Marcus Tullius Tiro (died 4 BC) was first a
slave, then a
freedman, of
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 ...
from whom he received his
nomen and
praenomen. He is frequently mentioned in Cicero's letters. After Cicero's death Tiro published his former master's collected works of letters and speeches. He also wrote a considerable number of books himself, and is thought to have invented an early form of
shorthand
Shorthand is an abbreviated symbolic writing method that increases speed and brevity of writing as compared to longhand, a more common method of writing a language. The process of writing in shorthand is called stenography, from the Greek ''st ...
.
Life
The year of Tiro's birth is uncertain. Groebe, in the
''Realencyclopädie'', places it at 103 BC per a statement in
Jerome
Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian priest, confessor, theologian, and historian; he is co ...
that Tiro died in his hundredth year; this dating, however, is unlikely given that Cicero's letters imply that he was much younger. Moreover, because valuable slaves usually received their freedom within a few years, Kathryn Tempest in the ''Encyclopedia of Ancient History'', along with William McDermott in ''Historia'', place his birth .
There is no clear evidence of Tiro's parents or of his status as ''verna'' (slave born into a master's household). That said, he was probably ''verna'' and various scholars have speculated as to his birth parents. Groebe suggested he could have been born into Cicero's grandfather's household by a prisoner; others have suggested he could have been Cicero's son by a slave mistress, but this "should not be taken too seriously". Literary evidence of Tiro's activities grows, due to Cicero's letters, for Tiro's later life. Cicero frequently refers to Tiro in his letters (more than sixty such letters, with the whole 16th book of Cicero's letters to friends included). His duties included taking dictation, deciphering Cicero's handwriting and managing his table, as well as his garden and financial affairs.
Tiro's first appearance in the Ciceronean corpus is when Cicero seconded him to his brother
Quintus Tullius Cicero Quintus Tullius Cicero ( , ; 102 – 43 BC) was a Roman statesman and military leader, the younger brother of Marcus Tullius Cicero. He was born into a family of the equestrian order, as the son of a wealthy landowner in Arpinum, some south-east ...
to write political reports in 54 BC. Some date his manumission to this year, but it is more likely that he was
manumitted
Manumission, or enfranchisement, is the act of freeing enslaved people by their enslavers. Different approaches to manumission were developed, each specific to the time and place of a particular society. Historian Verene Shepherd states that ...
next year in April 53 BC. When Tiro was freed, with much celebration, he adopted Cicero's ''praenomen'' (''Marcus'') and ''nomen'' (''Tullius''); A letter from Cicero to Quintus describing the ceremony is lost, but letters from Quintus commending Cicero for his decision survive. It is possible that
Pompey
Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (; 29 September 106 BC – 28 September 48 BC), known in English as Pompey or Pompey the Great, was a leading Roman general and statesman. He played a significant role in the transformation of ...
was present in an official capacity.
Afterwards, he accompanied Cicero to
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 ...
during Cicero's governorship there. On his return from Cilicia in 51 BC, Tiro fell seriously ill; Cicero's letters show the strength of their friendship and how Cicero regularly wrote to check on Tiro's health. Many of Cicero's letters refer with concern to his illnesses.
Tiro not only assisted Cicero in secretarial work, but also helped to proofread manuscripts, supervise copyists, and also help in private and financial matters. In 47 BC, for example, Tiro managed the leasing out of Cicero's gardens in
Tusculum
Tusculum is a ruined Roman city in the Alban Hills, in the Latium region of Italy. Tusculum was most famous in Roman times for the many great and luxurious patrician country villas sited close to the city, yet a comfortable distance from Rome ( ...
, oversaw the provision of water to the villa, catalogued the books at Cicero's estate, and tried to reconcile Cicero's daughter
Tullia with her husband. He also was the point of contact for Cicero's financial matters: when Cicero divorced
Terentia
Terentia (; 98 BC – AD 6) was the wife of the renowned orator Marcus Tullius Cicero. She was instrumental in Cicero's political life both as a benefactor and as a fervent activist for his cause.
Family background
Terentia was born into a wea ...
, his friend
Titus Pomponius Atticus
Titus Pomponius Atticus (November 110 BC – 31 March 32 BC; later named Quintus Caecilius Pomponianus Atticus) was a Roman editor, banker, and patron of letters, best known for his correspondence and close friendship with prominent Roman s ...
wrote to Tiro about repayment of Terentia's
dowry
A dowry is a payment, such as property or money, paid by the bride's family to the groom or his family at the time of marriage. Dowry contrasts with the related concepts of bride price and dower. While bride price or bride service is a payment ...
.
He also pursued private ventures: letters to that effect describe such ventures in 44 BC, when he also bought a small farm probably near
Puteoli
Pozzuoli (; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Naples, in the Italian region of Campania. It is the main city of the Phlegrean Peninsula.
History
Pozzuoli began as the Greek colony of ''Dicaearchia'' ( el, Δικα ...
, where Jerome says he died in 4 BC in "his hundredth year".
Writings
After Cicero's death, Tiro published some of his patron's speeches and letters, along with a collection of jokes and a biography; scholars believe the biography was later used as a main source in the historical works of
Plutarch
Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for hi ...
,
Tacitus
Publius Cornelius Tacitus, known simply as Tacitus ( , ; – ), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historians by modern scholars.
The surviving portions of his two major works—the ...
, and
Aulus Gellius. He had started collecting and editing Cicero's correspondence by 46 or 45 BC. It seems Tiro also was a prolific writer himself: several ancient writers refer to works of Tiro, including a book on grammar.
Aulus Gellius says, "
ewrote several books on the usage and theory of the Latin language and on miscellaneous questions of various kinds," and quotes him on the difference between Greek and Latin names for certain stars.
Asconius Pedianus
Quintus Asconius Pedianus (BC 9 - AD 76) was a Roman historian. There is no evidence that Asconius engaged in a public career, but he was familiar both with Roman government of his time and with the geography of the city. He may, therefore, have w ...
, in his commentaries on Cicero's speeches, refers to a biography of Cicero by Tiro in at least four books, and
Plutarch
Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for hi ...
refers to him as a source for two incidents in Cicero's life.
He is credited with inventing the
shorthand
Shorthand is an abbreviated symbolic writing method that increases speed and brevity of writing as compared to longhand, a more common method of writing a language. The process of writing in shorthand is called stenography, from the Greek ''st ...
system of
Tironian notes
Tironian notes ( la, notae Tironianae, links=no) are a set of thousands of signs that were formerly used in a system of shorthand (Tironian shorthand) dating from the 1st century BCE and named after Tiro, a personal secretary to Marcus Tullius Ci ...
, later used by medieval monks, among others. There is no clear evidence that he did, although Plutarch credits Cicero's clerks as the first Romans to record speeches in shorthand.
[Plutarch, '']Cato the Younger
Marcus Porcius Cato "Uticensis" ("of Utica"; ; 95 BC – April 46 BC), also known as Cato the Younger ( la, Cato Minor), was an influential conservative Roman senator during the late Republic. His conservative principles were focused on the ...
'
23.3
/ref>
Tiro in fiction
* Tiro appears as a recurring character in Steven Saylor
Steven Saylor (born March 23, 1956) is an American author of historical novels. He is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, where he studied history and classics.
Saylor's best-known work is his '' Roma Sub Rosa'' historical myster ...
's ''Roma Sub Rosa
''Roma Sub Rosa'' is a series of historical mystery novels by Steven Saylor set in ancient Rome and therefore populated by famous historic roman citizens. The phrase "Roma Sub Rosa" means, in Latin, "Rome under the rose." If a matter was ''sub ros ...
'' crime fiction series, where he occupies the role of sometime sidekick to Saylor's investigator hero, Gordianus the Finder
''Roma Sub Rosa'' is a series of historical mystery novels by Steven Saylor set in ancient Rome and therefore populated by famous historic roman citizens. The phrase "Roma Sub Rosa" means, in Latin, "Rome under the rose." If a matter was ''sub ros ...
.
* He is the first-person narrator in the three books of Robert Harris's biographical-fiction trilogy of Cicero: ''Imperium
In ancient Rome, ''imperium'' was a form of authority held by a citizen to control a military or governmental entity. It is distinct from '' auctoritas'' and '' potestas'', different and generally inferior types of power in the Roman Republic a ...
'' (2006), ''Lustrum
A lūstrum (, plural lūstra) was a term for a five-year period in Ancient Rome.
It is distinct from the homograph ''lustrum'' ( ): a haunt of wild beasts (and figuratively, a den of vice), plural ''lustra'' ( ).Oxford Latin Desk Dictionary (20 ...
'' (2009, published in the US as '' Conspirata''), and ''Dictator
A dictator is a political leader who possesses absolute power. A dictatorship is a state ruled by one dictator or by a small clique. The word originated as the title of a Roman dictator elected by the Roman Senate to rule the republic in tim ...
'' (2015).
* Tiro appears in several books in the SPQR series
The ''SPQR'' series is a series of historical mystery stories by John Maddox Roberts, published between 1990 and 2010, and set in the final years of the Roman Republic. SPQR (the original title of the first book, until the sequels came out) is ...
by John Maddox Roberts
John Maddox Roberts is an American author of science fiction, fantasy, and historical fiction including the ''SPQR'' series and '' Hannibal's Children''.
Personal life
John Maddox Roberts was born in Ohio and was raised in Texas, California, a ...
.
* Tiro (spelled Tyro) appears in the television historical drama ''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 ...
'', played by Clive Riche in the episodes "Son of Hades
''Rome (TV series), Rome'', a Dramatic programming, dramatic television series created by John Milius, William J. MacDonald (producer), William J. MacDonald and Bruno Heller, premiered on 28 August 2005 on the HBO, HBO Network in the United Sta ...
", " These Being the Words of Marcus Tullius Cicero", " Heroes of the Republic", and " Philippi". This version of Tiro appears to be older than Cicero, and is only freed in Cicero's will.
See also
*List of slaves
Slavery is a social-economic system under which people are enslaved: deprived of personal freedom and forced to perform labor or services without compensation. These people are referred to as slaves, or as enslaved people.
The following is a ...
*Slavery in Ancient Rome
Slavery in ancient Rome played an important role in society and the economy. Besides manual labour, slaves performed many domestic services and might be employed at highly skilled jobs and professions. Accountants and physicians were often slaves ...
References
Citations
Sources
*
*
*
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Tiro, Marcus Tullius
4 BC deaths
1st-century BC Romans
Republican era slaves and freedmen
Creators of writing systems
Tullii
Year of birth unknown
Cicero