So... this may seem a little random but I’m watching Midsommar and since my last post about Germanic traditions and my specific ancestry seemed to interest some of you, why not talk a little bit more about specifics and my personal ancestry: a Germanic tribe called the Suevi.

Now, disclaimer, because it’s a little tricky to dive into... a LOT of the history of Germanic tribes were recorded through the lense of Roman historians so consuming any information about it will be coloured by how the romans saw and interpreted my ancestors.

The suevi were a larger, Germanic tribe located down south, north of the suabian alps. The word isn’t used like this anymore but the German word for peoples from my birth region stems from it: Schwaben. They largely shared Nordic belief systems but had many unique traditions.

In the image above, you can see examples from hairstyles that were specifically considered of suevi origin such as the suebian knot.
You can also see an example of knotted up strands of hair at the back of the head.

It’s a hairstyle I specifically feel drawn to because its origin is a fairytale belief that even my grandmother would tell me about:
At night, forest spirits would play in your hair and knot it up in strands and braids and it’s considered bad luck to brush them out.

It is unclear how old the suevi tribes actually were. The romans believed us to be a more modern tribe, but Pliny associated them with an ancestral tribe called irmonones from the 1st century AD, who settled around the Elbe during that time.

I know lots of people like to associate me automatically with Vikings and other Nordic tropes, and I don’t stop them because it’s too complicated to explain easily.
The short answer is: the suevi and other southern Germanic peoples didn’t have any Vikings.

Vikings really weren’t a peoples either - it was more like... a job. The same way as pirates are not a people.
Southern Germanic tribes shared a lot of the Nordic beliefs and gods, used the elder futhark Rune alphabet in some form, but otherwise were their own tribes.

The suevi come up frequently in Caesar’s records of the Germanic peoples because he perceived them as the most warlike. Which... is likely due to the close proximit of land, really. There are historical sites located near where my family lives that you can visit.

It gets really complicated once you look into distinct tribes and the history of war with Rome and the tribes that split off and joined, but eventually we all became the Alamanni, who were the peoples who were the very early foundation of Germany as we know it today.

Funnily, the suevi were known by the romans to be largely nomadic, more focused on hunting and animal husbandry instead of farm land. They never stayed in one place too long, which likely contributed to their warmongering characteristic.

We DO have strong connections to Norse mythology - strong enough that we made it into the Edda poems. Our proto-Norse name was Swabaharjaz and Sváva is a famous Valkyrie, aunt of Sigurd the dragon slayer, who appears in the eddas and literally refers to the suevi peoples.

I grew up with many of these stories without ever knowing its cultural significance or tribal connection. I was completely severed from those feelings for most of my life even though I heard and read many stories of Sigurd the dragon slayer. There are even movies!

I vaguely remember watching the Niebelungen movie with my dad once which is... a trip, I can tell you that But it covers Siegfried’s saga!
See for yourself, it’s QUITE WILD!

Anyways... I love exchanging with other Nordic folks about how to connect to our roots in healthy ways, but at some point it’s important to recognize that while we share similarities, Nordic peoples are not monolithic at all.

I share practically none of the Viking history and that’s ok. The overlaps are enough so it’s confusing. It’s moslty important to recognize that tribal history and culture is extremely complicated and that the oppressive white culture we have spread violently is a lie.

And, as always, if you are curious about all this and interested in the belief system: be aware that a lot of white supremacist groups continue to steal our symbols. Only asatru communities following the declaration 127 are actively fighting racism and are worth supporting.