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Bernicia was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom established by Anglian settlers of the 6th century in what is now the South-East of Scotland, and the North-East of England. The Anglian territory of Bernicia was approximately equivalent to the modern British counties of Northumberland, Durham, Berwickshire and East Lothian, stretching from the Forth to the Tees. In the early 7th century, it merged with its southern neighbour, Deira, to form the kingdom of Northumbria and its borders subsequently expanded considerably. Bernicia is mentioned in Old Welsh poetry, in the writings of Nennius and elsewhere under the name of Bryneich or Brynaich. It is not quite clear whether this is simply supposed to represent a Welsh version of Bernicia, or was the name of a preceding Brythonic kingdom. However, the name seems to derive from the Brythonic word Bernicca meaning ‘land of mountain passes’, so the latter hypothesis would appear to be correct. This Brythonic kingdom was formed from what had once been the southern lands of the Votadini, possibly as part of the division of a supposed ‘great northern realm’ of Coel Hen in c. AD 420. This northern realm is referred to by Welsh scholars as Yr Hen Ogledd or, literally, "The Old North". The kingdom may have been ruled from the site that later became the English Bamburgh, which certainly features in Welsh sources as Din Guardi. Near this high-status residence lay the island of Lindisfarne (formerly known, in Welsh, as Ynys Metcaut), which became the seat of the Bernician bishops. It is unknown when the Angles finally conquered the whole region, but around 604 is likely.
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