Gauls

Gauls were Celtic peoples who inhabited parts of Western Europe in antiquity. Their core lands, commonly called Gaul, covered much of present-day France and extended into what are now Belgium, Switzerland, Luxembourg, northern Italy, the Netherlands, and western Germany up to the Rhine and Danube. They spoke Gaulish, a Continental Celtic language, and later many adopted Latin as Roman rule spread.

Society and culture in Gaul was organized around tribes and confederations. Notable groups included the Aedui and Arverni in central Gaul, the Sequani and Parisii in eastern and northern regions, and the Helvetii in parts of Switzerland. Social structures featured a class of religious leaders and judges known as druids, whose influence extended over legal and ceremonial matters. Gauls built fortified settlements called oppida, developed advanced metalwork, and created distinctive artistic styles with geometric and curvilinear motifs. They engaged in farming, metallurgy, and long-distance trade with contacts across the Mediterranean and beyond.

History and legacy unfold from the Iron Age into Roman times. Gauls encountered expanding Roman power in the 2nd and 1st centuries BCE, culminating in Julius Caesar’s Gallic Wars (58–50 BCE), after which Gaul was incorporated into the Roman Empire as Gallia. Over centuries, Romanization reshaped language, law, and urban life, though Gaulish language and Celtic cultural elements persisted for some time. The region became a core part of Roman Gaul and later medieval France, leaving a lasting imprint on archaeology, place names, and cultural memory.