Much of the history of pre-modern European society was shaped by the migration of various groups of peoples into and across the European landscape. The Celts moved from their homeland in Central Europe and settled throughout much of Western Europe, bringing their language and culture with them. The Romans were yet another migrant group, and undoubtedly one of the most culturally impactful groups because they enforced their political, legal, and religious customs in the territories they settled. Similarly, the German-speaking tribes who moved into Roman territory as the Roman Empire fell; the Vikings, who emerged from Scandinavia in the late 8th century CE and settled throughout much of Western Europe; and Muslim peoples, who emerged from the Arabian Peninsula in the mid-7th century CE and settled in Spain and Sicily, had a significant influence on the formation of early European culture. We'll examine all of these groups and their impact on the history and culture of Western Europe in the pre-modern period.

1. The Vix crater, 6th century BC. Largest ever found, 5 ft tall and 13 ft wide
and made in Greece or southern Italy. Discovered at Vix, now housed at
the Musée du Pays du Châtillonnais à Catillon-sur-Seine, France.

2. The Vix gold torque.

3. Pre-modern European Migration:
Celtic Migrations
• Late Hallstatt and early La Tene era migrations
• Migration into Iberia/Spain, c. 600 BC
• Migration into the British Isles, c. 500 BC onward
• Migration into northeastern Italy, c. 400 BC
• Migration into Macedon, Greece, and Asia Minor, c. 360-260 BC
• Reasons for migration
• Population pressure; desire for new/better/more land; access to known
material resources; potential for raiding; employment as mercenaries in the
wars of Hellenistic kingdoms

4. Map of La Tene migrations. Map from Barry Cunliffe, Europe Between
the Oceans, 9000 BC-AD 1000.

5. Celtic sites throughout Europe. Map from Nora Chadwick’s The Celts.

6. Celtic tribes in Britain by the Roman era. Early medieval Ireland.
Maps from Nora Chadwick’s The Celts.

7. Celtic migrations into the Mediterranean world—Greeks record them as
“Keltoi”, Romans refer to them as “Gauls”. Maps from Barry Cunliffe,
Europe Between the Oceans, 9000 BC-AD 1000.

8. Celtic objects and place-names. Maps from Barry Cunliffe, The Ancient
Celts.