Caninia (gens)
Encyclopedia
The gens Caninia was a plebeian
family at Rome
during the later Republic
. The first member of the gens
who obtained any of the curule offices was Gaius Caninius Rebilus, praetor
in 171 BC; but the first Caninius who was consul
was his namesake, Gaius Caninius Rebilus
, in 45 BC.
Caninius may be connected with the Latin
adjective canus or kanus, meaning "white" or "grey", perhaps referring to the color of a person's hair. It might also be derived from the adjective caninus, meaning "hound-like", "snarling".
, Lucius
, and Marcus
, which were also the three most common praenomina
throughout Roman history. At least one of the family bore the praenomen Aulus
.
Gallus and Rebilus. The surname Satrius is also found, and there was a Caninius Sallustius, who was adopted by some member of this gens. Gallus was a common surname, which may refer to a Gaul
, or to a cock
.
Plebs
The plebs was the general body of free land-owning Roman citizens in Ancient Rome. They were distinct from the higher order of the patricians. A member of the plebs was known as a plebeian...
family at Rome
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
during the later Republic
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
. The first member of the gens
Gens
In ancient Rome, a gens , plural gentes, referred to a family, consisting of all those individuals who shared the same nomen and claimed descent from a common ancestor. A branch of a gens was called a stirps . The gens was an important social structure at Rome and throughout Italy during the...
who obtained any of the curule offices was Gaius Caninius Rebilus, praetor
Praetor
Praetor was a title granted by the government of Ancient Rome to men acting in one of two official capacities: the commander of an army, usually in the field, or the named commander before mustering the army; and an elected magistratus assigned varied duties...
in 171 BC; but the first Caninius who was consul
Roman consul
A consul served in the highest elected political office of the Roman Republic.Each year, two consuls were elected together, to serve for a one-year term. Each consul was given veto power over his colleague and the officials would alternate each month...
was his namesake, Gaius Caninius Rebilus
Gaius Caninius Rebilus
Gaius Caninius Rebilus, a member of the plebeian gens Caninia, was a Roman general and politician. As a reward for devoted service, Julius Caesar appointed him consul suffectus in 45 BC....
, in 45 BC.
Origin of the gens
The nomenRoman naming conventions
By the Republican era and throughout the Imperial era, a name in ancient Rome for a male citizen consisted of three parts : praenomen , nomen and cognomen...
Caninius may be connected with the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
adjective canus or kanus, meaning "white" or "grey", perhaps referring to the color of a person's hair. It might also be derived from the adjective caninus, meaning "hound-like", "snarling".
Praenomina used by the gens
The principal names of the Caninii were GaiusGaius (praenomen)
Gaius is a Latin praenomen, or personal name, which was one of the most common names throughout Roman history. The feminine form is Gaia. The praenomen was used by both patrician and plebeian families, and gave rise to the patronymic gens Gavia...
, Lucius
Lucius (praenomen)
Lucius is a Latin praenomen, or personal name, which was one of the most common names throughout Roman history. The feminine form is Lucia . The praenomen was used by both patrician and plebeian families, and gave rise to the patronymic gentes Lucia and Lucilia, as well as the cognomen Lucullus...
, and Marcus
Marcus (praenomen)
Marcus is a Latin praenomen, or personal name, which was one of the most common names throughout Roman history. The feminine form is Marca or Marcia. The praenomen was used by both patrician and plebeian families, and gave rise to the patronymic gens Marcia, as well as the cognomen Marcellus...
, which were also the three most common praenomina
Praenomen
The praenomen was a personal name chosen by the parents of a Roman child. It was first bestowed on the dies lustricus , the eighth day after the birth of a girl, or the ninth day after the birth of a boy...
throughout Roman history. At least one of the family bore the praenomen Aulus
Aulus (praenomen)
Aulus is a Latin praenomen, or personal name, which was common throughout Roman history from the earliest times to the end of the Western Empire in the fifth century. The feminine form is Aula. An alternative pronunciation leads to the variant spellings Olus or Ollus and Olla. Aulus was widely...
.
Branches and cognomina of the gens
The chief families of the Caninii bore the cognominaCognomen
The cognomen nōmen "name") was the third name of a citizen of Ancient Rome, under Roman naming conventions. The cognomen started as a nickname, but lost that purpose when it became hereditary. Hereditary cognomina were used to augment the second name in order to identify a particular branch within...
Gallus and Rebilus. The surname Satrius is also found, and there was a Caninius Sallustius, who was adopted by some member of this gens. Gallus was a common surname, which may refer to a Gaul
Gauls
The Gauls were a Celtic people living in Gaul, the region roughly corresponding to what is now France, Belgium, Switzerland and Northern Italy, from the Iron Age through the Roman period. They mostly spoke the Continental Celtic language called Gaulish....
, or to a cock
Rooster
A rooster, also known as a cockerel, cock or chanticleer, is a male chicken with the female being called a hen. Immature male chickens of less than a year's age are called cockerels...
.
Members of the gens
- This list includes abbreviated praenominaPraenomenThe praenomen was a personal name chosen by the parents of a Roman child. It was first bestowed on the dies lustricus , the eighth day after the birth of a girl, or the ninth day after the birth of a boy...
. For an explanation of this practice, see filiation.
Caninii Rebili
- Gaius Caninius Rebilus, praetorPraetorPraetor was a title granted by the government of Ancient Rome to men acting in one of two official capacities: the commander of an army, usually in the field, or the named commander before mustering the army; and an elected magistratus assigned varied duties...
in 171 BC, obtained SicilySicilySicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
as his province. - Marcus Caninius Rebilus, sent by the senateRoman SenateThe Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic, however, it was not an elected body, but one whose members were appointed by the consuls, and later by the censors. After a magistrate served his term in office, it usually was followed with automatic...
sent into Macedonia in 170 BC to investigate the lack of Roman progress in the war against PerseusPerseus of MacedonPerseus was the last king of the Antigonid dynasty, who ruled the successor state in Macedon created upon the death of Alexander the Great...
; one of the ambassadors appointed in 167 BC to return the ThracianThraciansThe ancient Thracians were a group of Indo-European tribes inhabiting areas including Thrace in Southeastern Europe. They spoke the Thracian language – a scarcely attested branch of the Indo-European language family...
hostages to CotysCotys IVCotys IV was a king of the Odrysian kingdom of Thrace from in ca. 170-160 BC, succeeding his father, Seuthes IV....
. - Gaius Caninius RebilusGaius Caninius RebilusGaius Caninius Rebilus, a member of the plebeian gens Caninia, was a Roman general and politician. As a reward for devoted service, Julius Caesar appointed him consul suffectus in 45 BC....
, one of Caesar'sJulius CaesarGaius Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman and a distinguished writer of Latin prose. He played a critical role in the gradual transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
legatesLegatusA legatus was a general in the Roman army, equivalent to a modern general officer. Being of senatorial rank, his immediate superior was the dux, and he outranked all military tribunes...
in GaulGaulGaul was a region of Western Europe during the Iron Age and Roman era, encompassing present day France, Luxembourg and Belgium, most of Switzerland, the western part of Northern Italy, as well as the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the left bank of the Rhine. The Gauls were the speakers of...
, and later during the Civil WarCaesar's civil warThe Great Roman Civil War , also known as Caesar's Civil War, was one of the last politico-military conflicts in the Roman Republic before the establishment of the Roman Empire...
; consul suffectus for the final day of 45 BC. - (Caninius) Rebilus, probably a brother of the consul of 45 BC, proscribed by the triumvirsSecond TriumvirateThe Second Triumvirate is the name historians give to the official political alliance of Octavius , Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, and Mark Antony, formed on 26 November 43 BC with the enactment of the Lex Titia, the adoption of which marked the end of the Roman Republic...
, but escaped to Sextus Pompeius in Sicily. - Caninius Rebilus, a man of consular rank and great wealth, but bad character; Julius Graecinus refused to accept a gift of money from him on account of his character. He is probably the same person who put an end to his life under the emperor NeroNeroNero , was Roman Emperor from 54 to 68, and the last in the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Nero was adopted by his great-uncle Claudius to become his heir and successor, and succeeded to the throne in 54 following Claudius' death....
, whose name was evidently corrupted into C. Aminius Rebius.
Caninii Galli
- Lucius Caninius GallusLucius Caninius GallusLucius Caninius Gallus was a Roman politician of the Roman Republic. Gallus was of plebs status and came from a family of consular rank....
, tribunus plebisTribuneTribune was a title shared by elected officials in the Roman Republic. Tribunes had the power to convene the Plebeian Council and to act as its president, which also gave them the right to propose legislation before it. They were sacrosanct, in the sense that any assault on their person was...
in 56 BC, a friend of CiceroCiceroMarcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...
. - Lucius Caninius L. f. Gallus, consulRoman consulA consul served in the highest elected political office of the Roman Republic.Each year, two consuls were elected together, to serve for a one-year term. Each consul was given veto power over his colleague and the officials would alternate each month...
in 37, and triumvir monetalisMoneyerA moneyer is someone who physically creates money. Moneyers have a long tradition, dating back at least to ancient Greece. They became most prominent in the Roman Republic, continuing into the empire.-Roman Republican moneyers:...
in 18 BC. - Lucius Caninius L. f. L. n. Gallus, consul suffectus in 2 BC.
Others
- Aulus Caninius Satrius, mentioned by Cicero in 65 BC.
- Caninius Sallustius, quaestorQuaestorA Quaestor was a type of public official in the "Cursus honorum" system who supervised financial affairs. In the Roman Republic a quaestor was an elected official whereas, with the autocratic government of the Roman Empire, quaestors were simply appointed....
of Marcus Calpurnius BibulusMarcus Calpurnius BibulusMarcus Calpurnius Bibulus was a politician of the late Roman Republic.Bibulus was the son in law of Marcus Porcius Cato Uticencis. In 59 BC he was elected consul, supported by the optimates, conservative republicans in the Senate and opponents of Julius Caesar's triumvirate...
, the proconsulProconsulA proconsul was a governor of a province in the Roman Republic appointed for one year by the senate. In modern usage, the title has been used for a person from one country ruling another country or bluntly interfering in another country's internal affairs.-Ancient Rome:In the Roman Republic, a...
of SyriaSyria (Roman province)Syria was a Roman province, annexed in 64 BC by Pompey, as a consequence of his military presence after pursuing victory in the Third Mithridatic War. It remained under Roman, and subsequently Byzantine, rule for seven centuries, until 637 when it fell to the Islamic conquests.- Principate :The...
; one of Cicero's letters is addressed to him. He may have been adopted into the Caninia gens, or possibly his name is corrupt, and should read C. Annius Sallustius or Cn. Sallustius.