The Indigetes ( or or , Iberian: ) were an ancient Iberian (Pre- Roman) people of the eastern side of the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...

(the Roman

Hispania Hispania was the Ancient Rome, Roman name for the Iberian Peninsula. Under the Roman Republic, Hispania was divided into two Roman province, provinces: Hispania Citerior and Hispania Ulterior. During the Principate, Hispania Ulterior was divide ...

). They are believed to have spoken the Iberian language.

Location

They occupied the far north east area of the Iberian Peninsula known as

Hispania Tarraconensis Hispania Tarraconensis was one of three Roman provinces in Hispania. It encompassed much of the northern, eastern and central territories of modern Spain along with modern North Region, Portugal, northern Portugal. Southern Spain, the region now ...

, in the gulf of Empúries and Rhoda, stretching up into the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees are a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. They extend nearly from their union with the Cantabrian Mountains to Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean coast, reaching a maximum elevation of at the peak of Aneto. ...

though the regions of Empordà,

Selva Selva may refer to: People *Selva (surname) *Selva (name) *Selva (actor), Indian actor *Selva (director), Indian director Places *Selva (comarca), a coastal comarca (county) in Catalonia, Spain *Selva, Mallorca (pop. 3,055), a municipality on Mal ...

and perhaps as far as Gironès, where the Ausetani could be found who were related ethnically. They were divided into four tribes, and the main towns they centered on were: ''Indika'' (''Untika'') (only mentioned by

Stephanus of Byzantium Stephanus or Stephen of Byzantium (; , ''Stéphanos Byzántios''; centuryAD) was a Byzantine grammarian and the author of an important geographical dictionary entitled ''Ethnica'' (). Only meagre fragments of the dictionary survive, but the epit ...

, still unidentified, but he was possibly referring to Empúries or Ullastret), ''Empodrae'' (Empúries, where there was an extremely important Greek, Phocaean and MassaliotanInformation taken from the Spanish Version of this article, seems to relate to other, possibly Iberian, Peoples of the area. colony, which had their corresponding commercial "emporio"), ''Rhoda'' ( Roses), ''Juncaria'' ( La Jonquera), ''Cinniana'' ( Cervià) and ''Deciana'' (close to La Jonquera). This land was watered by the ''Clodianus'' ( Fluvià), the ''Sambrocas'' ( Muga) and the ''Tichis'' ( Ter). This district in the Gulf of Empúrias was known as ''Juncaris Campus''.

Culture

The Indigetes minted their own coins which bore the inscription ''undikesken'' in northeastern Iberian script that is interpreted in Iberian language as a self-reference to the ethnic name of that people: from the Indigetes or from those of ''undika''. The main archaeological sites related to the Indigetes are in Ullastret ( Baix Empordà), Castell de la Fosca ( Palamós, Baix Empordà) and Puig Castellet ( Lloret de Mar, Selva).

History

In 218 BC they were conquered by

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

during the Roman conquest of Hispania. In 195 BC they rebelled, but they were crushed by the

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states thro ...

Marcus Porcius Cato.

Gallery

File:Lloret, Puig de Castellet, Mauerreste.JPG, Wall foundations in Puig Castellet near Lloret File:Bronce ibero.jpg, Inscribed lead plate from the Ullastret Iberian archaeological site File:CisternaUllastret.JPG,

Cistern A cistern (; , ; ) is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. To prevent leakage, the interior of the cistern is often lined with hydraulic plaster. Cisterns are disti ...

at the Ullastret site

Notes

References

Bibliography

* Ángel Montenegro ''et alii'', ''Historia de España 2 - colonizaciones y formación de los pueblos prerromanos (1200-218 a.C)'', Editorial Gredos, Madrid (1989)

External links

Detailed map of the Pre-Roman Peoples of Iberia (around 200 BC)
Pre-Roman peoples of the Iberian Peninsula History of Catalonia Ancient peoples of Spain Tribes conquered by Rome {{Spain-hist-stub