Ambisontes

The Ambisontes were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the upper Salzach valley during the Roman period.

Name

They are mentioned as Ambisontes by Pliny, and as Ambēsóntioi by Ptolemy.
The Gaulish ethnonym Ambisontes means 'the people from around the Isontia', stemming from the root *amb- attached to the name of the river Isontia. The hydronym itself, while not necessarily Celtic, is most likely of Indo-European origin, and can be derived from the stem *ish₁-ont-.

Geography

The Ambisontes lived in the upper valley of the Salzach river. Their territory was situated north of the Saevates and Laianci, south of the Alauni, and east of the Breuni and Cosuanetes.

History

They are mentioned by Pliny the Elder as one of the Alpine tribes conquered by Rome in 16–15 BC, and whose name was engraved on the Tropaeum Alpium.

Primary sources