LAND OF GIANTS AND DEMONS CLAN CARRUTHERS CCIS

CLAN CARRUTHERS INT SOCIETY CCIS                          PROMPTUS ET FIDELIS

The Land of Giants and Demons

 

Who were our ancestors from Gotland, who were once called Ashmen, Aachen men, and more,

and now they are known as Carruthers?

We are talking pre 400 AD.  So they were known as the Goths, Gauts, Gath, Gutes, Geats and Gotar, along with other variations.  Such is Carruthers, Carrothers, Crothers, Crudders, Creuders, Crithers, and other variations.

These wonderful pre-Carruthers, Ashmen, were called the Giants of Gutland, or Gotland. The Gutes or the Gotlanders (in Swedish gutar) are the population of the island of Gotland. The ethnonym is related to that of the Goths (Gutans), and both names were originally Proto-Germanic *Gutaniz. Their language is called Gutnish (gutniska).

A lot of history in this time was oral history.  But scholars, and even the monks were moving into the different territories and writing history down.  So, yes there are written documents, and now along with all the excavations going on, and the DNA matching, the researchers are pulling more and more together.

What did they consider a Giant?

Most of the Giant Gutlanders, who spread across Europe, were between 15 feet and 36 feet tall. Always the tallest in the crowd.

Gotland was referred to as “the land of giants and demons”.  Some of the earliest recollections of giants on Gotland was a reference to Fornjot, who at one time was considered to be mythological.  No more.

“Fornjot was a giant and King of Gutland.  Son AEgin, ruler of the sea, Logi, fire giant and Kari giant of water.” Fornjot was only 15 feet tall.  He was considered small but powerful.  His sons were 20feet tall.

A lot of you might ask if our ancestors, raped and pillaged most of Europe.  Well, the short answer is, yes, and they did a damn good job.   So, it is no surprise that The Roman writer and diplomat Sidonius Apollinaris described the Gothic King Theoderic in a letter to his brother in law Agricola:

“Well, he is a man worth knowing, even by those who cannot enjoy his close acquaintance, so happily have Providence and Nature joined to endow him with the perfect gifts of fortune; his way of life is such that not even the envy which lies in wait for kings can rob him of his proper praise. And first as to his person. He is well set up, in height above the average man, but below the giant. His head is round, with curled hair retreating somewhat from brow to crown. His nervous neck is free from disfiguring knots. The eyebrows are bushy and arched; when the lids droop, the lashes reach almost half-way down the cheeks. The upper ears are buried under overlying locks, after the fashion of his race. The nose is finely aquiline; the lips are thin and not enlarged by undue distension of the mouth. Every day the hair springing from his nostrils is cut back; that on the face springs thick from the hollow of the temples, but the razor has not yet come upon his cheek, and his barber is assiduous in eradicating the rich growth on the lower part of the face. Chin, throat, and neck are full, but not fat, and all of fair complexion; seen close, their color is fresh as that of youth; they often flush, but from modesty, and not from anger. His shoulders are smooth, the upper- and forearms strong and hard; hands broad, breast prominent; waist receding. The spine dividing the broad expanse of back does not project, and you can see the springing of the ribs; the sides swell with salient muscle, the well-girt flanks are full of vigor. His thighs are like hard horn; the knee-joints firm and masculine; the knees themselves the comeliest and least wrinkled in the world. A full ankle supports the leg, and the foot is small to bear such mighty limbs.”

Here is a physical description of them by the Romans from a book titled “Day of the Barbarians” (2007) by Alessandro Barbero, history professor at a univ. in Italy.  ( ok, so I forgot to tell you we were referred to as Barbarians at one time)

The Romans were very envious of the Goths and described them in derogatory terms. The Goths were described as uselessly tall, having so much muscle mass in their upper body that the Romans didn’t know how their feet could support them. They said the Goths needed to have more around their middle like the Romans because they tapered down to a wasp like waist. It sounds like they were describing the look modern bodybuilders are trying to get. The Goths seemed to have this look naturally. Another historian of that era described them as the finest physical specimens he had ever seen.

In a letter to a senator named Catullinus Sidonius tells about how it felt like for a Roman to be surrounded by barbarians: “Why – even supposing I had the skill – do you bid me compose a song dedicated to Venus the lover of Fescennine (city in Etruria known for scurrilous and joking verses) mirth, placed as I am among long-haired hordes, having to endure German speech, praising oft with vry face the song of the gluttonous Burgundian who spreads rancid butter on his hair? Do you want me to tell you what Tecks all poetry? Driven away by barbarian thrumming the Muse has spurned the six-footed exercise ever since she beheld these patrons seven feet high. I am fain to call your eyes and ears happy, happy too your nose, for you don’t have a reek of garlic and foul onions dis- charged upon you at early morning from ten breakfast, and you are not invaded even before dawn, like an old grandfather or a foster-father, by a crowd of giants, so many and so big that not even the kitchen of Alcinous could support them (Alcinous supplied Jason and the Argonauts with food on their return from Colchis).”

The Romans did not think that it was nice to have blue eyes. They often used the term “threatening blue eyes”.

I am going to add a statement from Procopius, even though he was closer to 500AD.

Procopios wrote about the appearance of the Goths in his book on the Justinian Wars: “All these, while they are distinguished from one another by their names (Goths and other migration people), as has been said, do not differ in anything else at all. For they all have white bodies and fair hair, and are tall and handsome to look upon, and they use the same laws and practice a common religion. For they are all of the Arian faith, and have one language called Gothic; and, as it seems to me, they all came originally from one tribe, and were distinguished later by the names of those who led each group.”

One of our DNA markers is Italy.  This shows again how our ancestors spent a lot of time fighting against the Romans, and also being paid to protect the Romans as history states.

Pre-Biblical

We know our ancestors, through DNA can be traced back to at least 800 BC.  So, let us go back farther than Procopios.

A man by the name of Rudbeck expressed the idea that the ancient Gutlanders (A.K.A. the Atlanteans) held sway over most of what is now Europe and the countries bounding the Mediterranean Sea. He even suggested that the Greek and Hebrew alphabets were derivations from that of the Atlanteans, or Gutlanders.

“One suggestion of such a relation is found in the Old Testament. I Samuel 17:3-4 (KJV) says:

(3) And the Philistines stood on a mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on a mountain on the other side: and there was a valley between them.  ( Update ”  Carruthers DNA markers have shown up in studies done about the Philistines.  More big tall warriors)

(4) And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.

Here, I have underlined the word Gath to suggest a possible relation to the Swedish island province of Gotland, which some hold to be the original home of the Goths.”

Rudbeck also talk about the story of David and Goliath.  “Goliath was known as a giant. His described height equates to his being ten feet tall. He was not, however, a unique freak of nature. He was apparently a member of a race of giants living in Caanan.”

“And it came to pass when the children of men began to multiply on the face of the earth and daughters were born unto them, that the angels of God saw them on a certain year of this jubilee, that they were beautiful to look upon; and they took themselves wives of all whom they chose, and they bare unto them sons and they were giants.” – The Book of Jubilees – Chapter V: 1

“At the ruin of the great city of Ugarit and the beginning of the harrassment of coastal towns by the mysterious Sea Giants.  “

Theories cite `Canaan’ as derived from the Hurrian language for `purple’ and, as the Greeks knew the Canaanites as `Phoenicians’ (Greek for `purple’ as the Phoenicians worked, primarily at the city of Tyre,in purple dye and so were called by the Greeks `purple people’) this explanation is the most probable but, by no means, provable.

In the Bible, and mostly today you would find this in the Jewish Bible, there is reference to the Nephilims Refaim, which are the ancient race of giant men in the Iron Age.  Our ancestors had already survived the Stone Age, and the Bronze Age, and here they are in the Iron Age.

In the first two cases the Revised Version (British and American) changes “giants” into the Hebrew words “Nephilim,” nephilim, and “Rephaim,” repha’im, respectively. The “Nephilim of Gen 6:4 are not to be confounded with the “mighty men” subsequently described as the offspring of the unlawful marriages, of “the sons of God” and “the daughters of men.” It is told that they overspread the earth prior to these unhallowed unions. That the word, whatever its etymology, bears the sense of men of immense stature is evident from the later passages; Num 13:33 . The same is true of the “Rephaim,” as shown by the instance of Og (Deut 3:11; Jos 12:4 ). There is no doubt about the meaning of the word in the ease of the giants mentioned in 2Sam 21 and 1Chron 20 .

There are 36 of Tribes of Giants mentioned in the Bible

There are also 22 individual Giants mentioned, by name, in the Bible

This does explain our DNA marker for Israel/Lebanon.

Did you know that our ancestors liked to fight in the buff?

It was said that some Gotars  ( Gotland ) would strip completely naked before going into battle; something meant to impact their enemies psychologically.  ( Update;  The Picts of northern Scotland were noted as doing the exact same thing)

“Very terrifying too were the appearance and the gestures of the naked warriors in front, all in the prime of life, and finely built men, and all in the leading companies richly adorned with gold torques and armlets,” wrote Polybius (200-118 BC), in an account of a battle they fought against the Romans. (Translation through University of Chicago Penelope website)

Perhaps not coincidentally, ancient sources also say that the Gutes detested being overweight and had penalties against this. Strabo, quoting another writer named Ephorus, wrote “that they endeavor not to grow fat or pot-bellied, and any young man who exceeds the standard measure of the girdle is punished.”

Beowulf

Scholarly literary men are looking at the research and evidence that the giants in Beowulf, are the Gutelanders.

Beowulf spots a huge, heavy, ancient sword from the days of the giants. He swings it toward Grendel’s mother in a wide arc, cutting deeply into her neck and killing her.

“Beowulf” reflects that ancient world though scholars debate when exactly it was written. Ancient writers including Geoffrey of Tours (History of the Franks), Procopius (The Secret History), and Jordanes (The Origin and Deeds of the Goths) wrote about events and people mentioned in “Beowulf” — most notably Hygelac (Geoffrey’s Danish king Chlochilaich) and Hrothulf (Roduulf).

Our ancestors were mentioned in the Bible, they pillaged and battled their way through Europe, and they are mentioned in Beowulf.  If you know the story about Jack the Giant Killer, they believe it is the those Gutelanders.

He belongs to an extinct people – tall, blond, blue eyed, fair skinned. Long, narrow nose. High cheekbones. Liked to wear a fur vest. Of course, the vest is something he could have picked upelsewhere, but it feels to me like a throwback to an earlier time that he himself remembered.

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