Oppidum

Originally, the word oppidum referred to the citadel or acropolis of the Italian Iron Age. Archaeologists have identified small fortified settlements have been identified in Samnium, southern Italy, and Sicily.: Latin name for a Celtiberian or Celtic hillfort. Later, when the Romans started to invade the Celtic world, they used the word to describe the hillforts, which could be quite large and were often surrounded by what is called a Murus Gallicus. These settlements are considered typical for the Celtic civilization and have been found in Britain, France (e.g., Alesia, Ensérune, Cassel), Spain, Belgium, Luxembourg (Titelberg), Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Czechia, Slovenia, Hungary, and Croatia.