Noric language
A language believed to have been Celtic was spoken in ancient times in the Roman province of Noricum. This language is referred to as Noric or Eastern Celtic. It was probably a Continental Celtic language but the data is too limited to allow for classification. Its existence is inferred from only two fragmentary inscriptions, one in Grafenstein, Carinthia, Austria, the other in Ptuj, Slovenia. These inscriptions provide limited information but it is believed to have been similar to other Celtic languages near it, such as Gaulish. No evidence yet shows when it became extinct. Ptuj inscription The Ptuj inscription, discovered in 1894, is written right to left in a northern Italic alphabet[1] and reads:
This is interpreted as two personal names: Artebudz [son] of Brogduos.[2] The name Artebudz may mean "bear penis"[3] (compare Welsh arth "bear" and Irish bod "penis"), while Brogduos may contain the element brog-, mrog- "country"[4] (compare Welsh bro "region, country"). Alternatively, the inscription may be interpreted as Artebudz [made this] for Brogdos, with the second name in the dative case.[5] Grafenstein inscriptionThe Grafenstein inscription, on a tile from the 2nd century AD that was discovered in a gravel pit in 1977, is incomplete, but the extant part has been transcribed as follows:[1] MOGE · ES[ Here, Moge seems to be a personal name or an abbreviation of one, P· II- lav a Latin abbreviation indicating a weight, ne sadiíes a verbal form possibly meaning "you (singular) do not set", ollo so perhaps "this amount", and Lugnu another personal name. The text may therefore be a record of some sort of financial transaction.[1] Other readings of the inscription have also been proposed, including: MOGE · ES+[---] and MOGV · CISS [--- References
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