Meldi
The Meldi were a Gallic tribe living in the region of modern Meaux during the Iron Age and the Roman period.
Name
They are attested as Meldi by Caesar., as Méldoi by Strabo, Meldi liberi by Pliny, Méldai by Ptolemy, and as Ciuitas Melduorum in the Notitia Dignitatum.The etymology of Meldi is unclear. Pierre-Yves Lambert compared it to Old Irish meld, with an u-stem meldu- possibly preserved in the late form Melduorum. Alternatively, John T. Koch has proposed to derive it from a stem *meldh- attested in Welsh mellt, and possibly in Gaulish Meldio, an epithet of Loucetios. Depending on the interpretation, the ethnic name may be translated as the 'lightening people' or the 'sweet people'.
The city of Meaux, attested as Meldorum civitas c. 400 AD, is named after the tribe.
Geography
The Meldi lived along the Marne river, east of Lutetia.They were likely clients of the most powerful Suessiones.
History
During the Gallic Wars, Caesar had sixty ships built among them for the expedition to the island of Britain in 51 BC.Primary sources
Secondary sources
Category:Historical Celtic peoplesCategory:Gauls
Category:Tribes in pre-Roman Gaul
Category:Tribes involved in the Gallic Wars