Imperium-Romana club page
Roman dating systems
Roman historians dated from the foundation of Rome in 753 BC as AVC Ab Urbe Condita (from the founding of the city). Ordinary Romans distinguished years by the names of the two annually elected consuls; both later appointed by the emperor (who often appointed himself as consul too). The emperors measured the regnal years of their reign from the date of their ascension to the throne. |
Imperium-Romana official dating system
2014 - 2767 AVC - Anno VI of the reign of emperor Gaius Antonius Manicus
Consulship of Lucius Antoninus and Lucius Junius Brutus
2015 - 2768 AVC - Anno I of the reign of emperor Dominum Gaius Falco
Consulship of Petronius and Marius Petronius Dacius
2016 - 2769 AVC - Anno II of the reign of emperor Dominum Gaius Falco
Consulship of Tiberius Lupus Gracchus and Titus Flavius Josephus
2017 - 2770 AVC - Anno III of the reign of emperor Dominum Gaius Falco
Consulship of Marcus Octavius Crassipes and Laurentius Maximus Hilarius
2018 - 2771 AVC - Anno IV of the reign of emperor Dominum Gaius Falco
Consulship of [elections to be held]
2014 - 2767 AVC - Anno VI of the reign of emperor Gaius Antonius Manicus
Consulship of Lucius Antoninus and Lucius Junius Brutus
2015 - 2768 AVC - Anno I of the reign of emperor Dominum Gaius Falco
Consulship of Petronius and Marius Petronius Dacius
2016 - 2769 AVC - Anno II of the reign of emperor Dominum Gaius Falco
Consulship of Tiberius Lupus Gracchus and Titus Flavius Josephus
2017 - 2770 AVC - Anno III of the reign of emperor Dominum Gaius Falco
Consulship of Marcus Octavius Crassipes and Laurentius Maximus Hilarius
2018 - 2771 AVC - Anno IV of the reign of emperor Dominum Gaius Falco
Consulship of [elections to be held]
Roman names

Romans used a three-name system (see Choosing a name)
1. Praenomen ("first-name") was normally chosen from a short list of around 17 common names.
2. Nomen ("gens or clan name") was hereditary from your father.
3. Cognomen ("family name within a gens") was usually hereditary, and had interesting meanings.
4. Agnomen ("added-name") could be awarded for some feat, such as Africanus, Germanicus and Parthicus that conquered Africa, Germany and the Parthians respectively.
Club member names
John Maine (our founder and prior Club Captain) was Gaius Antonius Manicus.
Manicus is a new cognomen named after his manica-armguard.
The Antonius gens was both patrician and plebeian. The patrician Antonii bear the cognomen Merenda ("Afternoon snack"), but the plebeian Antonii bear no surname under the republic, except for Q. Antonius, propraetor of Sardinia under Sulla, who is called Balbus ("Stutterer") upon coins. Marc Antony pretended that his gens was descended from Anton, a son of Hercules, and so had his chariot pulled by lions.
John Nagels uses Dominum Gaius Falco.
Dominum means "Master". "Marcus Didius Falco" is a Roman detective in the Falco historical-fiction book series by Lindsey Davis. The name Falco was used to denote either a falconer, a person who resembled a falcon in some way, or a person living on or near Monte Falco in the Appenines.
Vic Rosendale uses Lucius Antoninus.
Lucius derives from the Latin Lux ("Light").
The Nerva–Antonine dynasty of the period of the good Roman emperors Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius, Lucius Verus, and Commodus ruled 96 - 192 AD. Each emperor chose and adopted their successor as the best man for the job, until Marcus Aurelius gave the throne to his unworthy son Commodus (who was assassinated).
Pete Rogers uses Lucius Petronius Longus.
The Petronius gens is of plebeian origin dating back to Petronius Sabinus, a Sabine living during the reign of the Roman king Tarquinius Superbus. The coins struck by Petronius Turpilianus ("Ugly"), one of the triumvirs of the mint in the reign of Augustus, make reference to the Sabine origin of the gens. The name is rare during the republic, but frequently occurs under the empire, both in writers and in inscriptions with various cognomens. Many of the Petronii were consuls, and Petronius Maximus became emperor (455 AD).
Martin Layzell uses Marius Petronius Dacius.
This is the Latinized form of Martin Peter Dack.
"Dack" is a rare Norfolk surname of Martin's ancestors, dating from 1273 on the Hundred Rolls, which grants him Roman citizenship as a longtime inhabitant of the Empire. It is believed derived from the Latin Dux ("Leader") as in Duke, from the 1066 Norman Conquest. But in Old English could mean "duck" in that the original ancestor resembled a duck in some way, just as the Romans gave nicknames based on individual characteristics. Another theory claims derived from "dachs" meaning a badger, so perhaps describing somebody with a streak of white hair, or known for their nocturnal habits (!).
The name of Marius ("Mars" the Roman god of war) was used by Italians during the second Punic war (Marius Blosius and Marius Alfius at Capua, and a Marius at Praeneste). But the first Roman of this name is the famous general Gaius Marius, who may be regarded as the founder of the gens. It wasn't divided into families until the empire where several of the Marii assumed surnames; so on coins are the cognomens Capita and Trogus, but who they were is quite uncertain.
Jason Saunders uses Tiberius Lupus Gracchus.
Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus was a popular tribune of the plebs who championed the rights of the poor, so was murdered by the optimate-faction of the senate in 133 BC, only to be succeeded by his brother Gaius, similarly murdered in 121 BC.
Lupus means "wolf" which is fitting since it is the legion insignia.
Dave Layzell uses Titus Flavius Josephus.
Titus Flavius Josephus was a famous Jewish historian who was captured by the emperor Vespasian and wrote about the Jewish Wars.
Brett Clark uses Lucius Junius Brutus.
Brutus ("Stupid") was the founder of the Roman Republic that deposed King Tarquin the Arrogant in 509 BC. His purported descendant Marcus Junius Brutus assassinated Julius Caesar for trying to be king. He was defeated by Octavian at Philippi who very wisely instead of king called himself emperor.
Mitch Green uses Marcus Octavius Crassipes.
Octavius seems derived from the number "eight" and is celebrated because Octavian, the later emperor Augustus, derived from this gens. The cognomen Crassipes means "club-footed" which is another good example of Roman humour.
Ben Selfe uses Laurentius Maximus Hilarius.
This is a humorous name. Laurentius means "From Laurentum" (a city near Rome), or "Laurelled", and is anglicized as Lawrence. Maximus means "great" and Hilarius means "cheerful". Ben is always very cheerful, it's true.
Keith Mudgway uses Pinguis Sus ("Fat pig") as his gladiatorial name, following his story-line of being a tax-cheat and corrupt lawyer grown fat off others, sentenced to the arena, where he shows unexpected skill and wins by fighting dirty.
Lisa Clark uses Julia Flavia.
Julia Flavia was the only daughter of Emperor Titus Flavius from his second marriage to the well-connected Marcia Furnilla. Her parents divorced when Julia was an infant, due to her mother's family being connected to the opponents of the Emperor Nero. She was raised by her father Titus Flavius in Rome.
Lance Bridgford uses Marcus Agrippa Pontus.
Pontus means "Bridge". He used his legionary pay and booty to buy and maintain several multi-story insula in Rome. He is now working on his own Roman Villa. Dependable and shrewd Roman legionary soldier of good judgement.
Darren White uses Marcus Albus Britannicus.
Albus means "white" in Latin, which is Darren's surname, and an ancient Roman name later lengthened to Albinus (Albus Dumbledore is the headmaster of Harry Potter's wizard school Hogwarts, which fits in with Darren teaching young muggles too). Britannicus means "British" or "of Britannia" which is the home country that Darren hails from. It can also mean "Conqueror of Britain" as the emperor Claudius called his son Britannicus, in commemoration of his British conquest, just as Scipio gained the agnomen Africanus for conquering Africa, or Tiberius' adopted son gaining the agnomen Germanicus for victories in Germania.
Daniel Balderrama uses Gaius Terentius Varro.
Varro was a Roman consul commanding the army (along with his colleague Lucius Aemilius Paullus) at the Battle of Cannae against the Carthaginian general Hannibal, during the Second Punic War (216 BC). Hannibal employed the famous encirclement tactic that allowed his force to destroy the much larger Roman army on a flat plain. Varro was a praetor (218 BC), proconsul in Picenum (215–213 BC), propraetor in Etruria (208–207 BC) and an ambassador to Africa (200 BC).
1. Praenomen ("first-name") was normally chosen from a short list of around 17 common names.
2. Nomen ("gens or clan name") was hereditary from your father.
3. Cognomen ("family name within a gens") was usually hereditary, and had interesting meanings.
4. Agnomen ("added-name") could be awarded for some feat, such as Africanus, Germanicus and Parthicus that conquered Africa, Germany and the Parthians respectively.
Club member names
John Maine (our founder and prior Club Captain) was Gaius Antonius Manicus.
Manicus is a new cognomen named after his manica-armguard.
The Antonius gens was both patrician and plebeian. The patrician Antonii bear the cognomen Merenda ("Afternoon snack"), but the plebeian Antonii bear no surname under the republic, except for Q. Antonius, propraetor of Sardinia under Sulla, who is called Balbus ("Stutterer") upon coins. Marc Antony pretended that his gens was descended from Anton, a son of Hercules, and so had his chariot pulled by lions.
John Nagels uses Dominum Gaius Falco.
Dominum means "Master". "Marcus Didius Falco" is a Roman detective in the Falco historical-fiction book series by Lindsey Davis. The name Falco was used to denote either a falconer, a person who resembled a falcon in some way, or a person living on or near Monte Falco in the Appenines.
Vic Rosendale uses Lucius Antoninus.
Lucius derives from the Latin Lux ("Light").
The Nerva–Antonine dynasty of the period of the good Roman emperors Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius, Lucius Verus, and Commodus ruled 96 - 192 AD. Each emperor chose and adopted their successor as the best man for the job, until Marcus Aurelius gave the throne to his unworthy son Commodus (who was assassinated).
Pete Rogers uses Lucius Petronius Longus.
The Petronius gens is of plebeian origin dating back to Petronius Sabinus, a Sabine living during the reign of the Roman king Tarquinius Superbus. The coins struck by Petronius Turpilianus ("Ugly"), one of the triumvirs of the mint in the reign of Augustus, make reference to the Sabine origin of the gens. The name is rare during the republic, but frequently occurs under the empire, both in writers and in inscriptions with various cognomens. Many of the Petronii were consuls, and Petronius Maximus became emperor (455 AD).
Martin Layzell uses Marius Petronius Dacius.
This is the Latinized form of Martin Peter Dack.
"Dack" is a rare Norfolk surname of Martin's ancestors, dating from 1273 on the Hundred Rolls, which grants him Roman citizenship as a longtime inhabitant of the Empire. It is believed derived from the Latin Dux ("Leader") as in Duke, from the 1066 Norman Conquest. But in Old English could mean "duck" in that the original ancestor resembled a duck in some way, just as the Romans gave nicknames based on individual characteristics. Another theory claims derived from "dachs" meaning a badger, so perhaps describing somebody with a streak of white hair, or known for their nocturnal habits (!).
The name of Marius ("Mars" the Roman god of war) was used by Italians during the second Punic war (Marius Blosius and Marius Alfius at Capua, and a Marius at Praeneste). But the first Roman of this name is the famous general Gaius Marius, who may be regarded as the founder of the gens. It wasn't divided into families until the empire where several of the Marii assumed surnames; so on coins are the cognomens Capita and Trogus, but who they were is quite uncertain.
Jason Saunders uses Tiberius Lupus Gracchus.
Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus was a popular tribune of the plebs who championed the rights of the poor, so was murdered by the optimate-faction of the senate in 133 BC, only to be succeeded by his brother Gaius, similarly murdered in 121 BC.
Lupus means "wolf" which is fitting since it is the legion insignia.
Dave Layzell uses Titus Flavius Josephus.
Titus Flavius Josephus was a famous Jewish historian who was captured by the emperor Vespasian and wrote about the Jewish Wars.
Brett Clark uses Lucius Junius Brutus.
Brutus ("Stupid") was the founder of the Roman Republic that deposed King Tarquin the Arrogant in 509 BC. His purported descendant Marcus Junius Brutus assassinated Julius Caesar for trying to be king. He was defeated by Octavian at Philippi who very wisely instead of king called himself emperor.
Mitch Green uses Marcus Octavius Crassipes.
Octavius seems derived from the number "eight" and is celebrated because Octavian, the later emperor Augustus, derived from this gens. The cognomen Crassipes means "club-footed" which is another good example of Roman humour.
Ben Selfe uses Laurentius Maximus Hilarius.
This is a humorous name. Laurentius means "From Laurentum" (a city near Rome), or "Laurelled", and is anglicized as Lawrence. Maximus means "great" and Hilarius means "cheerful". Ben is always very cheerful, it's true.
Keith Mudgway uses Pinguis Sus ("Fat pig") as his gladiatorial name, following his story-line of being a tax-cheat and corrupt lawyer grown fat off others, sentenced to the arena, where he shows unexpected skill and wins by fighting dirty.
Lisa Clark uses Julia Flavia.
Julia Flavia was the only daughter of Emperor Titus Flavius from his second marriage to the well-connected Marcia Furnilla. Her parents divorced when Julia was an infant, due to her mother's family being connected to the opponents of the Emperor Nero. She was raised by her father Titus Flavius in Rome.
Lance Bridgford uses Marcus Agrippa Pontus.
Pontus means "Bridge". He used his legionary pay and booty to buy and maintain several multi-story insula in Rome. He is now working on his own Roman Villa. Dependable and shrewd Roman legionary soldier of good judgement.
Darren White uses Marcus Albus Britannicus.
Albus means "white" in Latin, which is Darren's surname, and an ancient Roman name later lengthened to Albinus (Albus Dumbledore is the headmaster of Harry Potter's wizard school Hogwarts, which fits in with Darren teaching young muggles too). Britannicus means "British" or "of Britannia" which is the home country that Darren hails from. It can also mean "Conqueror of Britain" as the emperor Claudius called his son Britannicus, in commemoration of his British conquest, just as Scipio gained the agnomen Africanus for conquering Africa, or Tiberius' adopted son gaining the agnomen Germanicus for victories in Germania.
Daniel Balderrama uses Gaius Terentius Varro.
Varro was a Roman consul commanding the army (along with his colleague Lucius Aemilius Paullus) at the Battle of Cannae against the Carthaginian general Hannibal, during the Second Punic War (216 BC). Hannibal employed the famous encirclement tactic that allowed his force to destroy the much larger Roman army on a flat plain. Varro was a praetor (218 BC), proconsul in Picenum (215–213 BC), propraetor in Etruria (208–207 BC) and an ambassador to Africa (200 BC).
Legio VI Ferrata
Our Roman legion is known by the inscription LEG VI FERRATA FC COH I abbreviated of leg(ionis) VI Ferrata F(idelis) C(onstans) coh(ors) I, which means The Sixth Legion Iron-clad, Loyal and Steadfast, First Cohort, First Century. The First Cohort of the legion was double-strength of the others consisting of the very best soldiers. It was commanded by the Primus pilus (First spear) leading Centurion of the legion.
Imperium Romana Health and Safety Manual.
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