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Cognomen
The cognomen was the third name and usually was given later in life as a title
of distinction, for example Gaius Julius Caesar, or might refer to some
physical characteristic, for example Rufus meant "red-haired". The cognomen might be
handed down to a man's children, or it might not.
Women carried, as their legal names, only the feminine form of their father's
nomen. For example, all the daughters of all the Julius family were legally
named Julia. A woman might also use a form of her father's cognomen and so be
known as Julia Caesaria.
A slave freed by his master adopted the master's first two names and added his
own slave name as cognomen. For example, Marcus Tullius Tiro was the freed
slave secretary of Marcus Tullius Cicero.
The History of Rome - Part One 743 - 136 B.C. © Bible History Online (http://www.bible-history.com) |