The ancient history of the Slavs is being restored based on archaeological sources, linguistics data and evidence from written sources. Written sources are of particular importance for the restoration of the ethnogenesis of the Slavs. Ancient Greek and Roman authors mention the Veneds, who live north of the Carpathians, along the Vistula and are adjacent to the Fenns (Finno-Ugrians) in the north, the Pevkins and Sarmatians in the south. Extensive information is contained in the works of Byzantine writers; there is also important information from the Gothic historian of the VI century Jordan. He divides the Slavs into three major groupings – Veneds, Ants and Sklavens.

In recent years, archaeologists have established that this information can be trusted. It is important to note that recreating the correct picture of the origin and life of the ancient Slavs is impossible only from one source. Such an integrated approach was defined by A.A. Shakhmatov (experiments on the reconstruction of the oldest dialect interaction with the help of «extra-linguistic» material). This idea was supported and implemented by the Polish linguist T. Ler-Splavinsky, and the Soviet scientist Indo-European B. V. Gornung. He believed that «only generalized archaeological data can be a criterion for testing the historically real possibility of certain linguistic hypotheses.» One of the sources for studying the history of the Slavs are various notes from ancient sources and travelers. The Slavs were first mentioned in the monuments of writing, starting from the I—II century A.D. in the works of Roman historians and Greek philosophers. However, it is not yet possible to compile a complete detailed history of the Slavs in the I—IV centuries AD. Some researchers note that the first news about the Slavs dates back to the V century BC. Therefore, Herodotus, telling about the life of the rich Greeks, mentions the imported amber from a distant country lying in the north, near the river Eriades and the cold, stormy sea. In addition, the first information about the Slavs comes from the Roman historians Pliny the Elder and Cornelius Tacitus. These are brief mentions, and both Roman authors call the Slavs «Veneds».