Cover Nomen

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book € 20,00
series "Antropologia del mondo antico"
pp. 240, Brossura, 978-88-15-27436-6
publication year 2018

MARIO LENTANO

Nomen

Proper Names in Ancient Roman Culture

In ancient Rome, the drafting of recruits into an army always began with soldiers called Valerius or Salvius, because they were considered auspicious names. Damnatio memoriae decrees meant that the descendants of the condemned individual were prohibited from using his first name and stripped of it if they were alive. Place names associated with bad luck, such as Maleventum or Epidamnus, were replaced with toponyms that were deemed propitious (Beneventum) or at least neutral (Dyrrachium). New colonies were given names suggesting abundance or power, such as Florentia and Valentia. An impenetrable reticence enveloped the secret name of Rome, which was guarded to prevent enemies from taking possession of it and using that knowledge to harm the city. In short, proper names were involved in a wide variety of cultural practices, as described in this original and fascinating book.

Mario Lentano teaches Latin Language and Literature at the University of Siena.

Premessa
1. In limine: il nome del nome
2. Nomen omen
3. «Porti quel nome in fronte / che all'Africa è fatale»
4. Epidamno, Malevento e altra toponomastica
5. I piaceri dell'eziologia
6. Nomi da dimenticare
7. Il nome dei Tarquini
8. Omnia plena deo: gli dèi dell'attimo e i loro nomi
9. Un pantheon di pseudonimi
10. Censurare il nome
11. I casi della nascita
Conclusioni. Quanto è proprio il nome proprio dei Romani?
Riferimenti bibliografici

See also

copertina Le guerre daciche
copertina Great Ottoman Cuisine
copertina Storia delle province romane
copertina Nerone