There is a great deal of fascinating information about the ancient Indo-European and Germanic peoples contained in what Professor L.A. Waddell termed the British Chronicles. Examples of the writers who would fall under this catergory are Bede, Gildas, Nennius, William of Malmesbury, Gerald of Wales, Geoffrey of Monmouth etc. It is my intention to make a thorough study of these writings in the near future.
The following is an extract from Nennius' Historia Brittonum (Giles translation):
"17. I have learned another account of this Brutus from the ancient books of our ancestors. After the deluge, the three sons of Noah severally occupied three different part of the earth: Shem extended his borders into Asia, Ham into Africa, and Japheth into Europe.
The first man that dwelt in Europe was Alanus, with his three sons, Hisicion, Armenon, and Neugio. Hisicion had four sons, Froncus, Romanus, Alamanus, and Brutus. Armenon had five sons, Gothus, Valaothus, Cibidus, Burgundus, and Longobardus. Neugio had three sons, Valdalus, Saxo, and Boganus. From Hisicion arose four nations--the Franks, the Latins, the Germans, and Britons: from Armenon, the Gothi, Valagothi, Cibidi, Burgundi, and Longobardi: from Neugio, the Bagari, Vandali, Saxones, and Tarinegi. The whole of Europe was subdivided into these tribes.
Alanus is said to have been the son of Fethuir; Fethuir the son of Ogomuin, who was the son of Thoi; Thoi was the son of Boibus, Boibus of Semion, Semion of Mair, Mair of Ecthactur, Ecthactur of Aurthack, Aurthack of Ethec, Ethec of Ooth, Ooth of Aber, Aber of Ra, Ra of Esraa, Esraa of Hisrau, Hisrau of Bath, Bath of Jobath, Jobath of Joham, Joham of Japheth, Japheth of Noah, Noah of Lamech, Lamech of Mathusalem, Mathusalem of Enoch, Enoch of Jared, Jared of Malalehel, Malalehel of Cainan, Cainan o Enos, Enos of Seth, Seth of Adam, and Adam was formed by the living God. We have obtained this information respecting the original inhabitants of Britain from ancient tradition.
18. The Britons were thus called from Brutus: Brutus was the son of Hisicion, Hisicion was the son of Alanus, Alanus was the son of Rhea Silvia, Rhea Silvia was the daughter of Numa Pompilius, Numa was the son of Ascanius, Ascanius of Eneas, Eneas of Anchises, Anchises of Troius, Troius of Dardanus, Dardanus of Flisa, Flisa of Juuin, Juuin of Japheth; but Japheth had seven sons; from the first, named Gomer, descended the Galli; from the second, Magog, the Scythi and Gothi; from the third, Madian, the Medi; from the fourth, Juuan, the Greeks; from the fifth, Tubal, arose the Hebrei, Hispani, and Itali; from the sixth, Mosoch, sprung the Cappadoces; and from the seventh, named Tiras, descended the Thraces: these are the sons of Japheth, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech."As was typical of the era in which Nennius wrote biblical personages were mixed in with historical and mythological characters, not only in the ancestry of kings but in the origins of entire peoples. If one disregards the biblical corruption evident in these chronicles then there is a great deal of information which is of both interest and of use to us. In this article I wish to focus specifically on the paragraph which I have underlined. My readers will note the reference to a person called Armenon who is credited with being the father of the Goths, the Burgundians and Langobards. I am unsure as to the identity of the tribe known as the Cibidi. As with Tacitus' Germania we have a founding father of the Germanic peoples Alanus who equates to Mannus, the son of the earthborn God Tuisto. Let us read again the relevant passage from Tacitus:
The Germans themselves I should regard as aboriginal, and not mixed at all with other races through immigration or intercourse. For, in former times, it was not by land but on shipboard that those who sought to emigrate would arrive; and the boundless and, so to speak, hostile ocean beyond us, is seldom entered by a sail from our world. And, beside the perils of rough and unknown seas, who would leave Asia, or Africa, or Italy for Germany, with its wild country, its inclement skies, its sullen manners and aspect, unless indeed it were his home? In their ancient songs, their only way of remembering or recording the past, they celebrate an earth-born god, Tuisco, and his son Mannus, as the origin of their race, as their founders. To Mannus they assign three sons, from whose names, they say, the coast tribes are called Ingaevones; those of the interior, Herminones; all the rest, Istaevones. Some, with the freedom of conjecture permitted by antiquity, assert that the god had several descendants, and the nation several appellations, as Marsi, Gambrivii, Suevi, Vandilii, and that these are genuine old names. (Germania 2, translated by Church and Brodribb)
I suggest that the formula that we have in Nennius: Alanus > Hiscion + Armenon + Negio = Mannus > Istio + Irmin + Ing. Armenon and Hiscio very clearly are derived from Irmin and Istio respectively. Negio contains within it the name Ing. Clearly Armenon is not just an earthly ancestor but the divine ancestor of the Germanic and other Aryan peoples. Thus Armenon = Irmin = Aryaman = Airyaman = Eremon = Ariomanus.
