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Parisii (Gaul)

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Location of the Parisii.
A map ofGaulin the 1st century BC, showing the relative positions of the Celtic tribes.
Gold coins of the Parisii, 1st century BC (Cabinet des Médailles,Paris).
Coin of the Parisii: obverse with horse, 1st century BC (Cabinet des Médailles,Paris).
Coins of the Parisii (Metropolitan Museum of Art).

TheParisii(Gaulish:*Parisioi;Greek:Παρίσιοι,romanized:Parísioi) were aGallictribe that dwelt on the banks of the riverSeineduring theIron Ageand theRoman era.They lived on lands now occupied by the modern city ofParis,whose name is derived from theethnonym.

Name[edit]

They are mentioned asParisiibyCaesar(mid-1st c. BC),[1]Parísioi(Παρίσιοι;var.Παρήσιοι) byStrabo(early 1st c. AD) andPtolemy(2nd c. AD),[2]ParisibyPliny(mid-1st c. AD),[3]and asParisiusandParisiosin theNotitia Dignitatum(5th c. AD).[4][5]Another tribe namedParisiiis also documented in Britain.[6]

The ethnic nameParisiiis a latinized form ofGaulishParisioi(sing.Parisios). Its meaning has been debated. According toXavier Delamarre,it may derive from the stempario-('cauldron').[6]Alfred Holderinterpreted the name as 'the makers' or 'the commanders', by comparing it to theWelshperyff('lord, commander'), both possibly descending from aProto-Celticform reconstructed as *kwar-is-io-.[7]Alternatively,Pierre-Yves Lambertproposed to translateParisiias the 'spear people', by connecting the first element to theOld Irishcarr'spear', derived from an earlier *kwar-sā.[5]

The city ofParis,attested asLutetiam Oppidum ParisiorumbyCaesar(Parisionin the 5th c. AD,Parisin 1265), is named after the Gallic tribe.[8][5]

History[edit]

The Parisii settled in the territory surrounding their chief town (oroppidum) about 250 BC, as first mentioned inJulius Caesar'sCommentarii de Bello Gallico.[9]

According to theCommentarii de Bello Gallico,when the Romans under Caesar entered this territory, the Parisii started burning down their own towns for they were willing to give up these possessions rather than have them taken by the Romans.[10]

In 52 BC, in concert with theSuessiones,the Parisii participated in the general rising ofVercingetorixagainstJulius Caesar.Before the Roman period, the Parisii had their own gold coinage.[10]

Once part of theRoman Empirethe Parisiioppidumlater became the site ofLutetia,an important city in the Roman province ofGallia Lugdunensis,and ultimately the modern city ofParis,whose name is derived from the name of the tribe. An ancient trade route betweenGermaniaandHispaniaexisted at the area, by way of the meeting of theOiseandMarnerivers with theSeine.[11][12]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^Caesar.Commentarii de Bello Gallico,4:3, passim.
  2. ^Strabo.Geōgraphiká,4:3:5;Ptolemy.Geōgraphikḕ Hyphḗgēsis,2:8:10.
  3. ^Pliny.Naturalis Historia,4:107.
  4. ^Notitia Dignitatum,oc 42, 23, 66.
  5. ^abcFalileyev 2010,s.v.ParisiiandLutetia.
  6. ^abDelamarre 2003,p. 247.
  7. ^Busse 2006,p. 199.
  8. ^Nègre 1990,p. 155.
  9. ^E. Planta -A new picture of Paris; or, The stranger's guide to the French metropolisSamuel Leigh & Baldwin & Cradock 1831 (16th edition). Retrieved on 2017-04-23 fromhttps://books.google /books?id=jGMDAAAAQAAJ&dq=Parisii%2C+Paris&pg=PA111(1st return).
  10. ^ab"Paris".Encyclopædia Britannica Ultimate Reference Suite.Chicago:Encyclopædia Britannica.2014.
  11. ^Andrew Ayers -The Architecture of Paris: An Architectural GuideEdition Axel Menges, 2004ISBN393069896XRetrieved 23 April 2017
  12. ^H. Sauval -Histoire et recherches des antiquités de la ville de Paris, Volume 1chés C. Moette, 1724 >1st returnRetrieved 23 April 2017

Bibliography[edit]

  • Busse, Peter E. (2006). "Belgae". In Koch, John T. (ed.).Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia.ABC-CLIO. pp. 195–200.ISBN978-1-85109-440-0.
  • Delamarre, Xavier(2003).Dictionnaire de la langue gauloise: Une approche linguistique du vieux-celtique continental.Errance.ISBN9782877723695.
  • Falileyev, Alexander (2010).Dictionary of Continental Celtic Place-names: A Celtic Companion to the Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World.CMCS.ISBN978-0955718236.
  • Nègre, Ernest(1990).Toponymie générale de la France.Librairie Droz.ISBN978-2-600-02883-7.

Further reading[edit]

  • Duval, Paul-Marie (1961).Paris antique: des origines au troisième siècle.Hermann.OCLC954302664.

External links[edit]

  • Media related toParisiiat Wikimedia Commons
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