Sarmatia

English

Alternative forms

• Sauromatia

Etymology

From Latin Sarmatia, from Ancient Greek Σαρματία (Sarmatía), probably ultimately from Proto-Indo-Iranian *sárati, from Proto-Indo-European *sél-e-ti, from *sel- (“to run, flow”), thus meaning "hunters". More at Sarmatians.

According to some classical Greek authors, Sarmatia owes its name to the characteristic red hair of the Sarmatians.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sɑː(ɹ)ˈmeɪʃə/, /sɑː(ɹ)ˈmeɪʃi.ə/

Proper noun

Sarmatia

1. (historical) An ancient territory corresponding to the western part of greater Scythia (modern Ukraine, southern Russia, and the eastern Balkans).
   • 1854, Adolph Ludvig Kœppen, The World in the Middle Ages: An Historical Geography‎^[2], page 24:

     The southeastern part of Sarmatia between the Thanais (now Don) and Caucasus, was then called Asiatic Sarmatia, and was, before the arrival of the Huns, occupied by the Alani, renowned for their excellent cavalry.

   • 1966, Karol Buczek, The History of Polish Cartography: From the 15th to the 18th Century‎^[3], page 34:

     Whatever was its later fate, the map of South Sarmatia was a great step forward in the mapping of South East Europe, and in particular of the systems of the rivers Dniepr, Boh, Dniestr, and of the lower Danube.

   • 2010, Jerzy Axer, Katarzyna Tomaszuk, “Central-Eastern Europe”, in Craig W. Kallendorf, editor, A Companion to the Classical Tradition, page 139:

     Presenting the emerging concept of the Polish Commonwealth, Kraków humanists translated the Ptolemic formula differentiating between European and Asian Sarmatia into contemporary political geography, identifying Poland, Ruthenia, Lithuania and Moscow right up to the Don as Sarmatia Europaea.

Derived terms

• Asian Sarmatia
• Asiatic Sarmatia
• European Sarmatia
• Sarmatia Asiatica
• Sarmatia Europaea, Sarmatia Europæa, Sarmatia Europea

Related terms

• Sarmatian
• Sarmatic

Translations

ancient region in modern Ukraine, southern Russia and the eastern Balkans

• Albanian: Sarmati f (indefinite), Sarmatia f (definite)
• Aromanian: Sãrmãtii f, Sãrmãtie f (indefinite), Sãrmãtia f (definite)
• Danish: Sarmatien
• Finnish: Sarmatia
• French: Sarmatie (fr) f
• Greek: Σαρματία f (Sarmatía)

  Ancient: Σαρματία f (Sarmatía)

• Italian: Sarmazia f
• Marathi: सार्मेशिया (sārmeśiyā), सार्माटिया (sārmāṭiyā)
• Portuguese: Sarmácia f
• Sicilian: Sarmazzia f

See also

• Scythia