the Origins and Deeds of Goths

Jordanes, also written Jordanis or (not common nowadays) Jornandes, was a 6th century Roman bureaucrat best known for writing histories. Jordanes wrote Romana about the history of Rome, but his best-known work is his Getica, written in Constantinople about AD 551. It is the only extant classical work dealing with the early history of the Goths. Jordanes was asked by a friend to write this book as a summary of a multi-volume history of the Goths (now lost) by the statesman Cassiodorus. He was selected for his known interest in history (he was working on Rome's), his ability to write succinctly, and because of his own Gothic background. As the only surviving work on Gothic origins, the Getica has been the object of much critical review. This edition is specially formatted with a Table of Contents.