Abstract
The article evaluates critically a theory searching for the impulse for the emergence of late La Tène opppida in the north Italian region of Emilia Romagna, where the Celtic tribe of Boii is reported to have dwelt in the 4th - early 2nd centuries B.C. After summarising both written and archeological sources for the period and region in question, its interpretation is approached in light of this evidence and subsequently of discussions on the problem which are taking place in Italian archaeology.
The theory is found to be insufficiently backed by both written sources and by archaeological evidence.