Native identities after the crusades: the archaeology of ethnicity in medieval Prussia

This paper explores the transformation of native identities in Prussia following the Teutonic Order's crusades. The conquest of Prussian lands resulted in a new, composite society, where native Prussians coexisted with German and Polish migrants. Over time, cultural assimilation occurred, with native Prussians adopting the language, customs, and religion of the newcomers. Archaeological evidence provides valuable insights into the material dimensions of these transformations, drawing on the evidence of introduced ceramic technologies, burial practices and bodily adornments. The paper examines how material culture was used to maintain or blend ethnic identities and highlights the gradual Germanisation and Polanisation of native Prussian communities. In towns, native Prussians were defined by their religious identity as recent converts, whereas rural communities remained socially and culturally conservative, whilst adopting select elements of the migrant culture. The paper concludes by emphasising the need for further research to understand the nuanced identities of post-crusade Prussian societies, in particular archaeological studies of native rural settlements and biomolecular studies of skeletal remains from existing cemetery sites.