TheAmbisontes (Gaulish: 'those around the Isontia') were aGallic tribe dwelling in the upperSalzach valley during theRoman period.
They are mentioned asAmbisontes byPliny (1st c. AD),[1] and asAmbēsóntioi (Ἀμβησόντιοι) byPtolemy (2nd c. AD).[2]
TheGaulishethnonymAmbisontes means 'the people from around the Isontia', stemming from the root *amb(i)- ('around, on both sides') attached to the name of the riverIsontia (modernSalzach).[3][4] Thehydronym itself, while not necessarily Celtic, is most likely ofIndo-European origin, and can be derived from the stem *[h₁]ish₁-ont- ('she who moves quickly').[5]
The Ambisontes lived in the upper valley of theSalzach river. Their territory was situated north of theSaevates andLaianci, south of theAlauni, and east of theBreuni andCosuanetes.[6]
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 theTropaeum Alpium.[1]
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