The gens Sibidiena, sometimes written Sabidiena, was an obscure plebeian family at

ancient Rome In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC ...

. No members of this gens attained any of the higher offices of the Roman state, but several are known from inscriptions.

Origin

The nomen ''Sibidienus'' belongs to a class of names ending in ''-enus'', typically derived from other gentilicia, or sometimes from

cognomina 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 ...

. ''Sibidienus'' would seem to be derived from '' Sabidius'', or perhaps from its derivative, ''Sabidianus''. Gentilicia of this type were common in

Umbria it, Umbro (man) it, Umbra (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , ...

and Picenum, and in fact most of the Sibidieni known from inscriptions seem to have lived at or near Tuficum in Umbria, from which it appears that the Sibidieni may have been of Umbrian origin, although the surname ''Sabinus'' borne by some of the family suggest that they may have been Sabines.

Praenomina

The main

praenomina The ''praenomen'' (; plural: ''praenomina'') was a personal name chosen by the parents of a Roman child. It was first bestowed on the ''dies lustricus'' (day of lustration), the eighth day after the birth of a girl, or the ninth day after the birt ...

of the Sibidieni were ''

Lucius Lucius ( el, Λούκιος ''Loukios''; ett, Luvcie) is a male given name derived from '' Lucius'' (abbreviated ''L.''), one of the small group of common Latin forenames ('' praenomina'') found in the culture of ancient Rome. Lucius derives from ...

'' and ''

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 ...

'', the two most common names throughout all periods of Roman history. It also appears that the Sibidieni at one time used '' Spurius'', a praenomen that had been common in Republican times, but which had become increasingly scarce, and finally disappeared under the early

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

Branches and cognomina

The only distinct family of the Sibidieni lived at Tuficum in Umbria, but they do not appear to have been divided into separate branches. ''Sabinus'', the only surname known to have been passed down among the Sibidieni, belongs to a class of cognomina typically indicating the place of origin of an individual or family, and suggests that the Sabidieni either were, or claimed descent from the Sabines. ''Maximus'', borne by one or two of the family, was typically given to an eldest son, or bestowed on someone who had earned great honor or distinction. ''Scaeva'', borne by an ancestor of the Sabini, originally designated someone who was left-handed, but could also refer to someone particularly lucky, or unlucky.

Members

* Sabidienus Paulus, a rhetorician early in imperial times, whose ineptitude is noted by Seneca the Elder. Sabidienus' description of Cicero's defense of Popillius made it sound as though it were Popillius guiding Cicero out of peril. * Lucius Sibidienus, named in an inscription from Tuficum in

, along with Gaius Sibidienus Maximus.. * Spurius Sabidienus (Falisleius?), the master of Artemo, a slave named in an inscription from

Minturnae Minturno is a city and ''comune'' in the southern Lazio, Italy, situated on the north west bank of the Garigliano (known in antiquity as the Liris), with a suburb on the opposite bank about from its mouth, at the point where the Via Appia cross ...

Latium Latium ( , ; ) is the region of central western Italy in which the city of Rome was founded and grew to be the capital city of the Roman Empire. Definition Latium was originally a small triangle of fertile, volcanic soil ( Old Latium) on w ...

. * Sibidienus Maximus, a centurion in the fifteenth legion. * Gaius Sibidienus C. f. Maximus, 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 ...

in the second cohort of the

praetorian guard The Praetorian Guard (Latin: ''cohortēs praetōriae'') was a unit of the Imperial Roman army that served as personal bodyguards and intelligence agents for the Roman emperors. During the Roman Republic, the Praetorian Guard were an escort fo ...

. * Lucius Sibidienus L. f. Scaeva, the father of Lucius Sibidienus Sabinus, the military tribune, named in an inscription from Tuficum. * Lucius Sibidienus L. f. L. n. Sabinus, was at various times a military tribune, curator of the roads and bridges of Umbria and Picenum, and

procurator Procurator (with procuracy or procuratorate referring to the office itself) may refer to: * Procurator, one engaged in procuration, the action of taking care of, hence management, stewardship, agency * ''Procurator'' (Ancient Rome), the title o ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

. He was patron of the

municipium In ancient Rome, the Latin term (pl. ) referred to a town or city. Etymologically, the was a social contract among ("duty holders"), or citizens of the town. The duties () were a communal obligation assumed by the in exchange for the priv ...

of Attidium in Umbria. He married Autia Vera. His inscriptions seem to place him between AD 50 and 70. * Lucius Sibidienus Sabinus, a tribune in the fifth cohort of the

vigiles The ''Vigiles'' or more properly the ''Vigiles Urbani'' ("watchmen of the City") or ''Cohortes Vigilum'' ("cohorts of the watchmen") were the firefighters and police of ancient Rome. History The ''Triumviri Nocturni'' (meaning ''three men of th ...

at Rome, at the beginning of the third century..

References

Bibliography

* Lucius Annaeus Seneca ( Seneca the Elder), ''Controversiae''. *

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 ...