tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2456802468539868519.post5495063691892383596..comments2023-10-12T02:21:40.102-07:00Comments on English Historical Fiction Authors: Changing Faces of Britain’s NativesDebra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2456802468539868519.post-52381091987700579012015-01-24T14:18:52.751-08:002015-01-24T14:18:52.751-08:00I have done some study on this very interesting su...I have done some study on this very interesting subject myself. I quite like the legends where the 'little dark people' were afraid of iron; this would seem to imply stone or bronze users surviving from earlier times, and living in fear of iron-wielding incomers. Sadly, archaeology tells us a different story. The little dark people were not that little (neolithic man averages around 5ft 6-7, some bronze age men are 6 footers) and there's no evidence of violent Iron Age invasion. Possibly the idea of these 'small' people refer in fact to spirits of the ancient dead, ancestors; hence their association with burial mounds.<br />I own an Edwardian book that refers to the neolithic peoples of Britain as Iberians and the early bronze age Beaker people as being proto-celtic; oddly enough, there seems to be some truth in the guess work of this book: much migration into prehistoric Britain was from the Atlantic coast, and Prof Barry Cunliffe believes celtic languages did arrive by at least the bronze age.<br /> StoneLordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07338820506795034334noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2456802468539868519.post-31586179770046544732015-01-24T08:41:01.424-08:002015-01-24T08:41:01.424-08:00Very interesting. Characteristic of the Victorians...Very interesting. Characteristic of the Victorians to be rather patronising toward earlier peoples! Where I live on the east coast of Scotland we are surrounded by examples of Iron Age 'earth houses'. These have their floors sunk well below ground level and probably had circular thatched roofs above ground. Some scholars believe they were just grain stores, but their sturdy stone walls have endured for a couple of thousand years. I'm sure some of them also served as warm and sheltered homes, out of our east wind!Ann Swinfenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08168095839845563846noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2456802468539868519.post-3633129207361567602015-01-23T09:05:16.786-08:002015-01-23T09:05:16.786-08:00Love your post, Simon! And the suggestion of where...Love your post, Simon! And the suggestion of where Tolkien got his hobbits makes so much sense. I found that fascinating. Thanks so much! Must check out your essay.Regan Walkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02977297105533227463noreply@blogger.com