Baltijos jūros kelias IX-XII a. Islandų sagų naratyvas

LTVikingų amžiuje Baltijos jūra, iki tol buvusi uždara ir jos rytinę dalį skyrusi nuo Europos, tapo jungiančia jūra. Straipsnyje atkreipiamas dėmesys į islandų sagų naraty-vinę tradiciją, pristatančią laivybą ir keliones Baltijos jūra. Šiaurės Europos naratyviniuose šaltiniuose dėmesys Baltijos jūrai matomas beveik išimtinai vien tik kelio į Rytus kontekste, o pati Baltijos jūra suvokiama kaip Rytų jūra - Eystrasalt, Austrmare ir pan. Šiame kelio į Rytus etape išryškėja ne tik strateginiai Danijos interesai, bet ir pietrytinėse bei rytinėse Baltijos jūros pakrantėse įsikūrusių vendų, kuršių, estų veikla. Straipsnyje koncentruojamasi ne į konkrečių šios veiklos epizodų fiksavimą, o į bendrą šiaurietiško naratyvo formuojamą šio kelio ir jo dalyvių veiksmų tradiciją. Esminiai žodžiai: islandų sagos, Baltijos regionas, Eresundas, vikingai, kuršiai. [Iš leidinio]

ENLong before the Viking Age, continental Europe and Scandinavia did not exist, culturally or economically, as separate worlds, having no knowledge of each other and no contact. However, Viking activities, which shaped the historical development of Europe as a whole (and beyond), also had an impact on the role of the Baltic Sea. When traveling the route from "the Varangians to the Greeks", one had inevitably to cross the Baltic Sea. By the 9th century, it was no longer a dividing line, but a link connecting the lands of the region. The Viking Age did not only determine fundamental political, socio-economic and cultural transformations in the Baltic Sea region. The processes of political centralization, the qualitative changes in economic life, and the emergence of urban settlements, emporia, new long-distance trade routes and destinations were responsible for the change of geopolitical role of the Baltic Sea itself. The first and most active response to these changes was the emergence of centralized political authority in Denmark, which took place earlier than in other parts of the region. However, the Danes, harboring their own interests and aspirations, were not the only ones taking the route to the East, or Austrvegr. The narrative shaped by the Icelandic sagas, mostly those of Kings, reflects not only the crucial role of the Baltic Sea as an integral part of the Eastern Route, but also the struggle over this route, in which Swedes, Norwegians, Wends, Curonians and Estonians were actively involved.The narrative sources of Northern Europe, including the narrative tradition of the Icelandic sagas, suggest a particularly fierce struggle for dominance in the Øresund, the Great Belt and the Little Belt, which were the only route for ships from the outer seas to enter the Baltic Sea. At the same time, it also reveals the importance of the Baltic Sea in the politics of the emerging early Scandinavian states. It can be argued that Denmark established its dominance in the straits by defeating the forces of Norway, or individual Viking leaders known as Sea Kings, and the Wends. Further east, the limit of Danish dominance on the high seas probably reached Bornholm. In the eastern and north-eastern Baltic Sea, no political or military power was able to assert its dominance. In this area, Curonian and Estonian (from the Saaremaa islands) raiders represented a major threat to sea travelers and shipping in general. Those who traveled by sea, as well as the inhabitants of the eastern coasts of Denmark, Sweden and Gotland suffered the attacks. It should be noted that, according to the Nordic narrative sources, the Curonians and Estonians (as above) often acted together. They emphasize their warlike nature, and almost all references to the representatives of the latter tribes do not identify them with other "easterners" (austrvegsman, austrman, etc.). Therefore, the prevailing view that there was little Norwegian influence in the eastern part of the Baltic Sea could be rectified. The narrative tradition of the sagas of Icelanders had revealed multiple rather than single attacks in the Baltic Sea by Norwegian Vikings, or even by Norwegian Konungar.It is particularly important to note that the Icelandic sagas use the name of the East Sea, or variations of it, rather than the Baltic Sea. The authors of the sagas or those who wrote them down did not know the name of the Baltic Sea and did not refer to it by that name. The sagas of Icelanders also reveal how the Baltic Sea itself was perceived. The East Sea (Eystrasalt, Austrmare) and the East Route (Austrvegr) in Icelandic sagas were understood in a geopolitical and not geographical context. In the geographical sense of our present-day understanding, theØresund, the Little Belt and the Great Belt are part of the Baltic Sea. For the Scandinavians of the Viking Age, the East (Baltic) Sea only "began" when they passed through the straits, Jutland and turned east. Although the straits were a very important part of the Eastern Route, they were not perceived as part of the East Sea. The complete dominance of the East Sea in the Northern narratives also raises questions about the origin of the name of the Baltic Sea, which was introduced by Adam of Bremen. An analysis of the narrative shaped by the Icelandic sagas brings into question whether the linking of the origin of the Baltic Sea name to the Belts is not more substantiated than other versions of the Baltic Sea etymology. The Eastern Route and the East Sea, which were of particular importance to the Scandinavian Vikings, only "began" after passing the Belts. The name of the last gateway to the sea may have been the reason why Adam of Bremen chose to give this name to the whole sea. However, the issue of Mare Balticum versus Mare Belticum is the subject of another study. Keywords: Icelandic sagas, Baltic region, Eresund, Vikings, Curonians. [From the publication]