The Atlantic Celts: Ancient People Or Modern Invention?The Celtic peoples of the British Isles hold a fundamental place in our national consciousness. In this book Simon James surveys ancient and modern ideas of the Celts and challenges them in the light of revolutionary new thinking on the Iron Age peoples of Britain. Examining how ethnic and national identities are constructed, he presents an alternative history of the British Isles, proposing that the idea of insular Celtic identity is really a product of the rise of nationalism in the eighteenth century. He considers whether the 'Celticness' of the British Isles is a romantic fantasy, even a politically dangerous falsification of history which has implications in the current debate on devolution and self-government for the Celtic regions. |
Contents
Preface | 7 |
assumptions limitations and objections | 26 |
How the Celts were created and why | 43 |
Current ideas on ethnicity and the insular Ancient Celts | 67 |
Towards a new ethnic history of the isles | 86 |
are the modern Celts bogus? | 136 |
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Common terms and phrases
actually ancient Anglo-Saxon appearance archaeology areas artefacts assumptions became become believed boundaries Britain Britain and Ireland British Britons called Celtic Celts century clear clearly common complex context continental continued created cultural defined direct distinctive dominant early élite England English especially established ethnic identity Europe European evidence example existed expressed France French Gaelic Gaul Germanic groups growing Highland human ideas important indigenous insular interest invaders invasions Ireland Irish Iron Age islands isles Italy kingdoms land language largely late later least linguistic living London looked major mass material mean migrations military nature North origins particular past patterns perhaps period political population present probably province reason recent regional religious remains Roman Scotland Scottish seems seen sense shared similarities social societies specific suggest Tène tions traditions understand units views Viking Wales Welsh Western wider