What's A Prussian?

 I imagine that in recent years Prussians have felt a renewed spirit of unity. Once they traded and fought with Romans, viking Northmen, and Swedes with dignity. For a time they found it difficult to maintain their independence in the face of German, Pole, Lithuanian, and Russian incursions. At other times they found support from Lithuanians and learned a bit from Poles and Germans. They have found it difficult to love Russians, but very likely share some Slavic cousins with them.


For a time, being named by Romans disturbed their identity. Later their identity was disturbed by being tools and creators of the German state.


They are a people of the Baltic. It doesn't seem wrong to call a Prussian a Balt.


If you can find northwest Europe on your map, you can probably find the Baltic Sea. I think the people on the eastern shore of that sea may have been termed West Balts. I don't know why. Anyway if you are walking a beach of that eastern shore, look down, you may spot a nice little hunk of amber. There have probably been Prussians along that shore since before there were Romans in Rome.


The Prussian language, like other languages has changed over time. Some languages have disappeared with time. Prussian has come close to disappearing, but it has not. The old Baltic language is one of the oldest in Europe.


How close have my imaginings come to the facts. Tell me where I seem  to be closest to the facts and where I have been farthest from them.

A Kind of West Balt

I am curious about the Prussians and Prussia.

I'll begin to write out things that I think about those people and that place below. Please feel free to enlighten me where I am wrong or to comment as you will.

I think that they might be like Estonians or Latvians, but with a very different recent history.

Not very long ago Prussia disappeared, with the help of Russia, into the lands of Poland and Germany. "Prussia" may sound like Russia, but the two have not seemed to have gotten on well. Some say that Prussians are a kind of Pole or a kind of German. Some say that the German State began in Prussia. That may be true, and  many Prussians have spoken Polish and German; however, right now I believe that a Prussian is neither a Pole nor  German.

What do you think?