History of Val Gardena and the Dolomites
Prehistory
While traces of human settlements in Val Gardena can be found as early as 7000 – 5000 BC, with primitive stone tools found around hunter resting places (stemming from the Stone Age) mainly near alpine seas and junctions, it is not until the 5th Century BC that a significant culture was developing in the Dolomites.
With the adoption of the Etruskan alphabet the Raetians (taking their historical name from the province of Rhaetia once in the Roman Empire) had a clear distinction from the more nordic cultures. It is assumed that the Raetians were independent until 15 BC when they were subjugated by the Romans.
History
With the conquest of our territory the Romans brought a number of innovations, inter alia the Roman law, the construction of large-scale road networks (like the Via Claudia Augusta from Aquileia to Augusta Vindelicum), the creation of larger settlements and the supply stations along the roads, a higher standard of living and other religious views along with the establishment of craft businesses.
The adoption of the Latin language by the native population led to the transformation to Ladin language (Romansh) in the course of generations. When 600 AC the Bavarians penetrated the south of the Alps, South Tyrol – at least the parts that were already settled – and even large areas beyond it, spoke an archaic version of Ladino. Larger and larger areas were Germanized.
Not only in the north, but also in the south the Ladin language lost ground, but for the south the time range cannot be specified as accurately because of the linguistic affinity with the neighboring idioms.
This is the first part of a series of articles about the history of Val Gardena and the Dolomites. Special thanks go to the Union di Ladins de Gherdëina and President Stefan Kasslatter for the material and the insights provided.
About the Union di Ladins de Gherdëina
The Union di Ladins Gherdëina is a voluntary association founded in the year 1954 with idealism to the culture, traditions and the Ladin language as core values. The association has about 300 members, which choose the committee to coordinate the activities of the association with specific focus on cultural events and lectures on the Dolomites and the Ladino language. You can visit www.ulg.it for more informations.