Linguistically, Celtic is a term for a branch of the Indo-European family of languages, which includes the extinct languages of the ancient Gauls and Galatians, recently dead languages like Cornish and Manx, and living languages like Irish Gaelic, Scottish Gaelic, Welsh, and Breton. It is separate from the Germanic branch which includes German, Dutch, Frisian, English, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Icelandic, Faroese, and Afrikaans, along with dead languages like Gothic and Old Norse.
In ancient times the Celts are mentioned in various Greek and Latin writings under various names, in Gaul (France), northern Italy (Cisalpine Gaul), Britain, Ireland, and occasionally further afield. The Galatians were Celts who settled in Asia Minor (although the Galatians St. Paul wrote to were Greek-speaking--not everyone in "Galatia" was Celtic-speaking). One group of Celts sacked Rome in or about 387 B.C. The Germans were mostly beyond the Rhine. The Romans first encountered them when one German tribe, the Cimbri, began wandering and defeated a Roman army in 113 B.C. Some of the Germans were later subdued by the Romans but most of them remained free (thanks in part to Arminius' victory at the battle of the Teutoburger Forest in A.D. 9). There may be a few cases where it is unclear if a certain tribe is Celtic or Germanic (or they may have been mixed) but for the most part the Celts and Germans were distinct groups.
make that ALWAYS for all practical purposes.
}the term is used loosely of all the medieval Norwegians, Danes, and Swedes
Not loosely at all. It is used specifically with reference tor those peoples, and no others (except for maybe a stray Finn).
}, but originally the term "viking" applies to people who behave in a certain way--it was a job description,
It's true that the UNcapitalized version of the word is a job description.
Main Entry: Vi·king
Pronunciation: 'vI-ki[ng]
Function: noun
Etymology: Old Norse vIkingr
Date: 1807
1 a : one of the pirate Norsemen plundering the coasts of Europe in the 8th to 10th centuries b not capitalized : SEA ROVER
But when it the last time you saw that archaic version used? For all practical purposes it is not part of our language and has never seen significant use through history. There is no room for uncertainty about the meaning of the word Viking.
}Linguistically, Celtic is a term for a branch of the Indo-European family of languages,
I am not talking about languages, but about people and their real roots.
The use of language as a prime indicator of anything historic is the K-Mart version of research; of low quality, may work for a while until it breaks down, and is probably made in China (Sorry, I just thought was too funny to leave out. {ggg}.) Sorryyyyyy......
My immediate ancestors came here from Europe only 2 generations ago and could not speak English. Only 2 generations later I can (no longer) communicate in their native language. What does language tell you about my roots and how I got here? Absolutely nothing.
}In ancient times the Celts are mentioned in various Greek and Latin writings under various
names,
Yes, there are many dozens of different european tribes identified as Celts, many of them offspring of one or more Germanic tribe.
}There may be a few cases where it is unclear if a certain tribe is Celtic or Germanic (or they may have been mixed) but for the most part the Celts and Germans were distinct groups.
Absolutely not true. Vitrually every serious reference to Germanic Tribes clearly identifies them as being of Celtic origin.