Cromlech

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Cromlech

Cromlech is a Brythonic word (Breton

Breton language

The Breton language is a Celtic languages spoken by some of the inhabitants of Brittany in France....
/Welsh

Welsh language

Welsh ]], is a member of the Brythonic branch of Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, in England by some along the Welsh Marches and in the Welsh settlement in Argentina in the Chubut Valley in Argentina Patagonia....
) used to describe prehistoric megalith

Megalith

A megalith is a large Rock which has been used to construct a structure or monument, either alone or together with other stones. Megalithic means structures made of such large stones, utilizing an interlocking system without the use of mortar or cement....
ic structures, where crom means "bent" and llech means "flagstone

Flagstone

Flagstone, or flag, is a type of flat Rock , usually used for Sidewalk slabs, but also for making fences or roofing. It may also be used for making memorials or headstones in a cemetery....
". The term is now virtually obsolete in archæology, but remains in use as a colloquial term for two different types of megalith

Megalith

Monument

A monument is a type of structure either explicitly created to commemorate a person or important event or which has become important to a social group as a part of their remembrance of past events....
.

In English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that originated in Anglo-Saxon England and has lingua franca status in many parts of the world as a result of the military, economic, scientific, political and cultural influence of the British Empire in the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries and that of the United States from the mid 20th century onwa...
it usually refers to dolmen

Dolmen

File:paulnabrone.jpgFile:KilclooneyDolmen1986.jpgA dolmen is a type of single-chamber megalithic tomb, usually consisting of three or more megalith supporting a large flat horizontal capstone ....
s, the remains of prehistoric stone chamber tomb

Chamber tomb

A chamber tomb is a tomb for burial used in many different cultures. In the case of individual burials, the chamber is thought to signify a higher status for the interree than a simple grave ....
s. However, it is widely used in French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken around the world by around 80 million people as first language, by 190 million as second language, and by about another 200 million people as an acquired tongue, with significant speakers in 54 countries....
to describe stone circle

Stone circle

A stone circle is an ancient monument. Such a monument is not always precisely circular and often forms an ellipse, or a setting of four stones laid on an arc of a circle....
s. Confusingly, some English-speaking archæologists, such as Aubrey Burl

Aubrey Burl

Aubrey Burl is a British archaeologist most well known for his studies into megalithic monuments and the nature of prehistoric rituals associated with them....
, use this second meaning for cromlech in English too.

In addition, the term is occasionally used to describe more complex examples of megalithic architecture, such as the Almendres Cromlech

Almendres Cromlech

The Almendres Cromlech megalithic complex, located near Guadalupe, ?vora, Portugal, is one of the earliest public monuments. It is the largest existing group of structured menhirs in the Iberian Peninsula, and one of the largest in Europe....
in Portugal

Portugal

Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. Located in southwestern Europe, Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east....
.