Enfants abandonnés gaulois et la souche Lēp-, Lip-, Lippo-, Lēp-ont-

A recurring onomastic root in Gaulish naming, *leikw-, meaning 'to leave or abandon,' has been identified through inscriptions from North Africa. This root forms themes like Lipo-, Lepont-, and Laepo- in names such as Maculipus (from Mactar) and Maportulip(us) (from Dougga), suggesting they refer to abandoned children, likely exposed infants. The study proposes these names were given by Gaulish-speaking communities, possibly demobilized soldiers settled in the region, linking them to ancient practices of child exposure.

Delamarre, X. (2019). Enfants abandonnés gaulois et la souche Lēp-, Lip-, Lippo-, Lēp-ont-. Etudes Celtiques, 45(1), 45–49. https://doi.org/10.3406/ecelt.2019.2499