Slavs, << slahvz, >> are any of several groups of peoples, most of whom live in eastern Europe. There are about 300 million Slavs. They speak similar languages, called the Slavic or Slavonic languages.
The first Slavs may have lived more than 5,000 years ago in a region that now forms part of northwestern Ukraine and southeastern Poland. From the A.D. 200’s to the 500’s, they migrated to other parts of Europe. Some Slavs settled in what is now western Russia and in other parts of eastern and central Europe. Other Slavs migrated to the region of southeastern Europe known as the Balkans.
During the 800’s, the Slavs established the Great Moravian Empire, which united the peoples of central Europe for the first time. In 907, the Great Moravian Empire was conquered by the Magyars, the ancestors of the Hungarians. Since then, some of the Slavs have been ruled by a number of foreign powers, including the Byzantine Empire, the Holy Roman Empire, Austria-Hungary, and Germany.
In 1918, after World War I ended, the Slavs established such independent states as Czechoslovakia, Poland, and what later became Yugoslavia. Germany conquered these states during World War II (1939-1945). The Soviet Union dominated most Slavic peoples from its formation in 1922 until its collapse in 1991.
Historians classify the Slavs into three main groups—(1) East, (2) West, and (3) South—based on the region in which these people live.
East Slavs
consist of the Belarusians, or White Russians; the Russians, or Great Russians; and the Ukrainians, or Little Russians. The East Slavs were strongly influenced by the culture of the Byzantine Empire (see Byzantine Empire). About A.D. 988, the ruler of the East Slavs, Grand Prince Vladimir I, also spelled Volodymyr, became an Orthodox Christian. He married a Byzantine princess. Most of the people under his rule also turned to Christianity. Today, many East Slavs belong to Eastern Orthodox Churches.
West Slavs
form a group that includes the Czechs; the Slovaks; the Poles; and the Wends, who also are known as Sorbs or Lusatians. The Wends live in eastern Germany. During the 800’s, two Greek monks, named Cyril and Methodius, converted many West Slavs to Christianity. At that time, church services were held in Greek or Latin, which few people could understand. But Cyril and Methodius held services in the language of the Slavs, called Old Church Slavonic.
As the West Slavs became involved in the affairs of western Europe, they also became influenced by the Roman Catholic Church. Through the centuries, the Catholic Church has strongly influenced western European culture. Today, most West Slavs are Catholics.
South Slavs
are a group composed of the Bulgarians, the Croats, the Macedonians, the Serbs, and the Slovenes. During the 800’s, many South Slavs were converted to Christianity by followers of Cyril and Methodius. But these Slavs were also strongly influenced by the Byzantine culture. Today, most South Slavs belong to Eastern Orthodox Churches. Most members of the group live in the Balkans.
