Belated question: How related were italic people to one another and the greeks?

[hellas1]

Hey all,

I've always wondered what language, cultural similarity, racial and linguistic closeness the various "Italic" peoples had w/one another and the Greeks.

The Etruscans used Greek motifs, if you will.

The Romans went Greek crazy: Virgil-Captive Greece has taken Rome captive.

Any insights anyone?
hellas1

P.S. I know that Greek is still spoken in Sicily and in the Toe and Heel areas of Calabria.

[jonny duck]

I like to think that the Aenid was more of a general tale of the fallout from the greek city wars travelling to italy and setteling there. David Gemmel raises a point that it is likely that rome was a town/village before the aenid took place, used for trading with the greeks and perhaps set up by the greeks. Mere speculation though.

[SigniferOne]

This is a broad question. Are you asking about the ethnicities of Italy, about language groups, cultural affinities etc?

[Hister]

Yeah that is too broad of a question - can you be more specific in what are you interested in?

P.S. try public beta that is out now

[hellas1]

Hi all,

I CANNOT believe this is out!

SOMEONE IS GETTING REP-PED!

BTW, I mean what genetic relations did they have with one another and with the greeks?

That's all,
hellas1

[Hister]

I believe Luciano is best suited to tell you that 'cos he is the historian par excellence when it comes to such questions.

[SigniferOne]

BTW, I mean what genetic relations did they have with one another and with the greeks?

It's still a very vague question. I guess there are a few basic guidelines.

There were some cultural 'groups' you might say -- Etruscans in the north. Romans right beneath them. Then the Samnites, Bruttians, Lucanians, even Sabines -- all in one genetic Oscan family. They all had a very similar culture (although Sabines were mixed with the Romans of course).

If you're interested in Roman genetic makeup, we have found Greek vases in the middle of archaic Rome, and the earliest Greek inscription anywhere in the world was found just outside Rome; so that should indicate that there were lots of Greeks living in Rome from the 7th century forward.

Thus far for central Italy.

Greeks did not intermarry very much with the Italic tribes right north of them (e.g. the Bruttii) who loved to descend from the mountains and constantly try to raid and pillage Greek towns, not being very interested in its culture in the first place.

Apuli and Messappi were of one genetic Iapygian family, but they had very different cultures. The Apulians were a big exception to the Italic tribes surrounding the Greeks -- they absorbed Greek culture so much that in some ways they were practically indistinguishable from it. The Messappi were more like the Bruttii and Lucani, than Apuli -- fairly rude, tribe-like societies rather interested in raid and pillage.