The Timočani (also Timochani, or Timochans; Serbian and Bulgarian: Тимочани) were a medieval South Slavic tribe that lived in the territory of present-day eastern

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

, west of the Timok River, as well as in the regions of

Banat Banat ( , ; ; ; ) is a geographical and Historical regions of Central Europe, historical region located in the Pannonian Basin that straddles Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. It is divided among three countries: the eastern part lie ...

Syrmia Syrmia (Ekavian sh-Latn-Cyrl, Srem, Срем, separator=" / " or Ijekavian sh-Latn-Cyrl, Srijem, Сријем, label=none, separator=" / ") is a region of the southern Pannonian Plain, which lies between the Danube and Sava rivers. It is div ...

and Moesia Superior. Timočani settled in the Balkans in the 6-7th century in the former Dacia Ripensis province and became later subjects of the

Avar Khaganate The Pannonian Avars ( ) were an alliance of several groups of Eurasian nomads of various origins. The peoples were also known as the Obri in the chronicles of the Rus' people, Rus, the Abaroi or Varchonitai (), or Pseudo-Avars in Byzantine Empi ...

. It is considered that with the arrival of the Bulgars in the 7th century came under Bulgarian suzerainty, but for a good period of time between the mid-8th and early 9th century local Slavs lived in anarchy until around 805 when the area was reconquered and reimposed control of the Bulgar Khanate under Khan

Krum Krum (, ), often referred to as Krum the Fearsome () was the Khan of Bulgaria from sometime between 796 and 803 until his death in 814. During his reign the Bulgarian territory doubled in size, spreading from the middle Danube to the Dnieper a ...

. In the beginning of the 9th century they were also attacked from the West by the

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of Serbia, history, and Serbian lan ...

. In 818 during the rule of Omurtag of Bulgaria (814-836) they, together with other border tribes of the First Bulgarian Empire, revolted because of an administrative reform of centralization that deprived them of much of their local authority. They left the Bulgarian ''society'' (association, alliance), and together with other Slavic tribes, searched protection from

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans (disambiguation), Emperor of the Romans (; ) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period (; ), was the ruler and h ...

Louis the Pious Louis the Pious (; ; ; 16 April 778 – 20 June 840), also called the Fair and the Debonaire, was King of the Franks and Holy Roman Emperor, co-emperor with his father, Charlemagne, from 813. He was also King of Aquitaine from 781. As the only ...

in the same year, meeting him at his court at Herstal. However, they also joined the rebellion of Lower Pannonian Duke Ljudevit against the Franks. Many Timochans fled to Transdanubia, later becoming part of the Lower Pannonian Principality. Omurtag decided to settle the matter by means of diplomacy in 824-826, though his letters were not replied to by Louis. This prompted Omurtag to undertake a boat campaign on the

Drava The Drava or Drave (, ; ; ; ; ), historically known as the Dravis or Dravus, is a river in southern Central Europe.

in 827 and invade the lands of the Timočani at

Sirmium Sirmium was a city in the Roman province of Pannonia, located on the Sava river, on the site of modern Sremska Mitrovica in the Vojvodina autonomous province of Serbia. First mentioned in the 4th century BC and originally inhabited by Illyrians ...

, successfully imposing Bulgar rule again and appointing local governors. Their name derives from the Timok River. Today, "Timočani" can be used as an informal name for the inhabitants of the Timok Valley in Serbia.

References

Slavic tribes in Thrace and Moesia First Bulgarian Empire 9th century in Serbia {{Bulgaria-stub

See also

References