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The Dexivates (Gaulish: Dexiuates) were a small Gauls tribe dwelling in the southern part of modern Vaucluse, near the present-day village of Cadenet, during the Iron Age and the Roman Empire.
The Gaulish language ethnonym Dexiuates derives from the stem deksiu(o)- ('on the right, in the south, favourable'). A local goddess is also attested as Dexiua (Dea) or Dexsiua. The name Dexivates thus either means 'those who live in the south' (i.e. 'the Southerners'), or 'those of the goddess Dexiua' (i.e. 'Worshippers of Dexiua'), whose name could be translated as 'she who is on the right / in the south', whence 'the Favourable'.
Built in the 3rd–2nd century BC, the oppidum of Castellar de Cadenet (modern Cadenet) was probably the chief town of the Dexivates. The site was occupied until at least the 3rd century AD. Another Protohistory oppidum was located in the , built in the Middle Ages on a former Gallic site. The countryside was densely populated, with 38 rural sites identified from the Roman period.
Dexiua is also associated once with the Caudellenses, which was probably a collective designation for the local deities of Cadenet, or else for its inhabitants:
Two inscriptions dedicated to the native god Lanovalus were found near a mountain stream called Laval (≈ Lavar), whose name is related to the deity. Lanovalus has been interpreted as a healing god in the context of a water-related cult. His name literally means 'Full Prince' (i.e. 'All-Powerful'), stemming from the Gaulish root lano- ('full') attached to the word ualos ('ruler, prince'). An altar dedicated to Iuppiter Optimus Maximus is also known from the castle of Cadenet.
Several representations of a human foot engraved on stelae are known from Castellar and its vicinity. Two conflicting interpretations have been proposed: a votive function (e.g. a mark let by pilgrims, or the foot of a divinity), or, more likely, a funerary function, by comparing with similar sites from southern Gaul.
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