View source for Toutatis

{{Short description|Celtic tribal god}}
{{About|the Celtic god|the asteroid|4179 Toutatis|the roller coaster|Toutatis (roller coaster)}}
'''Toutatis''' or '''Teutates''' is a [[Celtic polytheism|Celtic god]]<ref name="Maier">{{Cite book |last=Maier |first=Bernhard |author-link=Bernhard Maier |title=Dictionary of Celtic Religion and Culture |date=1997 |publisher=Boydell & Brewer |pages=263–264|isbn=9780851156606 | quote=Teutates (later form: Toutates). Name of a <u>Celtic god</u> [...] T. is mentioned by the Roman authors Lucan (Pharsalia 1,444-446) and Lactantius (Divinae Institutiones 1,21,3). According to Lucan the <u>Gauls</u> made human sacrifices to him. The Berne Scholia, commenting on Lucan, add that the victims were put head-first in a tub full of water and thus drowned... |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7AvdTqwucfwC&dq=Teutates&pg=PA263}}</ref><ref name="Aldhouse">{{Cite book |last=Aldhouse-Green |first=Miranda |author-link=Miranda Aldhouse-Green |title=The Gods of the Celts |date=1986 |publisher=Sutton Publishing |page=110 |isbn=9780752468112 |quote=What the Romans may have met in <u>Celtic</u> lands are tribal protector-gods with a war-role. In this connection Lucan's comment on Teutates, who was one of three <u>Celtic gods</u> said to have been encountered by Caesar's army in Gaul, may be relevant... |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vSg7AwAAQBAJ&dq=The+Gods+of+the+Celts+Teutates&pg=PT84}}</ref><ref name="Cunliffe">{{cite book |last=Cunliffe |first=Barry |author-link=Barry Cunliffe |title=The Ancient Celts |year=2018 |orig-year=1997 |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=275 |edition=2nd |chapter=Chapter 11: Religious systems |isbn=978-0-19-875292-9 |quote=Lucan, who, in Pharsalia, names three <u>Celtic deities, Teutates,</u> Taranis, and Esus. All were propitiated by human sacrifice: the victims of Teutates were to be drowned, those of Taranis burnt, and those sacrificed to Esus hanged. The <u>Celtic names</u> are informative. Teutates means 'the god of the tribe' from the <u>Celtic</u> teutā 'tribe'... |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vqZTDwAAQBAJ&dq=Teutates&pg=PA275}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Euskirchen |first=Marion |title=Teutates |year=2006 |work=[[Brill's New Pauly]]: Encyclopaedia of the Ancient World |publisher=[[Brill Publishers]] |url=https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/brill-s-new-pauly/*-e1205840 |doi=10.1163/1574-9347_bnp_e1205840 |quote=<u>Celtic god</u>, who, along with Esus and Taranis (according to Lucanus 1,443-446), was allegedly worshipped by human sacrifice.}}</ref> who was worshipped primarily in ancient [[Gaul]] and [[Roman Britain|Britain]].<ref name="Koch">{{cite book |last=Koch |first=John |author-link=John T. Koch |title=Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia |date=2006 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |page=1665 |quote=Teutates (also Toutatis, Tūtuates, Tūtatus, Toutorix), Taranis, and Esus form Lucan's trinity of <u>Gaulish gods</u> (Pharsalia 1.444–6) to which <u>Gauls</u> near Massalia sacrificed their prisoners of war. The name Teutates occurs alone or as a secondary theonym in combination with Mars, Apollo (see Belenos), and Mercurius in texts and inscriptions, including sites now in Austria, England, France, Germany, and Italy...}}</ref> His name means "god of the tribe",<ref name="Cunliffe"/> and he has been widely interpreted as a tribal [[tutelary deity|protector]].<ref name="Aldhouse"/><ref name="Duval">Paul-Marie Duval (1993). ''Les dieux de la Gaule.'' Éditions Payot, Paris. {{ISBN|2-228-88621-1}}</ref> According to Roman writer [[Lucan]], the Gauls offered [[human sacrifice]]s to him.<ref name="Maier"/>
==Name and nature==
''Toutatis'' (pronounced {{IPA|cel|towˈtaːtis|}} in [[Gaulish language|Gaulish]])<ref name="Lambert">Pierre-Yves Lambert (2003). ''La langue gauloise.'' Éditions Errance, Paris.</ref> and its variants ''Toutates'',<ref name="Maier"/> ''Teutates'', ''Tūtatus'', and ''Toutorīx'',<ref name="Koch"/> comes from the Gaulish Celtic root ''toutā'', meaning 'tribe' or 'people' (compare [[Old Irish]] ''tuath'' and [[Welsh language|Welsh]] ''tud'').<ref name="Koch"/> A literal meaning would thus be "god of the tribe".<ref name="Cunliffe"/> A similar phrase is found in [[Irish mythology]], which mentions the [[oath]] formula ''tongu do dia tongas mo thuath'', roughly "I swear by the god by whom my tribe swears".<ref name="Koch"/> [[Bernhard Maier]] proposes that his name derives from an older *''teuto-tatis'', with the meaning 'father of the tribe', although he notes that this etymology is uncertain.<ref name="Maier"/>
It is believed ''Toutatis'' was a title for the [[tutelary deity|tutelary gods]] of various tribes.<ref name="Koch"/> [[Miranda Aldhouse-Green]] suggests that ''Toutatis'' was an epithet or description for Celtic tribal protector-gods, rather than a name.<ref name="Aldhouse"/> Paul-Marie Duval suggests that each tribe had its own ''Toutatis''; he further considers the Gaulish Mars as the product of [[syncretism]] with the Celtic ''Toutatis'', noting the great number of indigenous epithets under which Mars was worshipped.<ref name="Duval"/>
== Evidence ==
[[File:TOTATESVoingt.jpg|thumb|A dedication to Toutatis found in [[Voingt]], central France]]
===Inscriptions===
Inscriptions dedicated to him have been found in [[Gaul]] (e.g. at [[Nîmes]] and [[Vaison-la-Romaine]] in France, and [[Mainz]] in Germany),<ref name="Koch"/> in [[Britannia]] (e.g. at [[York]], [[Old Carlisle]], [[Castor, Cambridgeshire|Castor]], and [[Hertfordshire]]),<ref name="Koch"/><ref>Collingwood, R.Gh. and Wright, R.P. (1965) ''The Roman Inscriptions of Britain'' (RIB) ''Vol.I Inscriptions on Stone''. Oxford.  [https://romaninscriptionsofbritain.org/inscriptions/1017 RIB 1017, online at romaninscriptionsofbritain.org]</ref> in [[Noricum]], and in [[Rome]],<ref name="Koch"/> among other places.<ref name="arbre">[http://www.arbre-celtique.com/approfondissements/divinites/inventaire-div/div_liste.php?nomdiv=Toutatis Listing for Toutatis] from www.arbre-celtique.com.</ref> Some of these inscriptions combine his name with other gods such as [[Mars (mythology)|Mars]], [[Cocidius]], [[Apollo]], and [[Mercurius]].<ref name="Koch"/>
===Written evidence===
Toutatis is one of three Celtic gods mentioned by the Roman writer [[Lucan]] in his epic poem [[Pharsalia|''De Bello Civili'' or ''Pharsalia'']].<ref name="Aldhouse"/><ref name="Cunliffe"/> Written in the [[first century AD]], it names Toutatis, [[Taranis]], and [[Esus]] as three gods to whom the Gauls offered [[human sacrifice]]s.<ref name="Maier"/><ref name="Koch"/><ref name="Cunliffe"/> In the 4th century [[Scholia|commentary]] on Lucan, ''[[Commenta Bernensia]]'', an author added that sacrifices to Toutatis were [[Execution by drowning|killed by drowning]], and likened Toutatis to Mars or Mercury.<ref name="Maier"/>
{{poem quote
|text=Those who keep watch beside the western shore, have moved their standards home;
The happy [[Gauls|Gaul]] rejoices in their absence; [...]
Now rest the [[Belgae|Belgians]], and the [[Arverni]]an race [...]
Thou, too, oh [[Treveri|Treves]],
rejoicest that the war has left thy bounds.
[[Ligures|Ligurian]] tribes, now shorn, in ancient days
first of the long-haired nations, on whose necks
once flowed the auburn locks in pride supreme;
And those who pacify with blood accursed,
savage Teutates, [[Esus|Hesus']] horrid shrines,
and [[Taranis]]' altars, cruel as were those
loved by Diana, goddess of the north.
|sign= [[Lucan]]
|source=''[[Pharsalia]]'', 1st century<ref name="Lucan">{{cite web | url=http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0134%3Abook%3D1%3Acard%3D396 | title=M. Annaeus Lucanus, Pharsalia, book 1, line 396 }}</ref>}}
In his [[3rd century AD|third-century]] work ''[[Divinae Institutiones]]'', Roman writer [[Lactantius]] also names Toutatis as a Gaulish god to whom sacrifices were offered.<ref name="Maier"/>
===TOT finger rings===
[[File:Silver Tot ring.jpg|thumb|100px|right|Romano-British silver ring inscribed "TOT"]]
A large number of [[Roman Britain|Romano-British]] finger rings inscribed with the name "TOT", thought to refer to Toutatis, have been found in eastern Britain, the vast majority in [[Lincolnshire]], but some in [[Bedfordshire]], [[Nottinghamshire]], and [[Leicestershire]].  The distribution of these rings closely matches the territory of the [[Corieltauvi]] tribe.<ref>{{Cite web | last=Spicer | first=Graham | title=Missing Link To Bloodthirsty Ancient Celtic Warrior God Uncovered | url=http://www.culture24.org.uk/history%20%26%20heritage/archaeology/art49084 | date=16 July 2007 | access-date=2012-08-07 }}</ref>  In 2005 a silver ring inscribed ''DEO TOTA'' ("to the god Toutatis") and ''[VTERE] FELIX'' ([use this ring] happily") was discovered at [[Hockliffe]], Bedfordshire.  This inscription confirms that the ''TOT'' inscription does indeed refer to the god Toutatis.<ref>{{Cite web | title=Record ID: BH-C3A8E7 - Roman finger ring | url=http://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/record/id/199113 | publisher=[[Portable Antiquities Scheme]] | date=3 November 2007 |  access-date=2012-08-07 }}</ref>
In 2012 a silver ring inscribed "TOT" was found in the area where the [[Hallaton Treasure]] had been discovered twelve years earlier. Adam Daubney, an expert on this type of ring, suggests that Hallaton may have been a site of worship of the god Toutatis.<ref>{{Cite web | title=Rare silver ring unearthed near site of Hallaton hoard | url=http://www.thisisleicestershire.co.uk/Rare-silver-ring-unearthed-near-site-Hallaton/story-16661074-detail/story.html | date=7 August 2012 | access-date=2012-08-07 | archive-date=2012-08-11 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120811081901/http://www.thisisleicestershire.co.uk/Rare-silver-ring-unearthed-near-site-Hallaton/story-16661074-detail/story.html | url-status=dead }}</ref>
==See also==
*[[Interpretatio Romana]]
*[[Germanic Mercury#Celtic parallels|Germanic Mercury]]
*[[4179 Toutatis]]
==References==
{{reflist}}
==Further reading==
* Clémençon, Bernard; Ganne, Pierre M. "Toutatis chez les Arvernes: les graffiti à Totates du bourg routier antique de Beauclair (communes de Giat et de Voingt, Puy-de-Dôme)". In: ''Gallia'', tome 66, fascicule 2, 2009. Archéologie de la France antique. pp.&nbsp;153–169. [DOI: https://doi.org/10.3406/galia.2009.3369] ; www.persee.fr/doc/galia_0016-4119_2009_num_66_2_3369
* Lajoye, Patrice; Lemaître, Claude. "Une inscription votive à Toutatis découverte à Jort (Calvados, France)". In: ''Etudes Celtiques'', vol. 40, 2014. pp.&nbsp;21–28. [DOI: https://doi.org/10.3406/ecelt.2014.2423] ; www.persee.fr/doc/ecelt_0373-1928_2014_num_40_1_2423
*M. Almagro‐Gorbea, A. J. Lorrio Alvarado, ''Teutates: el héroe fundador'', Madrid, Real Academia de la Historia, 2011
==External links==
*{{Wiktionary-inline|Toutatis}}
*{{Commons category-inline}}
{{Celtic mythology (ancient)}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Celtic gods]]
[[Category:War gods]]
[[Category:Tutelary gods]]