by Paulo Barata
or sometimes as the major feature of Roman religious festivals, and were also presented as part of the cult of state.
The earliest ludi were horse races in the circus (ludi circenses). Animal exhibitions with mock hunts (venationes) and theatrical performances (ludi scaenici) also became part of the festivals.
Days on which ludi were held were public holidays, and no business could be conducted - "remarkably," it has been noted, "considering that in the Imperial era more than 135 days might be spent at these entertainments" during the year. Although their entertainment value may have overshadowed religious sentiment at any given moment, even in late antiquity the ludi were understood as part of the worship of the traditional gods, and the Church Fathers thus advised Christians not to participate in the festivities.
Mega Khaire
Greek salutation
Mithraeum
Temple in honor of the god Mithra
A Mithraeum (or the plural Mithraea) is a place of worship for the followers of the mystery religion of Mithraism.
The Mithraeum was either an adapted natural cave or cavern, or a building imitating a cave. When possible, the Mithraeum was constructed within or below an existing building, such as the Mithraeum found beneath Basilica of San Clemente in Rome.
While a majority of Mithraea are underground, some feature open holes in the ceiling to allow some light in, perhaps to relate to the connection of the universe and the passing of time.
Many mithraea that follow this basic plan are scattered over much of the Roman Empire's former territory, particularly where the legions were stationed along the frontiers (such as Britain). Others may be recognized by their characteristic layout, even though converted as crypts beneath Christian churches.
Murmillones
Roman gladiators, used shield and sword
The murmillo (also sometimes spelled mirmillo or myrmillo, pl. murmillones) was a type of gladiator during the Roman Imperial age.
The murmillo-class gladiator was adopted in the early Imperial period to replace the earlier Gallus, named after the warriors of Gaul. As the Gauls inhabiting Italy had become well-integrated with the Romans by the time of the reign of Augustus, it became undesirable to portray them as enemy outsiders; the Gallus-class gladiator thus had to be retired.
Olympus
Mythical residence of the Greco-Roman gods
In Greek mythology Mount Olympus was regarded as the "home" of the Twelve Olympian gods of the ancient Greek world. It formed itself after the gods defeated the Titans in the Titan War, and soon the palace was inhabited by the gods. It is the setting of many Greek mythical stories.
Oracle
Prophetic prediction
In Classical Antiquity, an oracle was a person or agency considered to be a source of wise counsel or prophetic predictions or precognition of the future, inspired by the gods. As such it is a form of divination.
The word oracle comes from the Latin verb orare "to speak" and properly refers to the priest or priestess uttering the prediction. In extended use, oracle may also refer to the site of the oracle, and to the oracular utterances themselves.
Oracles were thought to be portals through which the gods spoke directly to people. In this sense they were different from seers who interpreted signs sent by the gods through bird signs, animal entrails, and other various methods.
The most important oracles of Greek antiquity were Pythia, priestess to Apollo at Delphi, and the oracle of Dione and Zeus at Dodona in Epirus.
Other temples of Apollo were located at Didyma on the coast of Asia Minor, at Corinth and Bassae in the Peloponnese, and at the islands of Delos and Aegina in the Aegean Sea.
Only the Delphic Oracle was a male; all others were female. The Sibylline Oracles are a collection of oracular utterances written in Greek hexameters ascribed to the Sibyls, prophetesses who uttered divine revelations in a frenzied state.
Palatine
Designation of the Imperial palaces of Rome
Parthians
Persians
Patera
Father
Patrician
Roman aristocrat
The term patrician (Latin: patricius) originally referred to a group of elite families in ancient Rome, including both their natural and adopted members.
In the late Roman Empire, the class was broadened to include high council officials, and after the fall of the Western Empire it remained a high honorary title in the Byzantine Empire.
The distinction between patricians and plebeians in Ancient Rome was based purely on birth. Although modern writers often portray patricians as rich and powerful families who managed to secure power over the less-fortunate plebeian families, most historians argue that this is an over-simplification. As civil rights for plebeians increased during the middle and late Roman Republic, many plebeian families had attained wealth and power while some traditionally patrician families had fallen into poverty and obscurity.
The prestige and meaning of the status gradually degraded, and by the end of the 3rd-century crisis, patrician status, as it had been known in the Republic, ceased to have meaning in everyday life.
Pax romana
Period of relative peace in the roman empire
Pythia
Priestess of the temple of Apollo in Delphi
The Pythia, commonly known as the Oracle of Delphi, was the priestess at the Temple of Apollo at Delphi, located on the slopes of Mount Parnassus, beneath the Castalian Spring.
The Pythia was widely credited for her prophecies inspired by Apollo. The Delphic oracle was established in the 8th century BCE, although it may have been present in some form in Late Mycenaean times, from 1,400 BCE and was abandoned, and there is evidence that Apollo took over the shrine from an earlier dedication to Gaia. The last recorded response was given during CE 393, when the emperor Theodosius I ordered pagan temples to cease operation.
During this period the Delphic Oracle was the most prestigious and authoritative oracle among the Greeks. The oracle is one of the best-documented religious institutions of the classical Greeks.
The name 'Pythia' derived from Pytho, which in myth was the original name of Delphi. The Greeks derived this place name from the verb, pythein ("to rot"), which refers to the decomposition of the body of the monstrous Python after she was slain by Apollo. The usual theory has been that the Pythia delivered oracles in a frenzied state induced by vapors rising from a chasm in the rock, and that she spoke gibberish which priests interpreted as the enigmatic prophecies preserved in Greek literature.
Prefect
High roman official, responsible for military and civil rule
Praefectus, often with a further qualification, was the formal title of many, fairly low to high-ranking, military or civil officials in the Roman Empire, whose authority was not embodied in their person (as it was with elected Magistrates) but conferred by delegation from a higher authority. They did have some authority in their prefecture such as controlling prisons and in civil administration.
Praetor
Roman magistrate, responsible for judiciary affairs
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; or, an elected magistratus (magistrate), assigned various duties (which varied at different periods in Rome's history).
The functions of the magistracy, the praetura (praetorship), are described by the adjective: the praetoria potestas (praetorian power), the praetorium imperium (praetorian authority), and the praetorium ius (praetorian law), the legal precedents established by the praetores (praetors).
Praetorium, as a substantive, denoted the location from which the praetor exercised his authority, either the headquarters of his castra, the courthouse (tribunal) of his judiciary, or the city hall of his provincial governorship.
Pretorium
Government seat of a roman Prefect/Procurator
The Latin term praetorium or pretorium originally signified a gen
eral's tent within a Roman castra, castellum, or encampment. It derived from the name of one of the chief Roman magistrates, the praetor.
In the New Testament, praetorium refers to the palace of Pontius Pilate, the Roman procurator of Judea. According to the New Testament, this is where Jesus Christ was tried and condemned to death. The Bible refers to the Praetorium as the "common hall," the "governor's house," the "judgment hall," "Pilate's house," and the "palace."
Princeps
Title of a member of the imperial family
Princeps (in this sense usually translated as "First Citizen") was an official title of a Roman Emperor as the title determining the leader in Ancient Rome at the beginning of the Roman Empire. It created the principate Roman imperial system.
This usage of "princeps" derived from the position of Princeps Senatus, the "first among equals" of the Senate. The princeps senatus (plural principes senatus) was the first member by precedence of the Roman Senate.
It was first given as a special title to Caesar Augustus in 27 BC, who saw that use of the titles rex (king) or dictator would create resentment amongst senators and other influential men, who had earlier demonstrated their disapproval by supporting the assassination of Julius Caesar. While Augustus had political and military supremacy, he needed the assistance of his fellow Romans to manage the Empire.
Procurator
High roman official, responsible for military and civil rule
Procurator was the title of various officials of the Roman Empire, posts mostly filled by men of the equestrian order.
A procurator Augusti, could be the governor of the smaller imperial provinces. The same title was held by the fiscal procurators, who assisted governors of the senatorial provinces (known as a legatus Augusti pro praetore, who were always senators. In addition, procurator was the title given to various other officials in Rome and Italy.
Publican
Tax collector at the service of Rome
In antiquity, publicans were public contractors, in which role they often supplied the Roman legions and military, managed the collection of port duties, and oversaw public building projects. In addition, they served as tax collectors for the Republic (and later the Roman Empire), bidding on contracts for the collection of various types of taxes.
The right to collect taxes for a particular region would be auctioned every few years for a value that (in theory) approximated the tax available for collection in that region. The payment to Rome was treated as a loan and the publicani would receive interest on their payment at the end of the collection period. In addition, any excess (over their bid) tax collected would be pure profit. The principal risk was that the tax collected would be less than the sum bid.
Quaestor
Senate supervisor for judicial and fiscal affairs
A 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, but in the Roman Empire, quaestors came to be simply appointed.
In the Roman Republic, quastores were elected officials who supervised the treasury and financial affairs of the state, its armies and its officers. The quaestors tasked with financial supervision were also called quaestores aerarii, because they oversaw the aerarium or public treasury in the Temple of Saturn.
The office of quaestor was adopted as the first official post of the cursus honorum. By achieving election as quaestor, a Roman man would earn the right to sit in the Senate and begin to progress along the standard sequence of offices that made up a career in public service.
During the reforms of Sulla in 81 BC, the minimum age for a quaestorship was set at 30 for patricians and at 32 for plebeians, and election to the quaestorship gave automatic membership in the Senate. Before that, the censors revised the rolls of the Senate less regularly than the annual induction of quaestors created. The number of quaestors was also raised to 20.
Retiarii
Roman gladiators, used a