Germanic Tribes: Rocco of the North Country

Puppy Chronicles and Early Germanic Tribes: A Heartwarming Historical Journey

In this episode of Armchair Historians, host Anne-Marie Cannon introduces her new puppy, Rocco, and explores the early Germanic tribes through his eyes. Drawing parallels between Rocco's adaptation to his new home and historical tribal life, Anne-Marie delves into kinship, warrior bands, and cultural practices from the 1st century BCE to the early medieval period. The episode emphasizes the importance of focusing on small joys amid challenging times and offers resources for further exploration of Germanic history. Listeners are invited to follow Rocco's adventures on social media for a dose of positivity.

00:00 Welcome to Armchair Historians

00:53 Meet Rocco, the History-Loving Puppy

01:19 Puppy Energy in Tough Times

02:19 Rocco's Journey to the North Country

02:31 Understanding Early Germanic Tribes

03:51 Rocco's Tribal Life Lessons

05:11 The Importance of Belonging and Community

06:48 Rocco's Adventures and Training

07:02 Connecting Past and Present

07:43 Final Thoughts and Positivity

08:48 Stay Connected and Support the Show

09:20 Closing Remarks

Rocco on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/rocccothemorkiehistorydog/

Rocco on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/share/14MzvxCJo3d/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Documentary (Get.history – “The Germanic Tribes: Warriors Who Shaped Europe”):
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLCJAmn-sJxAiMfhzCZ04J0CHUG3qpVn_w 

Learn more (Germanic tribes / peoples):
Encyclopaedia Britannica – Germanic peoples:
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Germanic-peoples

World History Encyclopedia – Migration Age:
https://www.worldhistory.org/Migration_Age/

World History Encyclopedia – The Goths (example of a Germanic people):
https://www.worldhistory.org/Goths/

Transcript

0:07

Hello, fellow arm chair historians. Welcome to the podcast. I'm Anne-Marie Cannon, your host, historical fiction author, and curious soul, always chasing the human side of history. Show notes include my website, links to content discussed in the episode, how to support the show in a free short story download that introduces readers to bedlam from my soon to be released historical fiction series. On this podcast, my guests share the history they love most and we experience it through their eyes, what fascinates them, what they've uncovered, and why this story still matters. Let's begin. Hello fellow armchair historians. Today's episode is dedicated to a very important household development. I got a new puppy. His name is Rocco, and yes, he loves history\too, if you wanna follow along with his great adventures, you can find him on Facebook and Instagram at Rocco, the Morkey history dog. Now, if you've been feeling like the world has been a lot lately, you're not alone. The news cycle can be upsetting, heavy and exhausting. And in our house, we decided we need to focus our energy somewhere more hopeful, something positive, and genuinely life giving. So we're leaning into puppy energy because puppies don't read headlines. Puppies don't spiral. Puppies don't doom. Scroll. Puppies wake up every day like, good morning, I'm alive. What's for breakfast? What's the leaf doing? Is that my sock? Fantastic. And honestly, that kind of optimism is medicine. We wanna share a little of rocco's positive juju with you. Something to lighten the spirit in these dark times. Consider this episode a small lantern in the fog with tiny paws. This week, Rocco is learning about the early Germanic tribes, and we're using his brand new puppy life as a way to imagine what it might have felt like to join a tribe. When I say early Germanic tribes, I'm talking roughly from the first century BCE through about the 700 CE from the Roman era and its sources through the migration age centuries and into the early medieval kingdoms. Now, quick note, Germanic Tribes is a big umbrella term. We're talking about a range of groups across Northern and central Europe in antiquity, in late antiquity communities with shared linguistic roots and cultural overlaps, but not one single unified Germanic nation. And if that sounds complicated, congratulations. You are now thinking like a historian, but for Rocco, it's simple. He has arrived in what he calls the north country. Yes, the north country. A land of cold air, crunchy snow, mysterious boots, and a very suspicious vacuum. To Rocco, our home is not a house, it's a hall, a stronghold, a place with warm corners, food stores, and at least one resident who controls the sacred treat pouch. And just like a newcomer to a tribe, Rocco is learning the rhythms of his new people. Early Germanic societies were often organized around kinship groups and warrior bands. Communities were loyalty, reputation and belonging mattered. Your place in the group was everything. Your bonds were survival. Now, Rocco isn't joining a warrior band unless you count his nightly battles with a plush squirrel. But he is learning the basics of tribal life, who's in charge, where the safe places are, what the boundaries are, and how to communicate without words, which is perfect because puppies are basically fluent in body language. And so were people in the past, you don't always have written rules on the wall. You had customs, you had signals, you had consequences. Rocco is currently learning a sacred law of the hall. If you steal the sock, you must endure the chasing ritual. And that chasing ritual, by the way, is not punishment, it is ceremony. It is bonding, it is culture. One of the big stories we associate with late antiquity is movement, migration, resettlement, community shifting and adapting. People relocating due to pressure, politics, climate opportunity, sometimes all at once. Rocco's migration was smaller, just a car ride, but emotionally it was epic. New smells, new terrain, new pack. He arrived like a tiny traveler stepping off the edge of the kingdom world, thinking, I have left my birth tribe. I am now in a strange land. Will I be accepted? And then within 48 hours, he was like, I own this rug. And honestly, that part tracks early Germanic cultures, like many human cultures had expectations around behavior, loyalty, and honor. Not in the simplistic Hollywood way, but in a social sense, you mattered because your actions affected the group. Puppies also have a code, but theirs is more like, if you love me, you must watch me chew this. If you leave the room, well, I must follow. If there's silence, something must be investigated immediately. And training, house training especially can feel like negotiating a treaty because you're trying to establish where the boundaries are, what the rituals are, and what earns praise and belonging. Rocco is learning the rules of the north country and we are learning how to speak his language patiently, consistently, kindly, which frankly is a nice reminder for human times too. In many early cultures, history wasn't something you read in a textbook. It was something you heard stories told in halls, memories passed from voice to voice, and here I am doing the same thing, sitting in our modern hall with my little tribesmen telling stories that connect us to the long human past. Rocco doesn't understand Germanic tribes as an academic term, but he understands belonging, home, warmth, safety, play, and community. And those are the bones of history. Haha. See what I did there. No matter what century you live in, if things feel heavy right now, let this be your reminder. You're allowed to seek softness. You're allowed to focus on small joys without ignoring the bigger picture. Sometimes we keep going by holding on to the bright, ordinary things, a warm drink, a familiar voice, a good story, or a puppy who thinks every day is a new adventure. And if you need a little extra positivity this week. Come find Rocco again. He's on Facebook and Instagram at Rocco, the Morkey history dog. He'll be counting his education as a proud new member of the North Country tribe, learning ancient customs like sit, stay. And why is that leaf moving? I shall protect this hall from squirrels, from shadows, from the mailman, from his history's enemies. Truly fearless. If you wanna go a little deeper with Rocco's history homework, check the show notes. I'm linking Rocco's, Facebook and Instagram so you can follow his North Country Adventures Plus the documentary we watched this week, the Germanic Tribes Warriors, who shaped Europe. I will also include a couple of extra resources if you wanna keep going down the rabbit hole and learn more about the early Germanic world. Thank you for spending this time with me today. If you enjoyed this lighter little history and heart episode, share it with the fellow armchair historian who could use a lift. Until next time, stay curious. Be gentle with yourself, and if you can borrow a bit of puppy energy. Thanks for spending time with me on Armchair Historians. If you enjoyed this episode, the easiest way to support the show is to follow or subscribe so you never miss an episode. And if you can leave a rating or review or share the episode with a friend who loves history. You will find my website and links to everything we discussed in the show notes, along with ways to support the show more directly, whether that's joining the community, supporting financially, or simply helping more listeners to discover the podcast. And don't forget. The show notes also include a free short story download that introduces readers to bedlam from my soon to be released historical fiction series. Until next time, keep asking questions because history is anything but finished.