Re: Cultures whose own name is unknown


Richard Fangnail wrote:
Weren't terms like "Hyksos" made up by historians long after the Hyksos
people died out? Are there other names of cultures like that?

Perhaps the simple answer would be: most prehistoric peoples and
cultures. Only in the rare cases where they left written records and
happened to mention their name for themselves are things any different.
Normally, they get named for the place where their remains were found,
or some distinctive aspect of their material culture, or in some other
imaginative way.

Other examples: "Anasazi" in the Southwestern US -- a Navaho word
meaning "old enemies".
"Lapita" in the Pacific -- the name of the site where their distinctive
pottery style was first recognized.

Ross Clark



Were older Mesoamerican names made up later on, like Maya or Aztec?

.

Relevant Pages

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