The Statielli, Statiellātes, or Statiellenses were members of a small Ligurian tribe that inhabited an area south of the river Padus (today the Po). Their chief town was Aquae Statiellae (

Acqui Terme Acqui Terme (; pms, Àich ) is a city and ''comune'' in the province of Alessandria, Piedmont, northern Italy. It is about south-southwest of Alessandria. It is one of the principal winemaking communes of the Italian DOCG wine Brachetto d'A ...

), on the road from Vada Sabatia, near Savona to Dertona (Tortona) and Placentia.Harry Thurston Peck, ''Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities'' (1898). Article available onlin
here
The Statielli settled in the territory bordered to the west and north by the course of the

Tanaro The Tanaro (; pms, Tane ; ; la, Tanarus), is a long river in northwestern Italy. The river begins in the Ligurian Alps, near the border with France, and is the most significant right-side tributary to the Po in terms of length, size of dra ...

river, to the east by the Orba, and to the south by the

Alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National Pa ...

- Apennine Ligurian watershed, an area now included between the current provinces of Alessandria, Savona, Asti and

Cuneo Cuneo (; pms, Coni ; oc, Coni/Couni ; french: Coni ) is a city and ''comune'' in Piedmont, Northern Italy, the capital of the province of Cuneo, the fourth largest of Italy’s provinces by area. It is located at 550 metres (1,804 ft) in ...

. During the early

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostl ...

, the area today corresponding to southern

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

appears to have been inhabited by a different ethnic group without a clear ethnic diversification. It is only from the fourth century BC that the Statielli population is recognizable. The ethnonym contains the typical Ligurian suffix -ello-. The origin of the name can be traced back to the

Indo-European The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Dutc ...

root for "to stay", and therefore means "the natives, those who occupy a territory", evidently in contrast with other neighboring groups to which a movement is attributed. Their capital was "Caristum", an

Oppidum An ''oppidum'' (plural ''oppida'') is a large fortified Iron Age settlement or town. ''Oppida'' are primarily associated with the Celtic late La Tène culture, emerging during the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, spread across Europe, stretchi ...

that would later be called Aquae Statiellae by the

Roman people grc, Ῥωμαῖοι, , native_name_lang = , image = Pompeii family feast painting Naples.jpg , image_caption = 1st century AD wall painting from Pompeii depicting a multigenerational banquet , languages = , relig ...

and was located in the area where the town of Acqui Terme now stands. The population occupied a vast territory, as the Statielli did not reside only in this area, but in other various oppida, castellari and villages, as well.

Roman conquest

The Statielli were subjugated by the Romans around the middle of the 2nd century BC. In 173 BC, the Roman legions led by the consul Marcus Popilius Laenas attacked the center of Carystum. The Statielli did not oppose the resistance; however, in contravention of the Roman law of war, the console reduced the Statielli to slavery and began to organize the sale of slaves from this population. A year later, due to intervention by the Senate of Rome, this harsh treatment was terminated, and the Statielli, having regained their freedom, were gradually Romanized. The city of Aquae Statiellae was founded and, in 89 BC, the Lex Pompeia was extended with the concession of the Ius Latii.

References

{{ethno-stub Ligures