Celtic Dictionary


ALUM		A mineral salt used as a mordant (chemical key) in the dyeing of cloth. See DYES

AMBER		Fossilised resin of the pine tree. Can have insects trapped in it. Can be cut and polished. Only uses in pre-history in jewellery.

ANTLER		A bony out-growth on the head of deer, shed every year at the end of the rutting season. Uses: Tines - clothes fasteners, digging implements Flats - weaving tablets, shovels, needles

ARCHERY		The use of a piece of wood held into a bent shape with a string (bow), to propel a long thin stick with a sharp point on the front end (arrow). Used in hunting and warfare.

ARD		An early plough used to break the ground up prior to planting crops.

ARMOUR		A strong covering worn to protect the body from injury.

ARROW		See ARCHERY

ARROWHEAD		See ARCHERY

ART		The use of decoration on objects.

ARTIFACTS		This is the name given to the objects that are found in archaeology, and are the items left behind by people in the past.

AXE		A sharp tool comprising of the axehead with the cutting edge, and a handle to hold on to. Used to chop trees down and cut other hard materials apart.

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BARREL		A container made of pieces of wood held together with hoops or bands of metal.

BOAT		A form of transport for travelling on water (they float!). Can be as small as a coracle, or as large enough to cross seas.

BOUDICA		Queen of the Iceni, wife to Prasatugus. Revolted against Roman atrocities in 60AD.

BONE		Bones from a wide variety of animals were used. It can be cut, carved and decorated easily Uses: Whole - tools, handles, flutes Ground - grog for pottery Roast - source of potash

BRONZE		A metal alloy of copper with less than 10% tin added. It is easily worked by casting or hammering. Uses: Personal - jewellery, razors, mirrors, coins Weapons - cast handles on swords shield decorations Domestic - cauldrons

BRONZE AGE		2500-1000BC (Britain) Use of bronze for tools and weapons. See TIMELINE

BURIALS		The disposal of dead bodies.

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CALENDAR		The year

CASTING		The method of producing metal objects by pouring into a mould

CELTS		An Indo-European people that spread across Europe. They had a common base to their languages and cultures, but had diversity between the tribes.
CHAINMAIL		Body armour made of interlinked rings of metal.

CHARCOAL		Wood burnt in reduced oxygen to drive off water and gases, leaving the carbon structure intact. Achieves a high temperature when burnt with air blown into the fire and is used in working metal.

CHARIOT		A fast two wheeled cart mainly used in warfare.

CLAY		A water softened rock, composed of Aluminium Silicate, that can be moulded to shape. When fired it becomes a ceramic. Main use in the production of pottery. See ARTIFACTS or KILN

COINS		Set amounts of precious metals forged into disks and decorated. Used as wealth or to trade with.

COOKING		Preparation and heating of food before eating. See diet.

COPPICING		Cutting a tree down at ground level and allowing it to re-grow. The multiple shoots grow in competition and increase after each cut. The growth area is known as a 'stool'. Harvesting is done every5-7 years. The wood is thin and flexible. Used as 'wattle' to weave fences and walls of buildings.

CORACLE		A small one man boat made by stretching animal skins over a wooden frame

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DAUB		A mixture of clay, soil, hair or hay, and animal droppings. Plastered onto a wattle wall in the construction of a building.

DITCH		An elongated hole dug as protection or drainage. Usually around a settlement.See EARTHWORKS

DEATH		See BURIALS

DIET		The Iron Age diet was very healthy, and consisted mainly of boiled meat, fresh bread, and seasonal vegetables. The main drinks were water and beer.

DRUIDS		A fire cult that arrived in Britan during the first century BC and gained the ears of the ruling class

DYES		The product used in the process of colouring a material

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EARTHWORKS		A large series of ditches dug around defended settlements, and linear ditches dividing up the countryside.

EVIDENCE		The information and finds from an excavation that are used to reconstruct the use and purpose of the origional item. (An example is a click away)

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FLINT		Nodules of stone found in layers in chalk deposits, extracted by digging or mining. Flint can be worked by splitting into shards, then shaped using percussion or pressure flaking. Uses: Tools - cutting blades, scrapers, axe heads Weapons - arrow heads, spear heads. Fire - struck on iron to produce a spark

FLAX		The seeds of the plant are rich in oil. A fibre can be processed from the stem of the plant and can be spun into a thread called linen. Oil Used as a fuel in lamps Thread woven into a strong cloth

FLETCHING		Feathers fastened onto the back of an arrow to help it fly straight. See ARCHERY

FARMING		The Romans farmed a wide range of crops. They produced excess wheat and were exporting it to the Roman empire in large quantities.

FIELDS		Enclosed areas on cultivated ground used for growing crops or enclosing animals.

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GOLD		A soft yellow precious metal found in pure nuggets or extracted by sieving ground rock or sand. It was a highly prized metal for its decorative qualities and is found as jewellery in particular. The metal can be worked cold, including hammer welding. Uses: Jewellery - torcs, bracelets, fibula Coins - called a stater (used by Belgae/Gallic tribes)

GLASS		A fusion of sand and wood ash. Coloured with the addition of metal oxides. Used for the production of beads, and enamels for decoration.

GRANARIES		Storage units for grain

GRAVES		See BURIALS

GRINDING		The crushing of food to make it more palatable and to release more of the nutritional values.

GODS		The gods live alongside the human world and can be called on to help.

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HORN		Horn is the covering over a bony growth on the head of a cow. It is composed of the same material as finger nails. It can be moulded, or split into thin layers. Uses: Heated glue, shaped and moulded Whole - drinking vessel Layer - lantern glass


HOUSES		Buildings in which people live (not huts!!!)

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ICE AGE		- 10,000BC (Britain) The Ice Sheet retreats.

IRON		A hard metal extracted from ore by smelting at high temperatures. Capable of holding a sharp edge. Uses: Weapons- swords, spears, arrow heads Tools - chisels, drills, hammers, tongs, saws, axes Domestic - cauldrons, chains Personal - pins, torcs, razors

IRON AGE		800BC-43AD (Britain) The technology of smelting iron, and use of iron for tools and weapons.

IVORY		The tooth of an animal used as a material in making decorative items. In Nothern Europe the tusks of wild boar were used.

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LEATHER		Preparation of animal skins and hides using vegetable extracts to preserve and alter the structure of the skin. Types and uses: Furs - bedding, floor covering, clothing Raw-hide thonging, armour Sheet - buckets, bags, shoes, clothes.

LINEN		The fibre obtained from the plant FLAX

LYNCHET		Terraced field systems around hills with steep slopes.See FIELDS

LOOMS		The frames on which cloth is woven.

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MESOLITHIC		7000-4000BC (Britain)

MOON		Very important in the Celtic Calendar, more so than the sun. Used to plot the seasons and festivals. Great Lunar years marked with extra significance as they only occur every 22 years. See Calendar

MIRROR		A number of bronze mirrors have been found across Britain all decorated on the backs.

MUSIC

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PALEOLITHIC		10,000-7000BC (Britain) Resettlement of Britain as the ice sheet retreats.

PEAT		Caused by the growth of plant material in waterlogged conditions. Because there is no oxygen available below the upper surface there is no rotting taking place so the vegetation is preserved and builds up over time. In later years when the bog is drained, the peat can be dug out and used as fuel.

PITS		Assorted pits were dug into the ground and used for storage of food or materials, or for the disposal of rubbish

PLOUGH		See ARD

POTTERY		The process of heating clay to turn it to a ceramic.

POLLARDING		Cutting timber off a tree at the top of the trunk to produce new growth. The new branches are in competition and grow fast and straight. Harvesting is done every 15-20 years.

POLE LATHE		Machine for turning a material so that it can be shaped and carved into circular or round objects. See SHALE and WOOD

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QUERN

Stones used for the grinding of cereals to make flour.
Saddle Quern - One large stone with the grain on it, and one smaller stone moved around on the top to crush the grain against the lower stone.
Rotary Quern - Two circular stones fitted together one on top of the other. The top stone is turned around a spindle set in the lower stone. Grain is fed through the stones in a continuous process

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SILVER		A bright white precious metal extracted from ore by smelting. Finds suggest that silver was not in wide use in Britain, but it does turn up as a small quantity of jewellery, and in sheet form with hammered decoration.

STRAW		The by product of wheat, being the stalk, left over from the production of grain. Uses: Thatching - roof covering with a short life (20+ yrs) Loose - bedding for livestock, then composted Tied - coil mats, bee skeps.

SHALE		An oil bearing rock found at Kimmeridge in Dorset. Pieces turned on a lathe to make bracelets and bangles.

SPINNING		The process of turning a raw product (wool, nettle, flax) into a thread by twisting to bind the fibres together.

SALT		A mineral used for flavouring and/or preserving food.

SHIELDS		See WEAPONS

SPEARS		See Weapons

SWORDS		See Weapons
SLINGS		See Weapons

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TIN		A white coloured metal extracted from ore at low temperatures. Uses: Solder - bonding two pieces of metal together Alloy - mixing with other metals Decoration coating metals to stop oxidisation See BRONZE

TOOLS		Items used to assist work. Some of them having sharp edges to cut with. Examples: Hammer, chisel, spade, knife.

TORC		Neck ornament worn as a status symbol.

TRANSPORT		Getting around - See: Horse, CHARIOT, CORACLE, Boat, Cart.

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WARRIORS		Persons (male or female) who take up weapons and go to war. They can also be deployed as a protection.

WOOD		The woodlands during the Iron Age were heavily managed to produce the right wood for the builder and carpenter. Methods of production include coppicing and pollarding. Uses of wood: Construction of buildings Lathe turned bowls, platters Boats - plank built and hollowed log Boxes - storage chests, and bent wood boxes Fences - wattle and hurdles Fuel - open fire or production of charcoal Carving - spoons, figures

WOOL		Wool is the hair off a sheep. One of the by-products is lanolin which can be used in the production of soap. Uses: After spinning into a thread - sewing, weaving, embroidering Felt clothing See Spinning

WOOD-ASH		Alkaline remains from burnt wood. Uses: Production of soap and glass.

WILLOW		Thin withies of willow are used for the production of baskets. They become flexible when soaked in water and can be bent with ease. Hardens again when dry.

WATTLE		Thin rods of wood used to weave fences and house walls.

WEAPONS		Tools that are use for hunting and warfare

JET		Fossilised coal, only use is as jewelry.

JEWELRY		Decorative or functional items that are worn on the clothing or around parts of the body.

JAVELIN		A short throwing spear, used as a shock weapon

NEOLITHIC		4000-2500BC (Britain)

NETTLES		A plant rich in vitamins. The stems can be processed into a thread similar to linen.

OPPIDA		This is a latin word that describes a Celtic town rather than a hillfort, but not in the sense of a 'civitas' - a centre of government.

OVENS		There have been a number of clay ovens found in assorted excavations. Most were within buildings and are presumed to be for cooking bread and other foods.

REED		A plant of the grass family that has adapted to living in water. The most well known is the Norfolk reed. Uses Thatching roof covering with a long life (60+ yrs) Woven mats, screens


RAZOR		A tool with a sharp edge used for shaving.

ZINC		The only use in pre-history is as an alloy with copper to produce brass. Called by the Iron Age people 'yellow bronze'.

ZOOMORPHIC		With animals - See Art