Ancasta

Ancasta was a Celtic goddess worshipped in Roman Britain. She is known from a single dedicatory inscription found in the United Kingdom at the Roman settlement of Clausentum (Bitterne, near Southampton).[1] Ancasta may be taken to be a local goddess, possibly associated with the nearby River Itchen.

The votive dedication to Ancasta reads:

DEAE ANCASTAE GEMINVS MANI VSLM
"To the goddess Ancasta, Geminus Mani[lius] willingly and deservedly fulfills his vow."

It may be possible that the name 'Ancasta' is related to Proto-Celtic *kasto- meaning 'swift'.[2]

The inscription is now in the SeaCity Museum.[3]

References
  1. Jufer, Nicole & Thierry Luginbühl (2001). Les dieux gaulois : répertoire des noms de divinités celtiques connus par l'épigraphie, les textes antiques et la toponymie. Paris: Editions Errance. ISBN 2-87772-200-7. p.21.
  2. Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies, University of Wales. "Proto-Celtic—English lexicon." (See also this page for background and disclaimers.)
  3. Clausentum, Pastscape, retrieved 13 January 2012
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