The Latin name "Germania" means "land of the Germani", but the etymology of the name "Germani" itself is uncertain. During the Gallic Wars of the 1st century BC, the Roman general Julius Caesar encountered peoples originating from beyond the Rhine. He referred to these people as Germani and their lands beyond the Rhine as Germania. In subsequent years, the Roman emperor Augustus sought to expand across the Rhine towards the Elbe, but these efforts were hampered by the victory of Arminius at the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest in 9 AD. The prosperous provinces of Germania Superior and Germania Inferior, sometimes collectively referred to as "Roman Germania", were subsequently established in northeast Roman Gaul, while territories beyond the Rhine remained independent of Roman control.