Goths

The term **Goth** (High Gothic: Gutans; Crimean Gothic: Gotãs; Azovian and Swampy Gothic: Hodãs) refers to an ethnic minority found in the Kingdom of Ukraine, particularly in the area of Crimea. Goths are a Germanic-speaking Orthodox Christian population, and one of the oldest groups to inhabit the country.

The modern Goths of Ukraine are descendants of Ostrogoths who moved east and settled in the area of Crimea and around the coast of the Sea of Azov. These Goths were the least powerful, but paradoxically the longest-lived of all Gothic groups. Over time, the two groups broke into 3 subgroups. The Crimean Goths, the Azovian Goths, and the Swamp Goths (a branch that broke off of the Azovian Goths that settled along the Pripyat River).

## History

### Early History

The first Goths to settle around the Sea of Azov were a branch that split from the Ostrogoths rather early in their history. The Goths were distinct from their neighbors, who were mostly Iranian speaking Alans and Sarmatians at the time, both in their culture and in their religion. The Goths were Arian Christians, and the Christian identity became increasingly integral to the Gothic sense of self. The Goths were known to isolate themselves from their neighbors and were highly endogamous.

### Greek Rulership

In the 5th Century, the Byzantines established the Exarchate of Gothia-Theodoro, with Greek governers ruling over Crimea and the surrounding area. The Greeks encouraged the usage of orthodox Byzantine Rite Christianity over the Goths and were largely successful in converting them to this method of worship.

### The Blackening

When the Byzantine Empire collapsed, the Exarchate remained as one of the few Byzantine successor states. While it remained largely Greek, the state gradually became more gothicized as time went on, until the state was entirely Gothic by 804 AD.

### Khanate of Crimea

The Goths were conquered by the Turkic Tatars under the Khanate of Crimea in 863. The Tatars imposed strict laws against the Goths, with the hopes of assimilating them. The conflict between the Goths and the Tatars came to its peak in 1083, when the Tatar's demanded that the Goths freely allow Tatar men to marry Gothic women as they pleased. The Goths refused, and as a result, the Tatars attacked several Azovian Gothic villages. The Goths petitioned the Latin Empire for help, which was answered.

### Crimean Crusade and the Kingdom of New England

The Latin Empire responded by declaring a holy war on the Khanate and fighting for the former territories of Gothia-Theodoro. Anglo-Saxon Soldiers fighting under the banner of the restored Varangian Guard captured the area and were rewarded post-war with the Duchy itself.

Under New England, the Goths were elevated to a decent status and had marginally better living conditions than under the Tatars. Gothic community leaders, however, were concerned by the influence of English traditions and culture on the Gothic people, particularly complaining about how the Saxon Language was slowly replacing "High Gothic" as the language of government, education, and formality.

The Kingdom of New England later fell to the Caliphate of Russia in its integration of the Khanate of Crimea, as the Caliph simply conquered the area, with the Latin Empire too weak to help by this point.

### Caliphate to Republic of Russia to Modern Age

Under the Caliphate, the Goths were largely relegated to agriculture positions, with their Christian religion making them unsuited for anything important in the government. Those Goths who did convert to Islam and move up in the ladder mostly assimilated into the Slavic society. These Slavicized Goths are thought to have been part of the formation of a distinct Ukrainian identity later in time due to the influences of their culture.

When the Republic was established, the Goths were seen as one of the people that needed immediate social programs and affirmative action policies to elevate out of poverty and misfortune. This practice continued in the Kingdom of Ukraine following independence.

In the modern Kingdom, Goths are a significant minority and are becoming increasingly present and visible in Ukrainian society.

## Culture

### Language

The Goths are speakers of the Gothic Language, an East Germanic language, and the last surviving representative of this branch. The Gothic languages were highly influenced by Greek and Russian, and are widely divergent from other Germanic languages both due to these superstrata and their long isolation from the rest of the Germanic World.

The three main dialects of Gothic are Crimean Gothic, Azovian Gothic, and Swampy Gothic. These three groupings form a dialect continuum stretching from Svestapol up to Chernobyl.

For most of their early history, the Goths used a literary form of their language called High Gothic or Biblical Gothic, which was a standardized language used in writing based on the text of the Wuflian Bible.

While High Gothic was written in its own script, colloquial Gothic was written in a modified Greek alphabet that would eventually replace the High Gothic alphabet as well.

### Religion

The Goths are known for their adherence to Eastern Orthodox Christianity. The Gothic Orthodox Church is an autocephalous entity that separated from the Greek Church following the collapse of the Byzantine Empire. The Goths are staunch adherents to the Church, which they often cite as the greatest factor in preserving their identity.

A smaller Christian group of Goths are the members of the Crimean Catholic Church, a Western Rite church in full communion with the Roman Catholic Church, which was established by Anglo-Saxons who refused to convert to Orthodox Christianity with King Aethelred III.

While the majority are Christian, significant numbers of Muslim and irreligious Goths do exist as well.

### Festivals

The Goths have preserved a great deal of Germanic holidays that were integrated into their branch of Christianity.

Christmas, known as Juleis, is celebrated traditionally with the decoration of a Jule Log, and the practice of wassailing, in which celebrants will go from home to home singing.

Goths refer to Easter as Jostra, and celebrate with the decoration of eggs, which are also hung on trees, and with festivities that are ancient carryovers of fertility rites dedicated to the goddess Ostara. A practice seemingly borrowed from their Slavic neighbors is  a tradition in which men spank women that they find attractive and have some desire for with a special handmade whip called a korbač.

### Literature and Art

The Gothic language did not have a significant literary tradition until the Gothic Revival in the 1900s. Prior to this, the Goths mostly wrote in Greek, Russian or Arabic.