The Catalauni (

Gaulish Gaulish was an ancient Celtic languages, Celtic language spoken in parts of Continental Europe before and during the period of the Roman Empire. In the narrow sense, Gaulish was the language of the Celts of Gaul (now France, Luxembourg, Belgium ...

: *''Catu-uellaunoi'' 'war-chiefs') were a

Belgic Belgic may refer to: * an adjective referring to the Belgae, an ancient confederation of tribes * a rarer adjective referring to the Low Countries or to Belgium * , several ships with the name * Belgic ware Aylesford-Swarling pottery is part of a ...

tribe dwelling in the modern

Champagne Champagne (, ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, that demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, spe ...

region during the

Roman period The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...

. The Catalauni probably belonged to a larger tribe, either the

Remi The Remi (Gaulish: ''Rēmi'', 'the first, the princes') were a Belgic tribe dwelling in the Aisne, Vesle and Suippe river valleys during the Iron Age and the Roman period. Their territory roughly corresponded the modern Marne and Ardennes and par ...

in the north or the

Lingones The Lingones (Gaulish: 'the jumpers') were a Gallic tribe of the Iron Age and Roman periods. They dwelled in the region surrounding the present-day city of Langres, between the provinces of Gallia Lugdunensis and Gallia Belgica. Name Attes ...

in the south. The

Catuvellauni The Catuvellauni (Common Brittonic: *''Catu-wellaunī'', "war-chiefs") were a Celtic tribe or state of southeastern Britain before the Roman conquest, attested by inscriptions into the 4th century. The fortunes of the Catuvellauni and their k ...

, who migrated to southern Britain in the 1st century BC, are likely part of the same tribal group.

Name

They are mentioned as ''Catalaunos'' by Eutropius (4th c. AD), as ''(Cat)alaunorum'' in the ''

Notitia Dignitatum The ''Notitia Dignitatum'' (Latin for "The List of Offices") is a document of the late Roman Empire that details the administrative organization of the Western and the Eastern Roman Empire. It is unique as one of very few surviving documents of ...

'' (5th c. AD)., s.v. ''Catalauni''. The

ethnonym An ethnonym () is a name applied to a given ethnic group. Ethnonyms can be divided into two categories: exonyms (whose name of the ethnic group has been created by another group of people) and autonyms, or endonyms (whose name is created and used ...

''Catalauni'' is probably a latinized contracted form of

*''Catu-uellaunoi'' ('war-chiefs, chiefs-of-war'), deriving from the stem ''catu-'' ('combat') attached to ''uellauni'' ('chiefs, commandants'). The name ''

'', borne by a Celtic tribe of southern Britain, is thus likely related. The city of Châlons-sur-Marne, attested in the 4th century as ''Durocatelaunos'' (''Cathalaunum'' in 1185), is named after the Belgic tribe.

Geography

They probably originally settled in the area of the

, within the modern

Champagne region The wine region within the historical province of Champagne in the northeast of France is best known for the production of champagne, the sparkling white wine that bears the region's name. EU law and the laws of most countries reserve the term " ...

. Their chief town, known as ''civitas Catalaunorum'' (modern-day Châlons-sur-Marne), is not mentioned before the 4th century AD.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * {{Gallic peoples Belgae Historical Celtic peoples Gauls Tribes of pre-Roman Gaul Champagne (province)