Trebopala is a
Lusitanian name usually interpreted as a
theonym
A theonym (from Greek (), 'god', attached to (), ) is a proper name of a deity.
Theonymy, the study of divine proper names, is a branch of onomastics, the study of the etymology, history, and use of proper names. Theonymy helps develop an und ...
, appearing on the
Cabeço das Fraguas inscription from
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
. Trebopala is probably a
goddess
A goddess is a female deity. In some faiths, a sacred female figure holds a central place in religious prayer and worship. For example, Shaktism (one of the three major Hinduism, Hindu sects), holds that the ultimate deity, the source of all re ...
.
Meaning of the name
Although the name ''Trebopala'' appears in only a single inscription, it is of interest because this inscription is in the
Lusitanian language Lusitania
Lusitania (; ) was an ancient Iberian Roman province encompassing most of modern-day Portugal (south of the Douro River) and a large portion of western Spain (the present Extremadura and Province of Salamanca). Romans named the regio ...
rather than in a
Latin
Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
dedication. It is generally thought the first element is a
Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
*Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Foot ...
one, ''*trebo-'' (or a
cognate
In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymological ancestor in a common parent language.
Because language change can have radical effects on both the s ...
with it) meaning a house or dwelling place. The second element is interpreted either as "protector", or as the attested
Lepontic/
Ligurian word ''pala'', probably meaning a sacred stone, or as "flat land."
E-Keltoi Journal of Interdisciplinary Celtic Studies Vol. 6
/ref> ''Trebopala'' is therefore said to mean either ''Protector of the Home'', ''Plain of the Home'' or ''Altar of the Home''. In the inscription, Trebopala is recorded as receiving a single sheep (''oilam'').
See also
* List of Lusitanian deities
*Trebaruna
Trebaruna, also ''Treborunnis'' and possibly ''*Trebarunu'', was a Lusitanian deity, probably a goddess. Trebaruna's cult was located in the cultural area of Gallaecia and Lusitania (in the territory of modern Galicia (Spain) and Portugal).
Name ...
* Reo
Footnotes
References
{{reflist
Lusitanian goddesses