Iberians
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The Iberians were an ancient Pre-Indo-European people who inhabited the east and southeast of the Iberian Peninsula in prehistoric and historic times. In modern times, an Iberian is also a native of the Iberian Peninsula.
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[edit] History
The Iberians lived in isolated communities based on a tribal organisation. They also had a knowledge of metalworking, including bronze, and agricultural techniques. In later years, the Iberians evolved into a more complex civilization with urbanized communities and social stratification. They traded metals with the Phoenicians, Greeks, and Carthaginians.
Greek colonists made the first historical reference to the Iberians in the 6th century B.C. They also dubbed as Iberians another people, currently known as Caucasian Iberians. It is not known whether they had any connection or if it was just a coincidence of names. The Iberians most likely made contact with other cultures long before this, however. The Phoenicians established their first colony on the Iberian Peninsula in 1100 B.C. (Gadir, Gades, modern Cádiz) and probably made contact with Iberians then or shortly thereafter.
[edit] Origins
There are two theories concerning their origins:
- One theory suggests that they arrived in Spain sometime during the Neolithic period, with their arrival being dated as early as the fourth millennium BC. Most scholars adhering to this theory believe from archaeological, anthropological and genetic evidences that the Iberians came from a region farther east in the Mediterranean. Others have suggested that they may have originated in North Africa. The Iberians would then have initially settled along the eastern coast of Spain, and possibly spread throughout the rest of the Iberian Peninsula later on.
- An alternative theory states that they were part of the original inhabitants of Western Europe and the creators/heirs of the great megalithic culture in all this area, a theory possibly supported by genetic studies. The Iberians would then be similar to the populations subdued by the Celts in the first millennium BC in Ireland, Britain and France. 1 2 3
[edit] External influences
The Celts arrived in the Iberian Peninsula in two waves in the early first millennium B.C. The Celtic culture dominated the Northern and Western Peninsula while the Iberians held the South. In the center, Celtic and Iberian culture mixed to give birth to the Celtiberians. This group, which fused both cultures, spread to the Eastern coast of what today is Spain.
The Iberians and the Celtiberians traded extensively with other Mediterranean cultures. Iberian pottery has been found in France, Italy, and North Africa. The Iberians also had extensive contact with Greek colonists who shared their cultural knowledge. The Iberians may have adopted some of the Greeks' artistic skill. Statues such as the Lady of Baza and the Lady of Elx are thought to have been made by Iberians relatively well studied in art.
The Iberians and Celtiberians were placed under Carthaginian rule for a short time between the Second and Third Punic Wars. Both groups supplied troops to Hannibal's army. The Romans subsequently conquered the Iberian Peninsula and slowly repressed the local culture and language, but it was only until the reign of Emperor Augustus after the fall of the Roman Republic that the entire peninsula was conquered.
[edit] Iberian culture
[edit] Iberian language
The Iberian language describes a linguistic group identified with the Iberian civilisation (7th century B.C. – 7th century B.C.), formed in the eastern and south-eastern regions of the Iberian peninsula. These indigenous languages became extinct by the 1st to 2nd centuries AD, after being gradually replaced by Latin.
Iberian seems to be a language isolate. It is certainly not an Indo-European language. Links with other languages have been claimed, but they have not been demonstrated. One such proposed link was with the Basque language (Basque-Iberism), but this theory is also disputed.
[edit] Iberian writing
It was assumed that the Iberians learned writing from the Phoenicians, developed a system for recording their own language, and later they incorporated elements of the Greek alphabet into their own writing system. Nevertheless, some scholars disagree with this theory. This is the case of the portuguese epigraphist Carlos A. B. Castelo[1].
[edit] Gallery
[edit] See Also
Modern peoples of Iberian ancestry:
Ancient cultures of Iberia:
- Pre-Roman peoples of the Iberian Peninsula
- Tartessos
- Celts
- Celtiberians
- Phoenicia
- Ancient Greece
- Carthage
- Ancient Rome
Archeological sites:
Related to Iberian culture:
[edit] References
- ^ Personal website of the epigraphist Carlos A.B. Castelo, where his discoveries about the Iberians are explained: [1] (Source in Portuguese)
- ^ Courtesy of www.contestania.com.
