We’ve already discussed Tacitus’ Germania in numerous places including here. But let’s revisit one point. Take this phrase:
“sic Suevi a ceteris Germanis, sic Suevorum ingenui a servis separantur.”
That is the way this is usually quoted. Except that the “servis” above is actually capitalized in some editions:
“sic Suevi a ceteris Germanis, sic Suevorum ingenui a Servis separantur.”
Why would Tacitus capitalize the noun “slaves”?
And how does that fit with Vibius Sequester’s:
“Albis Germaniae Suevos a Cerveciis dividiit: mergitur in Oceanum”?
There is something else.
It is more than strange that the Slavs had always been confused with Serbs (indeed Safarik and some others have previously stated that they thought “Serbs” may have been the original name) and here we have these Suevi and Servis. And both of these in roughly the same geographic area.
What would Ockham’s Razor suggest?
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