The Hesperia project began in 1997 under the direction of Professor Javier de Hoz at the Complutense University in Madrid. Since then a growing number of different researchers from a number of universities throughout the Iberian Peninsula, especially the Complutense University itself, the University of the Basque Country, the University of Barcelona, the University of Zaragoza and the University of Lisbon have also taken part in the project.
The HESPERIA Palaeohispanic Languages Database is the result of successive research projects funded by the Ministry of Science and Research, especially the inter-university projects carried out in the latest research period: FFI2015-63981-C3-1-P “Hesperia: Palaeohispanic Languages, Epigraphy and Onomastics” in which researchers from the University of the Basque Country (EHU), the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) and the University of Zaragoza (UZ) took part.
During this inter-university research project, the Celtiberian and Lusitanian were completed, as well as the Iberian inscriptions from the south of France and eastern Spain, corresponding with zones K, L, B, E, F and G respectively, according to the Untermann’s classification (MLH). Added to this was the publication of Palaeohispanic coin legends (letter A in Untermann’s classification) and indigenous personal names of Hispania of Indoeuropean origin. At the same time, the database was provided with an important graphic element, as well as advanced computer resources, among which the capacity to generate maps from any selection of data stands out. The results of all this are now available online. Before the completion of this project it will also be possible to view the remaining epigraphic zones, albeit with a more limited amount of information.
Furthermore, this project, which combines complimentary disciplines, such as Linguistics, Epigraphy and Ancient History aims to deepen our understanding of several linguistic and epigraphic aspects. The most important of which are: