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Caturix ( Gaulish for "battle king") was the war god of the Helvetii.

Names

Caturix became known as Mars Caturix in Gallo-Roman religion by interpretation as Mars. There was a temple dedicated to Mars Caturix in Aventicum, the capital of Roman Helvetia, another one in Nonfoux, Essertines-sur-Yverdon.

Other names (epitheta) of Caturix may have been Cicollus and Caisivus. Caturix has itself been interpreted as originating as an epithet of Toutatis.

Etymology

The Gaulish name catu-rix means 'battle-king' or 'battle-lord', stemming from Gaulish root catu- ('combat, battle') attached to rix ('king'). [1] [2] The root catu- is cognate to similar words in Celtic languages, including Old Irish cath ('battle, troop') and Old Welsh cad ('battle'), [3] and is attested in other Celtic personal names such as Catigern. [4] [5]

The Gallic tribe of the Caturiges ('battle-kings'), settling in the area of modern Chorges (from Latin: Caturigumagus) was apparently named after the god. The capital of the Caturiges was called Eburodunum (modern Embrun), i.e. the same name as that of Yverdon, suggesting a close relationship between the Caturiges and the Helvetii.

Inscriptions

Five dedicatory inscriptions to Caturix were found in the area settled by the Helvetii, all of them close to Avenches (Aventicum) and Yverdon (Eburodunum). A sixth inscription has been found in isolation in Böckingen, Heilbronn, Germany.

References

  1. ^ Lambert 1994, p. 36.
  2. ^ Delamarre 2003, p. 111.
  3. ^ Pronk, Tijmen. "Proto-Indo-European *a". In: Indo-European Linguistics 7, 1 (2019): 127. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/22125892-00701002
  4. ^ Mallory, James. (2006). "Indo-European Warfare". In: Journal of Conflict Archaeology 2: 89. 10.1163/157407706778942312.
  5. ^ Russell, Paul. "Old Welsh Dinacat, Cunedag, Tutagual: Fossilized Phonology in Brittonic Personal Names". In: Indo-European Perspectives: Studies in Honour of Anna Morpugo Davies. Edited by J. H. W. Penney. Oxford University Press. 2004. pp. 447-460. ISBN  0-19-925892-9

Bibliography

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