Migration Period spear
light spear used by the Germanic tribes
The spear or lance, together with the bow, the sword, the seax and the shield, was the main equipment of the Germanic warriors during the Migration Period and the Early Middle Ages.
Terminology
The pre-migration term reported by Tacitus is framea, who identifies it as hasta; the native term for 'javelin, spear' was Old High German gêr, Old English gâr, Old Norse geirr, from Proto-Germanic *gaizaz. The names Genseric, Radagaisus indicate Gothic *gais.
Latin gaesum, gaesus, Greek γαῖσον was the term for the lance of the Gauls. The Avestan language has gaêçu 'lance bearer' as a likely cognate. The Celtic word is found e.g. in the name of the Gaesatae. Old Irish has gae 'spear'. Proto-Germanic *gaizaz would derive from Proto-Indo-European *ghaisos, although loan from Celtic has also been considered, in which case the PIE form would be *gaisos. The Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch has *g'haisos (with a palatal velar aspirate), discounting the Avestan form in favour of (tentatively) comparing Sanskrit hḗṣas- 'projectile'.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Migration Period spear” as light spear used by the Germanic tribes. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the general reference register because the source frames it as light spear used by the Germanic tribes. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jan 17, 2024. The linked authority identifier is Q954417. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Migration Period spear”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Migration Period spear primary sources, Migration Period spear archive and Migration research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Migration Period spear”?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Migration Period spear” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.