What Antican names mean....Follow

Hey guys,
As an ancient history major, I thought it might contribute a little to the flavor of the game to tell you what all those long-@ss Latin names mean for the Anticans. It's actually kind of interesting, sort of...

Aedilis: From "Aedile," a Roman Republican office that maintained buildings and temples. Low magistracy office open to all social classes.
Auxiliarius: Romans made liberal use of non-citizens in their armies, especially in the late Empire. An auxiliary was a tribal warrior who was temporarily aiding the Romans in this fashion.
Centurio: From "Centurion," member of a "Century," group of soldiers assigned to a Legion.
Consul: Elected leaders of the Roman military, the position of Consul was techinically the second-highest office (Censor was nominatively more important), but truly the highest. Two were elected annually from the beginning to the fall of the Republic. Third step in the "Cursus Honorum," or list of offices, each one required to hold the other.
Eques: From "Equestrian," meaning "man of the Horse." Rich Roman citizens who could afford to own a horse originally comprised the all-volunteer Roman cavalry during the Republic. Later, only the monetary implications of the name remained, and the Equestrians, sometimes improperly translated as "Knights," were merely a rich class.
Magister: English equivalent "Magistrate," blanket-term for a ranking official of the Roman Republic ranging from Quaestor to Consul.
Praetor: Second-tier magistrate, assigned to assistant a Consul in their day-to-day work and in the running of the military. Praetors were the second step in the "Curus Honorum" - a Praetor must have been a Quaestor beforehand, and a Consul could only be elected if he had previously served as a Praetor.
Princeps: When Augustus became sole ruler of the Roman world, he assumed the office of dictator/king/emperor in all but name. To prevent the negative connotations of either name from being associated with him, he referred to himself publicly as "Princeps," or "First Citizen."
Proconsul: Literally "from Consul," one a man had served as Consul he could be appointed as a "Proconsul" to govern a territory, say... Asia? Sicily?
Quaestor: First-level magistrate's office, first step on the "Cursus Honorum," any rich man vaguely interested in politics was pretty much guaranteed to be a Quaestor at some point. Quaestors managed the finances of the Republic.
Tribunus: After the first years of the Republic, the woefully underrepresented plebian (lower) class demanded that someone of their number have a voice in politics. Thus was borne the office of "Tribune of the Plebians." A very powerful office, Tribunes were the only office "technically" allowed to propose legislation, and to veto it as well.

Hope this is somewhat intersting to read while we wait for the servers to come up. It was a nice way for me to review for my Roman History/Latin classes :).

Oh, as for the other names, no clue what they mean!

Antesignanus: Elite legionary foot soldier.

Decurio: Commander of a group of ten soldiers in the army.

Essedarius: Gladiator who fought from a chariot.

Faber: Smith, craftsman or artisan.

Funditor: Warrior equipped with a sling.

Hastatus: Youngest member of the heavy infantry that comprised the front line.

Hoplomachus: A well armed gladiator, moreso than a Retiarius.

Lanista: Trainer of gladiators or manager of a team of gladiators.

Legatus: Messenger, representative, or ambassador. Also a commander of a legion (which is probably the meaning SE was aiming for).

Retiarius: Gladiator that carried a net, dagger and trident.

Sagittarius: Archer.

Secutor: Gladiator that would chase his opponent around the arena.

Signifer: Standard bearer.

Speculator: Position in prefect's office concerned with transfer of mail along public routes.

Triarius: Veteran member of the heavy infantry that comprised the rearmost line.

Veles: Lightly armed foot soldier.


I think those are all the rest. Except for maybe some NMs, but I'm too lazy to pick through that long list. Gogo too many years of Latin classes. If something is incorrect, I blame my horrible memory.

Edited, Fri Oct 21 00:39:54 2005 by Ryphen

Yay! A fellow Roman scholar. You know what really makes he happy is that the strength of the mob increases as its honorary title does too....

....i.e. DO NOT FRACK WITH AN ANTICAN PRINCEPS.