Essentials of chronology and periodization of the history of the lands of Donbas in the middle ages. Part 1

Historical periodization is a system of categorizing the historical process into epochs and periods that are significant in the development of society. Donbas is a large geographical region in the south of the Dnieper-Don interfluve, consisting of a towering Ridge and surrounding flat areas. The proposed regional (local) periodization is based on research in the field of history and archaeology and is introduced to the scientific world for the first time. On the basis of civilizational, archaeological, historical and geographical criteria of typology (ethno-indicators, migration processes and military invasions, formation and disintegration of steppe polities), the authors came to the conclusion about the geographic and civilizational border character of the region. Since the Migration Period, the essence of the periods was largely determined by the dominant ethnic group or political entity under the rule of the dominant ethnic group. The chronological strata within the proposed periodization correlate with the archaeological findings.