Athanaricus (died 381) was king of several branches of the Thervings for at least two decades in the fourth century. His Gothic name, Athanareiks, means "king and athans "edel" s. *athal;athal "edel" s. *othal; s. germ."EDEL-KING" ". A rival of Fritigern, another Therving war chief, Athanaric made his first appearance in recorded history in 369, when he engaged in battle with the Eastern Roman Emperor Valens and ultimately negotiated a favorable peace for his people. During his reign, the Thervi… (More on Athanaric)