T. Atilius Luscus
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The gens Atilia, sometimes written Atillia, was a
plebeian In ancient Rome, the plebeians (also called plebs) were the general body of free Roman citizens who were not patricians, as determined by the census, or in other words " commoners". Both classes were hereditary. Etymology The precise origins of ...
family at ancient Rome, which rose to prominence at the beginning of the fourth century BC. The first member of this
gens In ancient Rome, a gens ( or , ; plural: ''gentes'' ) was a family consisting of individuals who shared the same Roman naming conventions#Nomen, nomen and who claimed descent from a common ancestor. A branch of a gens was called a ''stirps'' (p ...
to attain the consulship was Marcus Atilius Regulus, in 335 BC. The Atilii continued to hold the highest offices of the state throughout the history of the
Republic A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...
, and well into imperial times.''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'', vol. I, p. 405 ("
Atilia Gens The gens Atilia, sometimes written Atillia, was a plebeian family at ancient Rome, which rose to prominence at the beginning of the fourth century BC. The first member of this gens to attain the consulship was Marcus Atilius Regulus, in 335 BC. ...
").


Origin

Chase classifies the nomen ''Atilius'' with a small group of gentilicia probably formed from praenomina ending in ' using the suffix ', a morphology common in names of Latin origin.Chase, p. 125. The root might then be a praenomen ''Atius'', otherwise unknown, although there was a Sabine praenomen ''Attius''.


Praenomina

The Atilii favored the praenomina '' Lucius'', ''
Marcus Marcus, Markus, Márkus or Mărcuș may refer to: * Marcus (name), a masculine given name * Marcus (praenomen), a Roman personal name Places * Marcus, a main belt asteroid, also known as (369088) Marcus 2008 GG44 * Mărcuş, a village in Dobârl ...
'', 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 Pol ...
'', the three most common names throughout Roman history, to which they sometimes added ''
Aulus Aulus (abbreviated A.) is one of the small group of common forenames found in the culture of ancient Rome. The name was traditionally connected with Latin ''aula'', ''olla'', "palace", but this is most likely a false etymology. ''Aulus'' in fact p ...
'' and ''
Sextus Sextus is an ancient Roman '' praenomen'' or "first name". Its standard abbreviation is Sex., and the feminine form would be Sexta. It is one of the numeral ''praenomina'', like Quintus ("fifth") and Decimus ("tenth"), and means "sixth". Althoug ...
''. Under the Empire, some of the Atilii bore the praenomen '' Titus''.


Branches and cognomina

Under the Republic, the
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 ...
of the Atilii included ''Bulbus'', ''Calatinus'', ''Luscus'', ''Priscus'', ''Regulus'', ''Nomentanus'', and ''Serranus''. Of these, only ''Regulus'' and ''Serranus'' appear to constitute a distinct family, with the Serrani being descended from the Reguli. The only cognomina found on coins are ''Saranus'', which appears to be the same as ''Serranus'', and ''Nomentanus''.Crawford, ''Roman Republican Coinage'', pp. 254, 255. ''Luscus'', the first surname associated with the Atilii appearing in history, was a common name originally describing someone with poor eyesight, belonging to a large class of cognomina derived from the physical characteristics of individuals. This is the surname as given in
Dionysius The name Dionysius (; el, Διονύσιος ''Dionysios'', "of Dionysus"; la, Dionysius) was common in classical and post-classical times. Etymologically it is a nominalized adjective formed with a -ios suffix from the stem Dionys- of the name ...
, although some sources amend it to ''Longus'', originally referring to someone particularly tall. It has been argued that Lucius Atilius Luscus, one of the first
consular tribune A consular tribune was putatively a type of magistrate in the early Roman Republic. According to Roman tradition, colleges of consular tribunes held office throughout the fifth and fourth centuries BC during the so-called "Conflict of the Or ...
s elected in 444 BC, was a patrician, since the first plebeians were elected to that office in 400; and most if not all of the ancient patrician gentes possessed plebeian branches, which frequently came to eclipse the fame of their patrician forebears. However, the lists of consular tribunes from both 444 and 422 contain names that are otherwise regarded as plebeian, and according to tradition the office was created with the intention that its members should be elected from either order, so in all probability Luscus, like all of the other Atilii, was plebeian. ''Priscus'', a personal cognomen belonging to one of the early Atilii, usually translates as "elder", and probably served to distinguish its bearer from younger Atilii of his era. ''Bulbus'', an onion, belongs to a class of surname derived from everyday objects, although the circumstances by which such cognomina were acquired by individuals is seldom known. The name is comparable to ''Caepio'', a cognomen with much the same meaning. The Atilii Reguli were the most illustrious of their gens. The surname ''Regulus'' is a diminutive of ''Rex'', a king.Chase, p. 112. This family rose to prominence in the time of the Samnite Wars, and continued down to the interval between the
First First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...
and
Second Punic War The Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC) was the second of three wars fought between Carthage and Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For 17 years the two states struggled for supremacy, primarily in Ital ...
s, at which time it was supplanted by that of ''Serranus'' or ''Saranus''. The Atilii Serrani continued down to the time of Cicero, before fading into obscurity. ''Calatinus'', also found as ''Caiatinus'', the surname of Aulus Atilius Calatinus, a hero of the First Punic War, probably refers either to the town of Cales in Campania, or to the neighboring town of Caia. One of the Atilii Reguli had previously obtained the surname ''Calenus'', in consequence of a battle fought at Cales in 335 BC. Likewise, ''Nomentanus'', the name of one of the Atilii during the late Republic, is clearly derived from the Nomentum, an ancient city of Latium, although his particular connection with that town is unknown.


Members

* Lucius Atilius Luscus, one of the first
consular tribune A consular tribune was putatively a type of magistrate in the early Roman Republic. According to Roman tradition, colleges of consular tribunes held office throughout the fifth and fourth centuries BC during the so-called "Conflict of the Or ...
s, elected in 444 BC. In consequence of a defect in the auspices, he and his colleagues resigned, and consuls were appointed in their stead. * Lucius Atilius L. f. L. n. Priscus, consular tribune in 399 and 396 BC. * Lucius Atilius, tribune of the plebs in 311 BC. * Aulus Atilius A. f. C. n. Calatinus, consul in 258 and 254 BC, and dictator in 249. * Gaius Atilius A. f. A. n. Bulbus, consul in 245 and 235 BC. * Lucius Atilius,
quaestor A ( , , ; "investigator") was a public official in Ancient Rome. There were various types of quaestors, with the title used to describe greatly different offices at different times. In the Roman Republic, quaestors were elected officials who ...
in 216 BC, slain at the
Battle of Cannae The Battle of Cannae () was a key engagement of the Second Punic War between the Roman Republic and Carthage, fought on 2 August 216 BC near the ancient village of Cannae in Apulia, southeast Italy. The Carthaginians and their allies, led by ...
. * Marcus Atilius, duumvir in 216 BC, with Gaius Atilius, dedicated the temple of Concordia, which Lucius Manlius Vulso, the praetor of 218, had vowed.Livy, xxiii. 21. * Gaius Atilius, duumvir in 216 BC with Marcus Atilius. * Lucius Atilius, commander of the Roman garrison in
Locri Locri is a town and ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Reggio Calabria, Calabria, southern Italy. Its name derives from that of the ancient Greek region of Locris. Today it is an important administrative and cultural centre on the Ionia ...
, escaped with his troops by sea, when the town was surrendered to
Hannibal Hannibal (; xpu, 𐤇𐤍𐤁𐤏𐤋, ''Ḥannibaʿl''; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Puni ...
in 215 BC. * Lucius Atilius, praetor in 197 BC, obtained Sardinia as his province. * Lucius Atilius, sent to Samothrace by Lucius Aemilius Paullus to demand the surrender of
Perseus In Greek mythology, Perseus (Help:IPA/English, /ˈpɜːrsiəs, -sjuːs/; Greek language, Greek: Περσεύς, Romanization of Greek, translit. Perseús) is the legendary founder of Mycenae and of the Perseid dynasty. He was, alongside Cadmus ...
in 168 BC. * Lucius Atilius, a jurist, who probably lived in the middle of the second century BC * Marcus Atilius, a comic poet during the second century BC, quoted by Cicero and Varro. * Lucius Atilius Nomentanus, '' triumvir monetalis'' in 141 BC. In 120, he served on the staff of Quintus Mucius Scaevola, praetor in Asia. * Atilius, a freedman, built an amphitheatre at Fidenae in the reign of Tiberius, which collapsed, killing between twenty and fifty thousand spectators. * Atilius Vergilio, a standard-bearer who deserted
Galba Galba (; born Servius Sulpicius Galba; 24 December 3 BC – 15 January AD 69) was the sixth Roman emperor, ruling from AD 68 to 69. After his adoption by his stepmother, and before becoming emperor, he was known as Livius Ocella Sulpicius Ga ...
in AD 69. * Titus Atilius Rufus, a man of consular rank, was governor of
Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
, early in the reign of Domitian. He died in AD 84, just before the return of Agricola from Britain. *
Marcus Atilius Postumus Bradua Marcus Atilius Postumus Bradua was a Roman senator during the later part of the first century. He was suffect consul for the ''nundinium'' July-August 80 with Quintus Pompeius Trio as his colleague. He was also governor of Asia in 94/95. Bradua i ...
, proconsul of Asia under Domitian. * Atilius Crescens, a friend of the younger Pliny. *
Marcus Atilius Metilius Bradua Marcus Appius Bradua, also known by his full name Marcus Atilius Metilius BraduaBirley, ''Roman government'', p. 112 (Greek: ''Μαρκόν Άππιον Βραδούαν'' This version of his name is known from an honorific Greek stone inscrip ...
, consul in AD 108. * Marcus Atilius M. f. Metilius Bradua Caucidius Tertullus … Bassus, proconsul of Africa under Antoninus Pius. * Atilia M. f. Caucidia Tertulla, daughter of the consul Marcus Atilius Metilius Bradua and Caucidia Tertulla. *
Gaius Atilius Serranus Gaius Atilius Serranus (c. 149 – 87 BC) was a Roman senator, who served as consul in 106 BC as the colleague of Quintus Servilius Caepio. Career Although noted by Cicero as being a "a most stupid man" (), he managed to defeat Quintus Lutatius ...
, consul ''suffectus'' in AD 120. *
Titus Atilius Rufus Titianus Titus Atilius Rufus Titianus was a Roman senator, who was active during the first half of the second century AD. He was consul ''ordinarius'' in the year 127 with Marcus Gavius Squilla Gallicanus as his colleague. Paul von Rohden has suggested Tit ...
, consul in AD 127. * Titus Atilius Maximus, consul ''suffectus'' around AD 130. *
Atilius Fortunatianus Atilius Fortunatianus (flourished in the 4th century A.D.) was a Latin grammarian. He was the author of a treatise on metres, dedicated to one of his pupils, a youth of senatorial rank, who desired to be instructed in the Horatian metres. The man ...
, a Latin grammarian, probably not later than the fourth century.


Atilii Reguli et Serrani

* Marcus Atilius (M. f.) Regulus, surnamed ''Calenus'', consul in 335 BC, with his colleague,
Marcus Valerius Corvus Marcus Valerius Corvus (c. 370–270 BC) was a military commander and politician from the early-to-middle period of the Roman Republic. During his career he was elected consul six times, first at the age of twenty-three. He was appointed dictator ...
, conquered
Cales Cales was an ancient city of Campania, in today's ''comune'' of Calvi Risorta in southern Italy, belonging originally to the Aurunci/Ausoni, on the Via Latina. The Romans captured it in 335 BC and established a colony with Latin rights of 2,500 ...
. * Marcus Atilius M. f. M. n. Regulus, consul in 294 BC, triumphed over the
Samnites The Samnites () were an ancient Italic people who lived in Samnium, which is located in modern inland Abruzzo, Molise, and Campania in south-central Italy. An Oscan-speaking people, who may have originated as an offshoot of the Sabines, they for ...
. * Marcus Atilius M. f. L. n. Regulus, consul in 267 and consul ''suffectus'' in 256 BC, captured during the
First Punic War The First Punic War (264–241 BC) was the first of three wars fought between Rome and Carthage, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean in the early 3rd century BC. For 23 years, in the longest continuous conflict and grea ...
. * Gaius Atilius M. f. M. n. Regulus, surnamed ''Serranus'', consul in 257 and 250 BC. * Marcus Atilius M. f. M. n. Regulus, consul in 227 and 217 BC, and censor in 214. * Marcus Atilius (M. f. M. n) Regulus, perhaps praetor in 212 BC, though the position may have instead been held by a Marcus Aemilius Lepidus. * Gaius Atilius M. f. M. n. Regulus, consul in 225 BC, slain at the
Battle of Telamon The Battle of Telamon was fought between the Roman Republic and an alliance of Celts, Celtic tribes in 225 BC. The Romans, led by the consuls Gaius Atilius Regulus (consul 225 BC), Gaius Atilius Regulus and Lucius Aemilius Papus, defeated the Ce ...
. * Gaius Atilius (C. f. M. n.) Serranus, praetor in 218 BC. * Gaius Atilius (C. f. C. n.) Serranus, praetor in 185 BC. * Aulus Atilius (C. f. C. n.) Serranus, consul in 170 BC. * Marcus Atilius (C. f. C. n.) Serranus, praetor in 174 BC, was assigned to Sardinia, and given the command of the war in Corsica. * Marcus Atilius (M. f. C. n.) Serranus, praetor in Hispania Ulterior in 152 BC, defeated the Lusitani, and took their principal city, Oxthracae. * Marcus Atilius (M. f. M. n.) Serranus, ''triumvir monetalis'' in 151 BC, probably the son of Marcus Atilius Serranus, the praetor of 152. His coins bear the inscription ''Saran.'' * Sextus Atilius M. f. C. n. Serranus, consul in 136 BC. *
Gaius Atilius Serranus Gaius Atilius Serranus (c. 149 – 87 BC) was a Roman senator, who served as consul in 106 BC as the colleague of Quintus Servilius Caepio. Career Although noted by Cicero as being a "a most stupid man" (), he managed to defeat Quintus Lutatius ...
, consul in 106 BC, took up arms against
Saturninus Saturninus may refer to: * Lucius Appuleius Saturninus (died 100 BC), tribune, legislator * Gaius Sentius Saturninus, consul 19 BC, military officer, governor * Marcus Aponius Saturninus (1st century AD), governor of Moesia, and partisan of first ...
in 100. * Atilius Serranus, one of the distinguished men slain by order of Marius and Cinna, when they entered Rome at the close of 87 BC. *
Sextus Atilius Serranus Gavianus Sextus is an ancient Roman ''praenomen'' or "first name". Its standard abbreviation is Sex., and the feminine form would be Sexta. It is one of the numeral ''praenomina'', like Quintus ("fifth") and Decimus ("tenth"), and means "sixth". Although i ...
, tribune of the plebs in 57 BC. * Atilius Serranus Domesticus, mentioned by Cicero in 54 BC.Cicero, ''Epistulae ad Quintum Fratrem'', iii. 8. § 5. *
Atilia Atilia (sometimes spelt Attilia) was the first wife of Marcus Porcius Cato Uticensis and mother of his two eldest children. Biography Early life It is not known for certain who Atilia's father was, but he was from the Atilii Serrani. He may have be ...
, first wife of Cato the Younger


See also

* List of Roman gentes


References


Bibliography

* Marcus Tullius Cicero, ''
Epistulae ad Quintum Fratrem ''Epistulae ad Quintum Fratrem'' (''Letters to brother Quintus'') is a collection of letters from Roman politician and orator Marcus Tullius Cicero to his younger brother Quintus. The letters in this collection, when combined with Cicero's other ...
''. *
Dionysius of Halicarnassus Dionysius of Halicarnassus ( grc, Διονύσιος Ἀλεξάνδρου Ἁλικαρνασσεύς, ; – after 7 BC) was a Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric, who flourished during the reign of Emperor Augustus. His literary sty ...
, ''Romaike Archaiologia'' (Roman Antiquities). * Titus Livius ( Livy), '' History of Rome''. * Publius Cornelius Tacitus, '' Annales'', '' De Vita et Moribus Iulii Agricolae'' (On the Life and Mores of Julius Agricola). *
Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (), commonly referred to as Suetonius ( ; c. AD 69 – after AD 122), was a Roman historian who wrote during the early Imperial era of the Roman Empire. His most important surviving work is a set of biographies ...
, ''
De Vita Caesarum ''De vita Caesarum'' (Latin; "About the Life of the Caesars"), commonly known as ''The Twelve Caesars'', is a set of twelve biographies of Julius Caesar and the first 11 emperors of the Roman Empire written by Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus. The g ...
'' (Lives of the Caesars, or The Twelve Caesars). * Appianus Alexandrinus ( Appian), ''Bellum Civile'' (The Civil War), ''Hispanica'' (The Spanish Wars). * Joseph Hilarius Eckhel, ''Doctrina Numorum Veterum'' (The Study of Ancient Coins, 1792–1798). * '' Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'', William Smith, ed., Little, Brown and Company, Boston (1849). * George Davis Chase, "The Origin of Roman Praenomina", in ''Harvard Studies in Classical Philology'', vol. VIII, pp. 103–184 (1897). * T. Robert S. Broughton, ''The Magistrates of the Roman Republic'', American Philological Association (1952–1986). * Michael Crawford, ''Roman Republican Coinage'', Cambridge University Press (1974, 2001). * Timothy J. Cornell, ''The Beginnings of Rome: Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c. 1000–264 BC)'', Routledge, London (1995). * John C. Traupman, ''The New College Latin & English Dictionary'', Bantam Books, New York (1995). * Werner Eck, "Hadrische Konsuln Neue Zeugnisse aus Militärdiplomen" (Hadrianic Consuls: New Evidence from Military Diplomas), in '' Chiron'', vol. 32 (2002). *
Anthony R. Birley Anthony Richard Birley (8 October 1937 – 19 December 2020) was a British ancient historian, archaeologist and academic. He was the son of Margaret Isabel (Goodlet) and historian and archaeologist Eric Birley. Early life and education Anthony ...
, ''The Roman Government of Britain'', Oxford University Press (2005). * Sarah B. Pomeroy, ''The Murder of Regilla: a Case of Domestic Violence in Antiquity'', Harvard University Press (2009). {{SmithDGRBM Roman gentes