Editing Vestini (section)

==History==

===The period of Vestinian sovereignty===
A Vestini sculpture, the [[Warrior of Capestrano]], dating from the 6th century BC, was found in [[Capestrano]], [[province of L'Aquila]]; it represents the King of Vestini tribe, Naevius Pompuledius, and was made by the sculptor Aninis.

The tribe entered into the [[ancient Rome|Roman alliance]], retaining its own independence, in 302 BC, and issuing coins of its own in the following century. A northerly section round Amiternum near the passes into Sabine country probably received the Caerite franchise soon after. In spite of this, and of the influence of Hadria, modern [[Atri, Italy|Atri]], a Latin colony founded about 290 BC,<ref>
{{harvnb|Conway|1911}} cites: [[Livy]], ''Epit.'' xi.</ref> the local dialect, which belongs to the north [[Oscan]] group, survived certainly to the middle of the 2nd century BC (see the inscriptions cited below) and probably until the [[Social War (91–88 BC)|Social War]].{{sfn|Conway|1911}}

===Romanization===
The oldest Latin inscriptions of the district are [[Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum|C.I.L.]] ix. 3521, from [[Furfo]] with [[Sulla]]n alphabet, and 3574, "{{lang|la|litteris antiquissimis}}," but with couraverunt, a form which, as intermediate between {{lang|la|coir-}} or {{lang|la|coer-}} and {{lang|la|cur-}}, cannot be earlier than 100 BC. The latter inscription contains also the forms {{lang|la|magisterles}} (nom. p1.) and {{lang|la|ueci}} (gen. sing.), which show that the Latin first spoken by the Vestini was not that of [[Rome]], but that of their neighbours the [[Marsi]] and [[Aequi]]. The inscription of Scoppito shows that at the time at which it was written the upper ''Aternus'' valley must be counted Vestine, not Sabine in point of dialect.
{{sfn|Conway|1911}}