1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Mona

by Francis John Haverfield

MONA, the name used by classical writers, and in particular by Tacitus, to denote Anglesey (q.v.). This island was raided by the Roman general Suetonius about A.D. 60 and conquered by Agricola about A.D. 79. The Romans probably mined copper there, but no trace has yet been found of any Roman military post, and the villages of the inhabitants which have been recently excavated show only mediocre traces of Roman civilization. The name Mona seems also to have been occasionally used, perhaps from ignorance, for the other large island lying between England and Ireland, Man. The ancient name of this latter was probably not unlike that of Mona, but is not accurately known to us (? Monapia, Manavia).  (F. J. H.)