The Brixentes or Brixenetes were 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 Fo ...
or
Rhaetian
The Rhaetian is the latest age of the Triassic Period (in geochronology) or the uppermost stage of the Triassic System (in chronostratigraphy). It was preceded by the Norian and succeeded by the Hettangian (the lowermost stage or earliest age ...
tribe living in the Alps during the
Iron Age and the
Roman era.
Name
They are mentioned as ''Brixentes'' (
var. ''-xenetis, -xenetes'') by
Pliny (1st c. AD),
[ Pliny. ''Naturalis Historia'']
3:20
and as ''Brixántai'' (Βριξάνται) by
Ptolemy (2nd c. AD).
[, s.v. ''Brixenetes''.] An identification with
Strabo
Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...
's ''
Brigántioi'' (Βριγάντιοι) has been proposed.
[Ernst Meyer: ''Die geschichtlichen Nachrichten über die Räter und ihre Wohnsitze''. In: ''Jahrbuch der Schweizerischen Gesellschaft für Ur- und Frühgeschichte.'' Vol. 55, 1970, p. 119—125]
The ethnic name ''Brixentes'' might derive from an earlier form *''brig-s-ant''-, built on the root ''brig-'' ('hill, hillfort')''.'' It has been translated as 'those living on hills/hillforts', or as 'those living in *''Brigsa''/''Brigsina''
'.
Geography
According to the ancient geographer
Ptolemy, the Brixentes were a Rhaetian tribe.
It is unclear however where in the Alps the Brixentes actually lived. Since they are listed on the
Tropaeum Alpium between the
Calucones and the
Lepontii, modern-day eastern Switzerland or Vorarlberg seems a possible location, which would further corroborate the corresponding information given by
Strabo
Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...
about the ''Brigántioi'' and by Ptolemy about the ''Brixántai''.
Another theory, inspired by the similarity to the place name, suggests to locate them at the confluence of the
Eisack
The Eisack (german: Eisack, ; it, Isarco ; Latin: ''Isarus'' or ''Isarcus'') is a river in Northern Italy, the second largest river in South Tyrol. Its source is near the Brenner Pass, at an altitude of about 1990 m above sea level. The river draw ...
and
Rienz
The Rienz (; it, Rienza ) is a river in South Tyrol, Italy. Its source is located at 2,180 m of altitude, in the Dolomites mountains, south of Toblach: near Toblach it enters in the Puster Valley, and, after , it meets the Eisack river in the cit ...
rivers in modern-day
South Tyrol, near the modern city of
Brixen (if reconstructed as *''Brigsa''/''Brigsina'').
[, Map 19: Raetia.]
History
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.
References
Primary sources
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Bibliography
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{{Authority control
Historical Celtic peoples
Gauls