itself is formed from that of the god. Further, not only was there a people in the south of this island called Segontiaci, who were of those who sent ambassadors to Caesar;[1] but an inscription which has been taken to connect them with Silchester has been found there and discovered to have been a dedication Deo· Her[culi·] Saegon . . . . It is not certain what the dative of the god's name was in full; but probably Saegono, or Saegoni, possibly a participial Saegonti. The stone is no longer to be found; but the way in which it has been described by those who saw it, makes it difficult to read Segontiaco or Segontiacorum, as though the god derived his name from that of the people called Segontiaci. This leaves the conjecture that would connect the Segontiaci of Caesar with the town of Silchester much as it was before, since it is natural to suppose, that the god in question would occupy a place of honour in the pantheon of a people calling itself or its chief city after him. The weakness of the assumption lies in the probable fact, that more than one town, more than one people, took its name from the god; and the more popular and general his cult is found to have been, the more clearly that weakness is seen. But it is a question of no immediate interest here, as the fact not to be lost sight of is rather the identification of Saegon-, or Seon, with Hercules.
Now there was a remarkable Gaulish god, and a thoroughly Celtic one, whom we have distinct evidence for
- ↑ Caesar, v. 21.
modern Welsh becomes Saint, so that the river is now Afon Saint, while a late Kymricizing of the Latin Segontium has yielded a much less correct Welsh form Seiont, which, as far as I know, is only to be found in books or in the modern names of houses in the town.
