{"history":[],"article":{"id":"fb308922-60b8-4c2a-801e-07fc0dbe9a4a","title":"Celtiberian language","slug":"celtiberian-language","content":":::summary\n**Name:** Celtiberian \n**Altname:** Northeastern Hispano-Celtic \n**States:** [Iberian Peninsula](https://bliptext.com/articles/iberian-peninsula) \n**Ethnicity:** [Celtiberians](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtiberians) \n**Extinct:** attested 2nd century BC – 1st century AD \n**Familycolor:** Indo-European \n**Fam 2:** [Celtic](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtic-languages) \n**Fam 3:** [Continental Celtic](https://bliptext.com/articles/continental-celtic-languages) \n**Fam 4:** [Hispano-Celtic](https://bliptext.com/articles/hispano-celtic-languages) \n**Script:** [Celtiberian script](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtiberian-script) \n**Iso 3:** xce \n**Linglist:** xce \n**Glotto:** celt1247 \n**Glottorefname:** Celtiberian \n**Map:** Mapa llengües paleohispàniques-ang.jpg \n**Mapcaption:** {{Legend|cyan|Celtiberian in the context of the [Paleohispanic languages](https://bliptext.com/articles/paleohispanic-languages)}} \n:::\n\n# \n**Celtiberian** or **Northeastern Hispano-[Celtic](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtic-languages)** is an [extinct](https://bliptext.com/articles/extinct-language) [Indo-European](https://bliptext.com/articles/indo-european-languages) language of the [Celtic](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtic-languages) branch spoken by the **Celtiberian**s in an area of the [Iberian Peninsula](https://bliptext.com/articles/iberian-peninsula) between the headwaters of the [Douro](https://bliptext.com/articles/douro), [Tagus](https://bliptext.com/articles/tagus), [Júcar](https://bliptext.com/articles/j-car) and [Turia](https://bliptext.com/articles/turia-river) rivers and the [Ebro](https://bliptext.com/articles/ebro) river.\nThis language is directly attested in nearly 200 inscriptions dated from the 2nd century BC to the 1st century AD, mainly in [Celtiberian script](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtiberian-script), a direct adaptation of the [northeastern Iberian script](https://bliptext.com/articles/northeastern-iberian-script), but also in the [Latin alphabet](https://bliptext.com/articles/latin-alphabet).\nThe longest extant Celtiberian inscriptions are those on three [Botorrita plaques](https://bliptext.com/articles/botorrita-plaque), [bronze](https://bliptext.com/articles/bronze) plaques from [Botorrita](https://bliptext.com/articles/botorrita) near [Zaragoza](https://bliptext.com/articles/zaragoza), dating to the early 1st century BC, labeled [Botorrita](https://bliptext.com/articles/botorrita) I, III and IV ([Botorrita](https://bliptext.com/articles/botorrita) II is in [Latin](https://bliptext.com/articles/latin)).\nShorter and more fragmentary is the [Novallas bronze tablet](https://bliptext.com/articles/novallas-bronze-tablet).\n\n# Overview\nUnder the [P/Q Celtic hypothesis](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtic-languages), and like its Iberian relative [Gallaecian](https://bliptext.com/articles/gallaecian), Celtiberian is classified as a Q Celtic language, putting it in the same category as [Goidelic](https://bliptext.com/articles/goidelic) and not [P-Celtic](https://bliptext.com/articles/p-celtic) like [Gaulish](https://bliptext.com/articles/gaulish) or [Brittonic](https://bliptext.com/articles/brittonic-languages).\nUnder the [Insular/Continental Celtic hypothesis](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtic-languages), Celtiberian and Gaulish are grouped together as [Continental Celtic languages](https://bliptext.com/articles/continental-celtic-languages) but this grouping is [paraphyletic](https://bliptext.com/articles/paraphyly): no evidence suggests the two shared any common innovation separately from [Insular Celtic](https://bliptext.com/articles/insular-celtic-languages).\nAccording to Ranko Matasovic in the introduction to his 2009 Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic : \"Celtiberian...is almost certainly an independent branch on the Celtic genealogical tree, one that became separated from the others very early.\"\nCeltiberian has a fully inflected relative pronoun ios (as does, for instance, Ancient Greek), an ancient feature that was not preserved by the other Celtic languages, and the [particles](https://bliptext.com/articles/grammatical-particle) **-kue** 'and' < *kʷe (cf. Latin -que, Attic Greek τε te), **n**ekue**** 'nor' < *ne-kʷe (cf. Latin neque), **ekue** 'also, as well' < *h₂et(i)-kʷe (cf. Lat. atque, Gaulish ate, OIr. aith 'again'), ve \"or\" (cf. Latin enclitic -ve and Attic Greek ἤ ē < Proto-Greek *ē-we).\nAs in [Welsh](https://bliptext.com/articles/welsh-language), there is an s-[subjunctive](https://bliptext.com/articles/subjunctive), gabiseti \"he shall take\" (Old Irish gabid), robiseti, auseti.\nCompare [Umbrian](https://bliptext.com/articles/umbrian) ferest \"he/she/it shall make\" or [Ancient Greek](https://bliptext.com/articles/ancient-greek) δείξῃ deiksēi (aorist subj.) / δείξει deiksei (future ind.) \"(that) he/she/it shall show\".\n\n# Phonology\nCeltiberian was a [Celtic language](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtic-language) that shows the characteristic sound changes of [Celtic language](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtic-language)s such as:\n\n## PIE Consonants\nFinal ***-m** is preserved in Celtiberian (and Lepontic), a further indication of these dialects' conservatism.\nIt is generally fronted to -n in Gaulish (exceptional cases, for instance on the [Larzac tablet](https://bliptext.com/articles/larzac-tablet), are probably due to influence from Latin): **boustom** \"stable.\"\n\n## Consonant clusters\n\n## Vowels\n\n## Syllabic resonants and laryngeals\n\n## Exclusive developments\n\n# Morphology\n\n## Noun and adjective cases\nAn -n- stem can be seen in melmu nom.sg.\n< *-ōn, melmunos gen. sg.\n(from Botorrita III, probably a name).\nIt is notable that the genitive singular -o- stem ends in -o in Celtiberian, unlike the rest of Celtic (and Italic) where this ending is -ī\nThere is also a potential Vocative case, however this is very poorly attested, with only an ambiguous -e ending for o-stem nouns being cited in literature.\n\n## Demonstrative pronouns\n\n## Relative pronoun\nForms of the masculine singular relative pronoun *yo- can be found in the first [Botorrita plaque](https://bliptext.com/articles/botorrita-plaque): The form io-s in line 10 is the nominative singular masculine of the relative pronoun from Proto-Indo-European *yo- (Sanskrit ya-, Greek hos), which shows up in Old Irish only as the aspiration for leniting relative verb forms.\nLine 7 has the accusative singular io-m and the dative singular io-mui of the same root.\n\n## Verbal endings\nThe Indo-European third person verbal ending system seems to be evident, though the exact meaning of many verbs remains unclear: primary singular active *****-t**i** in ambitise****-t**i** (Botorrita I, A.5), '(that someone) builds around > encloses' from *h₂m̥bhi-dʰingʰ-s-e****-t**i**, and auzeti, secondary ***-t** > /θ/ written in terbere-z (SP.02.08, B-4) and perhaps kombalke-z; primary plural active *-**nti** in ara-**nti** (Z.09.24, A-4) and zizo**nti** \"they sow\" (or perhaps \"they give\" with assimilation of the initial do the medial ), secondary ***-nt** perhaps in atibio-n (Z.09.24, A-5), middle voice ***-nt**o in auza**nto** (Z.09.03, 01) and perhaps esia**nto** (SP.02.08 A-2).\nA third person imperative ***-tо̄d** > -tuz perhaps is seen in da-tuz \"he must give\" (Bronze plaque of Torrijo del Campo), usabituz, bize-tuz (Botorrita I A.5) and dinbituz 'he must build' < *dʰingʰ-bī-tōd.\nA possible third person singular subjunctive **-a-ti** may be asekati, and another in **-e-ti** may be seen in auzeti < *aw-dhh1**-e-ti** \"he may bestow.\"\nFrom **t**he same roo**t**, we may have a **t**runca**t**ed form of an a**t**hema**t**ic ac**t**ive **t**hird person singular aoris**t** if auz is from *auzaz < *aw-dh h1-**t**.\nAlso from the same root, an example of the genitive plural of the present active participle ending -**nt-om** may be found on the [Novallas bronze tablet](https://bliptext.com/articles/novallas-bronze-tablet) in audintum < *awdheh1-nt-ōm.\nPossible infinitive form **-u-nei** perhaps from ***-mn-ei** may be seen in ambi-tinko-unei (Botorrita I A.5), and in ta-unei ‘to give’, a reduplicated infinitive form in ti-za-unei if from *dhi-dhh1**-mn-ei** \"to place.\"\n\n# Syntax\nCeltiberian syntax is considered to have the basic order [subject–object–verb](https://bliptext.com/articles/sov-word-order).\nAnother archaic Indo-European feature is the use of the relative pronoun jos and the repetition of enclitised conjunctions such as kwe.\n\n# Sample texts\n\n## First Botorrita plaque, side A\nOne of four bronze plaques found in [Botorrita](https://bliptext.com/articles/botorrita), this text was written in eastern [Celtiberian script](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtiberian-script).\nThe other side consists of a list of names.\n(K.01.01.A)\n\n## Great inscription from Peñalba de Villastar\nAn inscription in the Latin alphabet in the Celtiberian sanctuary of [Peñalba de Villastar](https://bliptext.com/articles/pe-alba-de-villastar), in the current municipality of [Villastar](https://bliptext.com/articles/villastar), [Teruel](https://bliptext.com/articles/teruel) province.\n(K.03.03) Other translations, which differ dramatically from this and from each other, may be found in P. Sims-Williams' treatment of the Celtic languages in The Indo-European Languages.\n\n## Bronze plaque of Torrijo del Campo\nA bronze plaque found in Torrijo del Campo, Teruel province in 1996, using the eastern Celtiberian script.\n\n# Sources","current_revision":null,"created_by":"kACnuQmH5k9Nr5VNVEpVeg7XpvUmMctD","created_at":"2025-01-25T21:20:07.478Z","updated_at":"2025-01-25T21:20:07.478Z","search_vector":"'celtiberian':1 'languag':2","search_content":" \n**Name:** Celtiberian \n**Altname:** Northeastern Hispano-Celtic \n**States:** [Iberian Peninsula](https://bliptext.com/articles/iberian-peninsula) \n**Ethnicity:** [Celtiberians](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtiberians) \n**Extinct:** attested 2nd century BC – 1st century AD \n**Familycolor:** Indo-European \n**Fam 2:** [Celtic](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtic-languages) \n**Fam 3:** [Continental Celtic](https://bliptext.com/articles/continental-celtic-languages) \n**Fam 4:** [Hispano-Celtic](https://bliptext.com/articles/hispano-celtic-languages) \n**Script:** [Celtiberian script](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtiberian-script) \n**Iso 3:** xce \n**Linglist:** xce \n**Glotto:** celt1247 \n**Glottorefname:** Celtiberian \n**Map:** Mapa llengües paleohispàniques-ang.jpg \n**Mapcaption:** {{Legend|cyan|Celtiberian in the context of the [Paleohispanic languages](https://bliptext.com/articles/paleohispanic-languages)}} \n \n\n# \n**Celtiberian** or **Northeastern Hispano-[Celtic](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtic-languages)** is an [extinct](https://bliptext.com/articles/extinct-language) [Indo-European](https://bliptext.com/articles/indo-european-languages) language of the [Celtic](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtic-languages) branch spoken by the **Celtiberian**s in an area of the [Iberian Peninsula](https://bliptext.com/articles/iberian-peninsula) between the headwaters of the [Douro](https://bliptext.com/articles/douro), [Tagus](https://bliptext.com/articles/tagus), [Júcar](https://bliptext.com/articles/j-car) and [Turia](https://bliptext.com/articles/turia-river) rivers and the [Ebro](https://bliptext.com/articles/ebro) river.\nThis language is directly attested in nearly 200 inscriptions dated from the 2nd century BC to the 1st century AD, mainly in [Celtiberian script](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtiberian-script), a direct adaptation of the [northeastern Iberian script](https://bliptext.com/articles/northeastern-iberian-script), but also in the [Latin alphabet](https://bliptext.com/articles/latin-alphabet).\nThe longest extant Celtiberian inscriptions are those on three [[Botorrita](https://bliptext.com/articles/botorrita) plaques](https://bliptext.com/articles/botorrita-plaque), [bronze](https://bliptext.com/articles/bronze) plaques from [Botorrita](https://bliptext.com/articles/botorrita) near [Zaragoza](https://bliptext.com/articles/zaragoza), dating to the early 1st century BC, labeled [Botorrita](https://bliptext.com/articles/botorrita) I, III and IV ([Botorrita](https://bliptext.com/articles/botorrita) II is in [Latin](https://bliptext.com/articles/latin)).\nShorter and more fragmentary is the [Novallas bronze tablet](https://bliptext.com/articles/novallas-bronze-tablet).\n\n# Overview\nUnder the [P/Q Celtic hypothesis](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtic-languages), and like its Iberian relative [Gallaecian](https://bliptext.com/articles/gallaecian), Celtiberian is classified as a Q Celtic language, putting it in the same category as [Goidelic](https://bliptext.com/articles/goidelic) and not [P-Celtic](https://bliptext.com/articles/p-celtic) like [Gaulish](https://bliptext.com/articles/gaulish) or [Brittonic](https://bliptext.com/articles/brittonic-languages).\nUnder the [Insular/Continental Celtic hypothesis](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtic-languages), Celtiberian and Gaulish are grouped together as [Continental Celtic languages](https://bliptext.com/articles/continental-celtic-languages) but this grouping is [paraphyletic](https://bliptext.com/articles/paraphyly): no evidence suggests the two shared any common innovation separately from [Insular Celtic](https://bliptext.com/articles/insular-celtic-languages).\nAccording to Ranko Matasovic in the introduction to his 2009 Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic : \"Celtiberian...is almost certainly an independent branch on the Celtic genealogical tree, one that became separated from the others very early.\"\nCeltiberian has a fully inflected relative pronoun ios (as does, for instance, Ancient Greek), an ancient feature that was not preserved by the other Celtic languages, and the [particles](https://bliptext.com/articles/grammatical-particle) **-kue** 'and' encloses' from *h₂m̥bhi-dʰingʰ-s-e****-t**i**, and auzeti, secondary ***-t** > /θ/ written in terbere-z (SP.02.08, B-4) and perhaps kombalke-z; primary plural active *-**nti** in ara-**nti** (Z.09.24, A-4) and zizo**nti** \"they sow\" (or perhaps \"they give\" with assimilation of the initial do the medial ), secondary ***-nt** perhaps in atibio-n (Z.09.24, A-5), middle voice ***-nt**o in auza**nto** (Z.09.03, 01) and perhaps esia**nto** (SP.02.08 A-2).\nA third person imperative ***-tо̄d** > -tuz perhaps is seen in da-tuz \"he must give\" (Bronze plaque of Torrijo del Campo), usabituz, bize-tuz (Botorrita I A.5) and dinbituz 'he must build' < *dʰingʰ-bī-tōd.\nA possible third person singular subjunctive **-a-ti** may be asekati, and another in **-e-ti** may be seen in auzeti < *aw-dhh1**-e-ti** \"he may bestow.\"\nFrom **t**he same roo**t**, we may have a **t**runca**t**ed form of an a**t**hema**t**ic ac**t**ive **t**hird person singular aoris**t** if auz is from *auzaz < *aw-dh h1-**t**.\nAlso from the same root, an example of the genitive plural of the present active participle ending -**nt-om** may be found on the [Novallas bronze tablet](https://bliptext.com/articles/novallas-bronze-tablet) in audintum < *awdheh1-nt-ōm.\nPossible infinitive form **-u-nei** perhaps from ***-mn-ei** may be seen in ambi-tinko-unei (Botorrita I A.5), and in ta-unei ‘to give’, a reduplicated infinitive form in ti-za-unei if from *dhi-dhh1**-mn-ei** \"to place.\"\n\n# Syntax\nCeltiberian syntax is considered to have the basic order [subject–object–verb](https://bliptext.com/articles/sov-word-order).\nAnother archaic Indo-European feature is the use of the relative pronoun jos and the repetition of enclitised conjunctions such as kwe.\n\n# Sample texts\n\n## First Botorrita plaque, side A\nOne of four bronze plaques found in [Botorrita](https://bliptext.com/articles/botorrita), this text was written in eastern [Celtiberian script](https://bliptext.com/articles/celtiberian-script).\nThe other side consists of a list of names.\n(K.01.01.A)\n\n## Great inscription from Peñalba de Villastar\nAn inscription in the Latin alphabet in the Celtiberian sanctuary of [Peñalba de [Villastar](https://bliptext.com/articles/villastar)](https://bliptext.com/articles/pe-alba-de-villastar), in the current municipality of [Villastar](https://bliptext.com/articles/villastar), [Teruel](https://bliptext.com/articles/teruel) province.\n(K.03.03) Other translations, which differ dramatically from this and from each other, may be found in P. Sims-Williams' treatment of the Celtic languages in The Indo-European Languages.\n\n## Bronze plaque of Torrijo del Campo\nA bronze plaque found in Torrijo del Campo, Teruel province in 1996, using the eastern Celtiberian script.\n\n# Sources","revisionCount":0},"hasMore":false,"nextCursor":null}

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