10 misconceptions about the way history paints ‘barbarians’ reveal how victors often twisted narratives to suit their own image. From the clean‑cut Viking to the rain‑fed Mongol empire, each myth unravels a fascinating truth.
10 The Vikings Were Cleanliness Fanatics
For ages, the popular image of Vikings was that of savage marauders, covered in grime and cruelty. Yet, recent scholarship shows they were actually quite the opposite: they cared deeply about personal hygiene, a rarity in their era. Vikings bathed regularly, crafted ornate combs, and even bleached their hair blond to meet beauty standards. They designated Saturday, known as “Iaugardagur,” as a special washing day.
In Icelandic settlements, a law imposed severe penalties on anyone who deliberately dirtied another person to shame them, underscoring how seriously they took cleanliness.
9 Rome Actually Flourished Under The Goths
Textbooks often claim the “Glory of Rome” ended with the Visigothic sack of 410 AD, the Vandal raid in 455 AD, or Odoacer’s deposition in 476 AD. In reality, Roman culture, law, and even the Senate survived. Under Ostrogothic leader Theodoric the Great, the city thrived. Though originally pagan, the Goths converted to Arian Christianity and co‑existed peacefully with other Christians and Jews. Roman arts and literature flourished under their patronage.
However, the Ostrogothic belief in a divine bloodline for the Amals dynasty eventually led to fragmentation after Theodoric’s grandson Athalaric died young. The Eastern Roman Empire, wary of heretical Arian rule, dispatched Belisarius in 535 AD to reclaim Italy, a campaign that depopulated much of the peninsula. Subsequent Lombard invasions sealed the Western Roman Empire’s fate.
8 The Greeks Considered Even Their Relatives Barbarians
The Greeks coined “barbarian” to mock foreign tongues, but they also used it for neighboring Greeks whose dialects they found unintelligible. When the Athenian harpist Stratonicus was asked who the greatest barbarians were, he quipped, “the Eleans.” The Eleans lived in Elis, the Peloponnesian home of the first Olympic Games—not a distant Persia or Africa.
Even the famed orator Demosthenes dismissed Philip II of Macedon as a barbarian, arguing that Macedonians were unrelated Greeks, “a miserable Macedonian!”—highlighting how the term served as a political slur even among kin.
7 The Greeks Actually Borrowed A Lot From Barbarians
The Mycenaean civilization, thriving in Bronze‑Age Greece, used the Linear B script, itself derived from the older Linear A of the Minoans on Crete. Thus, early Greeks heavily borrowed culture, art, and language from their southern neighbors.
Centuries later, the Greeks appropriated the Phoenician alphabet, likely between the 12th and 9th centuries BC. They also adopted numerical concepts from Egypt; Greek alphabetic numerals closely resemble Egyptian demotic numerals, a similarity scholars attribute to trade and the perceived superiority of the Egyptian system around 600 BC.
So despite their disdain for “barbarians,” Greeks eagerly absorbed foreign innovations to enrich their own civilization.
6 The Origins Of Chinese Ethnocentricity
Many assume Chinese xenophobia stems from modern politics, yet its roots stretch back to the Zhou Dynasty (1046‑256 BC). Zhou texts sharply distinguished “civilized” Chinese subjects from outsiders, often likening non‑Chinese peoples to “birds and beasts.”
Confucius reportedly remarked that “barbarians with a ruler are not as good as the Chinese without one,” while Mencius scolded a scholar for adopting foreign teachings, saying, “I’ve heard of using what is Chinese to change what is barbarian, but never the reverse.”
Neo‑Confucian thinkers later argued for peaceful assimilation: anyone possessing ritual and righteousness, regardless of origin, belonged to the Middle Kingdom.
5 Japanese Views On Foreigners
Japan’s population is overwhelmingly homogeneous—about 98.5 % ethnic Japanese. When Portuguese traders arrived at Tanegashima in 1543, locals were astonished. An early account described the newcomers as eating with their fingers, lacking self‑control, unable to read characters, and overall “harmless.”
These Westerners earned the label “Nanban,” meaning “Southern Barbarians.” The Dutch later received the prefix “Komo” (red hair) due to their distinctive appearance. Trade flourished until Japan’s isolationist policies halted foreign contact. The Meiji Restoration later erased “Nanban” as Japan opened up.
Today, the term “gaijin” (outsider) remains controversial—some view it as neutral, others as a derogatory label, even for lifelong residents who never fully escape the outsider tag.
4 The Celts Were An Advanced Civilization
Long dismissed by Greeks and Romans, the Celtic world stretched from the British Isles to the Russian frontier. Recent findings show Celtic ingenuity influenced Rome and, by extension, the modern world. The word “car” derives from the Celtic “karros,” reflecting their mastery of chariot construction.
Celtic druids excelled beyond mysticism; they practiced mathematics and geometry, trading knowledge with Greeks before Roman dominance. Combining astronomy with geometry, they mapped the world along celestial meridians and solar axes, laying a blueprint for Celtic colonization.
They also devised “vocal telegraph” stations—teams yodeling messages across distances—and built fortified settlements housing up to 10,000 people, facilitating trade of precious goods across Europe.
3 Attila Wasn’t So Bad
The “Scourge of God” terrified contemporaries, but modern scholars debate the extent of Attila’s brutality. While legends claim he murdered his brother to seize power, he actually granted his brother’s widow a governorship and cared deeply for his son. Many Romans served him loyally, preferring his rule over oppressive taxation in “civilized” empires.
Attila honored agreements: after demanding a massive tribute from Rome, he upheld the pact, ushering a period of peace. Despite tales of lavish plunder, he lived simply—sitting on a wooden stool, drinking from a wooden cup, and riding an unadorned horse—while Roman envoys displayed finery.
He even pursued romance: when Honoria, sister of the Western Roman Emperor, sent him a ring to escape an unwanted marriage, Attila interpreted it as a proposal, demanding half the empire as dowry. His sudden death—either from a massive nosebleed on his wedding night or possible murder—deeply shocked the Huns, who mourned with hair‑cutting, facial gashing, and wailing.
2 We Still Use Words Named After Them
Several barbarian tribes left linguistic legacies that persist today. The Vandals, infamous for sacking Rome in 455 AD, gave us “vandal” to describe a destructive person. The Avars, who demanded tribute from the Byzantine Empire after migrating in 567 AD, inspired the word “avarice” (originally “avaritia”). Slavic peoples, frequently enslaved, contributed to the modern term “slave.”
In medicine, the outdated term “Mongoloid” once described individuals with Down syndrome, coined by Langdon Down who thought the patients resembled Asiatic “barbarians.” The term was later abandoned in favor of “Down syndrome,” named after its discoverer.
1 The Mongols Have Rainfall To Thank For Their Conquests
Contrary to the long‑held belief that a severe drought forced the Mongols to expand, recent research shows a period of unusually heavy rainfall in central Mongolia during the early 13th century. This wet climate produced abundant harvests, fueling horses, livestock, and armies, enabling Genghis Khan’s rapid conquests.
Another myth claims the Mongols uniquely succeeded in winter invasions, a feat later failed by Napoleon (1812) and Hitler (1941) during the Little Ice Age and brutal winters. In fact, the Mongols invaded during the Medieval Warm Period, a temperate era that eased their campaigns, unlike the harsh winters that later conquerors faced.
So, while the Mongols reshaped world history, climate—rather than desperation—was a key driver of their empire‑building.