The Deciates (Δεκιήταις) were a Ligurian tribe dwelling near on the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...

coast, around present-day Antibes, 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 mostl ...

and the Roman era. According to historian Guy Barruol, they were part of the Saluvian confederation.

Name

They are mentioned as ''Dekiḗtais'' (Δεκιήταις) by Polybius (2nd c. BC), and as ''Dekiatíōn'' (Δεκιατίων) 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 importance ...

(2nd c. AD)., s.v. ''Deciates''. A ''regio Deciatium'' is also attested by Pliny (1st c. AD), and an ''

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 ...

Deciatum'' is documented by

Pomponius Mela Pomponius Mela, who wrote around AD 43, was the earliest Roman geographer. He was born in Tingentera (now Algeciras) and died AD 45. His short work (''De situ orbis libri III.'') remained in use nearly to the year 1500. It occupies less ...

(mid-1st c. AD). The meaning of the name ''Deciates'' remains obscure. According to

Javier de Hoz Jesús Javier de Hoz Bravo (29 July 1940 – 12 January 2019), was a Spanish philologist and Catedrático (University Professor). His main areas of research were Paleohispanic languages, historical linguistics, ancient Celtic languages, history ...

, an

Indo-European The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Dutc ...

etymology, from the root *''dek̑''-, is possible, and the suffix -''ates'' may be evidence of a Celtic transmission, "but the whole name does not seem to be Celtic. In this case I would accept a classification as 'restricted Ligurian' because of the people's geographical location."

Geography

The Deciates dwelled on the Mediterranean coast, west of the river Loup, around the Massaliote colony of Antipolis (modern Antibes). Their territory was located south of the Nerusii, southeast of the Ligauni, and either east or west of the Oxybii., Map 16: Col. Forum Iulii-Albingaunum. The exact location of the ''

'' ''Deciatum'' (or ''Dekieton'') remains uncertain. It is possible that it was not a separate place between Nicaea and Antipolis, but simply a name for Antipolis itself. The coastal Greek colony of Antipolis (modern Antibes), founded in their territory in the mid-3rd century BC, was probably a Graecization of the original name given by the Ligurians to the place, despite the literal Greek meaning of 'city opposite'. This does not necessarily imply that it had been the main centre of the Deciates, and Barruol has proposed to identify the site of

Grasse Grasse (; Provençal oc, Grassa in classical norm or in Mistralian norm ; traditional it, Grassa) is the only subprefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region on the French Riviera. In 2017, the c ...

as their chief town.

History

In 154 BC, the Ligurians besieged the Massaliote colonies of Nicaea (

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard dialect, Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department in France. The Nice urban unit, agg ...

) and Antipolis. Upon a request from Massalia, and after a Roman legate Flaminius had been injured by the Oxybii, the Roman Senate sent the consul Quintus Opimius to pacify the region. The latter defeated the Deciates and the Oxybii at Aegitna, then handed over a great part of their territory to Massalia.

References

Primary sources

Bibliography