The Cananefates, or Canninefates, Caninefates, or Canenefatae, meaning " leek masters", were a Germanic tribe, who lived in the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

delta, in western Batavia (later Betuwe), in the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

province of ''

Germania Inferior Germania Inferior ("Lower Germania") was a Roman province from AD 85 until the province was renamed Germania Secunda in the fourth century, on the west bank of the Rhine bordering the North Sea. The capital of the province was Colonia Agripp ...

'' (now in the Dutch province of South Holland), before and during the Roman conquest. Apparently, the name had its origins in the Cananefates living on sandy soils that were considered excellent for growing

Allium ''Allium'' is a genus of monocotyledonous flowering plants that includes hundreds of species, including the cultivated onion, garlic, scallion, shallot, leek, and chives. The generic name ''Allium'' is the Latin word for garlic,Gledhill, D ...

s such as leeks and onions. At the beginning of the

Batavian rebellion The Revolt of the Batavi took place in the Roman province of Germania Inferior between AD 69 and 70. It was an uprising against the Roman Empire started by the Batavi, a small but militarily powerful Germanic tribe that inhabited Batavia, on ...

under

Gaius Julius Civilis Gaius Julius Civilis was the leader of the Batavian rebellion against the Romans in 69 AD. His nomen shows that he (or one of his male ancestors) was made a Roman citizen (and thus, the tribe a Roman vassal) by either Augustus or Caligula. Earl ...

in the year 69, the

Batavians The Batavi were an ancient Germanic tribe that lived around the modern Dutch Rhine delta in the area that the Romans called Batavia, from the second half of the first century BC to the third century AD. The name is also applied to several milit ...

sent envoys to the Canninefates to urge a common policy. "This is a tribe," says

Tacitus Publius Cornelius Tacitus, known simply as Tacitus ( , ; – ), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historians by modern scholars. The surviving portions of his two major works—the ...

(''Histories'' Book iv) "which inhabits part of the island, and closely resembles the Batavians in their origins, languages, and in their courageous character, but is inferior in numbers." This would imply a similar descent as the Batavians from the

Chatti The Chatti (also Chatthi or Catti) were an ancient Germanic tribe whose homeland was near the upper Weser (''Visurgis''). They lived in central and northern Hesse and southern Lower Saxony, along the upper reaches of that river and in the va ...

. In the failed uprising that followed, the Canninefates were led by their chieftain

Brinno Brinno was leader of the Canninefates when they joined in the Batavian rebellion at the mouth of the Rhine in AD 70. According to Tacitus, his father had been hostile towards the Romans during the reign of Caligula. Therefore, Brinno was chosen ...

, the son of a chief who had faced down Caligula. The capital of the '' civitas'' of the Cananefates was ''

Forum Hadriani Forum Hadriani, in the modern town of Voorburg, was the northernmost Roman city on the European continent and the second oldest city of the Netherlands. It was located in the Roman province Germania Inferior and is mentioned on the Tabula Peuti ...

'', modern

Voorburg Voorburg is a town and former municipality in the west part of the province of South Holland, Netherlands. Together with Leidschendam and Stompwijk, it makes up the municipality Leidschendam-Voorburg. It has a population of about 39,000 peo ...

. In modern times, the region

Kennemerland Kennemerland is a coastal region in the northwestern Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It includes the sand dunes north of the North Sea Canal, as well as the dunes of Zuid-Kennemerland National Park. History Kennemerland gets it ...

is said to derive from the name of the Cananefates.

Notes

Early Germanic peoples History of South Holland Netherlands in the Roman era {{europe-ethno-group-stub

See also

Notes