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The Sentii (Gaulish: Sentioi) were a small Gallic tribe dwelling around present-day Senez, in southeastern France, during the Roman era.

Name

They are mentioned as Σέντιοι (var. Σένποι) by Ptolemy (2nd c. AD).^[1]^[2]

The ethnic name Sentii is a latinized form of Gaulish Sentioi. It derives from the stem sentu- ('pathway') and can be interpreted as 'the people who live near the path', 'those who know the path', or as 'those who control the road'.^[3]^[2]

Geography

The Sentii dwelled around their chief town, Sanitium (modern Senez).^[4]^[5] The settlement is not mentioned in ancient sources until the Notitia Galliarum (4th–6th centuries AD).^[5]

Their territory was located west of the Vergunni, north of the Suetrii, east of the Reii and Vocontii, and south of the Bodiontici.^[4]^[6] The area of their civitas corresponded mainly to the upper basin of the river Asse; it may have also included parts of the valley of the Verdon, further east.^[5]

Economy

The economy of the area must have been rather poor in ancient times. The Sentii probably relied principally on pastoral activity, although the road crossing through Sanitium and Barrême may have helped trade.^[5]

References

^ Ptolemy. Geōgraphikḕ Hyphḗgēsis, 2:10:8.
^ ^a ^b Falileyev 2010, s.v. Sentii.
^ de Hoz 2005, p. 178.
^ ^a ^b Barruol 1969, pp. 282–284.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Rivet 1988, p. 343.
^ Talbert 2000, Map 16: Col. Forum Iulii-Albingaunum.

Bibliography

Barruol, Guy (1969). Les Peuples préromains du Sud-Est de la Gaule: étude de géographie historique. E. de Boccard. OCLC 3279201.
de Hoz, Javier (2005). "Ptolemy and the linguistic history of the Narbonensis". In de Hoz, Javier; Luján, Eugenio R.; Sims-Williams, Patrick (eds.). New approaches to Celtic place-names in Ptolemy's Geography. Ediciones Clásicas. pp. 173–188. ISBN 978-8478825721.
Falileyev, Alexander (2010). Dictionary of Continental Celtic Place-names: A Celtic Companion to the Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World. CMCS. ISBN 978-0955718236.
Rivet, A. L. F. (1988). Gallia Narbonensis: With a Chapter on Alpes Maritimae : Southern France in Roman Times. Batsford. ISBN 978-0-7134-5860-2.
Talbert, Richard J. A. (2000). Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World. Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0691031699.