Editing Slovakia (section)

=== Iron Age ===
[[File:Boii Biatec 1st. cen BC 2940416.jpg|thumb|[[Biatec]], presumably a king, who appeared on the Celtic coins minted by the [[Boii]] at the current location of Bratislava, 1st century B.C.]]

==== Hallstatt Period ====
The arrival of tribes from [[Thrace]] disrupted the people of the Kalenderberg culture, who lived in the hamlets located on the plain ([[Sereď]]) and in the hill forts like Molpír, near [[Smolenice]], in the [[Little Carpathians]]. During Hallstatt times, monumental burial mounds were erected in western Slovakia, with princely equipment consisting of richly decorated vessels, ornaments and decorations. The burial rites consisted entirely of cremation. Common people were buried in flat urnfield cemeteries.

A special role was given to weaving and the production of textiles. The local power of the "Princes" of the [[Hallstatt culture|Hallstatt period]] disappeared in Slovakia during the century before the middle of first millennium BCE, after strife between the [[Scythians|Scytho]]-Thracian people and locals, resulting in abandonment of the old hill-forts. Relatively depopulated areas soon caught the interest of emerging [[Celts|Celtic]] tribes, who advanced from the south towards the north, following the Slovak rivers, peacefully integrating into the remnants of the local population.

==== La Tène Period ====
From around 500&nbsp;BCE, the territory of modern-day Slovakia was settled by [[Celt]]s, who built powerful ''[[oppida]]'' on the sites of modern-day [[Bratislava]] and [[Devín]]. [[Biatec]]s, [[silver coin]]s with inscriptions in the Latin alphabet, represent the first known use of writing in Slovakia. At the northern regions, remnants of the local population of Lusatian origin, together with Celtic and later Dacian influence, gave rise to the unique [[Púchov culture]], with advanced crafts and iron-working, many hill-forts and fortified settlements of central type with the coinage of the "Velkobysterecky" type (no inscriptions, with a horse on one side and a head on the other). This culture is often connected with the Celtic tribe mentioned in Roman sources as [[Cotini]].

==== Roman Period ====
[[File:Trencin-Roman2.JPG|thumb|A Roman inscription at the castle hill of [[Trenčín]] (178–179 AD)]]
From 2&nbsp;[[Common Era|CE]], the expanding [[Roman Empire]] established and maintained a series of outposts around and just south of the [[Danube]], the largest of which were known as [[Carnuntum]] (whose remains are on the main road halfway between [[Vienna]] and [[Bratislava]]) and [[Brigetio]] (present-day [[Szőny]] at the Slovak-Hungarian border). Such Roman border settlements were built on the present area of [[Rusovce]], currently a suburb of [[Bratislava]]. The military fort was surrounded by a civilian [[vicus]] and several farms of the [[villa rustica]] type. The name of this settlement was [[Gerulata]]. The military fort had an auxiliary cavalry unit, approximately 300 horses strong, modelled after the [[Cananefates]]. The remains of Roman buildings have also survived in [[Stupava, Slovakia|Stupava]], [[Devín Castle]], Bratislava Castle Hill, and the Bratislava-[[Dúbravka, Bratislava|Dúbravka]] suburb.

Near the northernmost line of the Roman hinterlands, the [[Limes Romanus]], there existed the winter camp of [[Trenčín|Laugaricio]] (modern-day [[Trenčín]]) where the Auxiliary of Legion&nbsp;II fought and prevailed in a decisive battle over the Germanic [[Quadi]] tribe in 179&nbsp;CE during the [[Marcomannic Wars]]. The Kingdom of [[Vannius]], a kingdom founded by the [[Germanic peoples|Germanic]] [[Suebi]] tribes of [[Quadi]] and [[Marcomanni]], as well as several small Germanic and [[List of Celtic tribes|Celtic tribes]], including the Osi and [[Cotini]], existed in western and central Slovakia from 8–6&nbsp;BCE to 179&nbsp;CE.