Editing Cimbri (section)

===Supposed descendants===
According to [[Julius Caesar]], the Belgian tribe of the [[Atuatuci]] "was descended from the Cimbri and [[Teutons (Germanic tribe)|Teutoni]], who, upon their march into our province and Italy, set down such of their stock and stuff as they could not drive or carry with them on the near (i.e. west) side of the [[Rhine]], and left six thousand men of their company there as guard and garrison" (''Gall.'' 2.29, trans. Edwards). They founded the city of Atuatuca in the land of the [[Belgae|Belgic]] [[Eburones]], whom they dominated. Thus [[Ambiorix]] king of the Eburones paid tribute and gave his son and nephew as hostages to the Atuatuci (''Gall.'' 6.27). In the first century AD, the Eburones were replaced or absorbed by the Germanic [[Tungri]], and the city was known as Atuatuca Tungrorum, i.e. the modern city of [[Tongeren]].

The population of modern-day [[Himmerland]] claims to be the heirs of the ancient Cimbri. The adventures of the Cimbri are described by the Danish Nobel Prize–winning author [[Johannes Vilhelm Jensen|Johannes V. Jensen]], himself born in Himmerland, in the novel ''Cimbrernes Tog'' (1922), included in the epic cycle ''Den lange Rejse'' (English ''[[The Long Journey]]'', 1923). The so-called Cimbrian bull ("[[Cimbrian Bull|Cimbrertyren]]"), a sculpture by [[Anders Bundgaard]], was erected on 14 April 1937 in a central town square in [[Aalborg]], the capital of the [[Region Nordjylland|region of North Jutland]].

A German ethnic minority speaking the [[Cimbrian language]], having settled in the mountains between Vicenza, Verona, and Trento in Italy (also known as [[Sette Comuni|Seven Communities]]), is also called the [[:it:Cimbri (minoranza linguistica)|''Cimbri'']]. For hundreds of years this isolated population and its present 4,400 inhabitants have claimed to be the direct descendants of the Cimbri retreating to this area after the Roman victory over their tribe. However, it is more likely that Bavarians settled here in the Middle Ages. Most linguists remain committed to the hypothesis of a medieval (11th to 12th century AD) immigration to explain the presence of small German-speaking communities in the north of Italy.<ref>James R. Dow: ''Bruno Schweizer's commitment to the Langobardian thesis''. In: Thomas Stolz (Hrsg): ''Kolloquium über Alte Sprachen und Sprachstufen. Beiträge zum Bremer Kolloquium über "Alte Sprachen und Sprachstufen". (= Diversitas Linguarum, Volume 8)''. Verlag Brockmeyer, Bochum 2004, {{ISBN|3-8196-0664-5}}, S. 43–54.</ref> Some genetic studies seem to prove a Celtic, not Germanic, descent for most inhabitants in the region<ref>{{cite journal | pmid = 11436126 | doi=10.1038/sj.ejhg.5200643 | volume=9 | title=Haemochromatosis gene mutations in a clustered Italian population: evidence of high prevalence in people of Celtic ancestry | journal=Eur J Hum Genet | pages=445–51 | last1 = Pozzato | first1 = G | last2 = Zorat | first2 = F | last3 = Nascimben | first3 = F | last4 = Gregorutti | first4 = M | last5 = Comar | first5 = C | last6 = Baracetti | first6 = S | last7 = Vatta | first7 = S | last8 = Bevilacqua | first8 = E | last9 = Belgrano | first9 = A | last10 = Crovella | first10 = S | last11 = Amoroso | first11 = A| year=2001 | issue=6 | doi-access = free }}</ref> that is reinforced by Gaulish toponyms such as those ending with the suffix ''-ago'' < Celtic ''-*ako(n)'' (e.g. [[Asiago]] is clearly the same place name as the numerous variants – [[Azay-le-Rideau|Azay]], [[Aisy]], [[Aze (disambiguation)|Azé]], [[Ézy-sur-Eure|Ezy]] – in France, all of which derive from ''*Asiacum'' < Gaulish ''*Asiāko(n)''). On the other hand, the original place names in the region, from the specifically localized language known as 'Cimbro' are still in use alongside the more modern names today. These indicate a different origin (e.g., Asiago is known also by its original Cimbro name of ''Sleghe''). The Cimbrian origin myth was popularized by humanists in the 14th century.{{Citation needed|date=October 2018}}

Despite these connections to southern Germany, belief in a Himmerland origin persisted well into modern times.  On one occasion in 1709, for instance, [[Frederick IV of Denmark]] paid the region's inhabitants a visit and was greeted as their king. The population, which kept its independence during the time of the Venice Republic, was later severely devastated by [[World War I]]. As a result, many Cimbri have left this mountainous region of Italy, effectively forming a worldwide diaspora.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Haselgrove and Wigg-Wolf |first1=Colin and David |title=Iron Age coinage and ritual practices |date=2005 |publisher=Von Zabern |page=162 |isbn=978-3-8053-3491-4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oEVmAAAAMAAJ&q=diaspora |access-date=29 April 2019}}</ref>