Regionarius, plural Regionarii, is the title given in later Antiquity and the early

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

to those clerics and officials of the

Church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

who were attached neither to the

Papal Palace Palace of the Popes may refer to: * Apostolic Palace, Vatican City State – the pope's residence since the return from Avignon in 1377 * ''Domus Sanctae Marthae'', Vatican City – also known as Saint Martha's House, the Vatican hotel where Pope ...

or ''patriarchium'', nor to the

titular church In the Catholic Church, a titular church is a church in Rome that is assigned to a member of the clergy who is created a cardinal. These are Catholic churches in the city, within the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Rome, that serve as honorary des ...

es of Rome, but to whom one of the city regions, or wards, was assigned as their official district. For internal administration, the city of Rome was a divided by the Emperor

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 ...

into fourteen regions. An ecclesiastical division into seven regions developed from the fourth century, evidently in connection with the seven Roman

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

s, that gradually replaced the earlier civil divisions. Many branches of the ecclesiastical administration were arranged in accordance with the seven regions — especially the care of the poor, the maintenance of the churches, and whatever else pertained primarily to the office of the deacons, one of whom was appointed over each of the seven regions (''diaconus regionarius''). The deacons were assisted by seven subdeacons, each a . Notaries and employed in the administration of the regions were also known as and . There is also occasional mention of . Little is known about all their functions, as in general concerning the ecclesiastical administration in ancient Rome, in as far as it affected the regions.

Sources

* {{Catholic, wstitle=Regionarii Catholic ecclesiastical titles History of the Catholic Church