Gens - Origin of The gens

Origin of The gens

The word gens is sometimes translated as "race" or "nation," meaning a people descended from a common ancestor (rather than sharing a common physical trait). It can also be translated as "clan" or "tribe", although the word tribus has a separate and distinct meaning in Roman culture. A gens could be as small as a single family, or could include hundreds of individuals. According to tradition, in 479 BC the Fabii alone were able to field a militia consisting of three hundred and six men of fighting age. The concept of the gens was not uniquely Roman, but was shared with communities throughout Italy, including those who spoke Italic languages such as Latin, Oscan, and Umbrian, as well as the Etruscans. All of these peoples were eventually absorbed into the sphere of Roman culture.

The oldest gentes claimed to have originated before the foundation of Rome (traditionally 753 BC), and claimed descent from mythological personages as far back as the time of the Trojan War (traditionally ended 1184 BC). However, the establishment of the gens cannot long predate the adoption of hereditary surnames. The nomen gentilicium, or gentile name, was its distinguishing feature, for a Roman citizen's nomen indicated his membership in a gens.

The nomen could be derived from any number of things, including, but not limited to, the name of an ancestor; a person's occupation; physical appearance, behavior, or characteristics; or town of origin. Because some of these things were fairly common, it was possible for unrelated families to bear the same nomen, and over time to become confused.

Persons could be adopted into a gens and acquire its nomen. A libertus, or freedman usually assumed the nomen (and sometimes also the praenomen) of the person who had manumitted him, and a naturalized citizen usually took the name of the patron who granted his citizenship. This meant that a gens could acquire new members and even new branches, either by design or by accident.