Re: Bastarnae (was Old Europe & the IEs.)

Thanks Steve, Rex and Piotr for your clarifying of the Bastarnae
issue.

They are an interesting group also especially in Art History as it
appears that they were intermediate between many IE groups, having
characteristics of Dacians, Eastern Celts, South Eastern Germans, and
Western Iranians. It is considered that it was via the Bastarnae
that
the steppe "animal styles" came to influence Celtic and later
Germanic
art. As for what language they spoke (whether Southern Germanic,
Eastern Celtic, North Dacian or Western Iranian).... well, I feel
that
is pretty much anyone's guess, since they haven't to my understanding
left any inscriptions, and the names of their rules seem to be
derivable in half a dozen languages.

Regards

John