Oppida du nord, oppida du sud. Essai de confrontation à partir de deux sites du sud-ouest : Roquelaure-La Sioutat et Vieille-Toulouse

Abstract

Since the beginning of the 20th c., the historiographical tradition imposed a distinction between the oppida of the North and the South of France. This point of view was never discussed on solid archaeological bases. Recent excavations in Southwest France, on the oppida of Vieille-Toulouse and Roquelaure-La Sioutat, lead us to keep in perspective this distinction. Actually, they show the limits of a model which makes oppida a specific component of the « Celtic » culture. Beyond the archaeological appearances, what clearly appears is that the phenomenon of urbanization knows an acceleration at least since the 2th c. BC in western Europe.

Keywords

• oppidum
• urbanization
• latenian culture
• Late Iron Age
• Southwest France