Continental Celtic languages
Encyclopedia
The Continental Celtic languages are the Celtic languages
, now extinct, that were spoken on the continent of Europe, as distinguished from the Insular Celtic languages of Britain
and Ireland
. The Continental Celtic languages were spoken by the people known to Roman and Greek writers as Keltoi, Celtae, Galli and Galatae. These languages were spoken from Iberia to the Balkans and in Asia Minor.
Linguistically, Continental Celtic is divided in Celtiberian
and Gaulish.
Gaulish can be further subdivided in Transalpine Gaulish, Cisalpine Gaulish
, Galatian
, Lepontic
and Noric
, with the precise relation between these subgroups being uncertain or unknown.
s spoke dozens of different languages and dialect
s across Europe in pre-Roman
times, only three such languages are commonly said to be actually attested:
A further two languages could be listed as Continental Celtic:
Two other languages may also be grouped as Celtic languages as part of Western Hispano-Celtic:
. While many researchers agree that Insular Celtic is a distinct branch of Celtic (Cowgill 1975; McCone 1991, 1992; Schrijver 1995), having undergone common linguistic
innovations, there is no evidence that the Continental Celtic languages can be similarly grouped. Instead, the term Continental Celtic is polyphyletic and refers simply to non-Insular Celtic languages. Since little material has been preserved in any of the Continental Celtic languages, historical linguistic
analysis based on the comparative method
is difficult to perform. However, other researchers see the Brythonic languages
and Gaulish as forming part of a sub-group of Celtic languages
known as P-Celtic. The Continental languages are all P-Celtic, except for the Celtiberian language which is Q-Celtic, and have had a definite influence on all the Romance languages
.
is spoken in continental Europe
, and has been since at least the 6th century AD, it is not considered one of the Continental Celtic languages. It is a Brythonic language
closely related to Welsh
and Cornish
, although it has been suggested that there is a Gaulish substratum in the Vannetais dialect (Galliou and Jones 1991). François Falc'hun
considered Breton as a descendant of Gaulish, but the historical and linguistic evidence shows otherwise.
Celtic languages
The Celtic languages are descended from Proto-Celtic, or "Common Celtic"; a branch of the greater Indo-European language family...
, now extinct, that were spoken on the continent of Europe, as distinguished from the Insular Celtic languages of Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. The Continental Celtic languages were spoken by the people known to Roman and Greek writers as Keltoi, Celtae, Galli and Galatae. These languages were spoken from Iberia to the Balkans and in Asia Minor.
Linguistically, Continental Celtic is divided in Celtiberian
Celtiberian language
Celtiberian is an extinct Indo-European language of the Celtic branch spoken by the Celtiberians in an area of the Iberian Peninsula lyingbetween the headwaters of the Duero, Tajo, Júcar and Turia rivers and the Ebro river...
and Gaulish.
Gaulish can be further subdivided in Transalpine Gaulish, Cisalpine Gaulish
Cisalpine Gaulish
The Celtic Cisalpine Gaulish inscriptions are frequently combined with the Lepontic inscriptions under the term Celtic language remains in northern Italy...
, Galatian
Galatian language
Galatian is an extinct Celtic language once spoken in Galatia in Asia Minor from the 3rd century BC up to at least the 4th century AD, although ancient sources suggest it was still spoken in the 6th century....
, Lepontic
Lepontic language
Lepontic is an extinct Alpine language that was spoken in parts of Rhaetia and Cisalpine Gaul between 550 and 100 BC. It was a Celtic language, although its exact classification within Celtic has been the object of debate...
and Noric
Noric language
The Noric language or Eastern Celtic language was a Continental Celtic language. It is attested in only two fragmentary inscriptions from the Roman province of Noricum , which do not provide enough information for any conclusions about the nature of the language to be drawn...
, with the precise relation between these subgroups being uncertain or unknown.
Attested languages
Although it is likely that CeltCelt
The Celts were a diverse group of tribal societies in Iron Age and Roman-era Europe who spoke Celtic languages.The earliest archaeological culture commonly accepted as Celtic, or rather Proto-Celtic, was the central European Hallstatt culture , named for the rich grave finds in Hallstatt, Austria....
s spoke dozens of different languages and dialect
Dialect
The term dialect is used in two distinct ways, even by linguists. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of the language's speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors,...
s across Europe in pre-Roman
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
times, only three such languages are commonly said to be actually attested:
- LeponticLepontic languageLepontic is an extinct Alpine language that was spoken in parts of Rhaetia and Cisalpine Gaul between 550 and 100 BC. It was a Celtic language, although its exact classification within Celtic has been the object of debate...
(7th to 4th century BC) was spoken on the southern side of the Alps. Lepontic is generally considered an early dialect of Gaulish, and Galatian may be a late one as well. It is evidenced in a number of inscriptions as well as place names. - Celtiberian or Northeastern Hispano-CelticCeltiberian languageCeltiberian is an extinct Indo-European language of the Celtic branch spoken by the Celtiberians in an area of the Iberian Peninsula lyingbetween the headwaters of the Duero, Tajo, Júcar and Turia rivers and the Ebro river...
(3rd to 1st century BC) is the name given to the language in northeast Iberia, between the headwaters of the DouroDouroThe Douro or Duero is one of the major rivers of the Iberian Peninsula, flowing from its source near Duruelo de la Sierra in Soria Province across northern-central Spain and Portugal to its outlet at Porto...
, TagusTagusThe Tagus is the longest river on the Iberian Peninsula. It is long, in Spain, along the border between Portugal and Spain and in Portugal, where it empties into the Atlantic Ocean at Lisbon. It drains an area of . The Tagus is highly utilized for most of its course...
, JúcarJúcarThe Júcar or Xúquer is a river on the Iberian Peninsula of Spain. The river runs for approximately 509 km from its source at Ojuelos de Valdeminguete, on the eastern flank of the Montes Universales, Sistema Ibérico...
and TuriaTuriaTuria can refer to:*Turia , a river in southeastern Spain*Turía , a small river in northern Spain*Turía , a small Web development company in india*Turia Valley, a valley in northern Spain...
rivers and the EbroEbroThe Ebro or Ebre is one of the most important rivers in the Iberian Peninsula. It is the biggest river by discharge volume in Spain.The Ebro flows through the following cities:*Reinosa in Cantabria.*Miranda de Ebro in Castile and León....
river. It is attested to by some 200 inscriptions as well as place names. It is distinct from the Iberian languageIberian languageThe Iberian language was the language of a people identified by Greek and Roman sources who lived in the eastern and southeastern regions of the Iberian peninsula. The ancient Iberians can be identified as a rather nebulous local culture between the 7th and 1st century BC...
. A Celtic language may also have been spoken by the TartessianTartessian languageThe Tartessian language is the extinct Paleohispanic language of inscriptions in the Southwestern script found in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula: mainly in the south of Portugal , but also in Spain . There are 95 of these inscriptions with the longest having 82 readable signs...
people in SW Iberia. Tartessian is attested by 95 inscriptions with the longest having 82 readable signs. Both attested languages have been grouped in Hispano-Celtic. - Gaulish or GallicGaulish languageThe Gaulish language is an extinct Celtic language that was spoken by the Gauls, a people who inhabited the region known as Gaul from the Iron Age through the Roman period...
(3rd century BC to 2nd (?) century AD) was the main language spoken in greater GaulGaulGaul was a region of Western Europe during the Iron Age and Roman era, encompassing present day France, Luxembourg and Belgium, most of Switzerland, the western part of Northern Italy, as well as the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the left bank of the Rhine. The Gauls were the speakers of...
. This is often considered to be divided into two dialects, Cisalpine (the Italian side) and Transalpine (the French side). It is evidenced in a number of inscriptions as well as place names and tribal names in writings of classical authors. It may have been a substratumSubstratumIn linguistics, a stratum or strate is a language that influences, or is influenced by another through contact. A substratum is a language which has lower power or prestige than another, while a superstratum is the language that has higher power or prestige. Both substratum and superstratum...
to BretonBreton languageBreton is a Celtic language spoken in Brittany , France. Breton is a Brythonic language, descended from the Celtic British language brought from Great Britain to Armorica by migrating Britons during the Early Middle Ages. Like the other Brythonic languages, Welsh and Cornish, it is classified as...
, as noted below.
A further two languages could be listed as Continental Celtic:
- GalatianGalatian languageGalatian is an extinct Celtic language once spoken in Galatia in Asia Minor from the 3rd century BC up to at least the 4th century AD, although ancient sources suggest it was still spoken in the 6th century....
, that was spoken around AnkaraAnkaraAnkara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
. Classical writers say that the language is similar to that of Gaul. There is also evidence of invasion of Celts from Europe. - NoricNoric languageThe Noric language or Eastern Celtic language was a Continental Celtic language. It is attested in only two fragmentary inscriptions from the Roman province of Noricum , which do not provide enough information for any conclusions about the nature of the language to be drawn...
, which is the name given sometimes to the Celtic dialects spoken in Central and Eastern Europe. It was spoken in AustriaAustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and SloveniaSloveniaSlovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
; only two fragmentary texts are preserved and there are plenty of personal names and toponyms.
Two other languages may also be grouped as Celtic languages as part of Western Hispano-Celtic:
- LusitanianLusitanian languageLusitanian was a paleohispanic language that apparently belonged to the Indo-European family. Its relationship to the Celtic languages of the Iberian Peninsula, either as a member, a cousin , or as a different branch of Indo-European, is debated. It is known from only five inscriptions, dated from...
was spoken in the area between the Douro and Tagus rivers in what is now PortugalPortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
and part of SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. It is only attested by five inscriptions, together with various place names. While definitely Indo-European, some scholars have proposed that, given their archaic character, some Hispano-Celtic dialects of which they include Lusitanian as one, might be an early form of Celtic, while others see affinities with Italic and Old European but on ambiguous evidence. - Gallaecian or Gallaic or Northwestern Hispano-CelticGallaecian languageThe Northwestern Hispano-Celtic, Gallaecian or Gallaic, is classified as a Q-Celtic language under the P-Q system and was closely related to Celtiberian...
known from a corpus of Latin inscriptions containing some linguistic features that are clearly Celtic forming a Celtic continuum of dialects and others that are archaic like Lusitanian.
Use of term
The modern term Continental Celtic is used in contrast to Insular CelticInsular Celtic languages
Insular Celtic languages are those Celtic languages that originated in the British Isles, in contrast to the Continental Celtic languages of mainland Europe and Anatolia. All surviving Celtic languages are from the Insular Celtic group; the Continental Celtic languages are extinct...
. While many researchers agree that Insular Celtic is a distinct branch of Celtic (Cowgill 1975; McCone 1991, 1992; Schrijver 1995), having undergone common linguistic
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
innovations, there is no evidence that the Continental Celtic languages can be similarly grouped. Instead, the term Continental Celtic is polyphyletic and refers simply to non-Insular Celtic languages. Since little material has been preserved in any of the Continental Celtic languages, historical linguistic
Historical linguistics
Historical linguistics is the study of language change. It has five main concerns:* to describe and account for observed changes in particular languages...
analysis based on the comparative method
Comparative method
In linguistics, the comparative method is a technique for studying the development of languages by performing a feature-by-feature comparison of two or more languages with common descent from a shared ancestor, as opposed to the method of internal reconstruction, which analyzes the internal...
is difficult to perform. However, other researchers see the Brythonic languages
Brythonic languages
The Brythonic or Brittonic languages form one of the two branches of the Insular Celtic language family, the other being Goidelic. The name Brythonic was derived by Welsh Celticist John Rhys from the Welsh word Brython, meaning an indigenous Briton as opposed to an Anglo-Saxon or Gael...
and Gaulish as forming part of a sub-group of Celtic languages
Celtic languages
The Celtic languages are descended from Proto-Celtic, or "Common Celtic"; a branch of the greater Indo-European language family...
known as P-Celtic. The Continental languages are all P-Celtic, except for the Celtiberian language which is Q-Celtic, and have had a definite influence on all the Romance languages
Romance languages
The Romance languages are a branch of the Indo-European language family, more precisely of the Italic languages subfamily, comprising all the languages that descend from Vulgar Latin, the language of ancient Rome...
.
Note on Breton
Even though BretonBreton language
Breton is a Celtic language spoken in Brittany , France. Breton is a Brythonic language, descended from the Celtic British language brought from Great Britain to Armorica by migrating Britons during the Early Middle Ages. Like the other Brythonic languages, Welsh and Cornish, it is classified as...
is spoken in continental Europe
Continental Europe
Continental Europe, also referred to as mainland Europe or simply the Continent, is the continent of Europe, explicitly excluding European islands....
, and has been since at least the 6th century AD, it is not considered one of the Continental Celtic languages. It is a Brythonic language
Brythonic languages
The Brythonic or Brittonic languages form one of the two branches of the Insular Celtic language family, the other being Goidelic. The name Brythonic was derived by Welsh Celticist John Rhys from the Welsh word Brython, meaning an indigenous Briton as opposed to an Anglo-Saxon or Gael...
closely related to Welsh
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
and Cornish
Cornish language
Cornish is a Brythonic Celtic language and a recognised minority language of the United Kingdom. Along with Welsh and Breton, it is directly descended from the ancient British language spoken throughout much of Britain before the English language came to dominate...
, although it has been suggested that there is a Gaulish substratum in the Vannetais dialect (Galliou and Jones 1991). François Falc'hun
François Falc'hun
François Falc'hun was a controversial French linguist known for his theories about the origin of the Breton language. He was also an ordained Canon in the Catholic clergy.Falc'hun was professor at the Universities of Rennes and Brest...
considered Breton as a descendant of Gaulish, but the historical and linguistic evidence shows otherwise.