The Gabali dwelled in the
Gévaudan region, on the north-western foot of the Cevennes. Their territory was located south of the
Arveni, and north of the
Ruteni. The territory of the Gabali broadly corresponded to the later medieval Gévaudan, the
bishopric of Mende, and subsequently to the modern department of
Lozère, whose boundaries remained largely similar. The only oppidum large enough to have served as the Gabalic chief town is
Saint-Bonnet-de-Chirac, located about 20 km from Javols. However, finds at Javols indicate occupation in the 2nd–1st centuries BC, and a possible 1st-century BC sanctuary suggests pre-Roman activity, contradicting the idea of an
ex nihilo Roman foundation. During the Roman period, their chief town was
Anderitum (present-day
Javols), mentioned as
Anderedon by
Ptolemy in the 2nd century AD. Toward the end of the 3rd century, Anderitum abandoned its original Celtic and became known generically as
ad Gabalos ('the town of the Gabali'). The date of the foundation of the Gallo-Roman town remains uncertain. The settlement expanded significantly from the mid-1st century AD and reached its greatest extent in the 2nd century. From the early 3rd century onward, construction declined and peripheral areas were gradually abandoned, followed by the progressive desertion of the valley centre. By the 5th–6th centuries, occupation had shifted to several smaller, clustered settlements on the valley margins, broadly resembling the modern pattern. == History ==