (just like the Finns) a lot more than R1a.

Before they became Indo-European; they probably spoke Finnic languages similar to Livonian or Ingrian.

**Vlatko Vukovic** · 05-05-2018, 07:44 AM

Originally Posted by Beauvais

Balts are basically Uralic peoples that were brought to Indo-European speaking population. Which explains why they carry N1c (just like the Finns) a lot more than R1a.

Before they became Indo-European; they probably spoke Finnic languages similar to Livonian or Ingrian.

They have about 40% R1a and 40% N1c.

**Beauvais** · 05-05-2018, 09:03 AM

Originally Posted by Vlatko Vukovic

They have about 40% R1a and 40% N1c.

Yes. They are half proto-Finnic and half Proto-Baltic. Pretty self-explanatory.

But, majority of their population are evidently Indo-Europeanized Finnic peoples.