Coins of the Elusates 5th 1st century BCE

The Elusates were an Aquitani tribe dwelling in the modern Gers department, around present-day

Eauze Eauze (; Gascon: ''Eusa'') is a commune in the Gers department in southwestern France. History Located in the heart of south-west France, 130 kilometers from the Spanish border, Eauze is originally a proto-Basque city that became Roman. It wa ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

during the

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

and the

Roman period The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...

. They were subjugated in 56 BC by the Roman forces of

Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman people, Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caes ...

legatus A ''legatus'' (; anglicised as legate) was a high-ranking Roman military officer in the Roman Army, equivalent to a modern high-ranking general officer. Initially used to delegate power, the term became formalised under Augustus as the officer ...

P. Licinius Crassus.

Name

They are mentioned as ''Elusates'' by

(mid-1st c. BC) and

Pliny Pliny may refer to: People * Pliny the Elder (23–79 CE), ancient Roman nobleman, scientist, historian, and author of ''Naturalis Historia'' (''Pliny's Natural History'') * Pliny the Younger (died 113), ancient Roman statesman, orator, w ...

(1st c. AD), and as Elusa on the ''

Tabula Peutingeriana ' (Latin for "The Peutinger Map"), also referred to as Peutinger's Tabula or Peutinger Table, is an illustrated ' (ancient Roman road map) showing the layout of the '' cursus publicus'', the road network of the Roman Empire. The map is a 13th-ce ...

'' (5th c. AD)., s.v. ''Elusates'' and ''Elusa''. The etymology of the

ethnonym An ethnonym () is a name applied to a given ethnic group. Ethnonyms can be divided into two categories: exonyms (whose name of the ethnic group has been created by another group of people) and autonyms, or endonyms (whose name is created and used ...

''Elusates'' remains uncertain, but the root ''elus(a)''- is generally presumed to be of Aquitanian origin. Alternatively, a connection with the Celtic root *''elu(o)''- ('numerous') has also been proposed. The city of

, attested in the 4th century AD as ''

civitas In Ancient Rome, the Latin term (; plural ), according to Cicero in the time of the late Roman Republic, was the social body of the , or citizens, united by law (). It is the law that binds them together, giving them responsibilities () on th ...

Elusa'', is named after the tribe.

Geography

The Elusates dwelled south of the

Sotiates The Sotiates were a Gallic-Aquitani tribe dwelling in the region surrounding the modern town of Sos ( Lot-et-Garonne) during the Iron Age and the Roman period. They were subjugated in 56 BC by the Roman forces of Caesar's legatus P. Licinius Cr ...

, north of the Onobrisates, east of the Tarusates, west of the Lactorates, and northwest of the Ausci., Map 25: Hispania Tarraconensis. The pre-Roman

oppidum An ''oppidum'' (plural ''oppida'') is a large fortified Iron Age settlement or town. ''Oppida'' are primarily associated with the Celtic late La Tène culture, emerging during the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, spread across Europe, stretchi ...

of Esbérous was located 3km northwest of Eauze. During the Roman period, their chief town was known as Elusa (modern

). Made a Roman ''colonia'' in the early 3rd century AD, Elusa is documented as the capital of the province of

Novempopulana Novempopulania (Latin for "country of the nine peoples") was one of the provinces created by Diocletian (Roman emperor from 284 to 305) out of Gallia Aquitania, which was also called ''Aquitania Tertia''. Early Roman period The area of Novemp ...

by the ''

Notitia Galliarum The ''Notitia Galliarum'' (or ''Notitia provinciarum et civitatum Galliae'') is a Roman register of cities dating to the 4th–6th centuries AD., contains the text of the ''Notitia'' with a map. The Latin register is divided into two headings. Te ...

'' in the 4th century. The settlement of ''Tasta'', mentioned by Pliny, may be identified with the city since the field that partly covers the ancient Elusa is called ''La Taste''.

References

Bibliography

* * * * *

Name

Geography

See also

References

Bibliography

Further reading