The Nemetati were an ancient
Celtic tribe of
Gallaecia
Gallaecia, also known as Hispania Gallaecia, was the name of a Roman province in the north-west of Hispania, approximately present-day Galicia (Spain), Galicia, Norte, Portugal, northern Portugal, Asturias and León (province), Leon and the lat ...
, living in the north of modern
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
between the
Cávado and
Ave River
Ave River ( pt, Rio Ave; ) is a river in Northern Portugal. It has its source in the Cabreira Mountain (Serra da Cabreira) in the Minho Region. In its course passes through the cities of Guimaraes , Vizela , Santo Tirso , Trofa and Vila do ...
s, in the province of
Minho, north of the
Douro
The Douro (, , ; es, Duero ; la, Durius) is the highest-flow river of the Iberian Peninsula. It rises near Duruelo de la Sierra in Soria Province, central Spain, meanders south briefly then flows generally west through the north-west part o ...
.They lived near the valley of the
Ave River
Ave River ( pt, Rio Ave; ) is a river in Northern Portugal. It has its source in the Cabreira Mountain (Serra da Cabreira) in the Minho Region. In its course passes through the cities of Guimaraes , Vizela , Santo Tirso , Trofa and Vila do ...
and may have some link with inscriptions to the war god ''Cosus Nemedecus''. The
Citânia de Sanfins (in
Paços de Ferreira) could be their main hill fort. Their ethnic name comes from the Celtic ''
nemeton
A nemeton (plural: nemeta) was a sacred space of ancient Celtic religion. Nemeta appear to have been primarily situated in natural areas, and, as they often utilized trees, they are often interpreted as sacred groves.Koch, p. 1350. However, othe ...
'' (Νεμετατῶν, Ptol. 2,6,40. Celtic, to nemeto- ato-), a place belonging to the sacred site/grove (to ''nemeto-''), or more likely, place belonging to Nemetos.
Notes
See also
*
Castro culture
Castro culture ( gl, cultura castrexa, pt, cultura castreja, ast, cultura castriega, es, cultura castreña, meaning "culture of the hillforts") is the archaeological term for the material culture of the northwestern regions of the Iberian Pe ...
*
Pre-Roman peoples of the Iberian Peninsula
This is a list of the pre- Roman people of the Iberian Peninsula (the Roman Hispania, i. e., modern Portugal, Spain and Andorra). Some closely fit the concept of a people, ethnic group or tribe. Others are confederations or even unions of t ...
*
Nemetes
The Nemetes (occasionally ''Nemeti'') were a tribe settled along the Upper Rhine by Ariovistus in the 1st century BC.
Their capital, ''Noviomagus Nemeton'' (or ''Civitas Nemetum''), was close to the site of medieval Speyer.
Their area of settlem ...
References
*Coutinhas, José Manuel (2006), ''Aproximação à identidade etno-cultural dos Callaici Bracari'', Porto.
*Queiroga, Francisco (1992), ''War and Castros'', Oxford.
*Silva, Armando Coelho Ferreira da (1986), ''A Cultura Castreja'', Porto.
External links
Detailed map of the Pre-Roman Peoples of Iberia (around 200 BC)
Tribes of Gallaecia
Ancient peoples of Portugal
{{Galicia-stub