Celtibères

During the Antiquity, Celtibères were people of the Iberian peninsula, named thus by the Greek geographers. Today it is agreed to divide the peninsula in two linguistic zones with a line going of the the Pyrenees to the mouth of the Guadiana and including/understanding the center and the west for the people celtibères. “The principal Celtibères people were the Arévaques, the Beronnes, the Carpétans (at least partly), the Lusones, the Turmoges, the Pelendones and the Vaccéens. Their Western neighbors, the Cantabres, the Astures and people of the current Galicia, as those which lived the northern of Portugal belonged also at least partly to the Celtic family. ”.

The archeologists often date the appearance of a Culture celtibère, differentiated from that of the Ibères at the beginning of the second age of iron. It seems more difficult to date the arrival on the peninsula of the Celtic people themselves. The centuries before Jesus Christ are the most flourishing period. That the culture celtibère presents often more affinities with the culture of the Ibères than with the Gallic contemporary, they should however be noted are Celtic people which “ibérisés themselves”.

Introduction

Translation of the heading “Celtibères” of the article

The arrival of the Celtes in Western Europe is commonly dated from first half of the thousand-year-old IIe front J. - C.. Arrived in the Iberian peninsula, they mixed with the many people autochtones, of which the Ibères. The first references written with regard to them come from the geographers and the graeco-latin historians (Strabon, Tite-Live, Pline Old the, etc), but their study starts only in XVe century and acquires a scientific dimension only at the beginning of the XXe century, with work of Cerralbo, Schulten, Taracena, Caro Baroja, in particular, and finds fresh impulse at the end of the century. In spite of this exceptional literary inheritance, one discusses the key points still today to define this study: limits of their territories, their true personality and their own genealogy.

Definition and limits

Translation of

The term Celtibères generally refers to the people Celtic or celtized of the Iberian peninsula, as with the languages which these groups spoke, but the term specifically indicates a whole of Celtic people acculturés by Ibères, it exists about it the different one with other names (Vettons, Vaccéens, Lusitanians, Carpetanos, etc) These people celtíbères, which lived the Ibérica Cordillera, was regarded by the Romans as a mixture of Celts and from Ibères, they thus differentiated them from their neighbors, as much from the Celts of the plate that of Ibères of the coast. But this design of Celtibères (result of the union of the Celts and Ibères) is an error already made at the time Roman. We know today that Celtibères are Celtic people of culture, which receives influences of Ibères by their proximity. The archaeological investigations show that the Celts arrived in the Iberian peninsula during the XIIIe front century J. - C., with the great expansion of the people of the culture of the fields of ballot boxes, by occupying the north-eastern area. During the VIIe front century J. - C. during the Civilization of Hallstatt, they are spread on vast zones of the Meseta, on the plate of Portugal and some groups reach Galicia. However, after the Greek foundation of Massalia (current Marseilles), Ibères again occupy the average valley of Ebre and the peninsular North-East with the Celts, and establish Greek establishments again to with it (Empúries). The Celts of the peninsula were thus cut their continental “parents”, so that neither the Celte culture of Tène nor the religious phenomenon of the Druidisme never reached them. The Celtic culture in the Iberian peninsula is completed with the Roman conquest, to which many Celtic tribes were opposed.

People celtibères

, later, as the conquest progressed territorialement, they locate two great principal zones, the arévacos, and perhaps the pelendones by controlling Celtíberie Ulterior (province of Soria, the majority of the province of Guadalajara, until the birth of the Tage river, the Eastern half of the province of Segovia and the south-east of Burgos, among their cities are remarkable Secontia (Sigüenza), Numantia (Numance), Uxama, Termes, and Clunia, in addition the ground of the tittos, bellos and lusones or Celtíberie Citerior (they populate the grounds around the rivers, viola, Jiloca there Huerva), with cities like Segeda, Bílbilis (Calatayud), Tierga, Botorrita or Complega.

Gestation of the celtiberic company

During centuries VII-VI before JC, appear in the nuclear sector, high (river) and high (river), of Celtiberie, a series of innovations in ( in el patrón of asentamiento ), in the funerary ceremonial and the technology, which indicate the evolution towards a company to strong warlike component. In the cemeteries, as of the beginning, one shows already a strong social hierarchisation, where the panoply of armament seems a sign of prestige. Documentation, on what is tumulus or alignments of tombs, which will be generalized in the following centuries, are abundant; these elites, are noted by the panoply of the burials, and can be the consequence of in situ evolution of the culture of Cogotas, but with important cultural contributions of the culture of the fields of ballot boxes, which celticés the culture of mow Cogotas. One could not explain differently than these people speak a language with the Celtic roots. The Mediterranean influence had also a great importance by its proximity owing to the fact that the ibères transmitted projections as significant to them as the currency and the writing.

Did this new organization, promote a population growth and developed an increasing concentration of the richnesses and capacity through the control of the natural resources (grazing grounds, saltworks, etc) and of the production of iron, in the outcrops (?) Iberian System, which allowed the fast appearance of a hierarchical company of warlike type, benefitting from the privileged situation that the natural passage between the valley of the Ebre offers and the meseta.

Warlike aristocrats

Since does the end of the 6th century before JC or at the beginning of the 5th century, in the cemeteries of the Eastern meseta, one find rich person trousseaus (?) soldiers, with presence of swords, and does a great accumulation of sumptuary objects out of bronze, helmets, discs armor, umbos (?) , sometimes engraved. Necropoles, with characteristic installations in parallel streets, with (trousseaux'?) who indicate a highly hierarchical company would be to associate with aristocratic groups.

In does this phase, the Eastern plate (of the meseta), prove to be an important hearth of development, with trousseaus (?)funerary, it is necessary to include in its orbit of influence of the zones of the south of the province of Soria, where fibules are found, pins, pectoral, weapons and ornaments of horse what proves to us that a reduced number people, had the horses, which had to be used for small raids, against the close people, although for the weapons their value symbolic system as objects of prestige was to precede.

The warlike company

From the end of Ve century before JC and during the two following centuries, the hearth of development located in the large basins of the Tajuña, the Henares and the Jalón moves to the top Duero, with the increase in the preponderance which will play, as from this moment, one of the populi celtibères, with more strength during the time of the fights against Rome, Arévacos, whose superiority would be in this phase. According to Alberto J Lorrio, it has this ethnos group which one owes the burials of the right margin of high Duero, where the tombs with military panoply are numerous and make it possible to testify to a company, with a majority military class.

Whereas in the nuclear zone of the Celtibérie, the tombs with military panoplies decrease until almost disappearing what does not indicate disappearance of the warlike company, during the development of the celtiberic Wars (?), but an evolution towards an urban social organization, with a dissolution of the social links, based on the relationship.

From II - Ier centuries before J-C, the political and legal criterion higher of Celtibères, it was the town of source, heard like centers of a space or territory, with a rural population, articulated around this one. It is this advanced company which the Romains found at the beginning of the conquest of the interior of the Hispanie.

Politico-social organization

The basic social organizations, who survived until the imperial time, were the people or gentes and gentilates , the relations were based on the relationship; those set up groups of consanguineous descendants of a common ancestor, and received the name of people ( gentess , a family) for the fullest goupe and getilates for smallest divisions of the people. Did the life gentilicia appear by the catch of joint meal and the fact of which all the related ones (?)slept together, as testifies some archeology to the houses of Numance and Tiermes, where one ate in community, sitted on benches, leant uninterrupted with the walls, around a central hearth, where the group slept too. Epigraphic studies on the celtibères, in addition to the other people of the meseta and the north of the Iberian peninsula, one deduces that the membership of the individuals to the people or gentilates , was stronger than the membership of the restricted family; i.e. at the time to express its name it was more important to belong to a group of fuller relationship, which included/understood other sub-groups, inside whose the family would be that of less importance. In the middle of Ier century before JC, other factors start to become important, one find the mention of the city, to which the individual belongs, and appear paternal filiation under the Roman influence.

Urban life

Celtibères lived in various types of installations which the old sources name poleis or urbes , civitates , vici and castella .

  • the poleis or urbes (quoted?), were of the type of the city - state ancient; with an urban core more or less developed and an agrarian environment dependant on him.

  • the civitates , were autonomous indigenous political organizations who could have or not an urban configuration.

  • the vici and castella , were the occupations of less importance and correspond to the settlements and castros characteristic of these people which archeology documents.

The archeologuic discoveries confirm that the occupations in urban matter were preferentially placed in Carpetania , the valleys of the Jalón and the Ebre, i.e. in the richest sectors, more civilized and where the urban life of Roman type had subsequently a greater diffusion. Although the majority of the population lived basically dispersed, in villages or country or around turns of defense, mentioned like vici or castella . The process of construction of cities had already begun, around the 4th century before JC; on arrival of the Romans, during first the II century half before JC (?). These cities were formed by the addition of several tribal communities around the same urban center. F The political organization of these cities ( urbes ), was composed of a popular assembled , a council of old the or aristocratic senate and of the magistrates , whom one supposes elective. This organization of the " villes" celtibères was based directly on its social organization, in whom the aristocracy gentilicia and soldier set up the group dominating, this aristocracy was formed by the owners of the large herds of cattle and an important clientelism which constituted the base of its social prestige. The political body of this class it was the council of old, which at that time did not correspond already any more at one organization of age, this council occupied the first political role of the city and presented proposals which the Parliament approved. Although it was the Parliament which chose the military chief, of which the term of the office was limited, between the aérovacos , at one year.

One elected also other magistratures in civil matter which had like Latin name magistratus , praetor and in the indigenous language viros or veramos , these magistrates managed the administration of the cities or acted like representatives of those.

The league (?) tribal

At the beginning of the 2nd century before JC, the various tribes constituted a league or military confederation, whose finality was the defense of the cities accommodated in this one. This confederation or league was made by the arévacos , bellos , tittos , lusones and probably the pelendones .

The structure of this league, at the beginning of the 2nd century, was not stable, it functioned with the liking of the circumstances, as in the event of attack of the Romans. It seems that the league did not have any coercive capacity on the tribes or cities which composed it, indeed they could adopt several attitudes in the fight, against the Romans, according to the circumstances. It is known that the numentiens had their own garrisons with Mália and Lagni to reinforce the defense of the city and to preserve the fidelity of those with the arévacos. Certainly that the initiative of the formation of the league is due to the arévacos, constantly it is the dominant tribe by its military superiority, it is obvious that inside the league there were inequalities, which were exploited by the Romans to triumph in the wars.

Hospitium , clientelism and devotio

Between the tribes and celtibères cities, there existed, according to the old authors, of the specific forms to communicate between them, they would be the following ones:

Hospitium

The hospitium ( hospicio ) or pact of hospitality made it possible to acquire the rights of a group gentilicio other groups or individuals. It was not about an act of adoption; the acting parts contracted mutual rights without the personality of each one being lost. The contractors of the hospidium became hosts ( hospites ) mutual, and it was habit to grant the pact of hospitality via a document called will tésera hospitality. These will téseras are sheet metal cut out, in much of them have finds two hands interlaced or the silhouette of animals, which had certainly a religious significance. One supposes that at the l'" beginning; hospitium" contracted on a plan of equality, but with the appearance of economic differences that would have evolved to a situation of dependence. Among the discovered pacts of the hospitality, most famous is the bronze of Luzaga, which recalls a hospitium between the towns of Arecoratas and Lutia , to which were probably added the gentilitates Belaiocum and Caricon .

Clientela

The customers (Clientélisme?) are the continuations (course? Procession S?) constituted around the most important individuals of a tribal community. The relation between these individuals, generally the aristocrats and their continuation, were a contractual relation based on the inequality of the richnesses and the social position of each part; normally did the chief owe food and clothing with his customers (?), while the latter owed him an unconditional support. This kind of clientelism was frequently military.

Devotio

Principal article

The devotio was a special kind of clientelism. To the contractual element of the clientelism was added a religious bond, by which the customers of a chief had the obligation to follow this one to the battle and not to survive to him in the event of dead of the chief the combat. This type of customers had as a name devotio and their equivalents in the Celtic and German company, are soldurios and comitatus . With the clientela and the devotio , the bonds of consanguinity did not play any part. The social inequalities pushed the poorest individuals to be put as customers with an aristocrat. Since assujetissement with the chief, sometimes by the means of a religious obligation, became more extremely than the bond of consanguinity, these institutions contributed to disaggregate the tribal organization gentilicia .

It seems that the important development of the military clientelism in Celtibérie, would have taken place during the civil wars of the late Republic, when the implied policies such Sertorius, Pompée, Jules César etc worked with important indigenous customers. The proliferation of these institutional practices, added to the development of the aristocratic class and the urban structures, were the principal elements which contributed to the evolution of the system gentilicio , with its transformation and under the Roman domination with its progressive disappearance.

Organization ethno-policy

principal article: One of the most discussed aspects, essence for the delimitation of Celtibérie, is that of the ethnos groups or populi , which according to the classic authors belonged celtiberic to the group. The people mentioned are varied. Strabon considers that the Aérovacos and Lusones are two of the four people of Celtibérie, although it does not quote the two others; at least by their ethnonimes (?) and by the narration of the celtiberic wars and Lusitanians, we know that they would be the Bellos and the Tittos , which are not quoted any more after 143 before J-C. It is more difficult to fill the fifth share to which Strabon refers, without any detail. Pline announces in a very clear way the Pelendones like populates celtibère, although while following Appien, the Vaccéens, the Berones or even Celtibères mentioned of form independent of Arévacos and Pelendones by Ptolémée.

Religion

See article

We know very few things about the religion of these people. We can divide the Pantheon indigèen into three categories of divinities, who are not exclusive:

divinities in astral matter . They form the substrate of the religions indoeuropéennes.

large Celtic gods . The same ones as those of the other zones of the peninsula and outwards, as as a Gaulle and Brittany.

the divinity minor . With a probably local worship, whose character seems to indicate a substrate or an origin totemic animist or and who and who prove to be dependant, that is to say with accidents (?) of natural type (mounts, forests, etc) that is to say of territorial type (castros, villages, cities, etc).

Among the astral worships most important for these people had to be those of and the the Moon.

Among the large Celtic gods, Lug seems to have been most important, aui with the romanisation was compared to Mercure. The Matres (Matriarches?)were other important divinities, goddesses of fruitfulness, the nourishing earth and water, whose worship was common to the Celtes and the Germains

The gods with an exclusively local worship were very abundant, all these local worships which could be precisely dependant at a community gentilicia or a locality, are those which are most abundantly represented.

It is not known, at present, if there were temples inside the cities or places inhabited by the natives. Does the general standard seem to be that the sanctuaries were out of the places of dwelling, as well as the natural enclosures with steps dug in the rock, found under the acropolis of Tiermes, with a whole of stones of sacrifices with small tasees (or small wells?) and of the channels

It is possible that the military caudillos , carried out religious ceremonies in the presence of the army and that the chiefs or the heads of chalk-lining realized, within the framework of the city or the family, of the precise worships.

Language

Language to see principal article Celtibère

The celtibères spoke a language with the Celtic roots, which they wrote with an Iberian alphabet and as from the 2nd century before Latin JC.

See too

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