How the Celtic Serdi Tribe Founded Sofia, the Capital of Bulgaria – History Decoded
Channel: Celtic History Decoded
Date: 2022-01-30

How the Celtic Serdi Tribe Founded Sofia, the Capital of Bulgaria – History Decoded

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Sofia, the capital and largest city in Bulgaria, was founded by the Celtic tribe of the Serdi thousands of years ago. Located just west of the Iskar River, which itself is a tributary of the great Danube River, Sofia sits at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, and is home to many mineral springs.

The Serdi inhabited parts of the Bulgarian region of Thrace. In the ancient world, Thrace corresponded to the modern territories of eastern Greece, western Turkey and southern Bulgaria. The tribe lived around the city of Serdica, which was the Roman name for the modern city of Sofia. In Greek, the city was known as Serdonpolis, or Sardica. One of the earliest records that refers to the city comes from a 1st century BC Athenian source that describes it as Astiu ton Serdon, or city of the Serdi.

It is thought that the Serdi settled in ancient Bulgaria during the Celtic invasion of the broader region in around the 4th century BC. Very few objects exist from the Serdi, but we do have a coin used by ancient tribe. On one side of the coin, to the left in the photo, the coin features the head of the Greek river god, Strymon, although this is pretty worn. The reverse of the coin on the right of the photo features a trident, a three-pronged spear associated with Gods of the Sea, most famously with Poseidon. The coin is an overstrike of the official Thessalonian coin which existed from 187 to 31 BC, which the Serdi overlayed a new design onto. It is thought that this was part of the Serdi’s own distinct currency, as opposed to being some attempt at forgery. 

The Serdi seemed to be adopt Thracian culture over the years, holding on to elements of their Celtic heritage though. Some scholars do argue that the Serdi were more from Thracian origins than Celtic ones, however this is debated. It seems likely that they were a Celtic tribe that settled the ancient lands of Thrace and then became assimilated into Thracian customs over the decades and centuries. 

Prior to the Celtic influx, Serdica was incorporated into the Odrysian kingdom in the 5th century BC, which was an ancient Thracian kingdom. In 339 BC, Alexander the Greats father, Phillip II of Macedon, sacked the city.  
The Serdi was then in control of the city for centuries, until the 1st century BC. In between 27 and 29 BC, Rome sacked the city. The campaign was led by Marcus Licinius Crassus, a Roman general and statesman, who was often referred to as ‘the richest man Rome,’ who attacked the Serdi tribe and beheaded many of the captives. 

Serdica then became an important Roman city, with the Romans building an amphitheatre, a circus and baths amongst other structures. The city was located on an strategic Roman road known as the Via Militaris, a road that linked Singidunum, the name of ancient Belgrade in modern Serbia, and Constantinople, known today as Istanbul in Turkey. 

Sources:

Serdi, Wikicommons - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serdi 

Sofia, Wikicommons  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sofia 

Sofia, Britannica https://www.britannica.com/place/Sofia 

Strymon, Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strymon_(mythology) 

Creative Commons Imagery:

Johny SYSEL https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bronze_coin_of_Serdi_Celts.jpg Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en

Izvora https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Iskar_near_Karlukovo_Iz3.jpg  Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en 

Kmrakmra https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kazanluk_1.jpg Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en 

Jarekadam https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Via_Militaris_and_Via_Egnatia_EN.jpg Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en 

Targatron, Hxseek at English Wikipedia https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Balkans850.png Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en 
 
#Sofia #CelticHistory #BulgarianHistory