Condatis (

Gaulish Gaulish was an ancient Celtic language spoken in parts of Continental Europe before and during the period of the Roman Empire. In the narrow sense, Gaulish was the language of the Celts of Gaul (now France, Luxembourg, Belgium, most of Switze ...

: 'confluence') was an ancient Celtic deity worshipped primarily in northern

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

but also in

Gaul Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...

.''L'Arbre Celtique.'
"Condatis"
/ref> He was associated with the confluences of rivers, in particular the River Wear which runs its course largely within County Durham. Condatis is known from several inscriptions in Britain and a single inscription found at Alonnes, Sarthe, France. In each case he is equated with the Roman god

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...

Name

The

theonym A theonym (from Greek ''theos'' (Θεός), " god"'','' attached to ''onoma'' (ὄνομα), "name") is the proper name of a deity. Theonymy, the study of divine proper names, is a branch of onomastics (the study of the etymology, history, and ...

''Condatis'' derives from the stem ''condāt''-, meaning 'confluence', itself from

Proto-Celtic Proto-Celtic, or Common Celtic, is the ancestral proto-language of all known Celtic languages, and a descendant of Proto-Indo-European. It is not attested in writing but has been partly reconstructed through the comparative method. Proto-Celti ...

*''kom-dati-'', from an earlier ''kom-d^hh₁-ti-'' ('put with, put together', i.e. 'grouping, reunion'). The stem ''condāt''- is also attested in personal names, including ''Condatus'', ''Condatius'', and ''Condatie'', as well as in toponyms such as ''Condé'', ''Condat'', ''

Candé Candé () is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France. History In the 11th century the village became an important military site for Anjou under baron Rorgon de Candé, at Fort-Castle of Candé. Candé was noted in 2000-2 ...

'', '' Conte'', ''Condes'', '' Candes'', ''Cosnes'', ''Condate'' (the old name of Rennes and Northwich), ''Condom'', ''Condéon'' (both from *''Condate-o-magos''), ''Cond'' (< *''Condate-dunum''), '' Kontz'', ''Conz'' (

Trier Trier ( , ; lb, Tréier ), formerly known in English as Trèves ( ;) and Triers (see also names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle in Germany. It lies in a valley between low vine-covered hills of red sandstone in the ...

), and ''Canstatt'' ( Condistat).

Cult

In 1886, a Roman altar was discovered near the Roman station at

Chester-le-Street Chester-le-Street (), also known as Chester, is a market town and civil parish in County Durham, England, around north of Durham and also close to Sunderland and Newcastle upon Tyne. It is located on the River Wear, which runs out to sea at ...

, where the

Cong Burn The Cong Burn is a small river in County Durham, England. It has its origin in a number of streams, among them Wheatley Green Burn, that rise on the southern and eastern slopes of Wheatley Hill, north of the village of Burnhope, and other stream ...

joins the River Wear. The altar was buried six feet deep in soil of an alluvial character. The inscription, which was to DEO marti CONDATI, was formed by a series of punctures. The altar probably belonged to the end of the second or the beginning of the third century. A fragmentary altar bearing the Inscription MARTI CONDATI has been found in Bowes, near

Barnard Castle Barnard Castle (, ) is a market town on the north bank of the River Tees, in County Durham, Northern England. The town is named after and built around a medieval castle ruin. The town's Bowes Museum's has an 18th-century Silver Swan automato ...

in County Durham and another in Piercebridge, the site of a Roman fort, also in County Durham. Recently a new inscription to Condatis has been discovered at Cramond in the Lothian region of Scotland (AE 1978, 451; dedicated to d(eo) M(arti) Con ati. In Roman times he was equated with

, probably in his healing function. The association with the confluence of waters would tend to link this deity with the prevalent Celtic cult of thermal waters rather than solely with war. Again, this may reflect the origins of Condatis as a protector of aberau (the confluence of waters) with his martial aspect only being predominant in the Roman world.

References

Bibliography

* * * Gaulish gods Gods of the ancient Britons Health gods Sea and river gods Personifications of rivers {{Celt-myth-stub