Runesocesius

Runesocesiuswas adeitywhose name appears on an inscription from the region ofÉvora,the RomanEborain modernPortugalin the area inhabited by theCelticiinLusitania.He has generally been thought of as aLusitaniangod.

Discovery & interpretation

At the close of the 19th Century, a Roman dedication was discovered and examined by Portuguesearchaeologistsnear Évora. The inscription was inLatinand readSANCTRVNESOCESIOSACRVGLIC... QVINTCINV... BALS.In a paper submitted to the FrenchSociété des Antiquairesthis was interpreted asSancto Runeso Cesio Sacrum G. Licinius Quinctinus Balsensis:a dedication by Gaius Licinius Quinctinus ofBalsato a previously unknown god, Runesus Cesius. The name was interpreted asCeltic,with "Cesius" anallographforgaesiusand hence deriving from the roots*runa-and*gaiso-meaning "the Mysterious One of the Javelin (or Spear)"

An alternative reading, as a single wordRunesocesius,was proposed by J M Blazquez-Martinez in the light of the element -eso- being a recurring one in Lusitanian names.

Significance

Blazquez-Martinez also observed that whereas there were large numbers of deities recorded in the Northern Lusitanian andGallaecianregions, only the names ofEndovelicus,Ataeginaand Runesocesius appeared in the South, beyond theTagusriver,which some have supposed must have meant particular importance was attached to these three.The character of the Celtici and other peoples in this region and their affiliation as Lusitanian, Celtic or Tartessian/Turdetanian remain a complex issue.The name itself and its meaning remain subject to interpretation. C. Licinius Quinctinus' home inBalsalay further South in what was, while part of the Roman province of Lusitania, outside the area ofLusitanian epigraphyand Lusitanian-Gallaeciantheonyms,in theTartessianor Turdetanian speaking part of theIberian Peninsula.Runesocesius could therefore be seen as significant to the Lusitanians, Celtiberians orTurdetani,or to all three.