Pre-Christian Baltic Religion and Belief

The Baltic peoples of Prussia, Lithuania, and Latvia were among the last in Europe to be Christianized. In spite of their survival (in some cases) as late as the eighteenth century, the pre-Christian religions of the Baltic are little known beyond the Baltic states. Baltic religions have often been interpreted through the lens of modern reconstructions of mythology based on nineteenth-century folklore collections. This book, by contrast, draws on historical sources contemporaneous with or close in time to the practice of pre-Christian cults. These include the writings of chroniclers and early ethnographers, documents produced by authorities concerned about the continuation of pre-Christian practices, and the evidence of archaeology. Focusing on the deities, sacred places, and sacred rites of the Balts, this book is the first dedicated introduction in English to the religious world of some of Europe’s last pagan peoples.