 Galicia, in the north-western corner of the Iberian Peninsula, has a fascinating history which has many Celtic connections. Galicia, in the Iberian Peninsula in general, is often cited in origin stories, as the region where Celtic tribes sailed from, to settle in Ireland, and the British Isles. The name of the region comes from the Romans, who referred to the Celtic tribes of the Iberian north-west, as the Kalechi. Over time, Kalechi became Galechi. Various tribes made up the Galechi, including the Kalerney and the Brackery. The people of Galechi spoke the Galician language, also known as north-western Hispano-Celtic and Continental Celtic language. A defining feature of this Celtic civilisation was the fact that they lived in hillforts, resulting in them often being referred to as the culture of hillforts or the Castro culture. Today, Galicia is still home to more than 2,000 hillforts. Galacians identified themselves by their hillfort in the king of their area. In relation to their religion, we know that the Galicia worshipped numerous Celtic gods, including Coventina, the goddess of wells and springs, who was also known as the goddess of abundance and fertility. Nabia, the goddess of waters and rivers, with the river Navia and Galicia still bearing her name. And Lugos, the god of prosperity, trade and craft occupations, who was often depicted as having three heads. During the Second Punic War between Carthage and Rome from 218 to 210 BC, we know that some Galician troops fought alongside the Carthaginian general Hannibal. The various Celtic tribes of the Galicia ruled this corner of the Iberian Peninsula for centuries, until the Roman conquest of Iberia began in the 3rd, 2nd and 1st centuries BC, as well as being interested in a large sphere of influence. Rome was also interested in the lucrative gold mines of the region, although I will address the Roman conquest of Iberia in more detail in a future video. In the 5th and 6th centuries AD, there was another Celtic infusion into Galicia, as the Anglo-Saxons settled what would become England. Many Celtic Britons fled to Galicia, as well as to what would become Brittany and France. This settlement in Galicia was known as Bretonia. It is thought that these Britons practised a strong Christian faith. It is curious that the common Bretonic Celtic language of these Britons did not seem to take hold in Galicia, yet it did take hold in nearby Brittany and France, which is why the Celtic language of Breton is still spoken in Brittany today. Perhaps these migrants from Britain were better assimilated into the Galician culture of the time than their fellow migrants in Brittany, with Galicia controlled by the Germanic tribe of the Subi at this time, and then the Visigoths. Celtic influence is still present in Galicia today, however, particularly in music. A traditional instrument in Galicia is called the gate, a type of bagpipe. The gate was known to be used as far back as the 9th century A.D. and is still used today. The two main languages spoken in Galicia today are Galician or Galego and Spanish. Galician is an Indo-European language of the western Ibero-Romance branch and is spoken by more than 2 million people, mainly in Galicia. The Galician language is closely related to Portuguese as both languages evolved from vulgar Latin and for a time in the 13th century formed the Galician-Portuguese language before splitting into separate but related languages. Galician also contains some Germanic, Celtic, Spanish and Andalusian Arabic influences. The Romance nature of the Galician language is a result of the Roman conquest of the region over 2000 years ago. Today, Galicia is an autonomous community of Spain and is home to around 2.7 million people.