Portus Cale
Portus Cale was an ancient
Early history
Cale was an early settlement located at the mouth of the
At the end of Brutus's campaigns, Rome controlled the territory between the Douro and Minho rivers plus probable extensions along the coast and in the interior. It was only under Augustus, however, at the end of the 1st century BC, that present north Portugal and Galicia were fully pacified and under Roman control. During the Roman occupation, the city developed as an important commercial port, primarily in the trade between
As the Roman Empire declined, these regions fell under Suebi dominion, between 410 and 584. These Germanic invaders settled mainly in the areas of Braga (Bracara Augusta), Porto (Portus Cale), Lugo (Lucus Augusti) and Astorga (Asturica Augusta). Bracara Augusta, capital of Roman Gallaecia, became the capital of the Suebi. As trade collapsed, Portus Cale went into decline.
Another Germanic people, the
In 868,
Origin of Portugal's name
The mainstream explanation[
The medieval Scottish historian Hector Boece thought the name Portugal was derived from Porto Gatelli, the name Gatelo gave to Braga when he settled there,[4] while others say he gave it to Porto.[5][6]
Other historians have argued that Greeks were the first to settle Cale and that the name derives from the Greek word Καλλις kallis, 'beautiful', referring to the beauty of the Douro valley. Others have hypothesized that the word Cale came from the Latin word for 'warm' (Portus Cale thus meaning 'warm port'). Portugal's name derives from the Roman name Portus Cale. Portucale evolved into Portugale during the 7th and 8th centuries, and by the 9th century, Portugale was used extensively to refer to the region between the rivers Douro and
See also
References
- ^ Various (2011). "history of Porto – Google Search". google.co.uk. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
- ^ a b Alexander Macbain, An etymological dictionary of the Gaelic language, Gairm Publications; 1982 (new edition), p. 66.
- ^ a b CNRTL : etymology of cale4 (read online) [1]
- ^ Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. Royal Irish Academy. 1864. p. 382.
Gatelli.
- ^ Michaud, Joseph Fr.; Michaud, Louis Gabriel (1832). Biographie universelle, ancienne et moderne. Michaud. p. 312.
- ISBN 978-84-89512-79-5.