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As York was a town in Roman times, its Celtic name is recorded in Roman sources (as Eboracum and Eburacum); after 400, Angles took over the area and adapted the name by folk etymology to Old English Eoforwīc or Eoforīc, which means "wild-boar town" or "rich in wild-boar".
The site remained occupied after the decline of the Western Roman Empire and ultimately developed into the present-day city of York, in North Yorkshire, England. Two Roman emperors died in Eboracum: Septimius Severus in 211 AD, and Constantius Chlorus in 306 AD.
York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss. It is the county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a minster, castle, and city walls.
- Classical Evidence For Eburacum
- The Meaning of The City’S Name
- Entries in The Roman Inscriptions of Britain For Eburacum
- Legionary Units stationed at York
- The Gods of Roman York
- The Civilian Inhabitants
- Pre-Legionary Military Presence at Eburacum
- Legionary Movements in The Late First Century
- The Legionary Fortress and Its Canabae
- Eboracum – Capital City of Britannia Inferior
The ancient name for York was Eburacum or Eboracum, and this name – or further variations of it – occurs in all four major classical geographies which cover Roman Britain. In Ptolemy’s Geography of the second century AD, York is listed among the nine towns attributed to the Brigantes tribe of northern Britain. Ptolemy wrote in Greek so the name of ...
Eburacum of the Romano-British Period
York’s original Romano-British name Eburacum – later Colonia Eboracensium – is well documented, and several references are quoted throughout these web-pages. It may be interesting to digress for a while to study how the name has evolved over the many years since the Romans left Britain at the beginning of the fifth century.
Cair Hebrauc of the Dark Ages
York appears at the head of Nennius’ list of 33 ‘British Towns’ as Cair Hebrauc, which consists of two components; a mangled form of the town’s Old British name, prefixed by the Welsh/Gaelic word cair meaning ‘fortified place’ (q.v. Welsh: caer, gaer).
Eofer-wic of the Anglian Kings of Northumbria
York features many times in the Saxon Chronicle, under a number of guises; Eofer-wic, Eofor-wic, Efer-wic, Euor-wic, Eofer-wic ceaster & Euer-wic, other variant spellings in other works include Eouerwic, Eouorwic, Euerwic & Eworwic. The somewhat variable prefix is likely an even more distorted carry-though of the Old British name, suffixed by the Scandinavian word vik meaning ‘creek, river or bay’, here Anglicised to -wic. The additional ceaster suffix is the Anglo-Saxon equivalent of the Wel...
For York, there are over seventy inscriptions on stone recorded in the Roman Inscriptions of Britain (RIB), six of which have been added since the work was first published. These entries may be broken down as follows: 1. 21 altarstones (inc. 7 of non-standard form), 2. 24 tombstones (inc. 1 tomb finial), 3. 9 coffins (inc. 1 sarcophagus), 4. 1 stat...
The only units known to be permanently stationed in the Legionary fortress at Eburacum were Legio IX Hispana, themselves responsible for the original fortifications c.70-71AD, also Legio VI Victrix who accompanied the emperor Hadrian on his trip to Britain and replaced the Ninth at York during 122AD. The Sixth were to occupy the Eburacum fortress f...
Altar to the Genio Eboraci 1. Translation 2. Latin 3. Commentary The genius was a minor deity or spirit associated with the physical well-being of a specific location or object; in this case, the town of York. There have been over twenty altars to the gods recovered over the years from the town and fortress of Eburacum. In many cases a god is menti...
Coffin of a Decurion of Colonia Eboracensis 1. Translation 2. Latin 3. Commentary A member of an elected board of ten men, who saw to the administration of the Roman colony at York. Evidence for the names of civilians in Roman towns comes mainly from tombstones, but at York several stone coffins and sarcophagi bearing Roman inscriptions have also b...
Among the many different varieties of Roman pottery uncovered at York are several pieces of Lyon ware attributable to the Claudian-Neronian period, which suggests the existence of an earlier auxiliary fort lying undiscovered perhaps beneath the later fortress which was established in 71AD. This suspected fort – if it does exist – may date to the ad...
After the fourteenth legion had been suddenly removed from Britain by Nero in 67AD, the province was left severely under-strength throughout the next three years. The tyranny of the emperor had been ended by his condemnation by the Senate and his subsequent forced suicide in 68AD and he was replaced by a new emperor elected by the Senate, the infle...
The defences of the original fortress constructed during Cerealis’ early campaigns against the Brigantes, consisted of a single ditch and rampart, surmounted by a timber palisade with wooden interval and corner towers, the area enclosed by these fortifications was some fifty acres. The fortress had its exterior defences and its principal buildings ...
Under the emperor Septimius Severus in 197AD the province of Britannia was split into two, outwardly for administrative purposes, but also to avoid the concentration of British legionary power into the hands of a single governor. This situation had occurred earlier that same year with his own trusted general and adopted heir Decimus Clodius Albinus...
From the late first century AD, York was a Roman legionary headquarters with a large civilian settlement or colonia. The first known form of the place-name, however, is Eborakon, with its Greek-style ending, recorded in the second century AD by Ptolemy, a polymath working in Alexandria, Egypt.
Sep 27, 2005 · Eboracum is the Roman name for York, but just how did we get from Eboracum to York? The answer involves boars, mistranslation and the oddities of the Nordic tongue!
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Jun 12, 2004 · Eboracum is the Roman name for York, but just how did we get from Eboracum to York? The answer involves boars, mistranslation and the oddities of the Nordic tongue!
