A Question on Romano-Illyrians

Is there a way for the Romance-Speaking population of Illyria to absorb and assimilate the Slavs that migrated into the area rather than the other way around? In OTL, the Istro-Romanians and Dalmatians survived for a little bit but eventually succumbed to Slavification. What would it take for the Romance -speakers of Illyria to absorb the Slavs in a way similar to the Romance-speakers of Iberia, Gallia and Italia absorbing their Germanic invaders?
 
You need to have bigger, more coherent Sclavenic political entities from the very beginning, as a minimum point: these bigger entities will be more open to the influence of the Church. You need to avoid Leo III transferring control over the Diocese of Illyricum from Rome to Constantinople. You need, if possible, to get rid entirely of a Greek speaking Byzantine state which is always going to be the main root of influence for this part of Europe in the seventh, eighth and ninth centuries.

I see two potential PODs.

Firstly, a more successful and "sticking" Justinianic conquest of the West: let's say, for arguments sake, a quicker conquest of Gothic Italy that means the Adriatic becomes a secure lake of Latinity that's locked into the empire. A wealthy Italy is in a position to contribute to the defence of Illyria when the Sclavenes and Avars come knocking, and it also means the Latin speaking regions of the empire retain political prominence for longer.

Secondly, a POD in which Constantinople falls to the Arabs, who then become relatively bogged down in fighting, and don't advance particularly deeply into the Balkans: perhaps something similar to the OTL extent of Persian rule over Thrace and Macedon in the fifth century BC. The only major "civilised" influences over the western Balkans will then be Latin: either the Papacy, or perhaps a newly formed WRE based in Ravenna.
 
I think that the Roman Empire has to be more stable in the first place.
Without all the civil wars and wars against Germanic tribes and kingdoms the balkan provinces wouldn't bleed out like OTL.
Maybe a beginning would be that the empire loses only Britain, Gaul and Pannonia in the 5th century. Have the empire consolidate over the course of the next 100 years. Avoid war with Persia.
All that should lead to a more densly populated Illyria and a better defense.
The Slavs might settle north of Danube and Save and the Adria coast might stay all Latin in TTL.

:)
 
I think that the Roman Empire has to be more stable in the first place.
Without all the civil wars and wars against Germanic tribes and kingdoms the balkan provinces wouldn't bleed out like OTL.
Maybe a beginning would be that the empire loses only Britain, Gaul and Pannonia in the 5th century. Have the empire consolidate over the course of the next 100 years. Avoid war with Persia.
All that should lead to a more densly populated Illyria and a better defense.
The Slavs might settle north of Danube and Save and the Adria coast might stay all Latin in TTL.

:)
If by Latin, you mean language, the Illyrians spoke their own language.
And Slavs could certainly immigrate - as long as they assimilate. Many people claim that the current population of Greece is largely (even mostly) assimilated Slavs...
 
There was a Romance Dalmatian language that was spoken up into the 19th century. Its last speaker got killed in an explosion.
 
Perhaps the revolt of 602 doesn't happen, leading to a consolidation of Imperial rule in the Balkans and Illyria? Then, smaller numbers of Slavs can be let in and assimilated...

Maurice's son Tiberius was slotted to rule the West from Rome, and if the border at the Sava holds there might be a case for the western court to claim its rule over the area, based on ecclesiastic jurisdiction mostly. (Bury does say that there might have been another unnamed son destined to rule over Illyricum and Greece, independently of Tiberius in the West and Theodosius in the East, though.)
 
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First thing is that there wasn't such a thing as Illyrians (at least not in the form it is being presented in most history text books) and the second thing is evidence points out that the interior where Slavs mostly settleed beyond urban centres wasn't completely or maybe even mostly Romanized by the time shit hit the fan in the first half of the 5th century.
 
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