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| History of Dalmatia |
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Dalmatian city-states were formerly Roman municipalities in Dalmatia where the local Romance population survived the Barbarian invasions after the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 400s CE. Eight little cities were created by the indigenous Illyro-Roman inhabitants of the region, who maintained political links with the Eastern Roman Empire, which in return defended these cities, enabling their commercial trade with Byzantium.[1]
The original names of these city-states were Arba, Cattarum, Crespa, Jadera, Ragusium, Spalatum, Tragurium, and Vecla. The language and the laws were initially Latin, but after a few centuries, they developed their own vulgar Latin language, Dalmatian, which survived into the 19th century. The cities were maritime centers with important commerce links, mainly with the Italian Peninsula and with the rising Republic of Venice.