Roman name

Roman male names typically contain three proper nouns which are classified as the praenomen (or given name), the nomen (or gens name) and the cognomen. Sometimes a second cognomen (called an agnomen) is added. For female names, the convention is similar, with a few differences.

Additional elements such as agnomen and filiation are optional.

Praenomen (plural, praenomina)

This form of "first" name was relatively unimportant, and was rarely used on its own outside of the family. There are relatively few praenomina that were commonly used in the Republican era of Rome.

Nomen (plural, nomina)

The second name or nomen is the name of the gens (clan) in masculine form; the Latin word "gens" is feminine, so the name appears as feminine in our lists.

Cognomen (plural, cognomina)

The third name or cognomen started to be a nickname or personal name that distinguished individuals within the same gens (the cognomen does not appear in official documents until around 100 BCE). During the Roman Republic, the cognomen is inherited from father to son, serving to distinguish a family within a gens. Often the cognomen was chosen based on some physical or personality trait.