Who were the Etruscans?

The Etruscans populated a large part of what is now Italy, from about 900 to 90 BC. The Etruscans had their own language, which disappeared as a living language around 20 AD. The homeland of the Etruscans (Etruria) was located on the site of present-day Tuscany, in the Tiber Valley in Umbria and on the north side of Lazio. The current Perugia was one of the most important Etruscan cities.

The Etruscan Civilization: Its Beginnings and Influence on Roman Culture

The Etruscans were one of the first peoples to live in the mountainous region of the Apennines. They exerted a great influence on the development of Roman culture and civilization. In their heyday, the Etruscans were one of the most highly developed peoples of antiquity. 

Not only did they have their own language, but they were also great in the fields of arts, religion and political structures. Although much is still unknown about this ancient civilization, a few things have become known through the many excavations and Archaeological finds, some of which throw a whole new light on what has been assumed until now.

The Mysterious Origins of the Etruscans

The Etruscans are today considered a mysterious people whose origins are still shrouded in mystery. Modern historians believe that this nation was formed by ancient local tribes mixed with immigrants from the Alps, Scythia and migrants from the Anatolian area. For the Romans, the Etruscans were neighbors of the Latin tribes, who were later assimilated by the Romans.

The influence of Etruscan culture

Undeniably, the Etruscans influenced Roman culture and civilization. The Romans borrowed much from the Etruscans in terms of skills and traditions, culture and religious rituals, and the art of building. It is difficult to name a field in which you do not find Etruscan influences.

For example, the Roman name Lucius comes from the Etruscan Lucumon. It was the name of the first king of Rome of Etruscan origin (the fifth of all Roman kings), Lucius Tarquinius Priscus. And Tarquinius refers to Lucius' descent from the Etruscan city of the same name.

The last Roman king, the grandson of Lucius, was also called Tarquinius after his grandfather. Gladiator games are also of Etruscan origin. They are considered a human sacrifice to underground Etruscan gods. Many Roman gods were originally Etruscan, such as Juno (Etruscan: Uni) and Minerva (Menrva). Only later were they found in Greek matches in the form of Hera and Athena.

Differences between the Etruscans and the Romans

The Etruscans were a very different people from the Romans. Unlike originally landbound Rome, the Etruscans were excellent navigators and shipbuilders. No less navigators than the Punic and Greek peoples, they controlled the northern part of the Mediterranean, including the colony of Corsica.

The Greeks even called this area the Tyrrhenian Sea, precisely in honor of the Etruscans, whom the Greeks called Tyrrhenians. The Adriatic Sea is named after the Etruscan city of Adria. The Romans had one major city, Rome, which strictly controlled and ruled all Roman provinces.

The weaknesses of the Etruscan civilization and its end

The Etruscans had organized their cities into a confederation of independent city-states. This was a weakness in the wars with Rome, as the Etruscans were unable to unite against the Roman threat and concentrate the military power of all their cities for this purpose. The Etruscans also had kings, but they ruled their own cities separately, without union between them. That is why the Etruscans ended as sadly as the ancient Greeks.

The Etruscan language, which is still not fully deciphered, has nothing in common with Latin. It has not been possible to classify this language at all. In any case, it is not an Indo-European language. Etruscan art also bears little resemblance to Roman art. The medicine of the Etruscans was admired by the Romans (even prosthetic teeth have been found in Etruscan tombs), yet the citizens of Rome preferred Greek doctors.

The Etruscans fought in chariots and during the holidays they enjoyed racing these vehicles. The Romans adopted this form of sports. Unfortunately, not much else remained of the Etruscans who were assimilated by the Romans. Etruscan cities were destroyed and rebuilt, the culture mixed with Roman culture and the language was lost. In 89 BC, all Etruscans received Roman civil rights. With that, the Etruscan civilization effectively ceased to exist. The Etruscans had become Romans.

The Etruscans remain shrouded in mystery

Few monuments of ancient Etruscan culture have survived. Only thanks to the Etruscan tombs found by archaeologists, such as the Campana cave on the site of Veia, destroyed by the Romans, can we have any idea of ​​Etruscan times, albeit fragmentary and incomplete.

For example, we know that there were cultural contacts between the Etruscans and the Egyptians, from whom the Etruscans borrowed the principle of the funerary vessels - canopies.

Etruscan sculpture has Scythian counterparts and images on vases have Greek counterparts. The Etruscans learned from their neighbors, the Greek settlers south of the Apennine Peninsula. Not only in terms of imaging techniques, but sometimes also in terms of subjects.

Yet the great mysteries of the Etruscan people have yet to be discovered.