Aurunci
Encyclopedia
The Aurunci were an Italic population which lived in southern Italy
from around the 1st millennium BC
. Of Indo-European
origin, their language belonged to the Oscan group. The Auruncan territory extended south from that of the Volsci
, in the area of Roccamonfina
, between the Liri
and the Volturno
rivers.
The Aurunci are often confused with the Ausones
, who however lived in different cities nearer to the Tyrrhenian
coast.
The Roman sources describe them as an unevolved population, which preferred to live in defensive villages over the tops of the hills. The Aurunci were allied with the Latin
colony of Pomezia
, attacked by the Romans in the 6th century BC. the Romans subjected them only after the Samnite Wars
(313 BC).
The Aurunci mountains
and city of Sessa Aurunca
bears their name.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
from around the 1st millennium BC
1st millennium BC
The 1st millennium BC encompasses the Iron Age and sees the rise of many successive empires, and spanned from 1000 BC to 1 BC.The Neo-Assyrian Empire, followed by the Achaemenids. In Greece, Classical Antiquity begins with the colonization of Magna Graecia and peaks with the rise of Hellenism. The...
. Of Indo-European
Proto-Indo-Europeans
The Proto-Indo-Europeans were the speakers of the Proto-Indo-European language , a reconstructed prehistoric language of Eurasia.Knowledge of them comes chiefly from the linguistic reconstruction, along with material evidence from archaeology and archaeogenetics...
origin, their language belonged to the Oscan group. The Auruncan territory extended south from that of the Volsci
Volsci
The Volsci were an ancient Italic people, well known in the history of the first century of the Roman Republic. They then inhabited the partly hilly, partly marshy district of the south of Latium, bounded by the Aurunci and Samnites on the south, the Hernici on the east, and stretching roughly from...
, in the area of Roccamonfina
Roccamonfina
Roccamonfina is a comune in the Province of Caserta in the Italian region Campania, located about 60 km northwest of Naples and about 40 km northwest of Caserta....
, between the Liri
Liri
The Liri is one of the principal rivers of central Italy, flowing into the Tyrrhenian Sea a little below Minturno under the name Garigliano....
and the Volturno
Volturno
The Volturno is a river in south-central Italy.-Geography:It rises in the Abruzzese central Apennines of Samnium near Rocchetta a Volturno and flows southeast as far as its junction with the Calore River near Caiazzo and runs south as far as Venafro, and then turns southwest, past Capua, to...
rivers.
The Aurunci are often confused with the Ausones
Ausones
The Ausones were an ancient Italic tribe settled in the southern part of Italy. Often confused with the Aurunci, they share with them only a probably common origin.-History:...
, who however lived in different cities nearer to the Tyrrhenian
Tyrrhenian
Tyrrhenian may refer to the:* Tyrrhenian Stage, a faunal stage from 0.26 to 0.01143 million years ago* Tyrrhenians, an ancient ethnonym associated variously with Pelasgians, Etruscans or Lemnians* Tyrrhenian Sea* Tyrrhenian languages...
coast.
The Roman sources describe them as an unevolved population, which preferred to live in defensive villages over the tops of the hills. The Aurunci were allied with the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
colony of Pomezia
Pomezia
Pomezia is a municipality in the province of Rome, Lazio, central Italy. In 2009 it had a population of about 60,000.-History:The town was built entirely new near the location of ancient Lavinium on land resulting from the final reclamation of the Pontine Marshes under Benito Mussolini, being...
, attacked by the Romans in the 6th century BC. the Romans subjected them only after the Samnite Wars
Samnite Wars
The First, Second, and Third Samnite Wars, between the early Roman Republic and the tribes of Samnium, extended over half a century, involving almost all the states of Italy, and ended in Roman domination of the Samnites...
(313 BC).
The Aurunci mountains
Aurunci Mountains
The Aurunci Mountains is mountain range of southern Lazio, in central Italy. They are part of the Antiappennini, a group running from the Apennines chain to the Tyrrhenian Sea, where they form the promontory of Gaeta...
and city of Sessa Aurunca
Sessa Aurunca
Sessa Aurunca is a town and comune of Campania, Italy, in the province of Caserta. It located on the south west slope of the extinct volcano of Roccamonfina, 40 km by rail west north west of Caserta and 30 km east of Formia....
bears their name.
External links
- Aurunci in Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography, Vol. I, Abaecenum-Hytanis, Sir William Smith, 1854, (Walton & Maberly, London)