Ancient Roman Praenomina: Roman Naming Conventions, Praenomen, Marcus, Lucius, Flavius, Appius, Caeso, Opiter, Decimus, Gaius, Tullus, Octavius

Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Pages: 30. Chapters: Roman naming conventions, Praenomen, Marcus, Lucius, Flavius, Appius, Caeso, Opiter, Decimus, Gaius, Tullus, Octavius, Agrippa, Sertor, Postumus, Aulus, Quintus, Mamercus, Tiberius, Mettius, Spurius, Septimus, Proculus, Titus, Numerius, Sextus, Volesus, Servius, Vibius, Gnaeus, Faustus, Paullus, Hostus, Manius, Vopiscus, Nonus, Publius, Statius, Aquilinus, Kaeso. Excerpt: The praenomen (literally forename, plural praenomina) was a personal name chosen by the parents of a Roman child. It was first bestowed on the dies lustricus (day of lustration), the eighth day after the birth of a girl, or the ninth day after the birth of a boy. The praenomen would then be formally conferred a second time when girls married, or when boys assumed the toga virilis upon reaching manhood. Although it was the oldest of the tria nomina commonly used in Roman naming conventions, by the late republic, most praenomina were so common that most people were called by their praenomina only by family or close friends. For this reason, although they continued to be used, praenomina gradually disappeared from public records during imperial times. Although both men and women received praenomina, women's praenomina were frequently ignored, and they were gradually abandoned by many Roman families, though they continued to be used in some families and in the countryside. The tria nomina, consisting of praenomen, nomen, and cognomen, which is today regarded as a distinguishing feature of Roman culture, first developed and spread throughout Italy in pre-Roman times. Most of the people of Italy spoke languages belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European language family; the three major groups within the Italian peninsula were the Latin branch, including the tribes of the Latini (Latins), who formed the core of the early Roman populace, and their...