The name
Ialonus, which may have designated a god of clearing, derives from the Celtic stem
ialo(n)- ('cleared place, clearing'; cf. Middle Welsh
ial 'clearing',
an-ial 'wasteland'). The stem
ialon- also had the meaning 'village' in
Gaulish. In the words of
Xavier Delamarre, "In forest-covered Gaul, a village was essentially established by clearing a wood." The name
Contrebis is based on the prefix
con- ('with, together') attached to the root
-treb- ('settlement'; cf. Old Irish
treb, Middle Welsh
tref, Old Breton
treff 'town, dwelling-place'). It can be compared with the
Celtiberian place name
Contrebia, meaning 'conurbation'. == Cult ==