821:
etimologijos zodynas I, Vilnius 1988, 231). The ending -o corresponds to Common
Prussian nominative singular -o (long), well attested in known Old Prussian Written Monuments (so-called "Elbing Vocabulary"). The diphthong au in German Drausen points to the same long *-(Dr)ū-, regularly diphthongized in later Prussian. No problem persists for modern Prussologists as concerns Truso. Such a restoration shows the continuity of Western Baltic on this territory in course of several hundred years, probably even before the attested Truso, which is the first known settlement name in the coastal region. The possible originating cultures are not diminished by this restoration, but the linguistic evidence points to the presence of Balts on this territory.
483:) where the traces of some workshops have been found that were on the then edge of the lake. A large abundance of finished and partly finished artifacts in antler and amber have been found. They were manufactured in structures of about 5 by 10 metres (16 ft × 33 ft), and long houses about 6 by 21 metres (20 ft × 69 ft) above ground, three rooms, made of wood, believed to be residences also. A cache of wrecked boats has been found. The artifacts are similar to both Slavic and Scandinavian equivalents. Some archaeologists suggest that this may be the site of Truso; however, the name may have referred to a collection of settlements.
466:. It runs through a dredged channel in the lake and becomes an overland canal to the south; that is, the canal is composed of sections connected by tracks for lifting and lowering vessels. It joins a number of lakes to the south, but they are not drained by the canal. During its life the canal was used mainly to haul timber to the coast. After destruction in World War II the canal was restored in 1948 but finds little commercial use now. Instead the entire route has been converted into a recreational area featuring nature preserves such as Lake Druzno.
370:, the main right branch of the lower Vistula, at the edge of the lowland of the delta (Żuławy Wiślane), which is a region of shifting sediments and channels partly controlled by dikes, dams and ditches. The lake is about 181 square kilometres (70 sq mi) in area and sometimes up to 1.8 metres (5.9 ft) below sea level. The delta ends at Elbląg upland (Wysoczyzna Elbląska), much of which is wooded. The delta itself is sparsely populated, despite the presence of large cities nearby (
551:. The order's modus operandi was to sack and burn an Old Prussian town and then hold it against reoccupation with a stone keep nearby, around which a new town of Germanic or mixed ethnicity would grow. There is no evidence yet that they practiced that method on Truso, although the question is still open. According to the Museum at Elbląg, Truso was burned down by pirates or robbers two centuries before. Its relationship to the order at Elbing remains unknown.
56:
229:
63:
40:
799:
On the right bank of the
Vistula the Proto-Baltic speakers had been gradually giving ground to the Proto-Slavs in the east and lost Pomerania to Germanic expansion. They divided into West and East Baltic in the middle of the 1st millennium. The Goths achieved domination over the West Balts for a time
655:
This passage tells us that the topography was more or less modern. The lake is not named, but it is considered a lake drained by the Ilfing River. Being east of the
Weissel, Truso, the lake and the river must be in Witland, but Wulfstan does not say that. He describes the Estonians (Balts) as being a
640:
to Truso in seven days keeping
Weonodland ("Wendland") on the right as far as the mouth of the Weissel (Vistula). These Venedi are on the opposite bank of the Vistula from the Greater Venedi of Ptolemy. By mouth of the Vistula Wulfstan explains that he means the passage between Frisches Haff and the
385:
The
Prussians called Vistula Lagoon by the name "fresh-water bay", which it was in those days. Since then the greatly diminished egress of Vistula water, due to human uses, has brought Baltic water into the bay, now brackish. As a result, back currents in the river bring intrusions of brackish water
752:
is in fact Proto-Slavic. By 1000 AD it was showing traces of influence by regional dialects. By that time the Slavs had been on the Baltic coast for some time; i.e., Wulfstan's
Weonods were speakers of Proto-Slavic. They were probably there before Charlemagne, but he encouraged them to settle along
446:
In ancient times the lake was deeper and of wider extent. In the troubled Viking Age and the conflicts and acts of piracy between the various tribes of the Balts and voyagers from
Scandinavia and elsewhere, the lake would have been an ideal masked route for shallow-draft vessels, such as the Viking
486:
The settlement is dated from the late 8th century to the early 10th by pottery. Trenches nearby have uncovered two layers of peat sandwiching a layer of peat and sand over a thick layer of silt. The layers have been dated by a variety of methods. The history of the lake is roughly reconstructed as
811:
The Slavs had been moving in on the Old
Prussians but had been stopped by them. The different duchies made hypocritical claims to lands they never controlled and invited the Teutonic Order to suppress "rebellions" there. It is possible therefore that the Kashubian Duchy of Gdańsk was asserting a
408:
Twelve streams empty into the lake radially, with water from another twelve canals being pumped into it. They bring about 6.9 cubic metres per second (240 cu ft/s) into the lake (1970) with about 7 draining through the river (1975). Variability in these figures as well as wind and back
858:
If the place was named from the reeds, which are still there, it probably acquired the name Trusom during the growth of the second lake, evolving into the Old
Prussian reconstruction from which came the Germanic Drusen, High German Drausen. Such a derivation still does not pinpoint the language
820:
The name of the settlement has been restored in Old
Prussian by prominent worldwide acknowledged Balticists, on the basis of Wulfstan's German (t/d), as *Drūsā - cf. Druso first by Georg Gerullis (Die altpreußischen Ortsnamen, Berlin 1922, 187), and recently - by Vytautas Maziulis (Prūsu kalbos
381:
The lake today is a 13 to 29 square kilometres (5.0 to 11.2 sq mi). body of water with a mean depth of about 1.2 metres (3.9 ft) and a maximum depth of 3 metres (9.8 ft). The lake is drained by the Elbląg River. There is only a 0.1 metres (3.9 in) difference in altitude
382:
between the lake and Elbląska Bay, which projects from Vistula Lagoon. The surface altitude of these bodies varies for a few reasons, such as wind. When there is a strong wind blowing to the south the bay can be a meter or so higher than the lake, which causes back currents in the river.
536:, who came with Boleslaw Chrobrie's soldiers, had been beheaded further north-east at the coast of the Baltic Sea near (Fischhausen), now Rybaki, for cutting down the sacred groves of the Old Prussians as part of an effort to conquer them under guise to convert them in (997
302:, which stood within the lands now occupied by Elbląg. The lake is greatly reduced from its original size partly due to large building expansion of housing in the last few decades, but mainly because of the natural death of the lake by sedimentation. The lake is the site of a
644:
The Ilfing River runs east of the Weisel from a lake on the banks of which stands Truso into the Estmere (Eastern Sea-Ostsee), where it is incorporated into the Weissel; i.e., Wulfstan sees the Ilfing as a tributary of the Weissel and Estmere as the lower Weissel.
629:. It is the first mention of the lake in history and also briefly describes the Prussians of the times, which he calls "Aesti" .Aisti- Aesti (meaning easterners) was the name used for Baltic Prussian in records starting 800 years earlier.
512:
Delta. The combined lake and bay might have served as a natural border in antiquity but whether it was one remains to be demonstrated. Truso must have been settled between the 2000 BP and 1000 BP lake maxima. Truso might well have been at
585:
might have been there under that name. There is no explicit mention of a town of Danzig and he does not give his usual list of river towns for the Vistula and eastward. Truso was at a location where already in the
832:. It might have been named from being a place of gathering and resting for the caravan traders of various nationalities. However the name Drużno is nothing else as a later polonizing of the original Baltic name.
870:. War years and the take-over by communists stopped further research. Recently excavations near Gut Hansdorf (now Janowo) were resumed by Polish authorities and the site of 20 hectares (49 acres) unearthed.
800:
and then were gone. After 1000 Old Prussian Galindian and Sudovian existed. In East Baltic Lithuanian and Latvian were distinct. Between east and west was Curonian. This was the ethnic distribution when the
840:
319:
562:, writing in the period of the initial lake, refers to the entire Gulf of Gdańsk as Venedicus Bay and states that the Greater Venedae occupied its coast. The name is known also among the Slavic
656:
rich and populous nation divided into towns, each of which was ruled by a king. The passage does not pinpoint Truso as being in Weonodland or Eastland and does not say if they are Estonians.
648:
Weonodland extends as far as the Weissel, after which Witland, the westernmost part of Eastland, begins. It is generally agreed that Wulfstan is interpreting the source of Tacitus'
386:
into the lake. Generally the southern end remains fresh. There probably always were reversals of river current, which must have speeded traffic between Frisches Haff and the lake.
455:. It rose to prominence as that. The remains of Truso may be one of the archaeological sites in the area, or it may be under Elblag, or may have been obliterated by construction.
504:
A second advance of the delta created the current configuration by 1000 BP except that the lake was larger and deeper. It has been filling in and growing over since then.
722:. East of them were the Venedae, south of whom were the Galindae (one of the Prussian tribes). The Venedae therefore must have been the coastal Estonians of Wulfstan,
695:, Ptolemy's border between Greater Germany and European Sarmatia. On the left bank Ptolemy lists only peoples he considers Germans. There is no sign of any Venedi,
566:, but he may have meant by "Greater" that Balts were to be included; if not, one would have to ask where the historical Balts came from. There were some historical
1015:
808:
and from the pope. The papal bull also granted them the government of all the Balts, as well as the Finnic Estonians, with consequences that continue today.
405:. It should have sedimented over long ago but the high throughput of water from various sources brings fresh Oxygen into the lake, retarding its aging.
748:(742-814 AD), which became the Slavic word for king, entered Proto-Slavic, and other indicators used by historical linguists, it has been deduced that
718:
On the right bank are the Gythones. It would not be surprising to find Goths there too, but if the Gythones are Danzigers, they must have extended to
948:
Marek Jagodzinski & Maria Kasprzycka, "The early mediaeval craft and commercial centre at Janow Pomorski near Elblag on the South Baltic Coast",
680:, perhaps even into dialects. As the greater Venedi and the Weonods cannot have spoken the same language the name must once have applied to both
24:
409:
currents cause expansion and contraction of the lake over wide areas. The total capacity is about 22.4 million cubic metres (18,200
733:
had abandoned the left bank of the Vistula. Some may have remained in and around the Vistula Delta, especially Danzig, possibly Truso. The
338:
99:
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the Baltic. Adalbert's Danzig was not only Christian but very recently under Slavic control, if not to some degree Slavic speaking.
652:
as Eastland. The Estonians ultimately inherited the name, but in Wulfstan it has to mean at least the Prussians, perhaps further.
962:
279:. As it is currently not deep enough to qualify as a lake hydrologically and receives some periodic inflow of sea water from the
287:, some suggest that it be termed an estuary reservoir. A village of recent origin also called Drużno is situated near the lake.
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792:, which spit into others including Kashubian-speaking areas west of Gdańsk. Kashubian is distinguished by a large number of
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brought a number of archaeological finds to light and it was assumed that it was Truso. These artifacts were kept at the
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479:
Janow Pomorski was after 1945 the name of the village of Hansdorf about 7 km to the southeast of Elbing (now
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508:
The lake in this view is seen as a transitory phenomenon created by accidents of topography and the growth of the
1010:
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had expanded north into Pomerania. Proto-Slavic began to differentiate after the Slavs expanded beyond their
427:
The lake is valuable currently mainly as a nature preserve. Some 20,000 migratory waterfowl use it, chiefly
991:, article by Roman Cieslinski on the flow of sea water into the lake published by Acta Geophysica Polonica.
517:, but the artifacts give no indication that the native populations were Prussian, Slavic or Scandinavian.
602:
history it is known, that Northmen, Danes came to Prussia and intermarried. A number of swords along the
577:
by name (Borusci), but also the Gythones appear at the mouth of the Vistula. These can be interpreted as
859:
spoken by the settlers. However this view does not correspond to conclusions of the main Balticists.
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839:, whose conjectures are strongly outdated at least in the field of the Baltic linguistics, lists
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nominal claim over Lake Drużno and Truso, but it was never one recognized by the Old Prussians.
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540:). This circumstantial evidence is not conclusive about the ethnicity of the founders of Truso.
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ships. When the lake became useless for that purpose Elblag was still a port with access to the
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in the report of sailor Wulfstan from the end of the 9th century. The report was included in
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To display the characters of the site correctly set the coding to Baltic from the View menu.
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In an attempt to make the inland region more accessible, the Prussian government opened the
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opened hostilities against the Old Prussians, putting down a castle at the future
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16:"Drusensee" redirects here. For the lake in Schleswig-Holstein in Germany, see
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715:(Elbingers?, local name is to this day Albinger) dwell on the lower Vistula.
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971:, describes the formation of the Druzno Lake Nature Reserve in recent times.
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homeland in the 6th century AD, too late for the foundation of Truso.
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and that Truso was in or projected into the Old Prussian dukedom of
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The Project Gutenberg Etext of Discovery of Muscovy etc, by Hakluyt
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After Adalbert events moved rapidly to produce great changes.
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left an account of a voyage dated to about 880 AD as told to
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Originally Ebląska Bay extended into the region of the lake.
520:
It is true that in 1237 the entire right bank of the lower
389:
The lake is surrounded by and includes marsh, swamp and
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later in Latvia, who may have been their descendants.
306:, one of the 13 sites in Poland protected under the
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263:) is a body of water historically considered a
711:to the south of them. Some Gotini (Goths) and
8:
847:root, not used in English, but appearing in
298:, is connected to the ancient trade city of
835:On the other hand, the historical linguist
828:in origin: "(Z)Drużno" means "together" in
862:In 1897 and in the 1920s excavations near
29:
855:words from a Balto-Slavic form *trusom.
335:The central coordinates of the lake are
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161:13–29 km (5.0–11.2 sq mi)
879:
764:had formed and was contending with the
416:Further information on the river:
393:thickets. On its surface are floating
1016:Lakes of Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship
788:. Eastern Pomerania was the Duchy of
691:Each were on a different bank of the
621:and inserted into his translation of
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323:which was written in Anglo-Saxon in
25:Drużno, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship
660:Languages of the ethnic populations
320:The Voyages of Ohthere and Wulfstan
137:1,084 km (419 sq mi)
62:
401:and the marshes feature tracts of
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965:(Birdlife International website).
606:river, attest to their presence.
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1:
366:. It lies to the east of the
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888:"Druzno Lake Nature Reserve"
688:(unless Ptolemy was wrong).
581:or the early settlements of
294:, in earlier records called
969:New Ramsar sites for Poland
707:live in Pomerania with the
610:Wulfstan and the prehistory
423:Historical uses of the lake
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824:In one theory the name is
804:received Prussia from the
672:language had divided into
555:Ptolemy and the prehistory
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198:Druzno Lake Nature Reserve
22:
15:
976:"...SEA WATERS INFLOW..."
923:Encyclopædia Britannica,
895:Sites Information Service
573:Ptolemy does mention the
451:and through there to the
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49:
37:
914:3.5 on European Sarmatia
275:delta, near the city of
271:on the east side of the
169:1.2 m (3.9 ft)
952:, Volume 65, Number 248
729:By Wulfstan's time the
232:Location of Druzno Lake
1026:Ramsar sites in Poland
925:Languages of the World
470:Prehistory of the lake
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177:3 m (9.8 ft)
1021:Natura 2000 in Poland
997:(search for Wulfstan)
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23:For the village, see
806:Emperor Frederick II
731:East Germanic tribes
726:ancestral speakers.
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475:Janow Pomorski site
350: /
111: /
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670:Proto-Balto-Slavic
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534:Adalbert of Prague
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211:Reference no.
543:In 1237 also the
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267:in northern
236:
235:
158:Surface area
963:Druzno Lake
746:Charlemagne
697:Pomeranians
399:Potamogeton
357: /
325:King Alfred
118: /
93:Coordinates
69:Druzno Lake
44:Drużno Lake
33:Druzno Lake
1005:Categories
985:(855
943:References
853:Lithuanian
794:Low German
786:Slovincian
778:Pomeranian
739:Carpathian
713:Aelvaeones
701:Kashubians
596:Carnuntium
592:Amber Road
441:Chlidonias
403:Phragmites
327:'s reign.
292:Drausensee
283:along the
257:Lithuanian
253:Drausensee
203:Designated
174:Max. depth
950:Antiquity
790:Pomerelia
782:Kashubian
758:Pomerania
627:Histories
575:Prussians
530:Pomesania
487:follows:
418:Kowalewka
331:Geography
296:Drusensee
84:Northern
18:Drüsensee
900:25 April
816:The name
770:Lekhitic
395:Nymphaea
81:Location
796:loans.
705:Ruticli
693:Vistula
666:Ptolemy
638:Jutland
623:Orosius
604:Nemunas
560:Ptolemy
522:Vistula
510:Vistula
411:acre⋅ft
345:19°27′E
273:Vistula
106:19°27′E
983:
893:Ramsar
841:*trus-
826:Slavic
774:Polish
762:Poland
703:. The
650:Aestii
634:Hedeby
583:Gdańsk
549:Elbing
481:Elbląg
464:Elbląg
376:Elblag
372:Gdańsk
342:54°4′N
277:Elbląg
269:Poland
261:Drūsuo
249:German
241:Polish
237:Drużno
149:Poland
103:54°4′N
86:Poland
979:(PDF)
874:Notes
735:Slavs
709:Lugii
686:Slavs
682:Balts
579:Goths
568:Vends
564:Wends
429:Anser
391:alder
368:Nogat
315:Truso
300:Truso
144:Basin
902:2018
851:and
784:and
684:and
676:and
439:and
437:Grus
433:Anas
265:lake
214:1563
987:KiB
699:or
664:By
594:to
1007::
890:.
780:,
776:,
625:'
538:AD
496:BP
443:.
435:,
431:,
374:,
310:.
259::
255:,
251::
247:;
243::
989:)
981:.
904:.
498:.
239:(
27:.
20:.
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