Albinia (gens)
Encyclopedia
The gens Albinia was a plebeian family at Rome
during the early centuries of the Republic
. The first member of this gens
to achieve prominence was Lucius Albinius Paterculus
, one of the first men to hold the office of tribune of the plebs
, after it was created in 494 BC.
Albinia is probably derived from the cognomen
Albinus, a lengthened form of Albus, meaning "white" or "whitish".
, Gaius
, and Marcus
.
associated with the Albinii is Paterculus, a diminutive of pater, which may be translated as "little father", "uncle", or "daddy".
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
during the early centuries of the Republic
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
. The first member of this gens
Gens
In ancient Rome, a gens , plural gentes, referred to a family, consisting of all those individuals who shared the same nomen and claimed descent from a common ancestor. A branch of a gens was called a stirps . The gens was an important social structure at Rome and throughout Italy during the...
to achieve prominence was Lucius Albinius Paterculus
Lucius Albinius
Lucius Albinius is the name of at least two people of ancient Rome:*Lucius Albinus, one of the tribunes of the plebs, at the first institution of the office in 494 BC...
, one of the first men to hold the office of tribune of the plebs
Tribune
Tribune was a title shared by elected officials in the Roman Republic. Tribunes had the power to convene the Plebeian Council and to act as its president, which also gave them the right to propose legislation before it. They were sacrosanct, in the sense that any assault on their person was...
, after it was created in 494 BC.
Origin of the gens
The nomenRoman naming conventions
By the Republican era and throughout the Imperial era, a name in ancient Rome for a male citizen consisted of three parts : praenomen , nomen and cognomen...
Albinia is probably derived from the cognomen
Cognomen
The cognomen nōmen "name") was the third name of a citizen of Ancient Rome, under Roman naming conventions. The cognomen started as a nickname, but lost that purpose when it became hereditary. Hereditary cognomina were used to augment the second name in order to identify a particular branch within...
Albinus, a lengthened form of Albus, meaning "white" or "whitish".
Praenomina used by the gens
The Albinii are known to have used the praenomina LuciusLucius (praenomen)
Lucius is a Latin praenomen, or personal name, which was one of the most common names throughout Roman history. The feminine form is Lucia . The praenomen was used by both patrician and plebeian families, and gave rise to the patronymic gentes Lucia and Lucilia, as well as the cognomen Lucullus...
, Gaius
Gaius (praenomen)
Gaius is a Latin praenomen, or personal name, which was one of the most common names throughout Roman history. The feminine form is Gaia. The praenomen was used by both patrician and plebeian families, and gave rise to the patronymic gens Gavia...
, and Marcus
Marcus (praenomen)
Marcus is a Latin praenomen, or personal name, which was one of the most common names throughout Roman history. The feminine form is Marca or Marcia. The praenomen was used by both patrician and plebeian families, and gave rise to the patronymic gens Marcia, as well as the cognomen Marcellus...
.
Branches and cognomina of the gens
The only cognomenCognomen
The cognomen nōmen "name") was the third name of a citizen of Ancient Rome, under Roman naming conventions. The cognomen started as a nickname, but lost that purpose when it became hereditary. Hereditary cognomina were used to augment the second name in order to identify a particular branch within...
associated with the Albinii is Paterculus, a diminutive of pater, which may be translated as "little father", "uncle", or "daddy".
Members of the gens
- Gaius Albinius, father of the tribune of 494 BC.
- Lucius Albinius C. f. PaterculusLucius AlbiniusLucius Albinius is the name of at least two people of ancient Rome:*Lucius Albinus, one of the tribunes of the plebs, at the first institution of the office in 494 BC...
, tribunus plebisTribuneTribune was a title shared by elected officials in the Roman Republic. Tribunes had the power to convene the Plebeian Council and to act as its president, which also gave them the right to propose legislation before it. They were sacrosanct, in the sense that any assault on their person was...
in 494 BC. - Lucius AlbiniusLucius AlbiniusLucius Albinius is the name of at least two people of ancient Rome:*Lucius Albinus, one of the tribunes of the plebs, at the first institution of the office in 494 BC...
, helped carry the priests and vestals from Rome to CaereCaereCaere is the Latin name given by the Romans to one of the larger cities of Southern Etruria, the modern Cerveteri, approximately 50-60 kilometres north-northwest of Rome. To the Etruscans it was known as Cisra and to the Greeks as Agylla...
before the GallicGaulsThe Gauls were a Celtic people living in Gaul, the region roughly corresponding to what is now France, Belgium, Switzerland and Northern Italy, from the Iron Age through the Roman period. They mostly spoke the Continental Celtic language called Gaulish....
sack of Rome in 390 BC. - Marcus Albinius, tribunus militum consulari potestateTribuni militum consulari potestateThe tribuni militum consulari potestate , in English commonly also Consular Tribunes, were tribunes elected with consular power during the "Conflict of the Orders" in the Roman Republic, starting in 444 BC and then continuously from 408 BC to 394 BC and again from 391 BC to 367 BC.According to the...
in 379 BC.