Roman histories speak of two groups of Gaulish Celtic priestesses—the ninefold Gallizenae (Pomponeus Mela, 1st century CE) and the Namnitae (Strabo, after Posidonius, 1st century BCE)—dwelling in isolation on Holy Islands off the coast of France. Their cloistered collectivity, their possession of a variety of powers and skills, their service to their people even in their isolation, the necessity of undertaking a perilous journey to consult with them, bear similarities to Ninefold Sisterhoods found in later lore.