Ancasta is a Celtic goddess worshiped in Britain. We know of her from a single inscription found in what was once the Roman settlement of Clausentum (now Bitterne, near Southhampton in the UK) near the River Itchen. The name Ancasta may mean “sacred” or “holy”, or possibly “swift.” She is likely to be a local goddess, perhaps associated with the river.

Myth
Unknown.

Cult
Unknown.

Etymology
The meaning of the word “Ancasta” is uncertain, but it may have been derived from *kad(j)o or “sacred”.

Alternatively, it may have come from *kasto, “fast, swift” in Proto-Celtic, which might relate to the flow of the nearby river.

Region
Ancasta is known only from one inscription, discovered at Clausentum in Roman Britain (now Bitterne near Southhampton), near the River Itchen. map

Literary evidence
Unknown

Archaeological evidence
Bitterne, England