 When you think of English history, the Anglo-Saxon migration and invasion of England from mainland Europe is probably one of the first things that comes to mind. Long before the Anglo-Saxons in the 5th century AD however, Ancient England was mainly comprised of Celtic Britons, yet who were these people that inhabited Ancient England? The Britons are thought to be the descendants of Celtic tribes from Ancient Spain, who sailed and settled large parts of the British Isles around 7,000 years ago. In England, around 64% of the population is thought to be descended from these ancient Celtic people, a far higher rate than any Anglo-Saxon route, with 73% of people in Scotland, and 83% of people in Wales, sharing the same Celtic descent, according to one Oxford study. As well as England, Britons lived in parts of Southern Ancient Scotland and Ancient Wales for centuries, as this map from around the 6th century AD illustrates. Over the centuries, the Britons maintained and developed strong trading links with the Celtic Gauls of Ancient Europe, who controlled most of modern-day France and Belgium, amongst other territories, and shared many cultural traditions with each other. In relation to the organisation of the Britons, instead of thinking of them as one kingdom, the Britons should be thought of as many groups of different tribes who shared many cultural, social and political traits. Similar to other Celtic societies, the Druids played an important religious and legal role in Britain. This Celtic priesthood is thought to have settled legal disputes, studied the stars and officiated ritualistic ceremonies, potentially even performing human sacrifices in certain instances. The Britons also minted their own coins, as they had a somewhat developed economic system for the time. The Britons spoke the common Britonic language, an ancient, insular Celtic language. During the Roman period, starting around the 1st century AD, Britonic took inspiration from Latin, particularly in relation to words for church and Christianity. In around the 6th century AD, the common Britonic language had become split into early versions of languages such as Welsh, Cumbric, Cornish and Breton, which is still spoken in Brittany, France, today. In the 1st century AD, much of Celtic Britain was conquered by the Roman Empire, giving birth to such hybrids as British Latin, but I will explore the Roman conquest of Britain in more detail in a future video. Four centuries later, the Anglo-Saxon migration and invasion of ancient England, beginning in the 5th century AD, further eroded Celtic Britain, with this being followed by Viking and the Norman invasions in future centuries. By the 11th century AD, the Britons were largely fragmented into the Cornish, the Welsh and the Cumbrians, in the Hain or Glaive, or Old North, region of southern Scotland and northern England. Many Britons also left the mainland, and settled in such places as Brittany in France and Galicia in Spain, which is why these places have Celtic roots.