The Prusi indigenous people of former Prussia, thought to be extinct since the Crusades, are making a comeback. Young European pagans are reclaiming tribal identities.

The Prusi inhabited the area of Europe known today as former Prussia long before the arrival of the Russians, Latvians, Germans and Poles who now inhabit their territory. As Balts, the Prusi were closely related to Latvians and Lithuanians. "Letts", another name for the Prusi people, shows this link. The place called Danzig is still named for the pagan 'Dancing' that took place there during ceremonies related to hunting and fishing activities.

Habitation in the area of former Prussia dates back to 9000 B.C. and significant pagan burial sites have been found in the area. It is thought that hemp fields there might have been part of a major textile industry, with fabric traded along with baltic amber as far afield as China.

After World War II, Eastern Prussia was partitioned between Poland in the south and the Soviet Union in the north, leaving about 400,000 indigenous people in the South and an unknown number in the north. But the Prusi were first colonised by the Prussian state seven centuries before.

In the 13th century a Holy War was declared upon the indigenous pagans of the area by the Catholic Church, whose Teutonic Knights ethnically cleansed the Prusi and took their land. The main justification for this was the desire to wipe "paganism" from the face of the earth, a major goal of the Christian crusades (after loot, rape and land theft of course). As with most first nations the world over, the indigenous community remained within the new state, clinging to the shreds of culture and identity that remained following the genocidal invasion ordered by the Pope.

Technically, as the land is not traditionally German or Polish, neither nationality can make a valid claim to this area, as there is no proof that the Prusi ever ceded their sovereignty or made treaties. However, as no Prusi officially exist any more as an ethnic group, there remains no cohesive nation to lay claim to the land.

But a new generation of Prusi descendants have begun to lay claim to their heritage and resurrect their previously extinct language and culture. This movement began in the seventies last century, with the emergence of a Prussian language dictionary that was distributed among the descendants of the indigenous Prusi. A man called Palmatis then devoted his life to the popularising of the culture of ancient Prussia throughout the remnant indigenous community.

In 1988 a group called Rasa was formed by Valdis Muktupavels, with the goal of further popularising ancient Prussian language and culture, preserving the cultural heritage and reintegrating it into contemporary community life. The group also plays traditional Baltic musical instruments and researches Latvian musical patterns descended from the previously extinct Prussian folklore. They sing and record songs in the ancient Prussian language. They are the new wave of Vaidelotes, the legendary Indigenous Prussian shamans and singers of old.

In 1982 Marek Jagodziñski found the ruins of Truso, a Prussian village described in the Wulfstam's chronicle 1100 years ago. The village is currently undergoing reconstruction by the descendants of the Prusi, seeking to recover their heritage. This indigenous cultural renaissance is taking root as far afield as Russia, where Prusi descendants in the Kaliningrad region of Russia are also working hard to recover their pagan Prusi heritage and identity.

The lesson to be learned from the Prusi is that even when native title is dead and gone, the machine of colonialism can never completely extinguish indigenousness in the hearts of the people.

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