Indigenous people of Britain refers to the groups of people who have lived in Britain for a considerable time before the arrival of Roman settlers and other foreign invaders in the area. These original inhabitants of Britain were mostly Celts, but there have been people in Britain since the most ancient of times.
Some of the earliest inhabitants of Britain were Mesolithic hunter-gatherers who lived by hunting small game like deer and fishing in the rivers and estuaries. This way of life has been documented as far back as 10,000 BC. After these groups disappeared, Iron Age Celts moved in and began to settle in what would eventually become England and Scotland between 800–700BC.
These early Iron Age peoples were divided into tribes such as the loose coalition of Iceni in the east, the Brigantes of Yorkshire, the Silures of South Wales and the Ordovices of North Wales. By the first century AD, the Celts of Britain had spread even further, establishing settlements and kingdoms as far north as Scotland and through Europe.
The arrival of the Romans changed the cultural landscape of Britain forever, with their advances in organisational and political structures, language and culture. As the Romans took control of Britain, the native Celtic tribes were either pushed back or assimilated.
The Celtic language and culture is still preserved in various forms today, with the Welsh and Scottish languages, which are offshoots of the ancient Celtic languages, surviving to this day.
The coming of Christianity in the 5th century brought about a period of cultural and political change as the pagan religions of the Celts were replaced with Christianity. The incursions of the Viking people from the 8th century onwards had a far-reaching impact on the people of Britain, with the Norsemen bringing with them new language, customs, technology and warfare techniques.
The coming of the Normans in the 11th century to Britain saw the Norman conquest of England and eventual assimilation of the Celts into English culture. The Norman aristocracy established a feudal system of their own, one that was enforced similarly in Wales and Scotland. This ushered in a new era of land enclosures and population growth in many parts of Britain.
Though the indigenous people of Britain have been assimilated, remnants of their culture and heritage still remain. Celtic languages and customs are still observed in pockets of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, as is traditional music and festivals. There are still various archaeological sites that document the presence of the ancient Celts in Britain.
The indigenous people of Britain have left behind a lasting legacy, from their language and technology to their personal beliefs, that have been woven into the fabric of Britain’s culture and identity today.
