Svear Discussion

Dedicated for all DNA, Analysis Results, History, Research topics related to: Svear

The Svear were a North Germanic tribe who inhabited Svealand in central Sweden with a tribal center in Gamla Uppand one of the main groups of people in Sweden with a tribal center in Gamla Uppsala. The Heimskringla saga mentions that the Svear were a powerful tribe whose kings descended from Freyr. To the south resided another large tribe - the Geats - in Gotaland. The Svear, Geats and Gutes were eventually united into one state over time. During the Viking Age, the Svear constituted the basis of the Varangian subset which travelled eastwards to the Rus and eventually became the Varangian Guard. The modern name of Sweden derives from the Svear as do the modern people (svenskar). The Finnish and Estonian word for Sweden - Ruotsi - meanwhile derives from the name Rus.