Posted on 02/14/2003 1:30:45 PM PST by vannrox
Sounds like Celts to me.
Here are the Thracian tribes through whose territory he travelled: the Paeti, Cicones, Bistones, Sapaei, Dersaei, Edonians, and Satrae. Some of them lived on the coast, and they went along with their ships, while the inland tribes from this list of mine were all forcibly conscripted into the land army--all except the Satrae, that is.
The Satrae have never been subject to anyone, as far as we know; they are the only tribe in Thrace to have retained independence all the way up to my day. They live in a region of high mountains which are thickly wooded with all kinds of trees and covered with snow; they are also extremely good fighters. They are the ones who have the oracle of Dionysus in the highest part of the mountain range in their country. The pronouncements at this shrine are interpreted by the Bessians, a sub-tribe within the Satrae, and as at Delphi it is a prophetess who is the mouthpiece, and her utterances are no more elaborate than those of her counterpart at Delphi.
The people that pushed the Dorians into Greece, the Celts were further North and East.
I believe the Celts were all in through that country. The people the Apostle Paul wrote to in his Letters to Young Churchs were largely Celtic.
Celts captured Rome except for the Capitoline hill in 387 B.C. and occupied the Po Valley in Italy for centuries. In the 3rd century B.C. some of them invaded Greece. Eventually they settled down in Galatia in Asia Minor. St. Paul traveled through there (Acts 16.6; 18.23) and wrote a letter to the Galatians--but the letter is in Greek and there is nothing to show whether the recipients were of Celtic ancestry. (They could be descended from Greeks who had settled in that area, or of other non-Celts in the Roman province of Galatia who had become Greek-speakers.)
Probably there were many similarities between the customs of the Thracians and the ancient Celts. Herodotus said that among the Thracians "to live by war and plunder is of all things most glorious."
Yes, there were many similarities, and you are correct, no time was indicated.
My offhand comment was with regard to "The Thracian tribes were ruled by a powerful warrior aristocracy rich in gold treasures." Of course there were other warrior led tribes, and lots of people liked gold treasure, but one of the things that follows the Celts all the way from their origins in NE asia throughout Europe is their love of gold and their unique artistic ability to work in the medium. Museums all across Europe are full of stunning Celtic gold art.
Eventually they settled down in Galatia in Asia Minor. They didn't "settle down" and just disappear. They continued to grow and became the dominant peoples of western Europe today. (Regrettably, even the French are Celtic.) How long they remain dominant remains to be seen, with the most popular newborn Male name in Belgium now "Mohammed".
That almost sounds like Vikings, doesn't it?
Please FREEPMAIL me if you want on, off, or alter the "Gods, Graves, Glyphs" PING list --
Archaeology/Anthropology/Ancient Cultures/Artifacts/Antiquities, etc.
The GGG Digest -- Gods, Graves, Glyphs (alpha order)
Interesting. I know Celts went to Anatolia and Ural Mountains. I belive Tocharian language is a Celtic language.
Tocharian A & B are an extinct Indo-European language. Tocharian is most closely related to ancient Celtic.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.