01-23-2010, 11:54 AM
Just mentioning that I only wanted to make a distinction, goes without saying that I don't consider Europeans better than the Nomads, primarily because we are all from Nomad stock. I do have a preference were a choice to be made, no doubt, still, there is a grand illusion at play here: That we all pretend to understand what it was like back then, or believe we can know how things were, exactly.
We can't. All efforts we make, end when the screen of a PC goes blank in my case, or when you put on today's clothes in yours. These people lived through all we strive to understand. Things we claim to understand were second nature to them. The very best of us counts as youngborn among them. You see, to us it is a hobby, to them it meant the difference between life and death. Once there, things become crystal clear. Hopefully not many of us will ever get where they were daily.
--the following paragraph is added to let me explain my view...
Had we not known anything about the Ancient Greeks or Romans for that matter (seeing how much in common those two civilizations have) would the shape of present world be different? Definitely, even if they did have their share of atrocities. Would the world really be different today if we didn't know more about a nomad Subtribe? What does the name "Hamaxoikoi" mean to most people looking at it? It is the name given to a Sarmatian Subribe in the first century CE by a Greek Geographer. We don't know more about them. Their contribution to the present day world is minimal. Other civilizations have far more and will have far more influence in our daily lives. I hope this isn't interpreted as demeaning, it isn't, it's just a mention of fact.
We can't. All efforts we make, end when the screen of a PC goes blank in my case, or when you put on today's clothes in yours. These people lived through all we strive to understand. Things we claim to understand were second nature to them. The very best of us counts as youngborn among them. You see, to us it is a hobby, to them it meant the difference between life and death. Once there, things become crystal clear. Hopefully not many of us will ever get where they were daily.
--the following paragraph is added to let me explain my view...
Had we not known anything about the Ancient Greeks or Romans for that matter (seeing how much in common those two civilizations have) would the shape of present world be different? Definitely, even if they did have their share of atrocities. Would the world really be different today if we didn't know more about a nomad Subtribe? What does the name "Hamaxoikoi" mean to most people looking at it? It is the name given to a Sarmatian Subribe in the first century CE by a Greek Geographer. We don't know more about them. Their contribution to the present day world is minimal. Other civilizations have far more and will have far more influence in our daily lives. I hope this isn't interpreted as demeaning, it isn't, it's just a mention of fact.
Kostas Papadopoulos
History fans like myself should keep these wise words in mind
When in doubt about sources, trustworthiness or what the writer of what you read about is really after, I \'d advise Ktesias test after that Münchhausen of ancient Greece.
History fans like myself should keep these wise words in mind
When in doubt about sources, trustworthiness or what the writer of what you read about is really after, I \'d advise Ktesias test after that Münchhausen of ancient Greece.
