The first written mention of the shepherd's axe comes from Emperor
Qin Shi Huang's court. It is also depicted on
Scythian imagery (see
sagaris). Apart from them, the
Bulgars and also the
Alans and
Slavs used similar weapons.
Vlach shepherds brought their shepherd's axes into
Central Europe when they migrated along the
Carpathian Mountains and
Dinaric Mountains from the 14th through 17th centuries. These were used by shepherds as versatile tools, providing a small axe, a supplemental hammer and a walking stick. Although a shepherd's axe could not be used to effectively cut down heavy trees, it was still able to cut smaller branches. In
Slovakia and
Poland, shepherd's axes were inseparable tools of native shepherds, together with heavy decorative belts. In the
Slovak culture, the shepherd's axe was popularized by local historical legend
Juraj Jánošík. In
Hungary, modified axes were also used as martial weapons by Hungarian warriors in the
early modern period, used, for example, in the 18th century in
Rákóczi's War for Independence against Austrian soldiers. In the 17th and 18th centuries, Hungarian
Kuruc leader
Imre Thököly and his soldiers used shepherd's axes as weapons. Hungarian shepherds in the northern regions used them also as tools. ) from
Rákóczi's War for Independence Many people of the
Halychyna region were depicted holding
bartka, particularly members of the local peasant resistance of the 19th century known as opryshky, often being associated with their more prominent leader
Oleksa Dovbush. ==Present-day usage==