Marcus () is a Latin '' praenomen'', or personal name, which was one of the most common names throughout Roman history. The feminine form is ''Marca'' or ''Marcia''. The praenomen was used by both patrician and plebeian families, and gave rise to the patronymic '' gens Marcia'', as well as the ''

cognomen A ''cognomen'' (; plural ''cognomina''; from ''con-'' "together with" and ''(g)nomen'' "name") was the third name of a citizen of ancient Rome, under Roman naming conventions. Initially, it was a nickname, but lost that purpose when it became here ...

Marcellus''. It was regularly abbreviated M.''Dictionary of Greek & Roman Biography & Mythology''''Realencyclopädie der Classischen Altertumswissenschaft''Mika Kajava, ''Roman Female Praenomina: Studies in the Nomenclature of Roman Women'' (1994) At all periods of Roman history, Marcus was the third-most popular praenomen, trailing only ''Lucius'' and ''Gaius''. Although many prominent families did not use it, it was a favorite of countless others. The name survived the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...

and has continued to be used, in various forms, into modern times.

Origin and meaning of the name

The praenomen Marcus is generally conceded to be derived from the name of the god

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...

. It has been proposed that it was originally given to children who were born in the month of ''Martius'' (March), which was itself named in honor of the god Mars. The feminine form of Marcus should be ''Marca''. However, surviving examples indicate that ''Marcia'', with an "i", was more common. The same was true of the praenomen ''Tita'' or ''Titia''. The Etruscan form of this praenomen is ''Marce''.

Jacques Heurgon Jacques Heurgon (25 January 1903 – 27 October 1995) was a French university, normalian, Etruscan scholar and Latinist, professor of Latin language and literature at the Sorbonne. Married to Anne Heurgon-Desjardins, founder in 1952, of the Ce ...

, ''Daily Life of the Etruscans'' (1964)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marcus (Praenomen) Ancient Roman praenomina Theophoric names

Origin and meaning of the name

See also

References