Transcaucasia, like the entire Caucasus, is an important geopolitical region, which from ancient times was a link between the countries of East and West and was located at the crossroads of trade routes between the Near and Middle East and Europe, migration waves, armies of conquerors who sought to seize the ancient and medieval states of Transcaucasia .
The trade and cultural ties of these states with each other and with the neighboring countries of Europe and the East - Iran, India, China, etc. were wide.
Here in the IX-VI centuries BC. e. there was one of the oldest states in the world - Urartu, covering during the period of its power the entire Armenian Highlands, and closer to our era - the Kingdom of Colchis, Caucasian Albania. From ancient civilizations remained masterpieces of architecture, outstanding literary monuments.
The presence of fertile land, water resources and mild climate contributed to the creation of a developed Agriculture- irrigated agriculture, pasture animal husbandry. Trade led to the development of crafts, the construction of cities, and the development of transport.
On the other hand, rich lands constantly attracted the attention of strong and warlike neighbors - at first it was the Roman Empire, then Byzantium, the Arabs. In the XIII - XV centuries - the Tatar-Mongols and Tamerlane. Then Transcaucasia became the object of rivalry between Persia (Iran) and Ottoman Empire(Turkey). The Middle Ages was a time of endless wars, genocide, slave trade, feudal strife and devastating campaigns of foreign conquerors. The southern neighbors treated Christians - Georgians and Armenians - especially cruelly. It was somewhat easier for the peoples who converted to Islam. Further development events could lead to virtually complete physical extermination of the Christian peoples of Transcaucasia. Under these conditions, joining Russia at the beginning of the 19th century contributed to the survival of the Transcaucasian peoples, to familiarize them with the values of European civilization.
Transcaucasia within the USSR
Over the past two centuries, the historical destinies of the Transcaucasian peoples have been closely connected with Russian Empire and then the USSR. The Soviet period in the history of Transcaucasia was marked by a significant rise in industry in the region, the strengthening of economic ties within the USSR, the leveling of the level of socio-economic development of the Transcaucasian republics, and an increase in educational level population, the creation of numerous national intelligentsia.
At the all-union level, the economic advantages that the Transcaucasus has - a high hydropower potential, the presence of deposits of iron and polymetallic ores, oil, opportunities for the development of resort and sanatorium economy, fruit growing and viticulture, winemaking, tea growing, pasture animal husbandry - were used.
At the same time, the level of development of the productive forces remained insufficient for the full use of human resources, especially in countryside, which led to the outflow of the population to the cities and beyond the boundaries of Transcaucasia; a significant share of the local economy was the shadow economy, which led to extremely high level corruption of the local Soviet, party and economic nomenklatura, law enforcement and judicial bodies; a system of clans was cultivated, distributing posts among themselves in the Soviet and economic hierarchy; There was a significant property stratification among the population.
The events of the late 1980s and early 1990s also demonstrated the failure of the so-called national policy CPSU, aimed at leveling the level of socio-economic development Soviet nations and the formation of a new community - the Soviet people. Liberalization political life and the development of glasnost led to a sharp rise in nationalism, for which the leadership of the republics was not ready. A chain reaction has begun: the emergence nationalist organizations and parties, Popular Fronts - putting forward political demands, including demands for independence - appeasement attempts, arrests, trials of nationalist leaders - protest demonstrations - use of armed violence by the authorities to disperse demonstrations (Tbilisi) - presenting demands for the exercise of the right declared in the constitutions to self-determination - thousands of refugees and displaced persons (Armenia - NKAR - Azerbaijan) - national pogroms, robberies, murders (Sumgayit, Baku, Nagorno-Karabakh) - use of armed forces to suppress pogroms - numerous civilian casualties - liquidation national autonomies(Abkhazia, South Ossetia, NKAR) - presentation of claims by local parliaments against the central leadership and accusations of inaction and / or support of one of the parties to the conflict - making decisions on secession from the USSR.
Transcaucasia after the collapse of the USSR
Events in Transcaucasia played an important role in the collapse of the Soviet Union. By that time, the power in the Transcaucasian republics was already in the hands of radical nationalist leaders, and after gaining independence, they also gained access to stockpiles of weapons in warehouses and military bases of the Transcaucasian Military District. Parts of the Soviet armed forces stationed here mainly consisted of the local population. To control complex military equipment (aviation, air defense, tanks), mercenaries were urgently recruited, including from Russia and Ukraine. Everything was ready for regional conflicts. 1992 - 1993 were marked by bloody conflicts between Azerbaijan, Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, Georgia and Abkhazia, Georgia and South Ossetia.
Azerbaijan is the only state in Transcaucasia that has managed to provide a more or less acceptable standard of living for its population at the expense of oil and gas fields that have not yet been fully developed and newly discovered. A significant part of foreign exchange earnings comes to the republic from numerous Azerbaijani citizens engaged in trade on Russian markets. Full swing the construction of the main export pipeline Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan is underway, which will provide Azerbaijan with an alternative access to the world markets for hydrocarbons. However, Azerbaijan does not control part of its territory - Nagorno-Karabakh and the areas between Nagorno-Karabakh and the border with Armenia.
Armenia is completely blocked and does not have its own transport outlets to the outside world. Railway through Georgia is blocked on the Georgian-Abkhazian border. The economy of the republic is in decline. The country has been in a state of war for the second decade.
Georgia has to solve a whole tangle of interrelated problems - the economy is destroyed, the resort Black Sea coast is inaccessible, the presence of several hundred thousand refugees from Abkhazia intensifies social tension in internal Georgia, peacekeepers support peace in Abkhazia and South Ossetia itself, the majority of the population of the rebellious provinces has Russian passports.
A region in Asia located south of the Main, or Dividing, Range of the Greater Caucasus. Transcaucasia includes most of the southern slope of the Greater Caucasus, the Colchis lowland and the Kura depression, the Karabakh mountains, the Armenian highlands, the Talysh mountains with the Lankaran lowland.
Within are located Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, as well as partially recognized Abkhazia and South Ossetia, the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. It borders on the north Russian Federation, in the south with Turkey and Iran. IN last years in international documents, the term "South Caucasus" has become widespread to designate Transcaucasia.
Climate.
and the nature of both parts of Transcaucasia are very different. Eastern Transcaucasia has a continental climate with little rainfall; Western Transcaucasia, on the contrary, has a maritime climate and is irrigated very plentifully. Many areas of Eastern Transcaucasia need artificial irrigation, while in Western Transcaucasia, on the contrary, some places suffer from excess moisture.
Story.
Transcaucasia is a geopolitical region separate from the Caucasus, from ancient times representing a link between the countries of East and West and located at the crossroads of trade routes between the Near and Middle East and Europe, migration waves, armies of conquerors who sought to seize the ancient and medieval states of Transcaucasia. The trade and cultural ties of these states with each other and with the neighboring countries of Europe and the East - Iran, India, China, etc. were wide. there was one of the oldest states in the world - Urartu, later Armenia, covering during the period of its power the entire Armenian Highlands, and closer to our era - the Kingdom of Colchis, Caucasian Albania (Agvank), Armenia. From ancient civilizations remained masterpieces of architecture, outstanding literary monuments.
The presence of fertile lands, water resources and a mild climate contributed to the creation of a developed agriculture - irrigated agriculture, pasture animal husbandry. Trade led to the development of crafts, the construction of cities, and the development of transport. On the other hand, rich lands constantly attracted the attention of strong and warlike neighbors - at first it was the Roman Empire, then Byzantium, the Arabs. IN XIII-XV centuries- Tatar-Mongols and Tamerlane. Then Transcaucasia became the object of rivalry between Persia (Iran) and the Ottoman Empire (Turkey). The Middle Ages was a time of endless wars, feudal strife and devastating campaigns of foreign conquerors. The southern neighbors treated Christians - Georgians and Armenians - especially cruelly. It was somewhat easier for the peoples who converted to Islam.
Further development of events could lead to the actual complete physical extermination of the Christian peoples of Transcaucasia. Under these conditions, joining Russia at the beginning of the 19th century contributed to the survival of the Transcaucasian peoples, to familiarize them with the values of European civilization.
The Soviet period in the history of Transcaucasia was marked by a significant rise in industry in the region, the strengthening of economic ties within the USSR, the leveling of the level of socio-economic development of the Transcaucasian republics, an increase in the educational level of the population, and the creation of a large national intelligentsia. At the same time, the level of development of productive forces remained insufficient for the full use of human resources, especially in rural areas, which led to an outflow of the population to cities and beyond the Transcaucasus.
The liberalization of political life and the development of glasnost in the late 1980s and early 1990s led to a sharp rise in nationalism, for which the leadership of the republics turned out to be unprepared. A chain reaction began, which eventually led to the decision to withdraw from the USSR. Events in Transcaucasia played an important role in the collapse of the Soviet Union. There were a number of bloody conflicts between Azerbaijan, Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, Georgia and Abkhazia, Georgia and South Ossetia.
Transcaucasia after the collapse of the USSR.
On this moment in Azerbaijan, a significant part of the foreign exchange income comes to the republic from the numerous citizens of Azerbaijan engaged in economic activities in Russia. The main export pipeline Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan has been built, which will provide Azerbaijan with an alternative access to the world hydrocarbon markets.
Armenia is experiencing difficulties in communicating with the outside world, being blocked by two neighboring countries- Azerbaijan and Turkey. The country has been in a state of war since the early 1990s. Georgia has to solve a whole tangle of interrelated problems - problems with the economy, the resort Black Sea coast of Abkhazia is inaccessible, in internal Georgia, social tension is aggravated by the presence of several hundred thousand refugees from Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
Influence of Transcaucasia on art.
At the end of III - beginning of IV century. in the western Transcaucasia - Armenia and Georgia - feudal relations developed, which was facilitated by the adoption of Christianity at the very beginning of the 4th century. Being politically dependent on Byzantine Empire and the Iranian state of the Sassanids, the peoples of Transcaucasia perceived the progressive elements of their culture. Along with this, the bright, distinctively developing culture of each of these peoples itself had an impact on the development of architecture. A particularly large contribution to world architecture was made in the IV-VII century. during the formation Eastern school Byzantine architecture, which was then strongly influenced by Transcaucasian architecture. During this era, the architecture of Armenia and Georgia developed in similar ways.
Plan:
- 1
Names of Roman citizens
- 1.1 Male names
- 1.1.1 Prenoman
- 1.1.2 Nomen
- 1.1.3 Cognomen
- 1.1.4 Agnomen
- 1.2 Women's names
- 1.1 Male names
- 2 Names of slaves
- 3 Freedmen's names
- 4 See also Literature
1. Names of Roman citizens
1.1. Male names
In classical times, a full Roman male name usually consisted of three components: a personal name, or prenomen ( praenomen), generic name, or nomen ( nomen), and an individual nickname or name of a branch of the genus, a cognomen ( cognomen).
1.1.1. Prenoman
The personal name was similar to the modern male name. The Romans used a small number of personal names (18 names from total 72); as a rule, they were of such ancient origin that in the classical era the significance of most of them was forgotten. In the inscriptions, personal names were almost always written in abbreviated form (1-3 letters).
Other personal names were rarely used and were usually written in full: Agrippa, Ancus, Annius, Aruns, Atta, Cossus, Denter, Eppius, Faustus, Fertor, Herius, Hospolis, Hostus, Lar, Marius, Mesius, Mettus, Minatius, Minius, Nero, Novius, Numa, Opiter, Opiavus, Ovius, Pacvius (Paquius), Paullus, Pescennius (Percennius), Petro, plancus, Plautus, pompo, Popidius, Postumus, Primus, Proculus, Retus, Salvius, Secundus, Sertor, Status, Servius, Tertius, Tirrus, Trebius, Tullus, Turus, Volero, Volusus, Vopiscus. personal name Pupus(boy) was used only in relation to children.
The boy received a personal name on the eighth or ninth day after birth. There was a tradition to give a personal name only to the four eldest sons, and ordinal numbers could serve as a personal name for the rest: Quintus(fifth, cf. old Russian. Pyatak), Sextus(sixth, compare Old Russian Shestak), Septimus (seventh, compare Old Russian Semak), Octavius (eighth, compare Old Russian Osmak), and Decimus (tenth). Over time, these names became common (that is, turned into personal ones), and as a result, a person bearing the name Sextus was not necessarily the sixth son in the family. As an example, we can recall the commander Sextus Pompey, the second son of a member of the first triumvirate of Gnaeus Pompey the Great, who fought Julius Caesar for a long time.
Often the eldest son received the father's prenomen. In 230 BC e. this tradition was enshrined by a decree of the senate, so that the personal name of the father began, as a rule, to pass to the eldest son. For example, the emperor Octavian Augustus, like his great-great-grandfather, great-grandfather, grandfather and father, bore the name Guy.
In some genera, a limited number of personal names were used. For example, the Cornelius Scipios had only Gnaeus, Lucius and Publius, the Claudii Neroes had only Tiberius and Decimus, the Domitii Ahenobarbs had only Gnaeus and Lucius.
The personal name of the criminal could be forever excluded from the genus to which he belonged; for this reason, the name Lucius was not used in the patrician family of the Claudians, and the name Mark was used in the patrician family of the Manlievs. By decree of the Senate, the name Mark was permanently excluded from the Antonian clan after the fall of the triumvir Mark Antony.
1.1.2. Nomen
and List of plebeian lineages ancient rome.
The family name was the name of the genus and corresponded, approximately, to the modern surname. Indicated in the form of an adjective male and ended in the classical era on -ius: Tullius- Tullius (from the genus Tulliev), Julius- Julius (from the genus Julius); in republican time there are also endings -is, -i. Generic names of non-Roman origin had different endings from those named.
In inscriptions, generic names are usually written in full; in imperial times, only the names of very famous families were abbreviated: Aelius - Ael., Antonius - Ant. or Anton., Aurelius - Avr., Claudius - Cl. or clavd., Flavius - fl. or Fla., Julius - I. or Ivl., Pompeius - Pomp., Valerius - Val., Ulpius - vlp.
The total number of generic names, according to Varro, reached a thousand. Most generic names are of such ancient origin that their meaning has been forgotten. Only a few have certain meaning: Asinius from asinus(donkey), Caelius from caecus(blind), caninius from canis(dog), Decius from decem(ten), Fabius from faba(bean), Nonius from nonus(ninth), Octavius from octavus(eighth), Ovidius from ovis(sheep), Porcius from porca(pig), Septimius from septimus(seventh), Sextius And Sextilius from sextus(sixth), Suillius from suilla(pork).
From the 1st century BC e., when the prerequisites for the transition from a republican form of government to autocracy appeared in Rome, the persons who seized the supreme power began to justify their rights to power by descent from ancient kings and heroes. Julius Caesar, for example, pointed out that his paternal family goes back to the gods: Jupiter - Venus - Aeneas - Yul - the Julius family, and on the mother to the kings: Marcia Rex descended from Anka Marcius (lat. rex- tsar).
1.1.3. cognomen
An individual nickname once given to one of the representatives of the genus often passed on to descendants and became the name of the family or a separate branch of the genus: cicero- Cicero, Caesar- Caesar. For example, the families of Scipio, Rufinus, Lentulus, etc. belonged to the Cornelian clan. The presence of a cognomen is not necessary, and in some plebeian clans (among the Marius, Antonius, Octavius, Sertorii, etc.), personal nicknames, as a rule, were absent. However, the absence of a cognomen was an exception to the rule, since many of the genera of Rome were of such ancient origin that each of them consisted of several branches.
Since the personal name of the father passed to the eldest son, in order to distinguish the son from the father, it was necessary to use a third name. In the inscriptions there are Lucius Sergius the First, Quintus Emilius the Second; in one inscription, the grandfather, son, and grandson are called Quintus Fulvius Rusticus, Quintus Fulvius Attian, and Quintus Fulvius Carisianus.
Cognomens arose much later than personal and generic names, so their meaning is clear in most cases. They can talk about the origin of the clan (the Fufis moved to Rome from the Campanian town of Cales and therefore had a cognomen Calenus), about memorable events (a cognomen appeared in the plebeian family of Muciev Scaevola(left-handed) after in 508 BC. e. during the war with the Etruscans, Gaius Mucius burned his hand on the fire of the brazier, which caused the enemies and their king Porsenna to tremble), about appearance ( Crassus- thick, Laetus- fat, Macer- thin, Celsus- high, Paullus- low, Rufus- ginger, Strabo- cross-eyed, Nasica- sharp-nosed, etc.), about the character ( Severus- cruel, Probus- honest, Lucro- glutton, etc.).
1.1.4. Agnomen
There were cases when one person had two nicknames, the second of which was called agnomen (lat. agnomen). The appearance of the agnomen is partly due to the fact that the eldest son often inherited all three of his father's names, and thus there were several people with the same names in the same family. For example, the famous orator Mark Tullius Cicero, the father and son, were also Mark Tullius Cicero.
Agnomen was most often a personal nickname in the event that the cognomen was hereditary. Sometimes a Roman received an agnomen for some special merit. Publius Cornelius Scipio in honor of the victory he won over Hannibal in Africa in 202 BC. e., became solemnly called African (lat. Africanus, cf. nicknames of Russian commanders - Alexander Nevsky, Dmitry Donskoy, Suvorov-Rymniksky, Potemkin-Tavrichesky). Lucius Aemilius Paullus got a nickname Macedonicus for the victory over the Macedonian king Perseus in 168 BC. e. The dictator Sulla himself added the agnomen to his name. Felix(happy) so its full name became Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix. Agnomen Felix from a personal nickname turned into a hereditary one (consul 52 AD. Faustus Cornelius Sulla Felix).
As a rule, members of ancient and noble families had agnomen, numbering many branches and cognomens. In such genera, the cognomen sometimes almost merged with the generic name and was used inseparably with it for the name of the genus. The well-known plebeian family of Caecilians ( Caecilii) had an ancient cognomen Metellus, whose value is forgotten. This cognomen, as it were, merged with the name of the genus, which became known as Caecilia Metella. Naturally, almost all members of this genus had an agnomen.
The patrician family of Cornelius had many branches. One of the members of this genus received the nickname Scipio(rod, stick), because he was the guide of his blind father and served him, as it were, instead of a staff. cognomen Scipio entrenched in his descendants, over time, Cornelia Scipio took a prominent place in their family and received agnomens. In the III century BC. e. Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio received the agnomen Asina(donkey) for bringing a donkey loaded with gold to the Forum as a pledge. The nickname Asina passed to his son Publius ( Publius Cornelius Scipio Asina). Another representative of the Korneliev Scipio received the nickname Nasica(sharp-nosed), which passed to his descendants and began to serve as the name of a branch of the genus, so that in the genus Cornelius, the Scipio Naziki stood out from the branch of the Scipios. Naturally, the Scipio Nazica received the third cognomen as an individual nickname, so that the full name could already consist of five names: Publius Cornelius Scipio Nasica Serapio, consul 138 BC. e.; nickname Serapio(from the Egyptian god Serapis) he was given by the people's tribune Curiatius for his resemblance to a dealer in sacrificial animals.
Some people had two generic names, it turned out as a result of adoption. According to Roman customs, the adopted person took the personal name, family name and cognomen of the one who adopted him, and kept his family name in a modified form with the suffix -an-, which took the place of the agnomen. Gaius Octavius, the future emperor Augustus, after his adoption by Gaius Julius Caesar received the name Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus- Gaius Julius Caesar Octavian.
1.2. Women's names
In late republican and imperial times, women did not have personal names, the female name was the feminine form of the generic name: Tullia- Tullia (from the Tullian clan, for example, daughter of Mark Tullius Cicero), Julia- Julia (from the Julius family, for example, daughter of Gaius Julius Caesar), Cornelia- Cornelia (from the Cornelian family, for example, daughter of Publius Cornelius Scipio). Since all women in the same clan had the same name, within the clan they differed in age. When another daughter appeared in the family, a prenomen was added to the name of both: Minor(younger) and Major(older); other sisters were called Secunda(second), Tertia(third), Quintilla(fifth), etc.; praenomen Minor was with the youngest.
A married woman retained her name, but her husband's cognomen was added to it: Cornelia, filia Cornelii, Gracchi- Cornelia, daughter of Cornelia, (wife) Gracchus.
Noble women could wear, in addition to the generic name, the cognomen of their father; for example, Sulla's wife was the daughter of Lucius Caecilius Metellus Dalmatica and was called Caecilia Metella, the wife of Emperor Augustus was the daughter of Mark Livius Drusus Claudian and was called Livia Drusilla.
In the inscriptions with the names of women, the prenomen and cognomen of the father are sometimes indicated, as well as the cognomen of the husband in the clan. case: Caeciliae, Q(uinti) Cretici f(iliae), Metellae, Crassi (uxori)- Caecilia Metella, daughter of Quintus Kretik, (wife) Crassus. From the inscription it follows that this woman was the daughter of Quintus Caecilius Metellus Kretikos and the wife of Crassus. The inscription was made on a large round mausoleum near Rome on the Appian Way, in which Caecilia Metella, daughter of the consul 69 BC, is buried. e., the wife of Crassus, presumably the eldest son of the triumvir Mark Licinius Crassus.
2. Names of slaves
In ancient times, slaves did not have individual names. Legally, slaves were considered the children of the master (more precisely, the slaves were not the subject of law, but the object of law, that is, they were the master's thing) and were just as deprived of rights as all members of the family. This is how the archaic slave names, composed of the personal name of the master, the father of the surname, and the word puer(boy, son): Gaipor, Lucipor, Marcipor, Publipor, Quintipor, Naepor (Gnaeus = Naeos + puer), Olipor (Olos- archaic form of personal name Aulus).
With the growth of slavery, there was a need for personal names for slaves. Most often, slaves retained the name they bore when they still lived as free people. Very often, Roman slaves had names of Greek origin: Alexander, Antigonus, Hippocrates, Diadumen, Museum, Felodespot, Philokal, Philonik, Eros, and others. Greek names were sometimes given to barbarian slaves.
The name of a slave could indicate his origin or place of birth: Dacus- Dacian, corinthus- Corinthian, Sir (born in Syria), Gallus (born in Gaul), Frix (from Phrygia); are found in the inscriptions slaves with the name Peregrinus- a foreigner.
Slaves were also given the names of mythical heroes: Achilles, Hector; names of plants or stones: Adamant, Sardonic, etc. Instead of a name, a slave could have the nickname “First”, “Second”, “Third”.
It is known that the slave share in Rome was very difficult, but this did not affect the names of the slaves, who do not have mocking nicknames. On the contrary, slaves have names Felix And Faustus(happy). Obviously, these nicknames, which became the name, were received only by those slaves whose life was relatively successful. The inscriptions mention: Faust, the baker of Tiberius Germanicus, and Faust, the head of the perfume shop of his master Popilius, Felix, who was in charge of the jewelry of Gaius Caesar, another Felix, the manager of the possessions of Tiberius Caesar, and another Felix, the overseer in the wool-weaving workshops of Messalina; the daughters of a slave from the house of the Caesars were called Fortunata and Felicia.
Slaves often have a name Ingenus or Ingenuus(freeborn). Slaves born into slavery have names Vitalio And Vitalis(living).
There were no firm rules regarding the names of slaves. Therefore, when buying a slave in an official document, his name was accompanied by a clause "or whatever other name he was called" (lat. sive is quo alio nomine est).
In the inscriptions after the name of the slave, the name of the master in the genitive case and the nature of the slave's occupation are indicated. After the name of the master is the word servus(slave) always abbreviated ser, very rarely s, it can also stand between two cognomens of the master; there is no strict word order. The word "slave" is often absent altogether; as a rule, slaves do not have it, owned by women. For example, Euticus, Aug(usti) ser(vus), pictor- Euthycus, slave of Augustus (imperial slave), painter, Eros, cocus Posidippi, ser(vus)- Eros, cook, Posidipp's slave, Idaeus, Valeriae Messalin(ae) supra argentum- Ideas, treasurer of Valeria Messalina.
The sold slave retained the generic name or cognomen of his former master in an altered form with the suffix -an-: Philargyrus librarius Catullianus- Philargir, a scribe bought from Catullus.
3. Freedmen's names
A freedman (that is, a slave who received freedom) acquired the personal and generic names of the former master, who became his patron, and retained his former name as a cognomen. So, the secretary of Cicero Tyro, freed from slavery, was called: M. tullius M. libertus Tiro- Mark Thulius, a freedman of Mark Tiron. A slave named Apella, set free by Mark Manney Primus, became known as Mark Manney Apella. The slave Bassa, released by Lucius Hostilius Pamphilus, received the name Hostilius Bassa (women did not have premen). Lucius Cornelius Sulla set free ten thousand slaves belonging to persons who died during proscriptions; they all became Lucius Cornelii (the famous "army" of ten thousand Cornelii).
The inscriptions often contain the names of imperial freedmen: the baker Gaius Julius Eros, the tailor theatrical costumes Tiberius Claudius Dipter, in charge of the triumphal white clothes of the emperor Marcus Cocceus Ambrosius, in charge of the hunting clothes of the emperor Mark Ulpiy Euphrosynus, in charge of the reception of the emperor's friends Marcus Aurelius Succession, etc.
In the inscriptions between the nomen and the cognomen of the freedman, the personal name of the master is abbreviated and stands l or lib (= libertus), a tribe is very rarely indicated: Q(uintus) Serto, Q(uinti) l(ibertus), Antiochus, colonus pauper- Quintus Sertorius Antiochus, freedman of Quintus, poor colonel. In rare cases, instead of the personal name of the former master, there is his cognomen: L(ucius) Nerfinius, Potiti l(ibertus), Primus, lardarius- Lucius Nerfinius Primus, freedman of Potitas, sausage maker. Freedmen of the imperial house are abbreviated in the inscriptions Avg l (Avg lib), i.e. Augusti libertus(after a generic name or after a cognomen): L(ucio) Aurelio, Aug(usti) lib(erto), Pyladi, pantomimo temporis sui primo- Lucius Aurelius Pylades, imperial freedman, the first pantomime of his time.
Rarely are freedmen with two cognomens: P(ublius) Decimius, P(ublii) l(ibertus), Eros Merula, medicus clinicus, chirurgus, ocularius- Publius Decimius Eros Merula, a freedman of Publius, general practitioner, surgeon, ophthalmologist.
Freedmen of women in inscriptions are indicated by the abbreviation Ɔ L(the inverted C is a remnant of an archaic female personal name Gaia): L(ucius) Crassicius, Ɔ (= mulieris) l(ibertus), Hermia, medicus veterinarius- Lucius Crassicius Hermia, woman's freedman, veterinarian.
The freedmen of the cities received the name Publicius(from publicus- public) or city name: Aulus Publicius Germanus, Lucius Saepinius Oriens et Lucius Saepinius Orestus- vacationers of the city of Sepina in Italy.
Doctors, servants of the deity Aesculapius (Greek Asclepius), usually bore his name. For example, Gaius Calpurnius Asclepiades is a doctor from Prusa near Olympus, who received Roman citizenship from Emperor Trajan. However, the name Asclepius, or Asklepiad, did not always belong to the doctor: in one inscription there is Asclepiades, Caesar's slave, a marble worker.
Freedmen of corporations retained their names in their names: Freedmen of the Corporation of Patchwork and Tailors ( fabri centonarii,
The topic of these names is extensive and you can delve into it for a very long time - naming traditions have changed over a millennium and a half, and each clan had its own quirks and customs. But I tried, and simplified it all for you in ten interesting points. I think you'll like:
1.
The classical name of a Roman citizen consisted of three parts:
The personal name, "prenomen", was given by the parents. It is similar to today's names.
The name of the genus, "nomen" - something like our surnames. Belonging to an old noble family meant a lot.
An individual nickname, "cognomen" - was often given to a person for some merit (not necessarily good), or was inherited.
For example, the most famous Roman, Gaius Julius Caesar, had Gaius as the prenomen, Julius as the nomen, and Caesar as the cognomen. At the same time, he inherited all three parts of his name from his father and grandfather, both of whom were called exactly the same - Gaius Julius Caesar. So "Julius" is not a name at all, but rather a surname!
2. In general, the inheritance by the eldest son of all the names of his father was a tradition. Thus, he also took over the status and titles of the parent, continuing his work. The rest of the sons, as a rule, were given other prenomens, so as not to confuse the children. As a rule, they were called the same as their father's brothers.
But they bothered only with the first four sons. If more were born, then the rest were simply called by number: Quintus (fifth), Sextus (sixth), Septimus (seventh), etc.
As a result, due to the continuation of this practice for many years, the number of popular prenomens narrowed down from 72 to a small handful of repeated names: Decimus, Gaius, Caeso, Lucius, Marcus, Publius, Servius and Titus were so popular that they were usually abbreviated with only the first letter. . Everyone immediately understood what it was about.
3. The society of Ancient Rome was clearly divided into plebeians and patricians. And although there were occasional cases of distinguished plebeian families achieving aristocratic status, a much more common method of social growth was adoption into a noble family.
This was usually done in order to prolong the lineage of an influential person, which means that the adopted person had to take on the name of the new parent. At the same time, his previous name turned into a nickname-cognomen, sometimes in addition to the existing cognomens of the adoptive father.
So, Gaius Julius Caesar adopted in his will his great-nephew, Gaius Octavius Furius, and he, having changed his name, began to be called Gaius Julius Caesar Octavian. (Later, as he seized power, he added a few more titles and nicknames.)
4. If a person did not inherit the cognomen from his father, then he spent the first years of his life without him, until he distinguished himself in some way from his relatives.
In the era of the late Republic, people often chose obsolete prenomens as cognomens. For example, at the dawn of the Roman state there was a popular prenomen "Agrippa". As the centuries passed, its popularity waned, but the name was revived as a cognomen among some influential families of the late Republican period.
A successful cognomen was fixed for many generations, creating a new branch in the family - this was the case with Caesar in the Julius family. Also, each family had its own traditions on the topic of which congnomens were appropriated by its members.
5. All Roman names had masculine and feminine forms. This extended not only to personal prenomens, but also to surnames-nomens, and nicknames-cognomens. For example, all women from the genus Julius were called Julius, and those who had the cognomen Agrippa were called Agrippins.
When marrying, a woman did not take her husband's nomen, so it was difficult to confuse her with other family members.
6. But personal names, prenomens, were rarely used by women of the late Republic. And the Cognomens too. Perhaps this was due to the fact that women did not take part in public life Rome, so distinguish them strangers there was no need. Be that as it may, most often, even in noble families, daughters were called simply female form his father's nomena.
That is, all the women in the Julius family were Julius. It was easy for parents to name their daughter, while others did not need it (until she got married). And if there were two daughters in the family, then they were called Yulia the Elder and Yulia the Younger. If three, then Prima, Second and Third. Sometimes the eldest daughter could be called "Maxima".
7. When a foreigner acquired Roman citizenship - usually at the end of his military service - he would generally take the name of his patron, or, if he was a freed slave, the name of his former master.
During the period of the Roman Empire, there were many cases when a huge number of people immediately became citizens by imperial decree. By tradition, they all took the name of the emperor, which caused considerable embarrassment.
For example, the Edict of Caracalla (this emperor got his cognomen from the name of the Gallic clothing - a long robe, the fashion for which he introduced) made all free people on its vast territory citizens of Rome. And all these new Romans accepted the imperial nomen Aurelius. Of course, after such actions, the meaning of these names greatly decreased.
8. Imperial names are generally something special. They than lived longer and the emperor ruled, the more names he typed. Basically, these were cognomens and their late variety, gnomenes.
For example, the full name of Emperor Claudius was Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus.
Over time, "Caesar Augustus" has already become not so much a name as a title - it was accepted by those who sought imperial power.
9. Beginning with the early empire, prenomens began to fall out of favor, and were by and large replaced by cognomens. This was partly due to the fact that there were few prenomens in everyday life (see paragraph 2), and family traditions more and more often they dictated the name of all sons by the prenomen of the father. Thus, from generation to generation, prenomen and nomen remained the same, gradually turning into a complex "surname".
At the same time, it was possible to roam on the congnomen, and after the 1st - 2nd centuries of our era, it was they who became real names in our understanding.
10. Beginning in the 3rd century AD, the prenomen and nomen in general began to be used less and less. This was partly due to the fact that a bunch of people with the same nomens appeared in the empire - people who massively received citizenship as a result of an imperial decree (see paragraph 7) and their descendants.
Since the cognomen had by this time become a more individual name, people preferred to use it.
The last documented use of the Roman nomen was in the early 7th century.
Today, Roman names are not very popular. This is partly due to the fact that most of them are forgotten, and their meaning is completely unclear. If you delve into history, then at the time of dawn, children and adults were given names throughout their lives, and later they turned into family names. The peculiarity of Roman names is of genuine interest to historians so far.
Name structure
In ancient times, people, just like now, the name consisted of three parts. Only if we are used to calling a person by his last name, first name and patronymic, then the Romans had slightly different features.
The first name in Roman sounded like a prenomen. It was similar to our Petya, Misha. There were very few such names - only eighteen. They were used only for men and were rarely pronounced, in writing they were often indicated by one or two capital letters. That is, no one wrote them completely. Few meanings of these names have survived to this day. Yes, and Appiev, Gnaeus and Quintes are difficult to find among children these days.
In fact, his name was Octavian, since he was adopted by the great emperor. But, having come to power, he missed the first three parts, and soon added the title of Augustus to his name (as a benefactor of the state).
Augustus Octavian had three daughters, Julia. Having no boy heirs, he had to adopt grandchildren, who were also called Julius Caesars. But since they were only grandchildren, they retained their names given at birth. So, the heirs of Tiberius Julius Caesar and Agripa Julius Caesar are known in history. They became famous for simple names Tiberius and Agripa, founding their families. Thus, there is a tendency to a decrease in the name and the disappearance of the need for parts of nomen and coglomen.
It is very easy to get confused in the abundance of generic names. Therefore, Roman names are the most difficult to recognize in the world.
