Editing Ligurian language (ancient)

{{Short description|Extinct unclassified language of northwest Italy and southeast France}}
{{about|the prehistoric language of the Ligures|the modern Romance language|Ligurian language}}
{{Use dmy dates|cs1-dates=ll|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox language
| name             = Ligurian
| region           = Northern Mediterranean Coast straddling South-east French and North-west Italian coasts.
| states           = [[Liguria]]
| era              = 300 BCE (?) – 100 CE
| ref              = linglist
| familycolor      = Unclassified
| family           = [[Unclassified language|Unclassified]] (probably [[Indo-European languages|Indo-European]], possibly [[Celtic languages|Celtic]] or para-[[Celtic languages|Celtic]])<ref name="consensus" />
| iso3             = xlg
| linglist         = xlg
| glotto           = anci1248
| glottorefname    = Ancient Ligurian
| map              = Iron Age Italy.svg
}}
The '''Ligurian language''' was an ancient tongue spoken by the [[Ligures]], an indigenous people inhabiting regions of northwestern [[Italy]] and southeastern [[France]] during pre-Roman and Roman times. Because Ligurian is so sparsely attested, its classification and relationship to neighbouring languages has proven difficult, prompting debate among linguists for much of the 20th century.{{sfn|Mees|2003|pp=16–18}}{{sfn|Clackson|2015|pp=3–5}}

The current scholarly consensus is that Ligurian was likely an [[Indo-European language]] or language family, possibly Celtic, or at least influenced by or related to [[Celtic languages]].<ref name="consensus">{{harvnb|de Hoz|2005|p=175}}; {{harvnb|Delamarre|2007|pp=36–37}}; {{harvnb|Untermann|2006|pp=1762–1766}}; {{harvnb|de Bernardo Stempel|Arenas Esteban|2011|pp=129–130}}; {{harvnb|Rubat Borel|2008}}; see {{harvnb|Mees|2024|pp=203–204, 209}} for an overview of scholarly opinions on the classification of Ligurian.</ref>{{refn|group=note|
*{{harvp|Clackson|2015|pp=3–5}}: "Was Ligurian perhaps actually a Celtic language then? Further evidence to support this hypothesis may come from the striking similarity between the names of Genoa (ancient Genua) and Geneva (ancient Genaua). But toponomastic evidence can also support a conclusion that Ligurian was a member of the larger Indo-European language family (of which the Celtic languages form a subgroup), but not actually Celtic."
*{{Cite book |last=Mallory |first=J. P. |title=Encyclopedia of Indo-European Culture |last2=Adams |first2=Douglas Q. |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=1997 |isbn=978-1-884964-98-5 |pages=315 |quote=The northern Italian languages comprise Ligurian in the northwest which has been variously regarded as influenced by Celtic if not actually a Celtic language}}
*{{Cite book |last=Whatmough |first=Joshua |title=The Foundations of Roman Italy |publisher=Routledge |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-317-59324-9 |quote=Ligurian dialect properly so called is extremely slight, but the evidence, so far as it goes, indicates beyond all question, that it was Indo-European}}
*{{Cite book |last=Klein |first=Jared |title=Handbook of Comparative and Historical Indo-European Linguistics: An International Handbook |last2=Joseph |first2=Brian |last3=Fritz |first3=Matthias |publisher=Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG |year=2017 |isbn=978-3-11-052175-7 |quote=Ligurian, spoken in Liguria, may have been an Indo-European language, perhaps belonging to the Celtic branch.}}}} However, this hypothesis is primarily based on [[toponymy]] and [[onomastics]], and on a few [[Gloss (annotation)|glosses]] given by ancient Graeco-Roman writers (since no Ligurian texts have survived), and thus remains partly speculative due to the scarcity of data.{{sfn|Clackson|2015|pp=3–5}} Because of that, some scholars have even cast doubt on the existence of a Ligurian language itself,{{refn|group=note|
*{{Citation |last=Hodson |first=F. R. |title=Ligurians |date=2016 |work=Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Classics |language=en |doi=10.1093/acrefore/9780199381135.013.3715 |isbn=978-0-19-938113-5 |quote=Despite claims that some words or place-names (e.g. those ending in -asco, like Giubasco) are diagnostically Ligurian, the existence of any Ligurian language is still hypothetical. |last2=Drinkwater |first2=John Frederick}}
*{{Cite book |last=Haeussler |first=Ralph |title=Becoming Roman?: Diverging Identities and Experiences in Ancient Northwest Italy |date= |publisher=Left Coast Press |year=2013 |isbn=978-1-61132-188-3 |pages=87 |language=en |quote=the existence of a Ligurian ethnos or culture is […] extremely doubtful}}}} since it can remain problematic to postulate that all the non-Celtic and non-Italic forms found across the regions described as "Ligurian" by ancient sources come from a single language instead of several ancient dialects.{{sfn|Clackson|2015|pp=3–5}}

Influenced by the work of [[Henri d'Arbois de Jubainville]], some 20th-century scholars have attempted to identify Ligurian as a remnant of a [[Pre-Indo-European languages|Pre-Indo-European]] or [[Indo-European languages|Indo-European]] [[Substratum (linguistics)|substratum]]. These theories, particularly those attempting to establish additional connections with data from other European regions, have faced increasing criticism in recent scholarship.{{sfn|Mees|2003|pp=16–18}}{{sfn|Clackson|2015|pp=3–5}}

==Ancient sources==

=== Territory ===
[[File:Hecataeus_world_map-en.svg|thumb|World map of [[Hecataeus of Miletus]] (6th century BC).{{Sfn|Keyser|2011|p=42}}]]
Early Greek geographers, such as [[Hecataeus of Miletus]] (6th century BC) and [[Pseudo-Scylax]] (4th century BC), used the term ''Ligues'' as a broad label for the so-called [[Barbarian|barbarians]] of the distant West. They placed these peoples in a semi-mythical setting at the outer edges of the known world, comparable to other legendary groups like the [[Hyperborea|Hyperboreans]] or [[Aethiopia|Ethiopians]], who were believed to inhabit the world's extreme boundaries.{{Sfn|Arnaud|2001|pp=321–323}}{{Sfn|Keyser|2011|p=42–45}} In these sources, ''Ligustica,'' the land of the ''Ligues'', often aligned with [[Massalia]]'s sphere of influence, stretching from [[Empúries|Emporion]] in Catalonia to Antipolis ([[Antibes]]) in southeastern France.{{Sfn|Arnaud|2001|pp=323–325}} Classical Greek authors of this period do not mention any Ligures in Italy.{{Sfn|Arnaud|2001|pp=327–328}}{{Sfn|Keyser|2011|p=42–45}} Instead, they describe Ligurian territory as ending east around Antipolis or Monoikos ([[Monaco]]), beyond which began the domains of the [[Tyrrhenians]] ([[Etruscans]]) or [[Pelasgians]].{{Sfn|Arnaud|2001|pp=327–328}}

Over time, as geographic knowledge improved and distinct groups like the [[Iberians]] and [[Gauls]] came into clearer focus, references to the Ligures became more concrete. Later Latin authors continued to echo elements of the older, semi-mythical tradition, yet the idea of Ligures as a general label for the distant West gradually gave way to a more localised concept, placing them in a specific region around Massalia ([[Marseille]]).{{Sfn|Arnaud|2001|pp=321–323}}
{{Blockquote|text=... though the early writers of the Greeks call the Sallyes 'Ligues', and the country which the Massiliotes hold, 'Ligustica', later writers name them 'Celtoligues', and attach to their territory all the level country as far as Luerio and the Rhodanus, the country from which the inhabitants, divided into ten parts, used to send forth an army, not only of infantry, but of cavalry as well.|source={{harvnb|Strabo|1923}}, ''Geōgraphiká'', [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/strabo-geography/1917/pb_LCL050.269.xml 4:6:3].}}

[[File:ItaliaAlTempoDiAugusto (expo -25 contrasto 25).jpg|thumb|328x328px|The Roman ''regio Liguria'' at the time of [[Augustus]] (7 AD), at the top left of the map.]]
By the 3rd century BCE, Roman records (the ''Acta triumphalia Populi Romani'' of [[Publius Cornelius Lentulus Caudinus|P. Lentulus Caudinus]]) began mentioning Ligures in Italy, north of the [[Magra]] River. This suggests that the Romans recognised a distinct people called 'Ligures' in the Italian Peninsula, separate from the older Greek tradition of 'Ligues' in southern Gaul. In the subsequent centuries, Roman military campaigns in the region (including one against the [[Ingauni]] in 185–180 BCE) gradually brought to light the existence of Ligures in northwestern Italy, culminating in the formal establishment of the ''[[Regio IX Liguria|Region IX]]'' ''[[Regio IX Liguria|Liguria]]'' under [[Augustus]] (27 BC – 14 AD).{{Sfn|Arnaud|2001|pp=327–328}} At that point, the Ligures occupied the westernmost part of the Italian peninsula and a portion of the nearby French coastline, extending from Album Intimilium (modern [[Ventimiglia]]) to [[Ameglia]].{{Sfn|Giannattasio|2024|pp=414–416}}

=== Ethnicity ===
Early Greek authors such as Hecataeus of Miletus and Pseudo-Scylax probably used 'Ligure' a generic name for such distant and partially known tribes, or merely as a geographic reference that had no relevance to their ethnicity.{{Sfn|Arnaud|2001|pp=321–323}}{{Sfn|Keyser|2011|p=42–45}} To reconcile conflicting accounts, certain sources coined terms like 'Celto-Ligure' to suggest an ethnic intermingling. Latin historian [[Livy]] believed that the Ligures represented an older stratum predating the Gauls in northern Italy, while [[Strabo]] and others observed that many of the peoples previously described as 'Ligures' were actually Celts. In an attempt to resolve these inconsistencies, Strabo proposed that Celtic influence had effectively supplanted the original Ligures.{{Sfn|Arnaud|2001|pp=325–327}}

Writing in the early 1st century AD, Strabo noted that the Ligures living in the Alps were a people distinct from the Celts, even though they shared cultural similarities:{{Blockquote|text=As for the Alps ... many tribes (''éthnê'') occupy these mountains, all Celtic (''keltikà'') except the Ligurians; but while these Ligurians belong to a different people (''heteroethneis''), still they are similar to the Celts in their modes of life (''bíois'')|source={{harvnb|Strabo|1923}}, ''Geōgraphiká'', 2.5.28.}}
Regarding the tribes around Massalia, earlier writers called the [[Salyes]] 'Ligure', while Strabo used the denomination 'Celto-Ligure'. According to scholars, this suggests that their culture gradually came under the influence of a Celtic-speaking elite, as evidenced by the Celtic name of their rulers and towns, and the Celtic influence on their religion.{{sfn|Dyson|1985|pp=136–137}}{{sfn|de Hoz|2005|p=182}} Similarly, the [[Segobriges]] were identified as Ligures by the oldest texts about the [[Founding myth of Marseille|foundation of Massalia]], but their ethnonym and the names of their chiefs are undoubtedly Celtic.{{Sfn|de Hoz|2005|p=174}}

=== Ligurian lexicon ===
Some glosses appear in the text of ancient writers. Greek historian [[Herodotus]], while discussing the name of the people known as the [[Sigynnae]] (Greek: ''Sigúnnai''), a [[nomadic]] tribe from Central Europe, noted that the term ''sigynnae'' was also used by the Ligures living "up beyond Marseille" to refer to traders.{{sfn|Clackson|2015|pp=3–5}} The Ligurian name of the [[Po (river)|River Po]], recorded as ''Bodincus'', is said by Pliny to mean "of unmeasured depth", which can be compared to Sanskrit ''budhná''- ('bottom, ground, base, depth'), Latin ''fundus'' and [[Middle Irish]] ''bond'' ('sole of the shoe').{{Sfn|Mees|2024|p=208}} 

Many of the other proposed Ligurian glosses remain uncertain. The term ''lebērís'' (λεβηρίς), recorded by Strabo as a [[Massalia|Massiliote]] word for 'rabbit', is believed to have been borrowed into Latin as ''lepus''. Pliny the Elder mentions ''langa'' or ''langurus'' as a type of lizard inhabiting the banks of the Po River, which Johannes Hubschmid linked to the Latin ''longus'' ('long'). The term ''asia'', meaning 'rye' and recorded by Pliny, could be amended to ''sasia'' and connected to the Sanskrit ''sasya-'' ('corn, grain, fruit, crop') and Welsh ''haidd'' ('barley'), though these connections remain unsure.{{Sfn|Mees|2024|p=208}}

== Classification ==
Most experts on the ancient languages of the region, including [[Patrizia de Bernardo Stempel]], [[Xavier Delamarre]], [[Jürgen Untermann]], [[Javier de Hoz]], Franceso Rubat Borel, and Bernard Mees, agree that Ligurian was part of the [[Indo-European language|Indo-European]] language family.<ref name="consensus" />

However, there is debate regarding the relationship with [[Celtic languages|Celtic]], as Ligurian exhibits both similarities and differences with neighbouring Celtic languages (i.e. [[Gaulish]] and [[Lepontic language|Lepontic]]).{{Sfn|Mees|2024|p=|pp=203–204, 209}} De Bernardo Stempel has proposed that Ligurian might represent an archaic Celtic dialect that was influenced by a non-Celtic [[Substratum (linguistics)|substratum]] to account for these differences,{{sfn|de Bernardo Stempel|Arenas Esteban|2011}}{{Sfn|Mees|2024|p=|pp=203–204, 209}} and Delamarre believes "that the term 'Ligurian' refers to the population involved in the first Celtic invasions into southern Europe".{{Sfn|Delamarre|2007|pp=36–37}} Conversely, Rubat Borel, de Hoz, Untermann and Mees argue that Ligurian was a separate Indo-European language or language family, either related to or influenced by Celtic.{{Sfn|Mees|2024|p=|pp=203–204, 209}}{{Sfn|de Hoz|2005|p=175}}

There is also debate about the geographical range of linguistic elements that can be attributed to the Ligurian language.{{sfn|Mees|2003|pp=16–18}}{{sfn|Clackson|2015|pp=3–5}} Javier de Hoz has proposed distinguishing between the region inhabited by the 'Ligures' of the Roman ''regio Liguria'' (between [[Ventimiglia]] and [[Ameglia]]), and the area mentioned in early ancient sources as home to the 'Ligues' (from the [[Arno|Arno River]] to west of the [[Rhône]], and possibly even as far as northeastern Spain). He refers to the language of the former as 'restricted Ligurian', noting that this group had a well-defined cultural identity and likely used an Indo-European language about which little is known. In contrast, the latter region, which he described as 'broad Ligurian', was inhabited by culturally related but likely diverse peoples who may have spoken various languages.{{Sfn|de Hoz|2005|p=175}}

=== Relationship with Celtic ===
Linguists [[Patrizia de Bernardo Stempel]] and [[Xavier Delamarre]] have argued that many names of tribes described by ancient scholars as 'Ligurian' can be explained as Celtic. This includes the ''[[Ingauni]]'' (<small>Celt.</small> *''Pingāmnī''), ''[[Salyes]]'' (< *''Sḷwes''), ''[[Ligauni]]'' (<small>Celt.</small> ''līg''- or ''liga''-), ''[[Intimilii]]'' (<small>Celt.</small> ''uindi-''), [[Marici (tribe)|''Maricii'']] (<small>Celt.</small> ''maro-''), and ''[[Oxybii]]'' (<small>Celt.</small> ''oxso''- or ''uxso''-),<ref>{{harvnb|de Bernardo Stempel|2006}}; {{harvnb|de Bernardo Stempel|Arenas Esteban|2011}}</ref> as well as the ''[[Iemerii]]'' (<small>Celt.</small> ''iemur-''), ''[[Orobii]]'' (<small>Celt.</small> ''orbi-''), ''[[Segobrigii]]'' (<small>Celt.</small> ''sego-'') and ''[[Reii]]'' (<small>Celt.</small> ''*riio-'').{{sfn|Delamarre|2003}}

According to de Bernardo Stempel, such linguistically Celtic tribal names suggest that a 'Celto-Ligurian' dialect played an important role among the languages spoken in ancient Ligury.{{Sfn|de Bernardo Stempel|2006|p=46}} Furthermore, she notes that some lexical items appear to be common to Ligurian and Celtic, such as ''cotto''- (''[[Alpes Cottiae]]''), ''gando''- (''Gandovera''), ''ambi-'' (''pago Ambitrebio''), ''ebu''- (''Eburelia''), ''medu''- (''Medutio''), ''seg''- (''Segesta Tigulliorum''), ''catu''- (''Catucianum''), and ''roud''- (''Roudelium'').{{sfn|de Bernardo Stempel|Arenas Esteban|2011|pp=129–130}}

Arguing for a connection between Ligurian and Celtic languages, de Bernardo Stempel has listed the following isoglosses as common traits shared by both language groups:{{sfn|de Bernardo Stempel|Arenas Esteban|2011|pp=129–130}}

* IE *''bʰ'' > ''b'', as shown by ''Comberanea rivus'' and ''Badiennon'', from the Celtic ''badius'' 'shiny; yellow, blond'
* loss of initial ''p''-, as in ''Ingauni'' < *''ping-amn-ī''
* *''l̥'' > ''al'' before resonant, as in ''*Sl̥wes'' > ''Salues''
* lenition of voiced consonants, as in ''Ligauni'' < *''ligamni''
* unstressed *-''i̯o''- > -''je''-, as shown by ''Nitielium'' and ''Berigiema''
* ''o'' > ''u'' before labials, as in ''Leucumellus'' and ''Latumarui''
* assibilation, as shown by ''Mezu'' and ''Meśiolano''
* palatal anticipation, as in ''Airuno'', ''Airasca'', ''Airolo'', and ''Eluveitie''
* epenthesis, as shown by ''Berigiema'' and ''Alebinna''
* suffixes *-''enko''- and *-''asko''-, as in ''Bodincos'' and ''Vinelasca'' (< *''wind-el-askā'')

Amongst Celtic subgroups, common innovations are only shared with [[Lepontic language|Lepontic]], including *''ks'' > ''s'', *''nd'' > ''n(n)'', *''st'' > ''z'', ''VCi̯V'' > ''VjCV'', the analogical acc. pl. *-''aś'' > -''eś'' after the nom. pl. -''es'' (consonantal stems), gen. sg. -''j''-''os'' & -''ei''-''s'' → -''ei'' -''os'' (i-stems), gen. sg. *-''osjo'', 3rd sg. preterite in -''te'', patronymic -''alo''-, patronymic -''ikno''-, gamonymic -''iknā'', and monothematic personal names. Conversely, some innovations are shared between Ligurian and the [[Gaulish language]] of the early sources, such as gen. sg. *-''ī'', 3rd sg. preterite in -''tu'', and patronymic -''ikno''-.{{sfn|de Bernardo Stempel|Arenas Esteban|2011|pp=129–130}}

=== Non-Celtic Indo-European forms ===
On the other hand, some Ligurian ethnonyms show a weaker or less evident connection to Celtic, such as the name ''[[Friniates]]'', which can be hardly regarded as genuinely Celtic.{{Sfn|Mees|2024|p=207}} Although ''[[Deciates]]'' seems to derive from the [[Proto-Indo-European]] (PIE) root *''deḱ-'', it does not appear to be Celtic. Consequently, [[Javier de Hoz]] suggests classifying the name as 'restricted Ligurian', given the tribe's geographical location.{{sfn|de Hoz|2005|pp=178, 181}} The ethnic name ''[[Taurini]]'', from the Indo-European *''tauros'' 'bull', does not follow the [[Metathesis (linguistics)|metathesized]] Celtic form ''taruos''. According to Delamarre, this could be explained by the influence of Latin or the preservation of an archaic form.{{sfn|Delamarre|2003|p=291}}

Similarly, the Ligurian ''Bodincos'' 'of unmeasured depth', from PIE ''*bʰudʰnós'', does not display the metathesis of [[Italo-Celtic]] *''bʰundʰós'' (cf. Latin ''fundus'', Middle Irish ''bond'').'''{{Sfn|Mees|2024|p=208}}''' The ethnonym ''[[Eguiturii]]'' (< PIE *''h₁éḱwos'' 'horse') also features an archaic preservation of [[Labialized velar consonant|labio-velar]] ''-kʷ-,'' in contrast to Gaulish ''epos'' (which can be compared to the Ligurian ''[[Epanterii]]'').{{Sfn|Evans|1967|p=200}} The similarity between the ancient names of Genoa (''Genua''), in the ancient Ligurian region, and Geneva (''Genaua''), in Celtic-speaking territory, has been highlighted by scholars,{{Sfn|Delamarre|2007|pp=36–37}} but if both toponyms could derive from the Celtic ''*genu'' 'mouth', the PIE stem *''ǵónu''- 'knee', which is commonly found in other Indo-European language groups, may also be at the origin of the names.{{sfn|Clackson|2015|pp=3–5}}

Francesco Rubat Borel has highlighted unusual Ligurian phonological changes not seen in Celtic languages, such as *''upo''- > ''uea''- and *''o'' > ''a'' in unstressed syllables, the toponymic suffix -''asc''-, and the retained *''p'' in ''Porcobera'', which would make claims of Ligurian as a Celtic language problematic.{{sfn|Rubat Borel|2008}}{{Sfn|Mees|2024|p=209}} According to Bernard Mees, Ligurian appears to share some phonological features with Celtic while differing significantly in morphology, suggesting it was a separate language with certain similarities to Celtic.{{Sfn|Mees|2024|p=|pp=203–204, 209}} He writes that "the Romans did not consider the Ligurians to be Celts, and although there are some evident parallels between Ligurian and Celtic names, these can all be understood as reflecting inherited Indo-European features, not distinctively Celtic traits."{{Sfn|Mees|2024|p=220}} By analysing Ligurian personal names, [[Jürgen Untermann]] concluded that Ligurian is best considered an Indo-European language or language family separate from both Celtic and Italic.{{Sfn|Untermann|2006|pp=1762–1766}}{{Sfn|Mees|2024|pp=203–204, 209}}

=== Substrate theories ===
In the late 19th century, [[Henri d'Arbois de Jubainville]] proposed that the Ligures constituted an early Indo-European substratum in Western Europe, separate from both Gaulish and Italic groups. Building on classical sources, he identified a range of place names and tribal names that did not fit neatly into known Celtic or Italic patterns. His theory, which came to be termed "Celto-Ligurian", influenced philological and archaeological approaches for the following decades. According to Bernard Mees, de Jubainville became "the intellectual grandfather to a genealogy of prehistorical and protohistorical substratum theories".{{sfn|Mees|2003|pp=16–18}}[[File:Old_European_hydronymic_map_for_the_root_*al-,_*alm-_Krahe.jpg|right|thumb|400x400px| [[Hans Krahe]]'s "[[Old European hydronymy|Old European]]" hydronymic map for the root ''*al-'', ''*alm-.'']]By the 1920s, scholars were using the "Celto-Ligurian" idea to explain problematic Indo-European toponyms and hydronyms across much of Europe. For instance, [[Paul Kretschmer]] argued that some inscriptions in Etruscan script (later identified as [[Lepontic language|Lepontic Celtic]]) provided evidence for a Ligurian linguistic layer, but subsequent discoveries established these as clearly Celtic with only limited Etruscan influence. In the 1930s, [[Julius Pokorny]] adopted these insights for his [[Pan-Illyrian hypotheses|pan-Illyrian]] (or "Illyro-Venetic") theory, linking it to the prehistoric [[Urnfield culture]]. Consequently, many difficult place-name etymologies were attributed to a hypothetical Illyrian layer, leading to broad, stratigraphical theories that traced Indo-European linguistic influences from Gaul all the way to the Balkans.{{sfn|Mees|2003|pp=16–18}}

By the late 1950s, Pokorny's theories had lost its momentum following critical scrutiny. The underlying place-name elements championed by de Jubainville and Pokorny, however, were reworked by [[Hans Krahe]] into his "[[Old European hydronymy|Old European]]" theory. Focusing on hydronyms, Krahe advanced a more refined approach, yet it remained conceptually indebted to de Jubainville's earlier "Celto-Ligurian" framework. Though Krahe proposed a more systematic argument than the earlier "Illyrian" or "Celto-Ligurian" frameworks, his theory still faced criticism for assuming that widespread, older Indo-European features belonged to one single language rather than several archaic dialects.{{sfn|Mees|2003|pp=16–18}}

Linguist [[James Clackson]] has criticized these approaches by stating that "the label 'Ligurian' merely serves to conceal our ignorance" about the pre-Roman linguistic landscape in various regions of Europe.{{sfn|Clackson|2015|pp=3–5}}

== Notes ==
{{reflist|group=note|30em}}

==References==
{{reflist|20em}}

=== Primary sources ===
{{refbegin}}
*{{Cite book|last=Strabo|title=Geography|publisher=Harvard University Press|year=1923|isbn=978-0674990562|series=Loeb Classical Library|translator-last=Jones|translator-first=Horace L.|author-link=Strabo}}
{{refend}}

=== Bibliography ===
{{Refbegin|30em|indent=yes}}
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* {{Cite book |last=Clackson |first=James |title=Language and Society in the Greek and Roman Worlds |year=2015 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-19235-4}}
* {{Cite journal |last=de Bernardo Stempel |first=Patrizia |author-link=Patrizia de Bernardo Stempel |year=2006 |title=From Ligury to Spain: Unaccented *yo > (y)e in Narbonensic votives ('gaulish' DEKANTEM), Hispanic coins ('iberian' -(sk)en) and some theonyms |journal=Palaeohispanica |volume=6 |pages=45–58 |issn=1578-5386}}
* {{Cite journal |last=de Bernardo Stempel |first=Patrizia |last2=Arenas Esteban |first2=Jesús Alberto |year=2011 |title=Celtic Dialects and Cultural Contacts in Protohistory: the Italian and Iberian Peninsulae |journal=Études celtiques |volume=37 |issue=1 |pages=119–139 |doi=10.3406/ecelt.2011.2328}}
* {{cite book |last=de Hoz |first=Javier |author-link=Javier de Hoz |title=New approaches to Celtic place-names in Ptolemy's Geography |publisher=Ediciones Clásicas |year=2005 |isbn=978-8478825721 |editor-last=de Hoz |editor-first=Javier |pages=173–188 |chapter=Ptolemy and the linguistic history of the Narbonensis |editor-last2=Luján |editor-first2=Eugenio R. |editor-last3=Sims-Williams |editor-first3=Patrick}}
*{{Cite book|last=Dyson|first=Stephen L.|title=The Creation of the Roman Frontier|publisher=Princeton University Press|year=1985|isbn=978-1-4008-5489-9}}
* {{Cite book |last=Delamarre |first=Xavier |author-link=Xavier Delamarre |title=Dictionnaire de la langue gauloise: Une approche linguistique du vieux-celtique continental |publisher=Errance |year=2003 |isbn=9782877723695}}
*{{Cite journal |last=Delamarre |first=Xavier |date=2007 |title=Gallo-Brittonica (suite: 11–21) |journal=Zeitschrift für celtische Philologie |volume=55 |issue=1 |doi=10.1515/ZCPH.2007.29 |issn=0084-5302}}
* {{cite book |last=Evans |first=D E |year=1967 |title=Gaulish personal names: a study of some continental Celtic formations |publisher=Clarendon Press |location=Oxford |url={{Google books|9WBmAAAAMAAJ|plainurl=y}} |oclc=956334 }}
* {{Cite book |last=Giannattasio |first=Bianca Maria |chapter=The Ligurians and Other Alpine Peoples |editor-last=Maiuro |editor-first=Marco |title=The Oxford Handbook of Pre-Roman Italy (1000-49 BCE) |editor-last2=Johnson |editor-first2=Jane Botsford |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2024 |isbn=978-0-19-998789-4}}
*{{Cite book |last=Keyser |first=Paul T. |chapter=Greek Geography of the Western Barbarians |editor-last=Bonfante |editor-first=Larissa |title=The Barbarians of Ancient Europe: Realities and Interactions |date= |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-521-19404-4}}
* {{Cite book |last=Mees |first=Bernard |editor-last=Andersen |editor-first=Henning |chapter=A genealogy of stratigraphy theories from the Indo-European west|title=Language Contacts in Prehistory: Studies in Stratigraphy |year=2003 |publisher=John Benjamins Publishing |isbn=978-90-272-4751-3}}
* {{Cite book |last=Mees |first=Bernard |title=Cisalpine Celtic literacy Proceedings of the international symposium Maynooth 23–24 June 2022 |publisher=Curach Bhán |year=2024 |chapter=Ligurian and Lepontic: the inscriptions from Lunigiana and the Prestino stone |editor-last=Salomon |editor-first=Corinna |editor-last2=Stifte |editor-first2=David }}
*{{Cite book |author-last=Rubat Borel |author-first=Francesco |chapter=Gli studi sulla lingua degli antichi Liguri nel XIX secolo e agli inizi del XX |title=La nascita della Paletnologia in Liguria: personaggi, scoperte e collezioni tra XIX e XX secolo |editor-last=De Pascale |editor-first=Andrea |editor-last2=Del Lucchese |editor-first2=Angiolo |editor-last3=Raggio |editor-first3=Osvaldo |year=2008 |publisher=Istituto internazionale di studi liguri |isbn=978-88-86796-30-9 |pages=143–154}}
*{{Cite book |author-last=Untermann |author-first=Jürgen |chapter=Ligurisches |title=Studi linguistici in onore di Roberto Gusmani |date=2006 |publisher=Ed. dell'Orso |editor-last=Bombi |editor-first=Raffaella |isbn=978-88-7694-888-6 |pages=1759–1769 |author-link=Jürgen Untermann}}
{{refend}}

=== Further reading ===
* {{cite book |last=Barruol |first=Guy |date=1969 |title=Les peuples préromains du sud-est de la Gaule: Etude de géographie historique |edition=2nd |series="Revue archéologique de Narbonnaise" series |volume=Supplement 1 |location=Paris |publisher=E. de Boccard |author-link=Guy Barruol}}

{{Eurasian languages}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ligurian Language (Ancient)}}
[[Category:Languages of ancient Italy]]
[[Category:Extinct languages of Italy]]
[[Category:Unclassified Indo-European languages]]
[[Category:Unclassified languages of Europe]]
[[Category:Ligures]]
[[Category:Languages attested from the 3rd century BC]]
[[Category:Languages extinct in the 1st century BC]]
[[Category:Pre-Indo-European languages]]
[[Category:Gallo-Roman culture]]
[[Category:Linguistic strata]]
[[Category:Italo-Celtic]]