I have started reading Stephen Oppenheimer’s The Origins of the British, which I referenced earlier in my series of “Who’s a Celt Now?” posts.

From a genetic analysis — his main tool — buttressed by linguistic studies and ancient written sources, he appears to be making these points:

• The people of Ireland, Wales, western Scotland, western England, and the Atlantic coast of France came north from Iberia and southwestern France after the ice melted. These people spoke Celtic languages.
• Conversely, they did not come from central Europe and are not connected to the so-called Hallstatt and La Tene cultures.
• After the ice melted, eastern England did receive settlers from the Continent–but remember that back then, people could walk from what is now France to England, until the sea levels rose.
• During the 400 years of Roman colonization, many (or most) inhabitants of the province of Britannia were probably speaking a Germanic language (related to Dutch or Frisian), not a Celtic language. If true, that is the biggest revelation for me.
• The subsequent Anglo-Saxon invasion was not a genocidal “wipe-out,” but was more like the Norman Conquest of 1066. One ruling class replaced another, but life for Jane and Joe Commoner went on as before.

I will post again after finishing the book.