Difference between revisions 112038408 and 112038409 on dewiki

{{this|the ancient ethnic groups of Great Britain|Briton}}
{{Expert-verify|date=March 2008}}
Historically, the '''Britons''' (sometimes '''Brythons''' or '''British''') were the [[P-Celtic|P-Celtic speaking]] [[indigenous peoples]] inhabiting the island of [[Great Britain]] south of the [[river Forth]]. They were speakers of the [[Brythonic languages]] (also called P-Celtic) and shared common [[cultural]] traditions. I(contracted; show full)usly referring to the [[P-Celtic]] speakers of Great Britain, as complementing ''[[Goidel]]''; hence the adjective ''[[Brythonic]]'' referring to the group of languages.<ref>[http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=Brythonic Online Etymology Dictionary: Brythonic]</ref> ''Brittonic'' is a more recent coinage (first attested 1923 according to [[OED]]) intended to refer to the ancient Britons specifically.

==Language==
{{main|Brythonic
al languages}}
The Britons were speakers of the Brythonical (or Brittonic) languages. Brythonical languages are believed to have been spoken on the entire island of Britain as far north as the [[Firth of Clyde|Clyde]]-[[Firth of Forth|Forth]]. Beyond this was the territory of the [[Picts]] and [[Gaels]]. According to early medievael historical tradition, the post-Roman Celtic-speakers of [[Armorica]] were migrants from Britain, supposedly resulting in the similar [[Breton language]], a language similar to Welsh which survives there to this day. Thus the area to day is called [[Brittanyia]]. 

The Brythonical languages developed from [[Proto-Celtic]], after it was introduced to the British Isles from the continent. The first form of the Brythonical languages is believed to be [[British language (Celtic)|British]]. After the Roman conquest of Britain, the British language adopted some words from [[Latin]]; hence it is sometimes termed Romano-British in this period. 

Some linguistics have invented the terms [[Eastern Brythonical|Eastern]], [[Western BrythonicL|Western]] and [[Southwestern Brythonicl|Southwestern]] Brythonic to classify how the British language subsequently developed. The Eastern dialect was largely replaced by the invading [[Anglo-Saxons]] and their language. The Western and Southwestern developed into [[Cumbric language|Cumbric]], [[Welsh language|Welsh]], [[Cornish language|Cornish]] and [[Breton language|Breton]]. While Welsh, Cornish and Breteon survive today, Cumbric became extinct in the 12th Century.

==Territory==
{{main|British Iron Age|Roman Britain|Sub-Roman Britain}}
[[Image:Britain 500 CE.png|thumb|right|450px|The British Isles during the [[Anglo-Saxon]] conquest around 500AD. Brythonic kingdoms are labelled in black, [[Germanic peoples|Germanic]] kingdoms in red, [[Picts|Pictish]] kingdoms in brown, and [[Gaels|Gaelic]] kingdoms in blue.]]

(contracted; show full)[[fr:Bretons insulaires]]
[[gl:Bretóns]]
[[it:Britanni]]
[[lt:Britai (keltai)]]
[[ja:ブリトン]]
[[no:Britonere]]
[[ru:Бритты]]
[[uk:Брити]]