Talk:Volga trade route

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An entry from Volga trade route appeared on Wikipedia's Main Page in the Did you know? column on October 27, 2006.

1 Staraya Ladoga
2 The Rus' as Swedes
3 Why the route collapsed?
4 Kudos

[edit] Staraya Ladoga

Staraya Ladoga is not "a modern Russian town". It is neither town nor modern. Both linguistically and historically, it is the same settlement as Norse Aldeigjuborg. --Ghirla ^-трёп- 22:44, 24 October 2006 (UTC)

I suppose you mean "etymologically" rather than "linguistically." Beit Or 10:59, 25 October 2006 (UTC)

[edit] The Rus' as Swedes

The identification of the Rus with the Swedes is original research, pure and simple. Not only there is no consensus that they were the "Vikings" as Beit Or likes to term them, but, even among the supporters of the Normanist theories, their "ethnic" affiliation is highly disputable. According to all modern research I was able to consult, Rurik (of Dorestad?) and his men are believed to have come from Jutland. Ladoga is built on the model of a Danish town; archaeological coincidences are striking. Most linguists, however, tend to connect the Varangians of Rus with proto-Norwegians: the analysis of their names points that way. I'm not aware of any compelling evidence that the Varangians came from Sweden. Neither there is any proof that "Danes" or "Swedes" were ethnically distinct from their fellow Vikings at such at early date, let alone "Swedes from the Kingdom of Uppsala". Even Wiglaf, renowned for his Swedocentrism, did not resort to such inflammatory assertions. Anyway, this discussion belong to the Rus, rather than to this article. --Ghirla ^-трёп- 07:29, 25 October 2006 (UTC)

No, the identification of the founders of Aldeigjuborg as Swedes is well-sourced to a famous Danish historian. That they were Scandinavians cannot possibly be disputed anywhere. Beit Or 10:55, 25 October 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Why the route collapsed?

There are more explanations why the route collapsed than meets the eye. The Dnieper route, after the removal of the capital to Kiev and the steady of weakening of the Pechenegs, provided a lucrative alternative. I don't see which route was was "primary" and which was "secondary". Their comparative assessment needs to be well sourced and substantiated. Other reasons for the decline of this route may include the disintegration of Khazaria, the rise of a hostile Islamic state in the Middle Volga, and the general transfer of trade routes to the south at the period of the Crusades. Please be more careful with your assertions, especially in the lead of the article. --Ghirla ^-трёп- 07:36, 25 October 2006 (UTC)

Feel free to edit supplying sources. Beit Or 10:56, 25 October 2006 (UTC)