Roman Names

Cognomen - The Cognomen Part of Roman Names
The cognomen was an extra Roman name.

The Tria Nomina of Roman Names
A Roman male's name was often a tria nomina.

Names of the Roman Tribes
The Romans were divided into tribes, first on the basis of family, but soon on the basis of location, and later, even more arbitrary assignments once it was decided not to increase the number of tribes any further. Read about the tribes and the abbreviations you'll find on inscriptions.

Agnomen - The Agnomen Part of Roman Names
Glossary entry on the agnomen part of Roman names.

How To Read a Roman Name
You start with the Praenomen which is usually abbreviated, but there were usually 2 other terms in a Roman man's name.

Emperors Whose Memory Was Erased by Senate Decree
A list of the Emperors of Rome whose names were erased on monuments by Senate decree. Some of the names of the emperors were erased only in select areas in which the emperor, popular elsewhere, had made himself unpopular.

Deified Emperors of Rome
A list of the deified emperors of Rome.

A History of Rome, by Robert F. Pennell
Chapter from Ancient Rome from the Earliest Times Down to 476 A.D., by Robert F. Pennell, on customs of daily life, including Roman houses, names, marriages, education, funerals, festivals and games, and more.

Balbus - Roman Cognomen Balbus
Balbus is a Roman cognomen.

The Problem Names Project
Names for the SCA.

Roman Nomenclature
Table showing praenomen, nomen, and cognomen, their uses, and examples, followed by descriptions of other name related topics, cognomen ex virtute, women's names, adoption, and tria nomina.

Roman Names
Disusses women's names, name forms used in everyday speech, and general principles of Roman nomenclature for the purpose of selecting names to use in Nova Roma.

Slave Names
According to The Private Life of the Romans, by Harold Whetstone Johnston, the "por" ending found on many slave names comes from the practice of calling slaves "puer" or boy. Eventually there were too many slaves for this to work, so they received individual names, often foreign or derogatory and the nomen and praenomen of the master, followed by the word "servus".

Roman Tribes
A list of abbreviations for the ancient Roman tribes.