In this article we will look at the information thatis the Varangian Sea, and as it is called in the modern world. We will also touch upon the problem of its ecological situation, its features, because the sea itself is very remarkable. Although there are some disagreements about the ancient name, which is found in the letters, and the modern equivalent.
Historical reference
Our ancestors, the ancient Slavs, the Varangian SeaIt was called so because of the fact that the ancient Russian name of the Scandinavian peoples among the Slavs was “Varangians”. And they got into our territory because of this sea. By the way, this was the name of the trade route that connected the Black and Baltic Sea (“from the Varangians to the Greeks”). This name persisted until the XVIII century, and then became known as the Baltic Sea, which had Lithuanian roots in its origin.
Помимо этого, Варяжское море в свое время called and other names. For example, Sweysky, Swiebsky, Amber. Also, in the XVI-XVII centuries, it was of great strategic importance for Russia, like access to Europe and the main sea route. After the Russian Empire won the Northern War with Sweden, it began to belong to almost all of its east coast.
So now we know that the Varangian Seacalled in ancient times the modern Baltic Sea. By the way, some researchers and scientists are inclined to believe that this is not the case. They cite numerous facts for the fact that the Varangian Sea in the annals and the modern Baltic Sea are not one and the same, as the Mediterranean was called in antiquity. Thus, now there are at least two options. However, we will still be inclined to the first option, as more plausible.
Sea and coastal location
The ancient Varangian Sea was formed aroundfourteen thousand years ago due to the sinking of land. Prior to this, there was a lowland at this place, which was filled with water during the melting of glaciers, and a fresh lake appeared. In this place the land rose and fell several more times. The latter occurred about seven thousand years ago, which led to the formation of the sea in the limits that are now.
To date, the Baltic coastlinerather uneven. Here you can find a large number of bays of different sizes, coves, braids and capes. The northern part of the coast is rather rocky, but towards the south the stones gradually turn into a mixture of pebbles with sand and later into sand.
This sea belongs to the Atlantic basinOcean and is inland, deeply crashes into the land. In the north, its extreme point is located almost near the Arctic Circle, and in the south, near the German city of Visma. As you can see, it has a large enough length, which affects its climate. The most extreme western point is the city of Flensburg (also Germany), and the eastern is part of the city of St. Petersburg.
Other information about the sea
Следует заметить, что Варяжское море малосоленое.This is due to the fact that many freshwater rivers flow into it, but a rather weak link with the Atlantic Ocean. A complete renewal of marine saline waters occurs in approximately thirty or fifty years. However, the salinity of water in all places is different. This is due to the weak movements of the vertical layers of water.
If we talk about its temperature regime, it is quite low. In summertime, it reaches an average of seventeen degrees in the Gulf of Finland.
Baltic Sea Features
Varangian Sea, the modern name of whichBaltic, has its own characteristics. Above mentioned that it is lightly salted. It should be noted that as a result of all this, its fauna is rather poor, and is divided into zones with marine species and those living in fresh water.
This is also due to the fact that the sea itself in itstoday's form is quite young (about five thousand years), which is a rather short time to adapt the animal representative of the water world. However, the scarcity of species is compensated by the number of representatives of the animal world.
The current environmental situation in the sea
На сегодняшний день Варяжское море (современное name - Baltic) has its own environmental problems. Due to the large flush from fertilized fields of nitrogen and phosphorus, their level rises in it, which leads to a decrease in oxygen and, as a result, difficulties with the processing of organic substances. Entire sites appear that are very saturated with hydrogen sulfide.
Another important issue for the Baltic watersis oil. It enters the sea with various drains and pollutes the surface very much. In addition, there is an accumulation and increase in the sea of heavy metals that go there with household and industrial waste.
Since the Baltic has always been in the thick of historicalevents, and there were a lot of ships on it, then at the bottom of it lies a considerable amount of flooded cargo, representing a danger. After all, it is not known when the metal that holds harmful substances becomes thinner and what can happen.
