Sarmatians

High school (ages 12+)
History & Culture

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Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/sarmatians

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the cultural affiliation?Confederation of Iranian-speaking nomadic peoples
2. What is the geographical extent?Dominated the Eurasian Steppes from the Vistula River to the Ural Mountains
3. What were the Sarmatians and where did they live?The Sarmatians were a group of Iranian-speaking horse riders who lived on the Eurasian steppes, from the Vistula River in the west to the Ural Mountains in the east.
4. Why were Sarmatian horses and lances so special?They wore lamellar armor made of overlapping plates and used very long lances called kontos, which let them charge and break enemy lines.

Eurasian Steppe: A vast, semi-arid grassland biome spanning across Eurasia, historically dominated by nomadic cultures.
Lamellar Armor: A type of body armor constructed from small, overlapping plates (lamellae) laced together, offering flexible protection.
Kontos: A long lance, typically used by heavy cavalry for shock charges, famously employed by the Sarmatians.
Kurgan: An ancient burial mound, common across the Eurasian steppes, often containing significant archaeological finds from elite burials.