Dalmatae

The Dalmatae or Delmatae were an ancient people who inhabited the core of what would then become known as Dalmatia after the Roman conquest — now the eastern Adriatic coast in Croatia, between the rivers Krka and Neretva. The Delmatae are mostly classed as an Illyrian tribe, although for most of their history they were independent of the Illyrian kingdom which bordered to the southeast of them.

The name Dalmatae appears to be connected with the albanian word delmë, dele which means sheep in English. The Illyrian town of Delminium has the same etymology.

Archaeology and onomastic shows that the Delmatae were akin to eastern Illyrians and northern Pannonii. The tribe was subject to Celtic influences. One of the Dalmatian tribes was called Baridustae that later was settled in Roman Dacia.

The archeological remnants suggest their material culture was more primitive than this one of the surrounding ancient tribes, especially in comparison with the oldest Liburnians. Only their production of weapons was rather advanced. Their elite had the build stone houses only, but numerous Delmatic herdmen yet settled in natural caves, and a characteristic detail in their usual clothing was the fur cap.

Their nomadic society had a strong patriarchal structure, consisting chiefly of shepherds, warriors and their chieftains. Their main jobs had been the extensive cattle breeding, and the iterative plundering of other surrounding tribes and of coastal towns at Adriatic.

There were some iterative Roman conflicts with the Delmatae lasting for 160 years. The main reason was the perpetual aggressiveness of nomadic Delmatae against all their neighbours (Liburni, Daorsi, Ardiei, etc.), and also towards the Issaean federation, Greek-led Roman allies in central Adriatic islands, and so their pacification appeared inevitable. Delmatae land was mostly a rocky calcareous country with many pathless mountains, ideal for infinite guerilla wars; thus Delmatae erected there about 400 stony fortresses and 50 major citadels against Romans.

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