The
Salian Franks, also called the
Salians (
Latin:
Salii,
Greek:
Salioi), were the western subgroup of the early
Franks who first appear in the historical records in the third century. At that time they lived between the
Rhine and the
IJssel in the modern day
Dutch region of the
Veluwe,
Gelderland. As the Salians initially lived north of the
Rhine delta, they were also north of the
limes of
Roman Gaul, which ran along the
Rhine. They were characterised as both warlike
Germanic people and pirates, and as
Laeti (allies of the Romans). Shortly thereafter, some were settled permanently on Roman land. After moving into
Batavia, a border island in the Rhine, in 358, they came to some form of agreement with the Romans, which allowed them to settle south of the Rhine in
Toxandria (roughly the area of the current Dutch province of
Noord-Brabant, and adjacent parts of the two bordering Belgian provinces of
Antwerpen and
Belgian Limburg, the so-called "Kempen" (French
Campine)).