The Varangian Sea is the past and the present

In this article we will consider information about what the Varangian Sea is, and how it is called in the modern world. Also we will touch on 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 writings, and the modern analogue.

Historical reference

Our ancestors, the ancient Slavs, the Varangian Sea, were named precisely that because the Old Russian name of the Scandinavian peoples among the Slavs was "Varangian". And they got to our territory because of this sea. By the way, the trade route that connected the Black and the Baltic Sea ("from the Varangians to the Greeks") was also called that. This name persisted until the XVIII century, and after it began to be called the Baltic Sea, which had Lithuanian roots in its origin.

In addition, the Varangian Sea was once called by other names. For example, Sveysky, Svebsky, Amber. Also, in the XVI-XVII centuries it had an important strategic significance for Russia, as an outlet 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 eastern coast.

So, now we know that in the ancient times the modern Baltic Sea was called the Varangian Sea. By the way, some researchers and scientists are inclined to the fact that this is not so. They cite numerous facts for the fact that the Varangian Sea in the annals and the modern Baltic Sea are not the same, but they called the Mediterranean Sea in ancient times. Thus, now there are at least two options. However, we will still be inclined to the first option, as more plausible.

Location of the sea and the coastal zone

The ancient Varangian Sea was formed about fourteen thousand years ago due to the descent of land. Before that, there was a lowland on this place, which was filled with water during the melting of glaciers, and a fresh lake appeared. At this point the land rose and fell several more times. The last occurred about seven thousand years ago, which led to the formation of the sea in the limits that are available now.

To date, the Baltic coastline is rather uneven. Here you can find a large number of bays of different sizes, coves, plains and capes. The northern part of the coast is quite rocky, but already to the south the stones gradually turn into a mixture of pebbles with sand and later and completely into the sand.

This sea belongs to the basin of the Atlantic Ocean and is internal to the interior, it cuts deep into the land. In the north, its extreme point is near the Arctic Circle, and in the south - near the German city of Visma. As you can see, it has a fairly long extension, which affects its climate. The most extreme western point is the city of Flensburg (also Germany), and the eastern part is the part of the city of St. Petersburg.

Other information about the sea

It should be noted that the Varangian Sea is slightly salted. This is due to the fact that many freshwater rivers flow into it, but a fairly weak connection with the Atlantic Ocean. A complete renewal of sea salt water occurs in approximately thirty or fifty years. However, the salinity of the waters is different in all places. This is due to the weak displacements of the vertical water layers.

If we talk about its temperature regime, then it is rather low. In the summer, it reaches an average of seventeen degrees in the Gulf of Finland.

Features of the Baltic Sea

The Varangian Sea, the modern name of which is Baltic, has its own characteristics. It was mentioned above that it is lightly salted. It should be noted that as a result of all this the animal world is quite poor, and is divided into zones with marine species and those that live in fresh water.

This is still due to the fact that the sea itself in its current form is quite young (about five thousand years), that for adaptation of the animal representative of the aquatic world is quite a short period. However, the scarcity of species is compensated by the number of representatives of the animal world.

Today's ecological situation in the sea

To date, the Varangian Sea (modern name - Baltic) has its own environmental problems. Because of the large washout from the fertilized fields of nitrogen and phosphorus, the level in them increases, which leads to a decrease in oxygen and, as a result, difficulties with the processing of organic substances. Entire areas appear, which are very saturated with hydrogen sulphide.

Another important problem for the Baltic waters is oil. It falls into the sea with various drains and very much pollutes the surface. In addition, the accumulation and increase in the amount of heavy metals that occur there with domestic and industrial wastes occur in the sea.

Since the Baltics has always been in the midst of historical events, and many ships have sailed through it, a considerable amount of flooded cargo is at the bottom of it, representing a danger. After all, it is not known when the metal that deters harmful substances is thinning, and what can happen.