Ucennii
The Ucennii, Ucenni or Iconii were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the Romanche valley, in the Alps, during the Iron Age.
Name
[edit]They are mentioned as Ucenni (var. uceni, ucermi) by Pliny (1st c. AD) and on the Tropaeum Alpium,[1] as Ucennos (var. cennos, sennos, scennos) by Florus.[2][3] The form Ikónioi (Ἰκόνιοι) given by Strabo (early 1st c. AD) is most likely a variant of the ethnic name.[4][3]
The meaning of the name remains obscure, although it is most likely of Celtic origin. It can be compared with the toponym Ucena in Galatia.[3]
Geography
[edit]The Ucenni lived in the Romanche valley, in the region of Oisans.[5][6] Their territory was located south of the Graioceli, west of the Belaci, Segovii and Brigianii, north of the Tricorii, and west of the Vertamocorii and Allobroges.[7]
Settlements are known at Catorissium (Le Bourg-d'Oisans), Mellosedum (Mont-de-Lans), and Durotincum (near La Grave and Villar-d'Arêne).[8]
History
[edit]They are mentioned by Pliny the Elder as one of the Alpine tribes conquered by Rome in 16–15 BC, and whose name was engraved on the Tropaeum Alpium.[9]
References
[edit]- ^ Pliny. Naturalis Historia, 3:20; CIL 5:7817.
- ^ Florus. Epitome, 2:22:4.
- ^ a b c Falileyev 2010, s.v. Ucennii.
- ^ Barruol 1969, p. 41.
- ^ Barruol 1969, pp. 320–323.
- ^ Graßl 2006.
- ^ Talbert 2000, Map 17: Lugdunum.
- ^ Barruol 1969, p. 322.
- ^ Pliny. Naturalis Historia, 3:20.
Primary sources
[edit]- Pliny (1938). Natural History. Loeb Classical Library. Translated by Rackham, H. Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0674993648.
- Strabo (1923). Geography. Loeb Classical Library. Translated by Jones, Horace L. Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0674990562.
Bibliography
[edit]- Barruol, Guy (1969). Les Peuples préromains du Sud-Est de la Gaule: étude de géographie historique. E. de Boccard. OCLC 3279201.
- Falileyev, Alexander (2010). Dictionary of Continental Celtic Place-names: A Celtic Companion to the Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World. CMCS. ISBN 978-0955718236.
- Graßl, Herbert (2006). "Ucenni". Brill's New Pauly. doi:10.1163/1574-9347_bnp_e1223950.
- Talbert, Richard J. A. (2000). Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World. Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0691031699.
