Dobunni

Dobunni
Territory of the Dobunni
Geography
CapitalCorinium Dobunnorum (Cirencester)
LocationWest Oxfordshire
Gloucestershire
Monmouthshire
North Somerset
Bristol
South Herefordshire
Warwickshire
Wiltshire
Worcester
Breconshire
RulersAnted[...], Eisu[...], Catti[...], Comux, Inam[...], Corio[...], Boduoc[...]

The Dobunni were one of the Iron Age tribes living in the British Isles prior to the Roman conquest of Britain. There are seven known references to the tribe in Roman histories and inscriptions.[1][2]

Various historians and archaeologists have examined the Dobunni, including Stephen J. Yeates in his book The Tribe of Witches (2008), where he suggests that the latter part of the name possibly derives from *bune, a cup or vessel, with a similar meaning to the later tribal name Hwicce; both being related to the recognisable cult of a Romano-British goddess.[3] This view has been sharply criticised by several archaeologists.[4][5][6] Archaeologist Miles Russell suggests that their original name may have been "Bodunni", connecting this with the Celtic word *bouda meaning "Victorious", in the sense of "The Victorious Ones".[7]

  1. ^ Rivet and Smith, The Place Names of Roman Britain (1979), pp339-340,
  2. ^ Collingwood, Wright and Tomlin, The Roman Inscriptions of Britain: Vol 1 (1995), nos.621,2250
  3. ^ Stephen Yeates, A Dreaming for the Witches, 2009, pp162-163
  4. ^ Harte, Jeremy (2011). "Review of The Tribe of Witches". Time and Mind: The Journal of Archaeology, Consciousness and Culture 4(1)
  5. ^ Rodway, Simon (2009). "Review of The Tribe of Witches". Britannia: A Journal of Romano-British and Kindred Studies 40
  6. ^ Hooke, Della (January–February 2009). "Review of The Tribe of Witches". British Archaeology 104 (York: Council for British Archaeology)
  7. ^ Russel, M. (2010). Bloodline: The Celtic Kings of Roman Britain. Published by Amberley Publishing. (ISBN 978-1-84868-238-2)