HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Taurini were a
Celto-Ligurian The Ligures (singular Ligur; Italian: liguri; English: Ligurians) were an ancient people after whom Liguria, a region of present-day north-western Italy, is named. Ancient Liguria corresponded more or less to the current Italian regi ...
tribe dwelling in the upper valley of the river Po, around present-day
Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...
, 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 ...
and the
Roman period The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post- Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediter ...
.


Name

They are mentioned as ''Taurĩnoí'' (Ταυρῖνοί) by
Polybius Polybius (; grc-gre, Πολύβιος, ; ) was a Greek historian of the Hellenistic period. He is noted for his work , which covered the period of 264–146 BC and the Punic Wars in detail. Polybius is important for his analysis of the mixed ...
(2nd c. BC), ''Taurini'' by
Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding in ...
(late 1st c. BC), ''Taurinoí'' (Ταυρινοί) 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 s ...
(early 1st c. AD), ''Taurinorum'' by Pliny (1st c. AD), and as ''Taurínōn'' (Ταυρίνων; var. Ταυρικῶν, Ταυρινῶν) by
Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importanc ...
(2nd c. AD)., s.v. ''Taurini''. The ethnic name ''Taurini'' can be translated as 'the tribe of the bull'. It is either an older form of the metathesized Celtic noun ''taruos'' ('bull'), or a non-Celtic Ligurian form.


Geography

The Taurini lived between the
Dora Riparia The Dora Riparia (; pms, Dòira Rivaira; french: Doire Ripaire or ''Doire''; la, Duria minor) is an alpine river, a left-hand tributary of the Po. It is long (of which 5 km in France), with a drainage basin. It originates in the Cottia ...
and the upper Po river. Their territory was located east of the Iemerii, west of the Libicii and Iadatini., Map 39: Mediolanum. Their original capital, Taurasia, was destroyed by the Carthaginians after they opposed in vain Hannibal's march into Italy in 218 BC. It was refounded by the Romans after 25 BC as Colonia Augusta Taurinorum (modern
Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...
), at the confluence of the Dora and Po. The settlement was hit by a fire in 69 AD.


History

They were involved in Rome's wars against the Celts at the end of the 4th century BC. In 218 BC, they were attacked by
Hannibal Hannibal (; xpu, 𐤇𐤍𐤁𐤏𐤋, ''Ḥannibaʿl''; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Pu ...
, who had allied with their long-standing enemies, the
Insubres The Insubres or Insubri were an ancient Celtic population settled in Insubria, in what is now the Italian region of Lombardy. They were the founders of Mediolanum ( Milan). Though completely Gaulish at the time of Roman conquest, they were the r ...
. Their chief town was captured by Hannibal's forces after a three-day siege.


Culture

The ethnic identity of the Taurini is unclear. They have been variously described as Celts, Ligurians, or Celticized Ligurians.


See also

*
List of ancient peoples of Italy This list of ancient peoples living in Italy summarises groupings existing before and during the Roman expansion and conquest of Italy. Many of the names are either scholarly inventions or exonyms assigned by the ancient writers of works in ...


References


Bibliography

* * * * * *


Further reading

* {{Authority control Historical Celtic peoples Gauls Ligures