Lusitania Lusitania → The Iberian peninsula in the time of Hadrian (ruled 117–138 AD), showing, in western Iberia , the imperial province of Lusitania (Portugal and Extremadura) Map of Roman Hispania around 10 AD; Lusitania is colored in orange Lusitania (, Portuguese : Lusitânia, Spanish : Lusitania) or Hispania Lusitana was an ancient Iberian Roman province including approximately all of modern Portugal south of the Douro river and part of modern Spain (the present autonomous community of Extremadura and a small part of the province of Salamanca ). It was named after the Lusitani or Lusitanian people (an Indo-European people ). Its capital was Emerita Augusta (currently Mérida, Spain ), and it was initially part of the Roman Republic province of Hispania Ulterior , before becoming a province of its own in the Roman Empire . Romans first came to the territory around the mid 2nd century BC. [1] A war with Lusitanian tribes followed, from 155 to 139 BC.

In 27 BC, the province was created. [2] Contents 10 External links Origin of the name The etymology of the name of the Lusitani (who gave the Roman province their name) remains unclear. Popular etymology connected the name to a supposed Roman demigod Lusus , whereas some early-modern scholars suggested that Lus was a form of the Celtic Lugus followed by another (unattested) root *tan-, supposed to mean “tribe”, [3] while others derived the name from Lucis, an ancient people mentioned in Avienus’ Ora Maritima (4th century CE) and from tan ( -stan in Iranian ), or from tain, meaning “a region” or implying “a country of waters”, a root word that formerly meant a prince or sovereign governor of a region.

[4] [5] [6] Ancient Romans, such as Pliny the Elder ( Natural History , 3.5 ) and Varro (116 – 27 BCE, cited by Pliny), speculated that the name Lusitania had Roman origins, as when Pliny says “lusum enim Liberi Patris aut lyssam cum eo bacchantium nomen dedisse Lusitaniae et Pana praefectum eius universae” [Lusitania takes its name from the Lusus associated with Bacchus and the Lyssa of his Bacchantes , and Pan is its governor]. Lusus is usually translated as “game” or “play”, while lyssa is a borrowing from the Greek λυσσα, “frenzy” or “rage”, and sometimes Rage personified; for later poets, Lusus and Lyssa become flesh-and-blood companions (even children) of Bacchus . Luís de Camões ‘ epic Os Lusíadas (1572), which portrays Lusus as the founder of Lusitania, extends these ideas, which have no connection with modern etymology.

In his work, Geography , the classical geographer Strabo (died ca. 24 CE) suggests a change had occurred in the use of the name “Lusitanian”. He mentions a group who had once been called “Lusitanians” living north of the Douro river but were called in his day “Callacans”. [7] Lusitanians Iberian Peninsula at about 300 BC. [8] The Lusitani, who were Indo-European speakers , established themselves in the region in the 6th century BC, but historians and archeologists are still undecided about their ethnogenesis . Some modern authors consider them to be an indigenous people who were Celticized culturally and possibly also through intermarriage. [1] The archeologist Scarlat Lambrino defended the position that the Lusitanians were a tribal group of Celtic origin related to the Lusones (a tribe that inhabited the east of Iberia ). Some have claimed that both tribes came from the Swiss mountains. Others argue that the evidence points to the Lusitanians being a native Iberian tribe, resulting from intermarriage between different local tribes.

The first area colonized by the Lusitani was probably the Douro valley and the region of Beira Alta (present day Portugal); in Beira , they stayed until they defeated the Celtici and other tribes, then they expanded to cover a territory that reached Estremadura before the arrival of the Romans . War against Rome And yet the country north of the Tagus, Lusitania, is the greatest of the Iberian nations, and is the nation against which the Romans waged war for the longest times — Strabo [9] Roman conquest of Hispania The Lusitani are mentioned for the first time in Livy (218 BC) and are described as fighting for the Carthaginians ; they are reported as fighting against Rome in 194 BC, sometimes allied with Celtiberian tribes. In 179 BC, the praetor Lucius Postumius Albinus celebrated a triumph over the Lusitani, but in 155 BC, on the command of Punicus (Πουνίκου, perhaps a Carthaginian) first and Cesarus (Καίσαρος) after, the Lusitani reached Gibraltar .

Here they were defeated by the praetor Lucius Mummius . From 152 BC onwards, the Roman Republic had difficulties in recruiting soldiers for the wars in Hispania, deemed particularly brutal. In 150 BC, Servius Sulpicius Galba organised a false armistice. While the Lusitani celebrated this new alliance, he massacred them, selling the survivors as slaves; this caused a new rebellion led by Viriathus , who was after many attempts killed by traitors paid by the Romans in 139 BC, after having led a successful guerrilla campaign against Rome and their local allies. Two years after, in 137 BC Decimus Junius Brutus Callaicus led a successful campaign against the Lusitani, reaching as far north as the Minho river .

Romans scored other victories with proconsul Decimus Junius Brutus Callaicus and Gaius Marius (elected in 113 BC), but still the Lusitani resisted with a long guerilla war; they later joined Sertorius ‘ (a renegade Roman General) troops (around 80 BC) and Julius Caesar conducted a successful campaign against them in 61-60 BC, [10] but they were not finally defeated until the reign of Augustus (around 28-24 BC). Roman province Roman Theatre (Mérida) Division under Augustus (25–20 BC) With Lusitania (and Asturia and Gallaecia ), Rome had completed the conquest of the Iberian peninsula , which was then divided by Augustus (25–20 BC or 16-13 BC [1] ) into the eastern and northern Hispania Tarraconensis , the southwestern Hispania Baetica and the western Provincia Lusitana.

Originally, Lusitania included the territories of Asturia and Gallaecia, but these were later ceded to the jurisdiction of the new Provincia Tarraconensis and the former remained as Provincia Lusitania et Vettones . Its northern border was along the Douro river, while on its eastern side its border passed through Salmantica ( Salamanca )and Caesarobriga ( Talavera de la Reina ) to the Anas ( Guadiana ) river. Between 28-24 BC Augustus’ military campaigns pacified all Hispania under Roman rule, with the foundation of Roman cities like Asturica Augusta ( Astorga ) and Bracara Augusta ( Braga ) to the north, and to the south Emerita Augusta ( Mérida ) (settled with the emeriti of the Legio V Alaudae and Legio X Gemina legions ).

Between the time of Augustus and Claudius , the province was divided into three conventus iuridicus , territorial units presided by capital cities with a court of justice and joint Roman/indigenous people assemblies (conventus), that counseled the Governor: The conventus ruled of a total of 46 populis , 5 being Roman colonies [11] ( Emerita Augusta ( Mérida , Spain ), Pax Iulia ( Beja ), Scalabis ( Santarém ), Norba Caesarina and Metellinum ). Felicitas Iulia Olisipo ( Lisbon ) was a Roman law municipality) and 3 other towns had the old Latin status [12] ( Ebora ( Évora ), Myrtilis Iulia ( Mértola ) and Salacia ( Alcácer do Sal ). The other 37 were of stipendiarii class, among which Aeminium (Coimbra), Balsa (Tavira), or Mirobriga (Santiago do Cacém). Other cities include Ossonoba ( Faro ), Cetobriga (Tróia, Setúbal), Collippo ( Leiria ) or Arabriga ( Alenquer ).

Division under Diocletian Under Diocletian , Lusitania kept its borders and was ruled by a praeses , later by a consularis ; finally, in 298 AD, it was united with the other provinces to form the Diocesis Hispaniarum (“ Diocese of the Hispanias”). Governors Gaius Appuleius Diocles Portuguese use of the name As with the Roman names of many European countries, Lusitania was and is often used as an alternative name for Portugal , especially in formal and literary or poetic contexts. The 16th century colony that would develop into Brazil was named Nova Lusitânia (“New Lusitania”) [after being named Vera Cruz] In common use are such terms as Lusophone , meaning Portuguese-speaking, and Lusitanic , referring to the Community of Portuguese Language Countries —once Portugal’s colonies and presently independent countries still sharing some common heritage. In popular culture In the second book in the science fiction novels comprising the Ender’s Game series , titled Speaker for the Dead , the inhabitants of the colony have named their new planet Lusitania.

It is explained in the book that it was named for the historical people and territory in Portugal, which the inhabitants are descended from. In the Japanese series of fantasy novels The Heroic Legend of Arslan , by Yoshiki Tanaka , Lusitania stands as the name of a fictional monotheistic country that directly references christian medieval Europe. See also Lusitania - Clickable Map of the Roman Empire - First Century AD Map of the Roman Empire | Bible History Online Lusitania LUSITAï¿½NIA LUSITAï¿½NIA (? ??s?ta??a, ? ??s?ta????, Strab.; ???s?ta??a, Diod. Sic., Ptol., Steph. B. sub voce: Eth. ??s?ta???, Lusitani), originally denoted the country of the Lusitani, but is commonly used in a wider sense, as the name of one of the three provinces, into which Hispania was divided by Augustus. (HISPANIA p. 1081, Nos. 3, 4). 1. Extent and Boundaries. Like the modern Portugal, it lay on the W.

side of the peninsula, extending from its SW. point (SACRUM PR., C. S. Vincent), eastwards to the mouth of the ANAS (Guadiana), and northwards along the W. coast; but here, as well as in the interior, the boundaries of the two countries were very different; Lusitania occupying only two-thirds of the W. coast, and Portugal more than three-fourths. The former had its N. boundary at the DURIUS (Douro), the latter at the MINIUS (Miï¿½o) ; and the Portuguese province, called Entre Douro e Minho, as lying between these rivers, as well as that of Traz os Montes E. of it, were anciently the part of GALLAECIA which belonged to the Callaï¿½ci Bracarii. But on the E. side, inland, Lusitania had a much wider extent than Portugal. Both rest on the same base, as their S. side, namely the coast between C. S. Vincent and the mouth of the Guadiana, and at first the boundary runs N.

nearly along the same line, namely the course of the Guadiana, the slight difference being in favour of Portugal, which has a slip on the E. side of the river. But, from a point on the river, a little below Badajoz, and a little above its intersection with the Meridian of 7ï¿½ W. long., the boundaries diverge ; that of Portugal taking a general direction N. with a slight bearing to the E., till it strikes the Douro at its great bend from SW. to NW. (where the Agueda joins it), and running up the river to its great bend in the opposite direction, below the Esla; while that of Lusitania continued up the Anas eastward, towards the middle of the Peninsula, to a point considerably above METELLINUM (but not very certainly defined), whence it followed a N. direction to the Durius, which it met at a point below the river Pistoraca (also not very well defined). Thus, Lusitania contained, on this side, the N. part of Spanish Estremadura, and the S. part of Leon; and the part of the province thus lying E.

of Modern Portugal, corresponds very nearly to the territory of the VETTONES These are the boundaries of the Roman province, as constituted under Augustus; but there are considerable variations in the extent assigned to the country by various writers, especially according as the word is used, in the wider sense, for the province, or in the narrower meaning, for the country of the Lusitani. In this first and narrowest sense, it included only the district between the Tagus and the Durius, from the Atlantic on the W., to about the present frontier of Portugal on the E. Next, the supposed or actual connection of these people with their Northern neighbours, the Callaï¿½ci, Artabri, and Astures, led to their being, at least in part, included under the same name, and accordingly Strabo defines Lusitania as the country N. of the Tagus, bounded on the W. & N. by the Ocean. (Strab. iii. p.153.) But just above he says, that the greater part of the Lusitani, meaning those N.

of the Durius, had obtained the name of Callaï¿½ci; and elsewhere he expressly states that the whole region N. of the Durius, which was formerly called Lusitania, was now called Callaï¿½ca. (iii. p. 166.) On the E., says Strabo (l.c.), it bordered on the Carpetani, Vettones, Vaccaei, and Callaï¿½ci, and other tribes of less note ; and he adds that these also were sometimes called Lusitani, thus pointing to the extension of the name towards the east. Then, again, on the S. of the Tagus, where the country seems originally to have belonged to the TURDETANI with an intermixture of Celtic tribes [CELTICI], the long and obstinate wars carried on by the Romans drove many of the Lusitanians and their allies into the district, which thus came naturally to be included under the name of Lusitania. (Strab. iii. p.139.) Finally, under Augustus, the boundaries were fixed as above stated. 2. Dimensions.

Agrippa, as quoted by Pliny, assigned to the province, together with Asturia and Gallaecia, a width of 536 M. P.; and a length of 540 M. P. (Plin. Nat. 4.21. s. 35.) Strabo makes its length 3000 stadia, and its width considerably less (iii. p. 153, as amended by Xylander: it should be remembered that the width is reckoned, as Strabo expressly says, along the E. side, i. e. from N. to S., in conformity with his general views respecting the form of the peninsula, which are explained under HISANIA). 3. Physical Geography. Strabo's description of Lusitania (l.c.) as lofty and rugged on the E. side, and level towards the sea, with the exception of minor ridges of mountains, is tolerably correct. A more exact account of its relation to the whole formation of the surface of the peninsula is given under HISPANIA ( ï¿½ v. No. 5. pp.

1085, 1086), together with a description of the coast and the chief promontories. Its surface is roughly divided by the MONS HERMINIUS (Sierra de Estrella), which ends in the peninsula of Lisbon, into the two great basins of the Tagus and the Durius; but it is also intersected by numerous offsets from the great central chains of the peninsula. Besides the great river TAGUS which bisects it, there are several others, of more or less importance, which flow in the same general direction, and fall into the sea on the W. coast; but of these none require special notice, except the Callipus (?a???p???, Sadao), which flows N. from the M. Cuneus in the extreme S., and falls into the sea, SE.

of the Tagus, and the MUNDA (Mondego) and VACUA ( Vouga), between the Tagus and the Durius.1 [2.219] The country, being irrigated by these rivers, and penetrated by their navigable streams, as well as enriched by the gold and silver found in their beds and in mines, was rich and fertile, Strabo tells us; but its prosperity was greatly checked by the predatory habits of its people, who neglected the culture of the soil, to give themselves up to war and robbery. This evil tendency, however, he ascribes chiefly to the mountaineers, by whose attacks the inhabitants of the lowlands were involved in the same disorder. (Strab. iii. p.154.) 4. Population. The province, as finally constituted, contained the countries of five chief peoples, and of innumerable petty tribes, most of whom, however, may be included among these five. Thus, for example, the 30 (some read 50) tribes (????), mentioned by Strabo, between the Tagus and the Artabri, are doubtless but subdivisions of the Callaï¿½ci and Lusitani.

The five chief peoples of Lusitania (the Roman province) were:--(1.) The LUSITANI, on the W. coast between the Durius and the Tagus, and extending also (as explained above) S. of the latter river. (2.) E. of them the VETTONES between the Darius and the Anas. (3.) S. of these two were the TURDULI VETERES, a branch of the ancient population of Baetica, who (according to the common opinion of the ancients) had crossed the Anas; but whose presence should perhaps rather be referred to an ancient occupation of the country up to the Tagus. (4.) S. of them again, in the district between the lower course of the Anas and the S. and W. coasts, were a branch of the TURDETANI to whom similar remarks apply. (5.) Lastly, in various positions, we find remnants of the old Celtic population, preserving the name of CELTICI. The chief traces of them are on the SE.

of the lower Tagus, between it and the great bend of the Anas, where they were mingled with the Turduli; and among the Turdetani, in the extreme S., where they seem to have taken up their position in the mountainous district between the termination of the W. coast and the Anas (Algarbe), which the ancients called CUNEUS and where they bore the distinctive name of CONII (Comp. HISPANIA p. 1087. ï¿½ vii.) The particulars respecting these peoples, their chief cities, and so forth, are given under the several articles: in this place we have to deal only with the Lusitanians, properly so called. 5. The LUSITANI (??s?ta???, Strab.; ???s?ta???, Diod., Ptol.) The Lusitani are designated by Strabo as ï¿½the greatest of the nations of Iberia, and the one most frequently and longest engaged in war with the Romans,ï¿½ a distinction which, certainly, not even the Celtiberians could dispute with them.

The history of the wars referred to has been given in outline under HISPANIA and that of their last great contest may be read in the histories of Rome and under VIRIATHUS (Dict. of Biog.). The incidents of that war seem to prove that though the Lusitani formed a compact state, under one national government, STRABO. MELA. PLINY. PTOLEMY. APPIAN. MODERN. Tagus. Tagus. Tagus Tagus. Tagus. Tajo. Mundas. Monda. Munda. Mondas. Tagus. Mondego. Vacua. Monda. Vacca. Vacus. Tagus. Vouga. Durius. Durius. Durius. Durius. Durius. Douro. ï¿½Other Rivers.ï¿½ Avus Avo Celandus Ave. ? t?? ????? or Limaea, or Belion, s. c. Oblivionis. Naebis. Durius. Nebis. Naebis. Cavado. Naebis, Minius. Limia, or Limaeas. Limias.

Limicis, or Lethes. Lima. or Minius, Limia. Minius. Minius. Minius. Minho. its force was impaired by a certain defect of real union among the numerous minor peoples of whom Strabo speaks. (Niebuhr, Lectures on Anc. Ethnog. and Geog. vol. ii. p. 297.) The full account of their manners and customs, given by Strabo (iii. pp. 154--156), may be more conveniently studied in the original than repeated here in its many details. 6. Lusitania as a Roman Province. (LUSITANIA PROVINCIA, Inscr. ap. Gruter, p. 31, No.

383.) The position of Lusitania, after its conquest by the Romans, first as a part of Hispania Ulterior, and already under Julius Caesar tending to a separate constitution; its formation into a distinct province, under Augustus; its civil and military governments; its three conventus of EMERITA AUGUSTA, PAX JULIA, and SCALABIS with the number and rank of the towns included in them; and its position under the later empire, are all given under HISPANIA (pp. 1081, 1082). 7. Cities and Towns (Those of the VETTONES are given under the article.)--The city of Lisbon (Port.Lisboa) was, under the same name [OLISIPO], the ancient capital of the Lusitanians, and though the Romans degraded it from that rank, in favour of their own military colonies, it remained a place of great commercial importance. Its political rank was transferred, under the Romans, to SCALABIS (Santarem), a colony, and seat of a conventus juridicus, higher up the river, on its right bank.

But the true Roman capital was EMERITA AUGUSTA (Merida) in the SE. of the province, on the right bank of the Anas, a colony founded by Augustus. The chief roads leading through the province from Emerita, with the places on them, were as follows: 1. From EMERITA, E. and then NE. to CAESAR-AUGUSTA ï¿½per Lusitaniam,ï¿½ as the Itinerary expressly says, although it lies entirely S. of the Anas (Itin. Ant. pp. 444, 445); thus suggesting a doubt whether the boundary of Lusitania was not carried as far S. as the M. MARIANUS (Sierra Morena): the places on the road, which are commonly assigned to Baetica, are: CONTOSOLIA, 12 M. P. (Alange?) MIROBRIGA 36 M. P. (Capilla); Sisalone, or SISAPO, 13 M. P. (Almaden); CARCUVIUM, 20 M. P.

(Caracuel?); AD TURRES, 26 M. P. (Calatrava?), where, if not sooner, the roads enter the ORETANI 2. From EMERITA, due N. to SALMANTICE (Salamanca) and ASTURICA, through the territory of the VETTONES (Itin. Ant. p. 433: for the places see VETTONES). 2. From EMERITA, NW. to the TAGUS and down the right side of the river to OLISIPO (Itin. Ant. pp. 419, 4202): PLAGIARIA 30 M. P. (Raposï¿½ra, Cortï¿½s; El-Commandante, Lapie); AD VII ARAS, 20 M. P. (Codesera, Cortï¿½s, Arronches, Mentelle and Lapie); MONTOBRIGA, 14 M. P. (vulg. Mundobriga, Marvao, Resend. Antiq. Lus. p. 58, Florez, Esp. S. vol. xiii. p.

66, Cortï¿½s, Ukert; Partalegre, Lapie; it seems to be the Medobriga of the Bell. Alex. 48, and the town of the Medubricenses Plumbarii of Plin. Nat. 4.21. s. 35); FRAXINUS 30 M. P., on or near the left bank of the Tagus (Amieira, Cortï¿½s; Villa Velha, Lapie); TUBUCCI 32 M. P. (Abrantes or Punhete?); SCALABIS 32 M. P., a colony and conventus, with the surname PRAESIDIUM JULIUM [2.220] (Plin. l.c. Santarem, Florez, Esp. S. vol. xiii p. 69, xiv. p. 171); JERABRIGA, 32 M. P. (Arabriga, Plin. l.c.; ???ï¿½???a, Ptol. 2.5.7; Alanquer, Florez, Esp. S. vol. xiv. p.

174); OLISIPO 30 M.P. 4. From EMERITA, W. to OLISIPO curving round to the N.: PLAGIARIA 30 M. P. (vide sup.); BUDUA, 8 M. P. (S. Maria de Bedoya Cortï¿½s, Campo Mayor, Lapie; the river Bodoa preserves the name); AD VII. ARAS, 12 M. P. (vid. sup.) MATUSARO, 8 M. P., ABELTERIUM, 24 M. P. (it seems that these names are inverted, and that the latter is Alter da Chao, and the former Puente do Sora); ARITIUM PRAETORIUM 28 M. P. (Salvatierra, or Benavente, both close together on the left bank of the Tagus); OLISIPO 38 M. P. 5. From EMERITA to OLISIPO W. with a curve to the S. (Itin. Ant. pp. 416--418): EVANDRIANA, 8 M. P.

(??a?d??a, Ptol. 2.5.8); DIPO, 17 M. P.; AD ADRUM FLUMEN, 12 M. P.; EBORA 9 M. P. (Evora). Here is a difficulty: the last is a well-known place, but the distance is evidently much too small; and the various attempts made to identify the intermediate positions rest on no sufficient data. The alteration of Ad Adrum to Ad Anam has no sign in the MSS. to bear it out. It seems,--on the whole, most likely that the route intended is that of the great road through Talavera la Real, Badajoz, and Elvas. From Ebora, it proceeds thus :--SALACIA 44 M. P., surnamed URBS IMPERATORIA, a municipium, with the Old Latin Franchise (Alcaï¿½er do Sal.; Plin. Nat. 4.35, 8.73; Mela, 3.1; Marc. Herac. p. 42; Inscr. ap. Gruter, pp. 13, 16; Florez, Esp.

S., vol. xiii. p. 115, xiv. p. 241); MALECECA 26 M. P. (Marateca?); CAECILIANA, 26 M. P. (Agnalva, or Pinheiro, or Seixola? ); CATOBRIGA, 8 M. P. (Cetobriga, Geog. Rav. 4.43; ?a?t?ï¿½???, Ptol. 2.5.3; ?ast?ï¿½??? Marc. Herac. p. 42; Ru. on the headland at the mouth of the estuary of the Callipus, Sado, near Setubal; Resend. Antiq. Lus. iv. p. 210; Mentelle, p. 87); EQUABONA 12 M. P. (Coyna); OLISIPO 12 M. P. The country S. of this road was traversed by others, connecting EBORA with PAX JULIA and both with the Anas and the S coast; namely :--6. (Itin. Ant. pp.

426, 427.) From ESURIS (opp. Ayamonte) at the mouth of the Anas, in Baetica, W. along the coast to BALSA 24 M. P. (Tavira) ; OSSONOBA 16 M. P. (Estoy, N. of Faro, by C. de S. Maria); thence the road struck inland across the mountains of the Cuneus (Algarbe), and down the valley of the Callipus (Salo), to ARANNI, or ARANDIS 60 M. P. (Ourique), SALACIA 35 M. P. (vid. sup.), and EBORA 44 M. P. (vid. sup.). The course pursued from EBORA by SERPA 14 M. P., FINES 20 M. P., and ARUCCI, 25 M. P., to PAX JULIA 30 M. P. (Beja), is so intricate as to prove an error in the Itinerary, which commentators have sought in vain to amend. 7.

The direct road from ESURIS to PAX JULIA is given thus (Itin. Ant. p. 431):--MYRTILIS 40 M. P. (Mertola); PAX JULIA 36 M. P. 8. A direct road from SALACIA to OSSONOBA is also mentioned, but the distance, 16 M. P., is absurdly wrong (Itin. Ant. p. 418). 9. From OLISIPO a great road ran parallel to the coast, up to the mouth of the Durius and BRACARA AUGUSTA thus (Itin. Ant. pp. 420--422): JERABRIGA, 30 M. P. (vid. sup.); Scalabis, 32 M. P. (vid. sup.); SELIIUM, 32 M. P. (Pombal?); CONEMBRICA 34 M. P. (Coimbra, or further S.); EMINIUM, 10 M. P. (Agueda, Mintro, or Carvalhos?

site very uncertain), TALABRIGA 40 M. P. (Aveiro); LANGOBRIGA 18 M. P. (near Feira); CALEM, 13 M. P. (Oporto); BRACARA, 35 M. P. (Braga); the last two, though originally Lusitanian, belong, according to the common division, to the Callaï¿½ci Bracarii. Other places, not important enough to require further notice, will be found in the lists of Ptolemy (2.5). and Ukert (vol. ii. pt. 1. pp. 387--399). [P.S] 1 The discrepancies among the ancient writers respecting the names of the rivers between the Tagus and the Minius have been noticed under GALLAECIA : the following conspectus, by Groskurd, of their various statements, may be useful:-- 2 The numbers on all the roads from Emerita to Olisipo are very corrupt: they do not agree with the totals given at the head of each route; and many of them are evidently too short.

- Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) William Smith, LLD, Ed.

LUSITANIA ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ LUSITANIA In Portugal there are some regions and nations under portuguese rule and without official portuguese recognition by the portuguese state and governments controlled by the portuguese oligarchy and social

 elities as Lusitania , Alentejo, etc.

Those regions do not have any kind of regional autonomy but they exist. Portugal is today the last medieval and feudalist country in Europe and the unique country in Europe without official regions and provinces in its european territory. What a shame! For the mestizo portuguese social elites and oligarchy only the overseas territories or isles (Azores and Madeira ) with a total of 4% of the portuguese territory are citizens of first class with a limited autonomy. The other natives peoples of Portugal are a kind of second classe citizens without the same civic rights as the other european countries do. Also, Portugal is the only european country where the law made by the repressive parties of the colonian system (PS and PSD) do not allow the formation of regional and local political parties. In Portugal there are several ethnic-cultural nations and native peoples. One of them is the Lusitanian native people. Please, be aware that Lusitanian native people are not Portuguese, and that Portuguese neo-latin and mestizo people are not Lusitanian. They are not the same ethnic people, although, both have the same Portuguese citizenship.

Today the Lusitanian native people live dispersed throughout Portugal , but most of them still live in the cradle of Lusitania , with its 3 historic provinces of Beira Today, everyone in Lusitania (Lusitï¿½nia in Portuguese language, and Leukitanea in Lusitanic language) speaks a Portuguese dialect (the Beirï¿½o), but some dozen of them speak the revived old proto-celtic Lusitanian language (Lusitano in Portuguese, and Leukantu in Lusitanic language), this language (Leukanturi) with a new writting system was reconstructed in the same way as Cornish in Cornwall . The native name for Lusitanian people in Lusitanic language is Leukuire, plural is Leukuirecori (in Portuguese Lusitanian is Lusitano). The Lusitanian people are a minority search of autonomy and of more recognition. Portugal is highly centralized and has a polarized two-party system. The highly centralized government in Lisbon does not recognize the Lusitanian people and the other ethnic-cultural native peoples of Portugal , as the Galegos (or Calaic).

Portugal today is the only European country without official regions or provinces. Portuguese law does not allow the legalization of regional and local political parties. There are some, but all of them are not permitted by law. There are some associations and political groups/parties emerging from the slowly growing modern Lusitanian nationalist movement, claiming that the Portuguese central and bureaucratic government neglects and oppresses the region. Because that, they want to establish an autonomous region of Lusitania , while other groups are looking for total independence. Lusitania , the Lusitanian Nation Lusitania literally meaning is "the Land of the Lusitanian", formely Lusitania after the roman conquest, is an extensive plateau and mountainous area in the centre of Portugal, and is today one nation de fact not independent and without state, or in a neutral point of view, Lusitania could be considered as an unofficial and unrecognised region under portuguese rule and domination. Lusitania is a region and a historic nation in centre Portugal , and is one of the old nations of Europe .

Its component provinces are Beira-Alta, Beira-Baixa and Beira-Litoral, and its six districts are Aveiro, Castelo Branco, Coimbra , Guarda, Leiria and Viseu. It borders Spain to the east, the Douro river (and portuguese historic region of Calecia) the to the north, the Tagus river (and the portuguese provinces of Ribatejo and Estremadura ) to the south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. In the past, during centuries the free territories of the Lusitanian Nation were much more extensives than are today. Like other similar european peoples and nations without state, the Kurdistan for instance, which is a nation officialy not recognised by the turkish government in Turkey, even today the curdish people are called by turks as "the turkish of mountains" and curdish language are not official in the region, the Lusitanian Nation is also victim of the same shamefull official politics without official recognition by the portuguese central government in Portugal, the country that occupies Lusitania today.

Lusitania was annexed by Portugal through the first portuguese king in the XII century after 400 years of roman rule, 300 years of visigothic repression and 300 years of muslim domination. Before that Lusitania was an independent nation until the 1st century B.C., but only after 200 years of wars against the roman Empire, the official roman province was created in ther year 16 B.C. In the last 800 years Lusitania are under portuguese rule without any statute of political autonomy and official recognition. The Lusitanians are indigenous to Lusitania and over the years (and/or centuries) Lusitania has experienced a normal immigration and emigration of individuals. Historically, Lusitanians are the native people of Lusitania . They are living in their homeland for thousands and thousands of years. However, after the XII century A.D., the portuguese mixed with the native Lusitanian in the most important towns of Lusitania , today only the countryside and the mountains have a racialy pure lusitanian inhabitants.

In the XX century millions and millions of lusitanians emigrated from their homelands to other portuguese regions and foreign countries. Lusitania is today de fact a not independent nation and a region without official administrative recognition from the portuguese central government. Today the portuguese deny the existance of the lusitanian people and are usurping the lusitanian national identity. The goal of the Confederation of the Lusitanian Union and the ACEL-Trebopala, and most of the members of the Lusitanian native community is regional self-determination on all aspects of everyday life, under the constitutions of both Portugal The Lusitanian written history stems back to the early part of the two last millenniums. Portugal of Colmeal , dozens of lusitanian people were killed my the fascist portuguese government and its para-military police (GNR). Although this incident belongs to history it is still something both the Lusitanian people and the State leadership must learn to come to terms with. The psychological situation is very troublesome with an extremely high level of self-censorship in the region.

Lusitania is considered, treated and described as something that has always belonged to Portugal Lusitania 's culture, language and history. This attitude is intimidating and discriminatory. There are frequent examples of individuals who do not accept the official view on state myth on history, language, culture etc. and they are treated in a discriminatory way. A number of pro-Lusitanian authors, historians, cultural personalities and the like, have become persona non- grata because of their views and opinions. The freedom of openly declaring loyalty to Lusitania exists formally but it creates problems at work, in schools, in career and business as well as in personal relationships with others. Since the 2000s, many attempts were made to bring the Lusitanian issue to the attention of radio and television but without success. There are examples of historians who have been almost totally boycotted from mass media because of their pro-Portuguese views. When the native Lusitanian language was reconstructed and some Lusitanian associations and groups became member of international organizations, it was ignored by the national portuguese media and the local mass media in the region.

Paradoxically, some of the media in other european countries published extensively on the events which illustrates the high degree of self-censorship in Portugal and in the region itself. The Lusitanians have been subjected to a policy of cultural hegemony: by law, force and persuasion regional identities and cultures were discouraged in favour of the Portuguese identity, language and culture. Lusitanian people are not ethnic portuguese, lusitanians are only a native ethnic lusitanian people with portuguese citizenship. Only the portuguese neolatin and not lusitanian people are ethnic portuguese. The Portuguese Government does not promote the creation of effective and logical regional political decision-making institutions in accordance with the EU recommendations. The Government opposes the development of any political development based on a distinct regional identity different of the neolatin portuguese.

According to Official and pro-government sources, Lusitania covers an area of about 27,500 kmï¿½, and its chief towns are Verurio (Viseu), Alavario (Aveiro), Leukastru (Castelo Branco), Lankiobriga (Guarda), Collipo (Leiria), Aeminio (Coimbra) and Tritio (Covilhï¿½). Its historic capital was Oxthrakai (Vila Velha do Rï¿½dï¿½o), today a small town not recognised by the portuguese State. According to other sources, the Lusitanian Lands can covers an total area between 40,000 kmï¿½ and 60,000 kmï¿½ in Portugal, and more about 30,000 kmï¿½ in Spain (for the historic territories of the past). Today Lusitanian region has about 2,500,000 inhabitants. Others estimate as many as 5 million Lusitanians live in Portugal .

Unfortunately, today and after 800 years of portugueses occupation, repression and propaganda, most of lusitanian native people are not aware of their authentic lusitanian national identity, and are collaborating with the official politics of the portuguese neolatin minority, who usurped our lusitanian nationality, culture and richeness The name of the nation, Lusitania , in lusitanian or lusitanic language (leukantu) is Leukitanea, and means "land of the light". The lusitanian word for Lusitanian Lands, the plural of Lusitanian ancient territories, is Luirokitanea, its meaning is "land of the free man". As Lusitania is not officially recognised by the portuguese state and governments as an official autonomous region, some nationalist members of the native lusitanian community prefer the expression Lusitanian Nation, or, in lusitanian language Treba Leukuir.

Is very important for us native Lusitanian people, that the public opinion in the world to know the truth about the ethnic native regional peoples of Portugal , and in special the fight of Lusitanian people for freedom and regional autonomy. Thank you very much for your attention and help. Roman province Lusitania - definition of Roman province Lusitania by The Free Dictionary Roman province Lusitania - definition of Roman province Lusitania by The Free Dictionary Related to Roman province Lusitania: Lusitanian , Lusitânia , Hispania Lusitania Lu·si·ta·ni·a (lo͞o′sĭ-tā′nē-ə) An ancient region and Roman province of the Iberian Peninsula. It corresponded roughly to modern-day Portugal. Lu′si·ta′ni·an adj. & n.

Lusitania (ˌluːsɪˈteɪnɪə) n (Placename) an ancient region of the W Iberian Peninsula: a Roman province from 27 bc to the late 4th century ad; corresponds to most of present-day Portugal and the Spanish provinces of Salamanca and Cáceres Lu•si•ta•ni•a (ˌlu sɪˈteɪ ni ə) an ancient region and Roman province in the Iberian Peninsula, corresponding generally to modern Portugal. Lu`si•ta′ni•an, adj., n. ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend: Lusitania, Roman province Encyclopedia > History > Ancient Greece and Rome > Ancient History, Rome Lusitania Lusitania (lōsĭtānˈēə) [ key ], Roman province in the Iberian Peninsula. As constituted (c.A.D. 5) by Augustus it included all of modern central Portugal as well as much of W Spain.

The province took its name from the Lusitani, a group of warlike tribes who, despite defeats, resisted Roman domination until their great leader, Viriatus, was killed (139 B.C.) by treachery. In the 1st cent. B.C. they joined in supporting Sertorius, who set up an independent state in Spain. The old identification of Portugal with Lusitania and of the ancestors of the Portuguese with the Lusitanians (hence Camões's great epic was entitled Os Lusíadas ) is now largely ignored, but the creation of Lusitania may have had a faint echoing effect in the setting up of the separate kingdom of Portugal many centuries later. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. Lusitania L Lusitania This article concerns the Roman province. For the ship, see RMS Lusitania. For other uses, see Lusitania (disambiguation).

Lusitania was an ancient Roman province including approximately all of modern Portugal south of the Douro river and part of modern Spain (the present autonomous community of Extremadura and a small part of the province of Salamanca). It was named after the Lusitani or Lusitanian people (an Indo-European people). Its capital was Emerita Augusta (currently Mérida), and it was initially part of the Roman Republic province of Hispania Ulterior, before becoming a province of its own in the Roman Empire . Pre-Roman Lusitania Strabo in his Geography mentions that the ancient people, also called Lusitani to the lands north of river Douro, the land that in his own time was known as Gallaecia. Origin of the name The etymology of Lusitania, like the origin of the Lusitani who gave the province their name, is unclear. The name may be of Celtic origin: Lus and Tanus, "tribe of Lusus".

The name may derive from Lucis, an ancient people mentioned in Ora Maritima and Tan, from Celtic Tan (Stan), or Tain, meaning a region or implying a country of waters, a root word that formerly meant a prince or sovereign governor of a region. The name has been connected with the personal Celtic name Luso and with the god Lugh . Ancient Romans, such as Pliny the Elder (Natural History, [ 3.5]) and Varro (cited by Pliny), speculated that the name Lusitania was of Roman origin, as when Pliny says lusum enim liberi patris aut lyssam cum eo bacchantium nomen dedisse lusitaniae et pana praefectum eius universae: that Lusitania takes its name from the lusus associated with Bacchus and the lyssa of his Bacchantes , and that Pan is its governor.

Lusus is usually translated as "game" or "play", while lyssa is a borrowing from the Greek λυσσα, "frenzy" or "rage", and sometimes rage personified; for later poets, Lusus and Lyssa become flesh-and-blood companions of Bacchus. Luís de Camões' Os Lusíadas, which portrays Lusus as the founder of Lusitania, extends these ideas, which have no connection with modern etymology. Lusitanians The Lusitani, who were Indo-Europeans and may have come from the Alps , established themselves in the region in the 6th century BC, but historians and archeologists are still undecided about their origins. Some modern authors consider them to be an indigenous people who were Celticized culturally and possibly genetically through intermarriage. The archeologist Scarlat Lambrino defended the position that the Lusitanians were a tribal group of Celtic origin related to the Lusones (a tribe that inhabited the east of Iberia ). Possibly, both tribes came from the Swiss mountains.

But some prefer to see the Lusitanians as a native Iberian tribe, resulting from intermarriage between different tribes. The first area colonized by the Lusitani was probably the Douro valley and the region of Beira Alta (present day Portugal); in Beira, they stayed until they defeated the Celtici and other tribes, then they expanded to cover a territory that reached Estremadura before the arrival of the Romans. War against Rome “ And yet the country north of the Tagus, Lusitania, is the greatest of the Iberian nations, and is the nation against which the Romans waged war for the longest times - Strabo ” The Lusitani are mentioned for the first time in Livy (218 BC) and are described as fighting for the Carthaginians ; they are reported as fighting against Rome in 194 BC, sometimes allied with other Celtiberian tribes.

In 179 BC, the praetor Lucius Postumius Albinus celebrated a triumph over the Lusitani, but in 155 BC, on the command of Punicus (perhaps a Carthaginian general) first and Cesarus after, the Lusitani reached Gibraltar . Here they were defeated by the praetor Lucius Mummius. Servius Sulpicius Galba organised a false armistice, but while the Lusitani celebrated this new alliance, he massacred them, selling the survivors as slaves; this caused a new rebellion led by Viriathus, who was soon killed by traitors paid by the Romans in 139 BC, after having led a successful guerrilla campaign against Rome and their local allies. Romans scored other victories with proconsul Decimus Junius Brutus Callaicus and Gaius Marius (113 BC), but still the Lusitani resisted with a long guerilla war; they later joined Sertorius' (a renegade Roman General) troops and were finally defeated by Augustus .

From the date of 152 BC onwards, the Roman Republic has difficulties in recruiting soldiers for the wars in Hispania, deemed particularly brutal. Read more at Timeline of Portuguese history (Pre-Roman). Roman province With Lusitania (and Asturia and Gallaecia), Rome had completed the conquest of the Iberian peninsula, which was then divided by Augustus (25–20 BC) into the eastern and northern Hispania Tarraconensis, the southwestern Hispania Baetica and the western Provincia Lusitana. Originally, Lusitania included the territories of Asturia and Gallaecia, but these were later ceded to the jurisdiction of the new Provincia Tarraconensis and the former remained as Provincia Lusitania et Vettones. Its northern border was along the Douro river, while on its eastern side its border passed through Salmantica and Caesarobriga to the Anas (Guadiana) river. The capital of Lusitania was Augusta Emerita (currently Mérida) in Spain.

Modern Coimbra was the Roman city of Aeminium, and near modern Condeixa-a-Nova was the Roman city of Conímbriga. Conímbriga was not the largest city of Lusitania, but it is the best preserved. Built on a long-inhabited site, it was sacked by the Suevi in 468 and its inhabitants fled to Aeminium, which inherited its name and is nowadays known as Coimbra. Conímbriga's city walls are largely intact, and the mosaic floors (illustration, left) and foundations of many houses and public buildings remain. In the baths, visitors can view the network of stone heating ducts (the hypocaust) beneath the now-missing floors. Archaeologists estimate that, though excavations began in 1898, only 10% of the city has been excavated. Under Diocletian , Lusitania kept its borders and was ruled by a praeses, later by a consularis; finally, in 298 AD, it was united with the other provinces to form the Diocesis Hispaniarum (" Diocese of the Hispanias").

Portuguese use of the name As with the Roman names of many European countries, Lusitania was and is often used as an alternative name for Portugal, especially in formal and literary or poetic contexts. The 16th century colony, which would develop into Brazil , was named Nova Lusitânia ("New Lusitania"). In common use are such terms as Lusophone, meaning Portuguese-speaking, and Lusitanic, refering to the Community of Portuguese Language Countries — once Portugal's colonies and presently independent countries still sharing some common heritage. (Wikipedia) Lusitania - The Full Wiki The Full Wiki Note: Many of our articles have direct quotes from sources you can cite, within the Wikipedia article! This article doesn't yet, but we're working on it! See more info or our list of citable articles . Related top topics Encyclopedia From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia This article concerns the Roman province. For the ship, see RMS Lusitania . For other uses, see Lusitania (disambiguation) .

The Iberian peninsula in the time of Hadrian (ruled 117–138 AD), showing, in western Iberia , the imperial province of Lusitania (Extremadura and Portugal) Province of Lusitania highlighted Lusitania was an ancient Roman province including approximately all of modern Portugal south of the Douro river and part of modern Spain (the present autonomous community of Extremadura and a small part of the province of Salamanca ). It was named after the Lusitani or Lusitanian people (an Indo-European people ). Its capital was Emerita Augusta (currently Mérida, Spain ), and it was initially part of the Roman Republic province of Hispania Ulterior , before becoming a province of its own in the Roman Empire . Contents 9 External links Pre-Roman Lusitania Strabo in his Geography mentions that the ancient people, also called Lusitani to the lands north of river Douro , the land that in his own time was known as Gallaecia . [1] Origin of the name The etymology of Lusitania, like the origin of the Lusitani who gave the province their name, is unclear.

The name may be of Celtic origin: Lus and Tanus, "tribe of Lusus". The name may derive from Lucis, an ancient people mentioned in Ora Maritima and Tan, from Celtic Tan (Stan), or Tain, meaning a region or implying a country of waters, a root word that formerly meant a prince or sovereign governor of a region. [2] [3] [4] The name has been connected with the personal Celtic name Luso and with the god Lugh . [5] Ancient Romans, such as Pliny the Elder ( Natural History , 3.5 ) and Varro (cited by Pliny), speculated that the name Lusitania was of Roman origin, as when Pliny says lusum enim liberi patris aut lyssam cum eo bacchantium nomen dedisse lusitaniae et pana praefectum eius universae: that Lusitania takes its name from the lusus associated with Bacchus and the lyssa of his Bacchantes , and that Pan is its governor.

Lusus is usually translated as "game" or "play", while lyssa is a borrowing from the Greek λυσσα, "frenzy" or "rage", and sometimes rage personified; for later poets, Lusus and Lyssa become flesh-and-blood companions of Bacchus. Luís de Camões ' Os Lusíadas , which portrays Lusus as the founder of Lusitania, extends these ideas, which have no connection with modern etymology. Lusitanians Main article: Lusitanians The Lusitani, who were Indo-Europeans and may have come from the Alps , established themselves in the region in the 6th century BC , but historians and archeologists are still undecided about their origins. Some modern authors consider them to be an indigenous people who were Celticized culturally and possibly genetically through intermarriage. The archeologist Scarlat Lambrino defended the position that the Lusitanians were a tribal group of Celtic origin related to the Lusones (a tribe that inhabited the east of Iberia ). Possibly, both tribes came from the Swiss mountains.

But some prefer to see the Lusitanians as a native Iberian tribe, resulting from intermarriage between different tribes. The first area colonized by the Lusitani was probably the Douro valley and the region of Beira Alta (present day Portugal); in Beira , they stayed until they defeated the Celtici and other tribes, then they expanded to cover a territory that reached Estremadura before the arrival of the Romans . War against Rome Main article: Lusitanian War “ And yet the country north of the Tagus, Lusitania, is the greatest of the Iberian nations, and is the nation against which the Romans waged war for the longest times - Strabo [6] ” The Lusitani are mentioned for the first time in Livy ( 218 BC ) and are described as fighting for the Carthaginians ; they are reported as fighting against Rome in 194 BC , sometimes allied with other Celtiberian tribes.

In 179 BC , the praetor Lucius Postumius Albinus celebrated a triumph over the Lusitani, but in 155 BC , on the command of Punicus (perhaps a Carthaginian general) first and Cesarus after, the Lusitani reached Gibraltar . Here they were defeated by the praetor Lucius Mummius . Servius Sulpicius Galba organised a false armistice, but while the Lusitani celebrated this new alliance, he massacred them, selling the survivors as slaves; this caused a new rebellion led by Viriathus , who was soon killed by traitors paid by the Romans in 139 BC , after having led a successful guerrilla campaign against Rome and their local allies. Romans scored other victories with proconsul Decimus Junius Brutus Callaicus and Gaius Marius ( 113 BC ), but still the Lusitani resisted with a long guerilla war; they later joined Sertorius ' (a renegade Roman General) troops and were finally defeated by Augustus .

From 152 BC onwards, the Roman Republic had difficulties in recruiting soldiers for the wars in Hispania, deemed particularly brutal. The Trajan Alcántara Bridge . Elaborate geometrically patterned mosaic floors survive at Conímbriga With Lusitania (and Asturia and Gallaecia ), Rome had completed the conquest of the Iberian peninsula , which was then divided by Augustus (25–20 BC) into the eastern and northern Hispania Tarraconensis , the southwestern Hispania Baetica and the western Provincia Lusitana. Originally, Lusitania included the territories of Asturia and Gallaecia, but these were later ceded to the jurisdiction of the new Provincia Tarraconensis and the former remained as Provincia Lusitania et Vettones . Its northern border was along the Douro river, while on its eastern side its border passed through Salmantica and Caesarobriga to the Anas ( Guadiana ) river. The capital of Lusitania was Augusta Emerita (currently Mérida ) in Spain.

Modern Coimbra was the Roman city of Aeminium , and near modern Condeixa-a-Nova was the Roman city of Conímbriga . Conímbriga was not the largest city of Lusitania, but it is the best preserved. Built on a long-inhabited site, it was sacked by the Suevi in 468 and its inhabitants fled to Aeminium, which inherited its name and is nowadays known as Coimbra. Conímbriga's city walls are largely intact, and the mosaic floors (illustration, left) and foundations of many houses and public buildings remain. In the baths, visitors can view the network of stone heating ducts (the hypocaust) beneath the now-missing floors. Archaeologists estimate that, though excavations began in 1898, only 10% of the city has been excavated. Under Diocletian , Lusitania kept its borders and was ruled by a praeses, later by a consularis; finally, in 298 AD, it was united with the other provinces to form the Diocesis Hispaniarum (" Diocese of the Hispanias").

Portuguese use of the name As with the Roman names of many European countries, Lusitania was and is often used as an alternative name for Portugal , especially in formal and literary or poetic contexts. The 16th century colony, which would develop into Brazil , was named Nova Lusitânia ("New Lusitania"). In common use are such terms as Lusophone , meaning Portuguese-speaking, and Lusitanic , refering to the Community of Portuguese Language Countries — once Portugal's colonies and presently independent countries still sharing some common heritage. References Lusitania : Map (The Full Wiki) The Full Wiki Map showing all locations mentioned on Wikipedia article: This article concerns the Roman province. For the ship, see RMS Lusitania . For other uses, see Lusitania . Province of Lusitania highlighted Lusitania was an ancient Roman province including approximately all of modern Portugal south of the Douro river and part of modern Spain (the present autonomous community of Extremadura and a small part of the province of Salamanca ). It was named after the Lusitani or Lusitanian people (an Indo-European people ).

Its capital was Emerita Augusta (currently Mérida ), and it was initially part of the Roman Republic province of Hispania Ulterior , before becoming a province of its own in the Roman Empire . Pre-Roman Lusitania Strabo in his Geography mentions that the ancient people, also called Lusitani to the lands north of river Douro , the land that in his own time was known as Gallaecia . Origin of the name The etymology of Lusitania, like the origin of the Lusitani who gave the province their name, is unclear. The name may be of Celtic origin: Lus and Tanus, "tribe of Lusus". The name may derive from Lucis, an ancient people mentioned in Ora Maritima and Tan, from Celtic Tan (Stan), or Tain, meaning a region or implying a country of waters, a root word that formerly meant a prince or sovereign governor of a region. The name has been connected with the personal Celtic name Luso and with the god Lugh .

Ancient Romans, such as Pliny the Elder ( Natural History , 3.5 ) and Varro (cited by Pliny), speculated that the name Lusitania was of Roman origin, as when Pliny says lusum enim liberi patris aut lyssam cum eo bacchantium nomen dedisse lusitaniae et pana praefectum eius universae: that Lusitania takes its name from the lusus associated with Bacchus and the lyssa of his Bacchantes , and that Pan is its governor. Lusus is usually translated as "game" or "play", while lyssa is a borrowing from the Greek λυσσα, "frenzy" or "rage", and sometimes rage personified; for later poets, Lusus and Lyssa become flesh-and-blood companions of Bacchus. Luís de Camões ' Os Lusíadas , which portrays Lusus as the founder of Lusitania, extends these ideas, which have no connection with modern etymology. Lusitanians Iberian Peninsula at about 200 BC [1] .

The Lusitani, who were Indo-Europeans and may have come from the Alps , established themselves in the region in the 6th century BC , but historians and archeologists are still undecided about their origins. Some modern authors consider them to be an indigenous people who were Celticized culturally and possibly genetically through intermarriage. The archeologist Scarlat Lambrino defended the position that the Lusitanians were a tribal group of Celtic origin related to the Lusones (a tribe that inhabited the east of Iberia ). Possibly, both tribes came from the Swiss mountains. But some prefer to see the Lusitanians as a native Iberian tribe, resulting from intermarriage between different tribes. The first area colonized by the Lusitani was probably the Douro valley and the region of Beira Alta (present day Portugal); in Beira , they stayed until they defeated the Celtici and other tribes, then they expanded to cover a territory that reached Estremadura before the arrival of the Roman .

War against Rome The Lusitani are mentioned for the first time in Livy ( 218 BC ) and are described as fighting for the Carthaginian ; they are reported as fighting against Rome in 194 BC , sometimes allied with other Celtiberian tribes. In 179 BC , the praetor Lucius Postumius Albinus celebrated a triumph over the Lusitani, but in 155 BC , on the command of Punicus (perhaps a Carthaginian general) first and Cesarus after, the Lusitani reached Gibraltar . Here they were defeated by the praetor Lucius Mummius . Servius Sulpicius Galba organised a false armistice, but while the Lusitani celebrated this new alliance, he massacred them, selling the survivors as slaves; this caused a new rebellion led by Viriathus , who was soon killed by traitors paid by the Romans in 139 BC , after having led a successful guerrilla campaign against Rome and their local allies.

Romans scored other victories with proconsul Decimus Junius Brutus Callaicus and Gaius Marius ( 113 BC ), but still the Lusitani resisted with a long guerilla war; they later joined Sertorius ' (a renegade Roman General) troops and were finally defeated by Augustus . From 152 BC onwards, the Roman Republic had difficulties in recruiting soldiers for the wars in Hispania, deemed particularly brutal. Elaborate geometrically patterned mosaic floors survive at Conímbriga With Lusitania (and Asturia and Gallaecia ), Rome had completed the conquest of the Iberian peninsula , which was then divided by Augustus (25–20 BC) into the eastern and northern Hispania Tarraconensis , the southwestern Hispania Baetica and the western Provincia Lusitana. Originally, Lusitania included the territories of Asturia and Gallaecia, but these were later ceded to the jurisdiction of the new Provincia Tarraconensis and the former remained as Provincia Lusitania et Vettones .

Its northern border was along the Douro river, while on its eastern side its border passed through Salmantica and Caesarobriga to the Anas ( Guadiana ) river. The capital of Lusitania was Augusta Emerita (currently Mérida ) in Spain. Modern Coimbra was the Roman city of Aeminium , and near modern Condeixa-a-Nova was the Roman city of Conímbriga . Conímbriga was not the largest city of Lusitania, but it is the best preserved. Built on a long-inhabited site, it was sacked by the Suevi in 468 and its inhabitants fled to Aeminium, which inherited its name and is nowadays known as Coimbra. Conímbriga's city walls are largely intact, and the mosaic floors (illustration, left) and foundations of many houses and public buildings remain. In the baths, visitors can view the network of stone heating ducts (the hypocaust) beneath the now-missing floors. Archaeologists estimate that, though excavations began in 1898, only 10% of the city has been excavated.

Under Diocletian , Lusitania kept its borders and was ruled by a praeses, later by a consularis; finally, in 298 AD, it was united with the other provinces to form the Diocesis Hispaniarum (" Diocese of the Hispanias"). Portuguese use of the name As with the Roman names of many European countries, Lusitania was and is often used as an alternative name for Portugal , especially in formal and literary or poetic contexts. The 16th century colony, which would develop into Brazil , was named Nova Lusitânia ("New Lusitania"). In common use are such terms as Lusophone , meaning Portuguese-speaking, and Lusitanic , refering to the Community of Portuguese Language Countries — once Portugal's colonies and presently independent countries still sharing some common heritage. References

Question: Which European country was the Roman province of Lusitania?
Answer: Portugal