mentioned by Roman authors in the 3rd century AD, the Heruli were referred to as "Scythians", along with the Goths and allied tribes. The use of this term for Heruli and Goths probably began as early as Dexippus, most of whose work is now lost. The use of this term does not give us any clear linguistic classification. In late antiquity, the Gepids, Vandals, Rugii, Sciri, the non-Germanic Alans and the actual Goths, were all classified by Roman ethnographers as "Gothic" peoples, and modern historians generally consider the Heruli to be one of these. While historians such as Walter Goffart have pointed out that the Herules are never included in the lists of "Gothic peoples" of Procopius, Mihail Zahariade has shown that the Latin and Greek sources not only distinguish the Heruli (Elouroi in this period) from the Goths during their first 3rd century seaborne offensive (see below), but also Zonaras specifically stated that the Heruli were of Gothic stock — a categorization implied by other chroniclers of those events when they refer to Goths. None of these eastern peoples were considered Germanic by Roman ethnographers at the time. However, in modern scholarship the Heruli are usually classified as a Germanic people. On account of having likely spoken an East Germanic language, the Heruli are often more specifically classified as an East Germanic people. History Origins The origins of the Heruli are traditionally sought in north-central Europe, possibly Scandinavia. In his 6th century work Getica, the historian Jordanes, based in Constantinople, wrote that the Heruli had been driven out of their homeland in Scandinavia by the Danes. This has been read as implying Heruli origins in the Danish isles or southernmost Sweden. The reliability and correct interpretation of this passage in the Getica is, however, disputed. On the other hand, his contemporary Procopius recounted a migration of a sixth-century group of Heruli noblemen to Thule (which for him, but not Jordanes, was the same as Scandinavia), from their "homeland" on the Middle Danube. Later, Danubian Heruli found new royalty among these northern Heruli. This account has been seen as implying an old and continuous connection between the Heruli and Scandinavia, although some recent scholars are skeptical of this interpretation, and have noted that Procopius does not depict the Heruli as returning to a homeland, but as leaving their homeland. Ellegård has proposed that the Danish expulsion of the Heruli might