The name Slavonia and its many meanings
Your chance to get properly confused like a medieval chronicler.
In the age-old tradition of European linguistic perplexity, the names of two countries and one Croatian region bear striking resemblance: Slovakia, Slovenia, and Slavonia. Those similarities can cause real confusion, including the popular myth that the Washington embassies of Slovakia and Slovenia meet up to swap their misaddressed mail once a month. The origins of these names can be traced back to the Latin word Sclauonia (Slavonia). In this examination, we delve into the territorial and conceptual boundaries of Sclauonia in the 13th and, in some cases, 14th centuries, drawing upon research from my 2014 monograph on the subject. Though perhaps not a page-turner, this scholarly work offers a nuanced understanding of the historical roots of whatever was and is Slavonia. And no, it didn’t make any money. But that’s why you will subscribe to Ister, right?
The term Sclauonia has been used in sources since the early Middle Ages. It is a well-established opinion that it, in the Greek form Σκλαβινία (Sclavinia), first appeared in Byzantine sources. From the 7th century onwards, it was used by numerous Byzantine authors, including the emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus whose work De administrando imperio with the name Sclavinia described the small Slavic principalities that stretched from Macedonia to Dalmatia. Porphyrogenitus also mentioned them in the east: "sklavinias of Drevljans, Dregovićs, Krivićs, Severus and other Slavs, who are tributary to the Russians."
Frankish sources also referred to the regions inhabited by various Slavic tribes on a general level as Sclauonia. The correspondence of two emperors, Frankish and Byzantine, from 871, testifies that such a conclusion also applies to the Slavs who were in the Pannonian-Adriatic area. Louis II writes to the Byzantine emperor about the Neretians, referring to them as Sclaveni and their territory as Sclavenia. The early medieval history of the Slovenian region also bears witness to the name Sclauonia. A noteworthy example is the painting from the Reichenau monastery, dating from around 998, depicting Emperor Otto III receiving gifts from crowned women personifying the countries under his rule, among them Sclauinia, Germania, Gallia, and Roma.
A similar depiction, but from the 14th century, can be found in the church of St. Pierre le Jeune in Strasbourg. It is a image of European countries that are depicted as crowned women riding toward the cross. Beside Sclaounia, these are Germania, Gallia, Anglia, Hibernia, Frisia, Scothia, Arragonia, Sicilia, Castilia, Hungaria, Polonia, Oriens and Litavia.
It can already be seen from these few examples that the name Slavonia was applied to various regions. This has led to much debate among historians as to the origins, spread, and evolution of the term. Writing about the territory called regnum Scaluonie (nowadays north-west Croatia more or less) in Hungarian and Croatian sources, Stanko Andrić concluded that this "little Mesopotamia" (it was between rivers Drava and Sava) can have a geographical-cartographic, generic and philological meaning. In his summation of the matter, Andrić presents the following insight: "From generic ethnonyms to toponyms for the province: the language also bears witness to the compression that is the strange fate of Slavonia."
The complexity of the term Sclauonia is perhaps best exemplified by two contemporaneous accounts. The first, the Gesta principum Polonorum, written between 1112 and 1118, offers a detailed description of the boundaries of the area known as Sclauonia. This region stretches from the land of the Sarmatians to Denmark and Saxony, from Thrace to Hungary and Carinthia, and from Bavaria to the shores of the Adriatic Sea, encompassing areas such as Dalmatia, Croatia, and Istria. The Gesta principum Polonorum describes Sclauonia as a land of abundance, rich in gold, silver, bread, and meat, with healthy air, bountiful rivers, and honey-rich forests. Most importantly, it states that Sclauonia has never been fully conquered. Its inhabitants, described as warlike warriors and industrious peasants, have maintained their independence.
This "border" from the Baltic to the Adriatic precisely coincides with the distribution of regions referred to as Sclauonia in Latin narrative sources. At first glance, it appears to be a general term for the regions located on the borders of "Latin" Europe. Almost all narrative sources that mention a Slavic area, highlight the use of the Slavonic language by its inhabitants. This is best illustrated in the description of the crusaders' passage through "Slavonia" along the Adriatic Sea in 1096, recorded by Raymond of Agiles and later supplemented by William of Tyre. According to them, “the inhabitants of this area live off their flocks and herds, and those who inhabit the seashores, differ from the others in customs and language, using the Latin language while the rest use the Slavonic language and wear barbarian clothing.”
So Gesta principum Polonorum paints a picture of Sclauonia as a land of biblical promise - lush and bountiful. However, this portrayal contrasts with the accounts of the First Crusade chroniclers Raymond and William, who describe the region as "desolate, impassable and hilly," the inhabitants are "wild and cruel," and the air sometimes seems "almost suffocating." This discrepancy in perception is not uncommon - as evidenced by the Jewish scholar Benjamin Tudela's description of Sclauonia in 1183. It’s a land next to Germany and "Bohemia, called Prague," and a place where child-selling is commonplace. Its inhabitants are deemed to be of the same moral caliber as the people of Russia (that sounds very interesting in 2023). These differing depictions of Sclauonia can be attributed to the Polish chronicler viewing it as his homeland (he used the word patria), while Raymond and William perceive it as a barbarian land. Tudela's usage of "Khennan" to describe Sclauonia aligns with the terminology used by Jewish scholars of the time, who also referred to the Slavic language as "Canaanite."
As the Crusader armies constantly passed through the Adriatic Sea en route to and from the Holy Land, accounts of these journeys have been well-preserved. One such account is that of Richard the Lionheart, who in 1192 was shipwrecked on his return from the Crusades and subsequently continued his journey by land, with his first stop being in Sclavonia near Aquileia. There, at a place called Gazaram, he negotiated a peaceful passage agreement with the "lord of the province". The Fourth Crusade left a significant impact in historical records pertaining to present-day Croatian territory. Geoffroy of Villehardouin wrote that the crusaders came to Zadar, which is located en Slavonie. The same chronicler also records an incident of a group of crusaders who separated from the main army following the capture of Zadar and attempted to pass through par Esclavonie. They were attacked and only a small number survived, opting to return to Zadar. This encounter serves as an example of the contrast between the city and rural areas in the eyes of the crusaders. Zadar is a city next to which you would look in vain for "more beautiful and richer," while the inhabitants of the hinterland are mentioned only as violent attackers.
As we can see, the meaning of the term Sclauonia varied depending on the perspective from which it was viewed. Venetian sources from this period reveal that the name Sclauonia was sometimes used to refer to the area of Melingoia in the Peloponnese in the 13th century. This suggests that the Venetians used the term to refer to regions inhabited by Slavic populations. However, this example from Peloponnese is an exception rather than the norm. The Venetian understanding of Slavonia is better reflected in a list of rulers and nobles with whom they maintained relations. The list, which can be dated to the turn of the 13th and 14th centuries, includes domains such as de Sclavonia et Bulgaria, de Sclavonia, and de Romania. It lists Serbian king Uroš, his son Stjepan, and the king of Raška, Stjepan, and his son Vladislav as rulers from Sclavonia. Additionally, after mentioning the Bulgarian rulers, the list includes prominent figures from Sclavonia such as Pavao Šubić, Duke Dujam of Krk, and Stjepan Babonić.
The sources of ecclesiastical provenance further complicate the understanding of the use of the term Sclauonia. The document Provinciale vetus sive Ecclesiae universae provinciarum notitia presents a list of eleven church administrative units, each comprising of one hundred and thirteen provinces. The list is somewhat unclear in relation to the Croatian historical area. It places Aquileia and its suffragans in Dalmatia, and the churches of Zadar and Split with their suffragans in Istria. Then, it lists the dioceses in Sclavonia, which are suffragans of the archdiocese of Dubrovnik. In this context, the mention of the Eastern Slavs' church organization in the chronicle Gesta Hammaburgensis ecclesiae pontificum is noteworthy. It states that the suffragans of the Archbishop of Magdeburg are bishops of six dioceses from the area referred to as tota Sclauonia. The same chronicle claims that Slavonia is the most beautiful province in Germany and was once inhabited by a people known as the Vandals. Furthermore, the Gesta Hammaburgensis offers additional intriguing information about Slavs and Slavic countries.
During the Middle Ages, when many people sought to reach the Holy Land, various "guides" were created to describe the journey. These guides often included basic geographical information and more or less detailed descriptions of individual countries, cities, local residents, and their daily habits. As one of the routes to the Holy Land passed along the Adriatic coast and the other through Hungary further south, Sclauonia was often included in these guides. An example of such a guide is the document called Directorium ad passagium faciendum per Philippum regem Franciae in terram sanctam anno 1332, which provides an abundance of historical and cultural data for the Byzantine Empire, Serbia, and the entire Balkans. According to this document, Sclauonia is an area made up of many kingdoms, located between the areas inhabited by Hungarians, Greeks, Dalmatians, Albanians and Vlachs, and subject to the Greeks, i.e. Byzantium. However, it contains some claims that deviate from the reality of the time, probably due to uncritical copying from other similar texts. This is confirmed by the fact that another document, Directorium ad Faciendum Passagium Transmarinum, provides an almost identical description of the area that includes Sclauonia.
Let’s stop here for now. We can see the name Slavonia has been used in sources since the early Middle Ages to describe various regions inhabited by Slavic tribes. The term has been used to describe different regions, with different characteristics and political statuses, depending on the source and context. Typical for the Middle Ages, that was often the source of confusion which in some cases continues to this day. Ask the embassies!