Quariates

The Quariates or Quadiates were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the valley of Queyras, in the Alps, during the Iron Age.

Name

They are mentioned as Quariates (var. quadr-) by Pliny (1st c. AD),^[1] and as Quadiatium and Quariat(ium?) on inscriptions.^[2][3]

The etymology of the name is obscure. Christian-Joseph Guyonvarc'h and Xavier Delamarre proposed to derive it from Celtic *k^wario- ('cauldron'), with sporadic preservation of the initial k^w, attached to the suffix -ati- ('belonging to').^[4] Alexander Falileyev notes that the q-Celtic reflex remains problematic in this scenario.^[3]

The region of Queyras, whose castle is attested as Quadratum in the 12th century, may be named after the Gallic tribe.^[5]

Geography

The Quariates dwelled in the valley of Queyras, in the Alps.^[6] Their territory was located south of the Brigianii, east of the Segovii, and north of the Caturiges and Veneni.^[7]

History

They appear on the Arch of Susa, erected by Cottius in 9–8 BC.^[8]