View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/a-brief-history-of-goths-dan-adams What do fans of atmospheric post-punk music have in common with ancient ...
========== What do fans of atmospheric
post-punk music have in common with ancient barbarians? Not much. So why are both known as goths? Is it a weird coincidence or a deeper connection stretching
across the centuries? The story begins in Ancient Rome. As the Roman Empire expanded,
it faced raids and invasions from the semi-nomadic populations
along its borders. Among the most powerful were
a Germanic people known as Goths who were composed of two tribal groups, the Visigoths and Ostrogoths. While some of the Germanic tribes
remained Rome's enemies, the Empire incorporated others
into the imperial army. As the Roman Empire split in two, these tribal armies played
larger roles in its defense and internal power struggles. In the 5th century, a mercenary revolt
lead by a soldier named Odoacer ...