The gens Gavia, or occasionally Gabia, was a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

family of plebeian descent. It first appears in history during the first century BC, but none of its members obtained any of the curule magistracies until imperial times. The Gavi Arch at

Verona Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city municipality in the region and the second largest in nor ...

was built in honor of one of the Gavii.

Origin

As a nomen, ''Gavius'' is a patronymic surname, derived from the praenomen ''Gavius''. In historical times, this praenomen was used by the Oscan-speaking peoples of central and southern Italy, suggesting that the Gavii were originally of

Sabine The Sabines (; lat, Sabini; it, Sabini, all exonyms) were an Italic people who lived in the central Apennine Mountains of the ancient Italian Peninsula, also inhabiting Latium north of the Anio before the founding of Rome. The Sabines di ...

or Samnite origin; one of the most famous persons with this praenomen was

Gavius Pontius Gaius Pontius (fl. 321 BC), sometimes called Gavius Pontius, was a Samnite commander (clan Varry/Varriani) during the Second Samnite War. He is most well known for his victory over the Roman legions at the Battle of the Caudine Forks in 321 BC. He ...

, a Samnite general during the

Second Samnite War The First, Second, and Third Samnite Wars (343–341 BC, 326–304 BC, and 298–290 BC) were fought between the Roman Republic and the Samnites, who lived on a stretch of the Apennine Mountains south of Rome and north of the Lucanian tribe. ...

. But as with other patronymic surnames, there may originally have been several unrelated families bearing the same nomen, and some of these could also have been of

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

origin; ''Gavius'' is thought to be the original form of ''

Gaius Gaius, sometimes spelled ''Gajus'', Kaius, Cajus, Caius, was a common Latin praenomen; see Gaius (praenomen). People * Gaius (jurist) (), Roman jurist *Gaius Acilius *Gaius Antonius *Gaius Antonius Hybrida *Gaius Asinius Gallus *Gaius Asinius P ...

'', one of the most common praenomina in every period of Roman history. That name is derived from an ancient root meaning "to rejoice". As it is impossible to distinguish between different families of Gavii with absolute certainty, all persons bearing this nomen are collected here.

Members

* Publius Gavius, an inhabitant of

Cosa Cosa was a Latin colony founded in southwestern Tuscany in 273 BC, on land confiscated from the Etruscans, to solidify the control of the Romans and offer the Republic a protected port. The Etruscan site (called ''Cusi'' or ''Cosia'') may have ...

, whom

Verres Gaius Verres (c. 120–43 BC) was a Roman magistrate, notorious for his misgovernment of Sicily. His extortion of local farmers and plundering of temples led to his prosecution by Cicero, whose accusations were so devastating that his defence adv ...

had crucified, on suspicion of aiding

Spartacus Spartacus ( el, Σπάρτακος '; la, Spartacus; c. 103–71 BC) was a Thracian gladiator who, along with Crixus, Gannicus, Castus, and Oenomaus, was one of the escaped slave leaders in the Third Servile War, a major slave uprisin ...

. * Titus Gavius Caepio, described by

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the esta ...

as a wealthy aristocrat. During the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, his son was a

military tribune A military tribune (Latin ''tribunus militum'', "tribune of the soldiers") was an officer of the Roman army who ranked below the legate and above the centurion. Young men of Equestrian rank often served as military tribune as a stepping stone ...

under

Bibulus Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus (c. 102 – 48 BC) was a politician of the Roman Republic. He was a plodding conservative and upholder of the established social order who served in several magisterial positions alongside Julius Caesar and conceived a ...

in Syria. * Lucius Gavius, an agent of

Brutus Marcus Junius Brutus (; ; 85 BC – 23 October 42 BC), often referred to simply as Brutus, was a Roman politician, orator, and the most famous of the assassins of Julius Caesar. After being adopted by a relative, he used the name Quintus Serv ...

Cappadocia Cappadocia or Capadocia (; tr, Kapadokya), is a historical region in Central Anatolia, Turkey. It largely is in the provinces Nevşehir, Kayseri, Aksaray, Kırşehir, Sivas and Niğde. According to Herodotus, in the time of the Ionian Re ...

when Cicero was

proconsul A proconsul was an official of ancient Rome who acted on behalf of a consul. A proconsul was typically a former consul. The term is also used in recent history for officials with delegated authority. In the Roman Republic, military command, or ...

Cilicia Cilicia (); el, Κιλικία, ''Kilikía''; Middle Persian: ''klkyʾy'' (''Klikiyā''); Parthian: ''kylkyʾ'' (''Kilikiyā''); tr, Kilikya). is a geographical region in southern Anatolia in Turkey, extending inland from the northeastern coa ...

, from 51 to 50 BC. At Brutus' request, Cicero offered Gavius a

prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect's ...

ure, but found him very disrespectful, and referred to him as

Clodius Clodius is an alternate form of the Roman '' nomen'' Claudius, a patrician ''gens'' that was traditionally regarded as Sabine in origin. The alternation of ''o'' and ''au'' is characteristic of the Sabine dialect. The feminine form is Clodia. R ...

' dog. He may be the same person as the Gavius of Firmum previously mentioned by Cicero. *

Gavius Bassus The gens Gavia, or occasionally Gabia, was a Roman family of plebeian descent. It first appears in history during the first century BC, but none of its members obtained any of the curule magistracies until imperial times. The Gavi Arch at Ver ...

, a Latin grammarian in the time of

. * Gavius Silo, an orator heard by

Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pr ...

in 26 BC, according to Seneca the Elder. * Gaius Gavius C. f. Macer, quaestor in AD 19. * Marcus Gavius (or Gabius) Apicius, a celebrated gourmand during the reign of

Tiberius Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus (; 16 November 42 BC – 16 March AD 37) was the second Roman emperor. He reigned from AD 14 until 37, succeeding his stepfather, the first Roman emperor Augustus. Tiberius was born in Rome in 42 BC. His father ...

, he squandered his fortune in the pursuit of new culinary horizons, and became the subject of numerous anecdotes and proverbs. * Gavius or Gabius Bassus, a grammarian, whose ''Commentarii'' and ''Origine Verborum et Vocabulorum'' were cited by Aulus Gellius. He is probably the same Gavius who was the author of ''De Diis'', discussed by Macrobius, and may have authored the ''Satirae'' quoted by

Fabius Planciades Fulgentius Fabius Planciades Fulgentius () was a Latin writer of late antiquity. Four extant works are commonly attributed to him, as well as a possible fifth which some scholars include in compilations with much reservation. His mythography was greatly admi ...

.''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'', vol. I, p. 473 ("Gavius or Gabius Bassus"). * Gavius Bassus,

of the Pontic coast during the reign of

Trajan Trajan ( ; la, Caesar Nerva Traianus; 18 September 539/11 August 117) was Roman emperor from 98 to 117. Officially declared ''optimus princeps'' ("best ruler") by the senate, Trajan is remembered as a successful soldier-emperor who presi ...

. Although sometimes identified with the grammarian, he is unlikely to have been the same person, as the grammarian related having seen the horse Sejanus, which had belonged to Publius Cornelius Dolabella,

Gaius Cassius Longinus Gaius Cassius Longinus (c. 86 BC – 3 October 42 BC) was a Roman senator and general best known as a leading instigator of the plot to assassinate Julius Caesar on 15 March 44 BC. He was the brother-in-law of Brutus, another leader of the co ...

, and Marcus Antonius, a century and a half earlier. * Gaius Gavius Silvanus, tribune under

Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68), was the fifth Roman emperor and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 unti ...

. * Quintus Gavius Atticus, consul ''suffectus'' in AD 73. * Marcus Gavius Squilla Gallicanus, consul in AD 127, was the father of Gallicanus and Orfitus, consuls in AD 150 and 165.Alföldy, p. 89, note 60. * Marcus Gavius M. f. Squilla Gallicanus, consul in AD 150. *

Marcus Gavius Maximus Marcus Gavius Maximus (died 156) was an '' eques'' of ancient Rome who held several imperial positions, both civil and military, under Hadrian and Antoninus Pius. Firmum in northern Italy is considered his hometown, confirmed by the fact that his ...

, Praetorian prefect under Antoninus Pius. * Marcus Gavius M. f. Orfitus, consul in AD 165. * Marcus Gavius M. f. Cornelius Cethegus, consul in AD 170. * Marcus Gavius Appalius Maximus, governor of

Lycia et Pamphylia Lycia et Pamphylia was the name of a province of the Roman empire, located in southern Anatolia. It was created by the emperor Vespasian (69–79), who merged Lycia and Pamphylia into a single administrative unit. In 43 AD, the emperor Claudius ...

from about 182 to 184.Rémy Bernard, ''Les carrières sénatoriales d'Anatolie'', p. 315. * Lucius Fulvius Gavius Numisius Petronius Aemilianus, consul in AD 206. * Lucius Fulvius Gavius Numisius Aemilianus, consul in AD 249.

References

{{reflist

Bibliography

Marcus Tullius Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the esta ...

, ''

In Verrem "In Verrem" ("Against Verres") is a series of speeches made by Cicero in 70 BC, during the corruption and extortion trial of Gaius Verres, the former governor of Sicily. The speeches, which were concurrent with Cicero's election to the aedileshi ...

'', ''

Epistulae ad Atticum ''Epistulae ad Atticum'' (Latin for "Letters to Atticus") is a collection of letters from Roman politician and orator Marcus Tullius Cicero to his close friend Titus Pomponius Atticus. The letters in this collection, together with Cicero's ot ...

''. * Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus ( Pliny the Younger), '' Epistulae''. * Aulus Gellius, ''Noctes Atticae'' (Attic Nights). *

Ambrosius Theodosius Macrobius Macrobius Ambrosius Theodosius, usually referred to as Macrobius (fl. AD 400), was a Roman provincial who lived during the early fifth century, during late antiquity, the period of time corresponding to the Later Roman Empire, and when Latin was ...

, ''Saturnalia''. * Fabius Planciades Fulgentius, ''Sermonum Antiquorum Explicatio'' (The Explanation of Antique Words). * ''

Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology The ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'' (1849, originally published 1844 under a slightly different title) is an encyclopedia/biographical dictionary. Edited by William Smith, the dictionary spans three volumes and 3,700 ...

'', William Smith, ed., Little, Brown and Company, Boston (1849). *

Theodor Mommsen Christian Matthias Theodor Mommsen (; 30 November 1817 – 1 November 1903) was a German classical scholar, historian, jurist, journalist, politician and archaeologist. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest classicists of the 19th centu ...

''et alii'', '' Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum'' (The Body of Latin Inscriptions, abbreviated ''CIL''), Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften (1853–present). * René Cagnat ''et alii'', ''

L'Année épigraphique ''L'Année épigraphique'' (''The Epigraphic Year'', standard abbreviation ''AE'') is a French publication on epigraphy (i.e the study of inscriptions or epigraphs as writing). It was set up by René Cagnat, as holder of the chair of 'Epigraphy an ...

'' (The Year in Epigraphy, abbreviated ''AE''), Presses Universitaires de France (1888–present). * George Davis Chase, "The Origin of Roman Praenomina", in ''Harvard Studies in Classical Philology'', vol. VIII (1897). * Anthony R. Birley, ''Marcus Aurelius'', revised ed., Routledge, London (1987). *

Géza Alföldy Géza Alföldy (June 7, 1935 – November 6, 2011) was a Hungarian historian of ancient history. Life Géza Alföldy was born in Budapest. He studied at the Faculty of Humanities of the University of Budapest from 1953 to 1958, where he i ...

, ''Konsulat und Senatorenstand unter den Antoninen'', Habelt Verlag, Bonn (1977). * Rémy Bernard
''Les carrières sénatoriales dans les provinces romaines d'Anatolie au Haut-Empire (31 av. J.-C. - 284 ap. J.-C.)''
("Senatorial Careers from the Roman Provinces of Anatolia during the High Empire (31 BC–AD 284"), Institut Français d'Études Anatoliennes-Georges Dumézil, Istanbul (1989). Roman gentes Roman gentes of Samnite origin

Origin

Members

See also

References

Bibliography