''Decanus'' means "chief of ten" in

Late Latin Late Latin ( la, Latinitas serior) is the scholarly name for the form of Literary Latin of late antiquity.Roberts (1996), p. 537. English dictionary definitions of Late Latin date this period from the , and continuing into the 7th century in t ...

. The term originated in the

Roman army The Roman army (Latin: ) was the armed forces deployed by the Romans throughout the duration of Ancient Rome, from the Roman Kingdom (c. 500 BC) to the Roman Republic (500–31 BC) and the Roman Empire (31 BC–395 AD), and its medieval contin ...

and became used thereafter for subaltern officials in the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

, as well as for various positions in the Church, whence derives the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

title "

dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

History and functions

The ''decanus'' was originally the leader of a 10-man '' contubernium'', which consisted of the squad of eight

legionaries The Roman legionary (in Latin ''legionarius'', plural ''legionarii'') was a professional heavy infantryman of the Roman army after the Marian reforms. These soldiers would conquer and defend the territories of ancient Rome during the late Republi ...

who lived in the same tent, plus the two support units/servants of the contubernium. The title must not be confused with the ''

decurio ''Decurio'' was an official title in Ancient Rome, used in various connections: * Decurion (administrative), a member of the senatorial order in the Italian towns under the administration of Rome, and later in provincial towns organized on the It ...

'', which was a title given to civic officials and to leaders of 30-strong squadrons (''

turma A ''turma'' (Latin for "swarm, squadron", plural ''turmae''), (Greek: τούρμα) was a cavalry unit in the Roman army of the Republic and Empire. In the Byzantine Empire, it became applied to the larger, regiment-sized military-administrative ...

e'') of cavalry. ''Decanus'' is equivalent to the rank of the ''dekarchos'' ("commander of ten") in

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

texts. From the 4th century CE the term ''decanus'' became used for palace messengers, particularly those in the service of Roman empresses. ''Decani'' also apparently served as

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison ...

s at gates, and in the 6th century,

John Lydus John the Lydian or John Lydus ( el, ; la, Ioannes Laurentius Lydus) (ca. AD 490 – ca. 565) was a Byzantine administrator and writer on antiquarian subjects. Life and career He was born in 490 AD at Philadelphia in Lydia, whence his cognome ...

equates them with the ancient

lictor A lictor (possibly from la, ligare, "to bind") was a Roman civil servant who was an attendant and bodyguard to a magistrate who held ''imperium''. Lictors are documented since the Roman Kingdom, and may have originated with the Etruscans. Origi ...

s.. In the 899 ''Klētorologion'' of Philotheos, the ''decanus'' (transcribed into Greek as δεκανός, ''dekanos'') was a mid-level functionary, serving under the ''

protasekretis The or ( gr, πρωτ ��σηκρῆτις), Latinized as or , was a senior official in the Byzantine bureaucracy. The title means "first ", illustrating his position as the head of the order of the , the senior class of imperial notaries. The p ...

''. According to the mid-10th century '' De Ceremoniis'' of Emperor

Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus (; 17 May 905 – 9 November 959) was the fourth Emperor of the Macedonian dynasty of the Byzantine Empire, reigning from 6 June 913 to 9 November 959. He was the son of Emperor Leo VI and his fourth wife, Zoe K ...

(), a ''decanus'' was "in charge of the imperial papers" when the Byzantine emperor was on campaign. .

Sigillographic Sigillography, also known by its Greek-derived name, sphragistics, is the scholarly discipline that studies the wax, lead, clay, and other seals used to authenticate archival documents. It investigates not only aspects of the artistic design a ...

evidence for the Byzantine ''dekanoi'' is relatively rare, although some are depicted in illuminated

manuscript A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand – or, once practical typewriters became available, typewritten – as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in ...

s, where their appearance varies considerably, in accord with their varying and changing functions. In the Christian Church, the term came into use in monasteries for heads of groups of ten other monks, for low-ranking subaltern officials of the

Patriarchate of Constantinople The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople ( el, Οἰκουμενικὸν Πατριαρχεῖον Κωνσταντινουπόλεως, translit=Oikoumenikón Patriarkhíon Konstantinoupóleos, ; la, Patriarchatus Oecumenicus Constanti ...

, and for the ecclesiastic ''fossores'' ("grave-diggers").

References

Sources

* * Ecclesiastical titles Military ranks of ancient Rome Byzantine palace offices {{italic title