Gaul (Latin Gallia, Greek Galatia) was the region of Western Europe occupied by present-day northern Italy, France, Belgium, western Switzerland and the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the west bank of the Rhine river.
In English the word Gaul also refers to a Celtic inhabitant of that region in ancient times, but the Gauls were widespread in Europe by Roman times, speaking the Gaulish language (a derivative of early Celtic). In addition to the Gauls, there were other peoples living in the territory of present-day northern Italy, such as the Lepontii who had settled on the southern slopes of the Italian Alps, in Raetia.
Gauls under Brennus sacked Rome circa 390 BC. In the Aegean world, a huge migration of Eastern Gauls appeared in Thrace, north of Greece, in 281 BC. Another Gaulish chieftain named Brennus, at the head of a large army, was only turned back from desecrating the Temple of Apollo at Delphi at the last minute -- he was alarmed, it was said, by portents of thunder and lightning. At the same time a migrating band of Celts, some 10,000 fighting men, with their women and children and slaves, were moving through Thrace. Three tribes of Gauls crossed over from Thrace to Asia Minor at the express invitation of Nicomedes I, king of Bithynia, who required help in a dynastic struggle against his brother. Eventually they settled down in eastern Phrygia and Cappadocia in central Anatolia, a region henceforth known as Galatia.
The names Gallia and Galatia sometimes are compared to Gael, which is, however, from Goidhel or Gwyddel, and cannot be directly related. It is uncertain whether the Gal- names are from a native name of a tribe, or if they are exonyms. Birkhan (1997) considers a root *g(h)al- "powerful" (PIE *gelh, well-attested in Celtic, and with cognates in Balto-Slavic), but speculates that the name also could be taken from a Gallos River , comparable to the names of the Volcae and the Sequani which are likely derived from hydronyms. There also have been attempts to trace Keltoi and Galatai to a single origin. It is most likely that the terms originated as names of minor tribes *Kel-to and/or Gal(a)-to- which were the earliest to come into contact with the Roman world, but which have disappeared without leaving a historical record (Birkhan 1997:48).
In English usage the words Gaul and Gaulish are used synonymously with Latin Gallia, Gallus and Gallicus. However the similarity of the names is probably accidental: the English words are borrowed from French Gaule and Gaulois, which appear to have been borrowed themselves from Germanic *walha-, the usual word for the non-Germanic people (Celts and Romans indiscriminately). Germanic w is regularly rendered with French gu / g (cf. guerre = war, garder = ward), and the diphthong au is the regular outcome of al before a following consonant (cf. cheval ~ chevaux). Gaulle can hardly be derived from Latin Gallia, since g would become j before a (cf. gamba > jambe), and the diphthong au would be incomprehensible; the regular outcome of Latin Gallia would have been *Jaille in French. Cf. Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology (OUP 1966), p. 391; Nouveau dictionnaire étymologique et historique (Larousse 1990), p. 336.
Hellenistic aitiology connects the name with Galatea (first attested by Timaeus of Tauromenion in the 4th c. BC), and it was suggested that the association was inspired by the "milk-white" skin (γάλα "milk") of the Gauls.
The early history of the Gauls is predominantly a work in archeology, there being little written information (save perhaps what can be gleaned from coins) concerning the Gauls. During the seventh century B.C. a people known as the Celts began migrating into the region known to the Romans as Gaul. The earliest origins of these people is probably the Danube Valley, although this issue is contested. It seems as if they inherited many of their skills (like metal-working) from the Greeks, as well as certain facets of their culture.
The Gauls that Caesar encountered during his campaigns were not neolithic barbarians, however (as the vast wealth accumulated by Caesar during the Gallic Wars can attest). Rather, the Gauls in the last century before Christ ought to be regarded as "half-civilized." As the excavations of the Aeduan "oppidum" of Bibracte reveal, the Gauls were a wealthy people, well-acquainted with the use of gold, as well as silver and bronze coinage. Furthermore, coins from Gaul have been found in Britain and vice versa, supporting Caesar's claim that trade existed between the two "nations."
In terms of their religion, the Gauls were relatively undeveloped. Most practiced a form of animism, ascribing human characteristics to lakes, streams, mountains, etc., and granting them a quasi-deific status. Also, worship of animals was not uncommon; the animal most sacred to the Gauls was the boar, which can be found on many Gallic military standards, much like the Roman eagle.
Their system of gods and goddesses was loose, there being certain deities which virtually every Gallic person worshiped, as well as tribal and household gods. Many of the major gods were related to Greek gods; the primary god worshiped at the time of the arrival of Caesar was Teutates, the Gallic equivalent of Mercury. The "father god" in Gallic worship was "Dis Pater," who could be assigned the Roman name "Saturn." However there was no real theology, just an "ever-expanding, ever-shifting, formless chaos" of modes of worship.
Perhaps the most intriguing facet of Gallic religion is the practice of the Druids. There is no certainty concerning their origin, but it is clear that they vehemently guarded the secrets of their order and held sway over the people of Gaul. Indeed they claimed the right to determine questions of war and peace, and thereby held an "international" status. In addition, the Druids monitored the religion of ordinary Gauls and were in charge of educating the aristocracy. They also practiced a form of excommunication from the assembly of worshippers, which in ancient Gaul meant a separation from secular society as well. Thus the Druids were an important part of Gallic society.
The Druids were not the only political force in Gaul, however, and the early political system was complex, if ultimately fatal to the society as a whole. The fundamental unit of Gallic politics was the tribe, which itself consisted of one or more of what Caesar called "pagi." Each tribe had a council of elders, and initially a king. Later, the executive was an annually-elected magistrate. Among the Aedui, a tribe of Gaul, the executive held the title of "Vergobret," a position much like a king, but its powers were held in check by rules laid down by the council.
Although the tribes were moderately stable political entities, Gaul as a whole tended to be politically-divided, there being virtually no unity between the various tribes. Only during particularly trying times, such as the invasion of Caesar, could the Gauls unite under a single leader like Vercingetorix. Even then, however, the faction lines were clear.
Caesar divided the people of Gaul into three broad groups: the Aquitani; Galli (who in their own language were called Celtae); and Belgae. In the modern sense, Gaulish tribes are defined linguistically, as speakers of dialects of the Gaulish language. While the Aquitani were probably Vascons, the Belgae would thus probably be counted among the Gaulish tribes.
Julius Caesar's comments on these people from his book, Commentarii de Bello Gallico, are worth quoting:
"All Gaul is divided into three parts, one of which the Belgae inhabit, the Aquitani another, those who in their own language are called Celts, in our Gauls, the third.
All these differ from each other in language, customs and laws.
The river Garonne separates the Gauls from the Aquitani; the Marne and the Seine separate them from the Belgae.
Of all these, the Belgae are the bravest, because they are furthest from the civilization and refinement of [our] Province, and merchants least frequently resort to them, and import those things which tend to effeminate the mind; and they are the nearest to the Germanic people, who dwell beyond the Rhine, with whom they are continually waging war; for which reason the Helvetii also surpass the rest of the Gauls in valor, as they contend with the Germanic people in almost daily battles, when they either repel them from their own territories, or themselves wage war on their frontiers. One part of these, which it has been said that the Gauls occupy, takes its beginning at the river Rhone; it is bounded by the river Garonne, the ocean, and the territories of the Belgae; it borders, too, on the side of the Sequani and the Helvetii, upon the river Rhine, and stretches toward the north.
The Belgae rises from the extreme frontier of Gaul, extend to the lower part of the river Rhine; and look toward the north and the rising sun.
Aquitania extends from the river Garonne to the Pyrenaean mountains and to that part of the ocean which is near Spain: it looks between the setting of the sun, and the north star."
