Triboci
In classical antiquity, the Triboci or Tribocci were a Germanic people of eastern Gaul, inhabiting much of what is now Alsace.
Name
Besides the forms Triboci and Tribocci, Schneider has the form “Triboces” in the accusative plural.[1] Pliny has Tribochi, and Strabo Τριβόκχοι (Tribokchoi). In the passage of Caesar, it is said that all manuscripts have “Tribucorum”.[2] "Three beeches" (Celtic tri, Germanic boc) has been suggested as an etymology, as has Germanic dribòn ("drivers [of cattle, livestock]").[3][4][5]
Geography
Political and military history
The Triboci were in the army of the Germanic king Ariovistus in the great battle in which Julius Caesar defeated him; and though Caesar does not say directly that they were Germans, his narrative shows that he considered them to be Germans.[7] In another passage Caesar places the Triboci on the Rhine between the Mediomatrici and the Treviri, and he means to place them on the left or Gallic side of the Rhine.[8] Strabo, after mentioning the Sequani and Mediomatrici as extending to the Rhine, says, “Among them a German people has settled, the Tribocchi, who have passed over from their native land.”[9] Pliny and Tacitus say that the Tribocci are Germans.[10][11] The true conclusion from Caesar is that he supposed the Tribocci to be settled in Gallia before 58 BCE.
Nero Claudius Drusus established a military camp at Argentorate (Strasbourg) in 12 BCE, near which there had already been a civilian La Tène settlement since around 100 BCE.[12]
The Triboci joined the revolt of Civilis in 70 CE, sending reinforcements to the Treveran rebel commander Julius Tutor along with the Caeracates, Vangiones and dissident Romans. This combined force defeated a Roman cohort, but at the approach of the main body of the Roman army, these new reinforcements, including the Triboci, defected to the Roman side.[13]
The city of Argentorate was rebuilt in 97 under Trajan after a fire.[12]
See also
- List of Germanic tribes
References
- ^ C. Julius Caesar (c. 50 BCE). De Bello Gallico I.51.
- ^ Caesar. De Bello Gallico IV.10; Schneider, note.
- ^ "Germanic tribes and spirituality".
- ^ Kessler, P. L. "Kingdoms of the Germanic Tribes - Triboci". www.historyfiles.co.uk.
- ^ Tacitus, Cornelius (November 30, 1851). "The Germania of Tacitus, with ethnological dissertations and notes: By R. G. Latham". Taylor – via Google Books.
- ^ Ptolemy II.9.17.
- ^ Caesar. De Bello Gallico II.1229, I.51.
- ^ Caesar. De Bello Gallico 4.10.
- ^ Strabo. iv. p.193.
- ^ C. Plinius Secundus. Naturalis Historia. 4.17.
- ^ Cornelius Tacitus. Germania 28.
- ^ a b Jean-Jacques Hatt (1952). Comptes-rendus des séances de l'Académie des inscriptions et belles-lettres 96:1, p.97-100. Retrieved on 2010-02-27.
- ^ Cornelius Tacitus. History IV.70.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Smith, William, ed. (1854–1857). Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography. London: John Murray. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty|title=(help)
