The gens Appuleia, occasionally written Apuleia, was a

plebeian In ancient Rome, the plebeians or plebs were the general body of free Roman citizens who were not patricians, as determined by the census, or in other words "commoners". Both classes were hereditary. Etymology The precise origins of the gro ...

family at

ancient Rome In modern historiography, ancient Rome is the Roman people, Roman civilisation from the founding of Rome, founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, collapse of the Western Roman Em ...

, which flourished from the fifth century BC into imperial times. The first of the

gens In ancient Rome, a gens ( or , ; : gentes ) was a family consisting of individuals who shared the same ''nomen gentilicium'' and who claimed descent from a common ancestor. A branch of a gens, sometimes identified by a distinct cognomen, was cal ...

to achieve importance was Lucius Appuleius,

tribune of the plebs Tribune of the plebs, tribune of the people or plebeian tribune () was the first office of the Roman Republic, Roman state that was open to the plebs, plebeians, and was, throughout the history of the Republic, the most important check on the pow ...

in 391 BC.

Praenomina

The principal names used by the Appuleii were '' Lucius'', '' Sextus'', and ''

Gaius Gaius, sometimes spelled Caius, was a common Latin praenomen; see Gaius (praenomen). People * Gaius (biblical figure) (1st century AD) *Gaius (jurist) (), Roman jurist * Gaius Acilius * Gaius Antonius * Gaius Antonius Hybrida * Gaius Asinius Gal ...

''. There is one early instance of the

praenomen The praenomen (; plural: praenomina) was a first name chosen by the parents of a Ancient Rome, Roman child. It was first bestowed on the ''dies lustricus'' (day of lustration), the eighth day after the birth of a girl, or the ninth day after the ...

Quintus Quintus is a male given name derived from ''Quintus (praenomen), Quintus'', a common Latin language, Latin forename (''praenomen'') found in the culture of ancient Rome. Quintus derives from Latin word ''quintus'', meaning "fifth". Quintus is ...

'', but '' Marcus'' and '' Gnaeus'' are not found before the first century BC.

Branches and cognomina

The

cognomina A ''cognomen'' (; : ''cognomina''; from ''co-'' "together with" and ''(g)nomen'' "name") was the third name of a citizen of ancient Rome, under Roman naming conventions. Initially, it was a nickname, but lost that purpose when it became hereditar ...

of this gens are ''Decianus'', ''Pansa'', and ''Saturninus''. Of these, only ''Saturninus'' was a regular surname. ''Decianus'' was first used by a member adopted from the '' Decia gens'', and passed to his children.

Members

* Lucius Appuleius,

in 391 BC, impeached Camillus for having secreted part of the spoils of Veii. * Quintus Appuleius Pansa,

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states thro ...

in 300 BC. * Lucius Appuleius, one of the Roman ambassadors sent in 156 BC to examine the state of affairs between

Attalus Attalus or Attalos may refer to: People *Several members of the Attalid dynasty of Pergamon **Attalus I, ruled 241 BC–197 BC **Attalus II Philadelphus, ruled 160 BC–138 BC **Attalus III, ruled 138 BC–133 BC *Attalus, father of Ph ...

and Prusias. * Marcus Appuleius M. f., a senator in 129 BC. * Lucius Appuleius, praetor in 59 BC, and governor of Macedonia in 58. * Appuleius, proquaestor, perhaps of Quintus Marcius Philippus,

proconsul A proconsul was an official of ancient Rome who acted on behalf of a Roman consul, consul. A proconsul was typically a former consul. The term is also used in recent history for officials with delegated authority. In the Roman Republic, military ...

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

in 55 BC. * Appuleius, a ''praediator'' mentioned by

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, orator, writer and Academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises tha ...

in two of his letters. * Marcus Appuleius,

quaestor A quaestor ( , ; ; "investigator") was a public official in ancient Rome. There were various types of quaestors, with the title used to describe greatly different offices at different times. In the Roman Republic, quaestors were elected officia ...

in Asia at the time of

Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (12 or 13 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war. He ...

's death in 44 BC, proscribed by the triumvirs, but afterward restored to his native country. * Appuleius, probably tribune of the plebs, was proscribed by the triumvirs in 43 BC, and escaped with his wife to

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

. * Sextus Appuleius Sex. f., married to Octavia the Elder, the half-sister of

Augustus Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian (), was the founder of the Roman Empire, who reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in A ...

. * Sextus Appuleius Sex. f. Sex. n., consul in 29 BC, was a nephew of Augustus. * Marcus Appuleius Sex. f. Sex. n., consul in 20 BC, was another nephew of Augustus. * Sextus Appuleius Sex. f. Sex. n., consul in AD 14, was a grandnephew of Augustus, who died during his consulship. * Appuleia Sex. f. Sex. n. Varilla, daughter of the consul of 29 BC. * Publius Appuleius Sex. f. Sex. n. Varus, a son of Sextus Appuleius, consul in 29 BC.Appuleius
Strachan stemma. * Appuleius Celsus, a physician from Centuripa in Sicilia, who was the tutor of Valens and Scribonius Largus. * Lucius Appuleius or Apuleius, the author of a ''Metamorphoses'', better known as ''

The Golden Ass The ''Metamorphoses'' of Apuleius, which Augustine of Hippo referred to as ''The Golden Ass'' (Latin: ''Asinus aureus''), is the only ancient Roman novel in Latin to survive in its entirety. The protagonist of the novel is Lucius. At the end of ...

''. * Lucius Appuleius Barbarus, a botanical writer, probably dating to the fourth century.

Appuleii Saturnini

* Gaius Appuleius Saturninus, one of the commissioners sent by the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

in 168 BC to inquire into and settle the disputes between the Pisani and Lunenses.Livy, xlv. 13. *

Lucius Appuleius Saturninus Lucius Appuleius Saturninus (died late 100 BC) was a Roman populist and tribune. He is most notable for introducing a series of legislative reforms, alongside his associate Gaius Servilius Glaucia and with the consent of Gaius Marius, during t ...

, praetor in 166 BC. *

, tribune of the plebs in 103 and 100 BC. *

, propraetorian governor of Macedonia in 58 BC. * Appuleia, mother of Lepidus the Triumvir.

Appuleii Deciani

* Gaius Appuleius Decianus, tribune of the plebs in 98 BC. * Gaius Appuleius C. f. Decianus, a negotiator at

Pergamon Pergamon or Pergamum ( or ; ), also referred to by its modern Greek form Pergamos (), was a rich and powerful ancient Greece, ancient Greek city in Aeolis. It is located from the modern coastline of the Aegean Sea on a promontory on the north s ...

and Apollonis in

Asia Minor Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

Others

* Pseudo-Apuleius, a fourth century writer, also known as Appuleius Barbarus or Appuleius Platonicus. * Lucius Caecilicus Minutianus Appuleius, a tenth century writer.

References

Bibliography

Polybius Polybius (; , ; ) was a Greek historian of the middle Hellenistic period. He is noted for his work , a universal history documenting the rise of Rome in the Mediterranean in the third and second centuries BC. It covered the period of 264–146 ...

, '' Historiae'' (The Histories). *

Marcus Tullius Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, orator, writer and Academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises tha ...

, '' Epistulae ad Atticum'', ''

Epistulae ad Familiares ''Epistulae ad Familiares'' (''Letters to Friends'') is a collection of letters between Ancient Rome, Roman politician and orator Cicero, Marcus Tullius Cicero and various public and private figures. The letters in this collection, together wit ...

''. * Titus Livius (

Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding i ...

), '' History of Rome''. * Scribonius Largus, ''De Compositione Medicamentorum'' (On the Composition of Medicines). * Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus (

Plutarch Plutarch (; , ''Ploútarchos'', ; – 120s) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo (Delphi), Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''Parallel Lives'', ...

), '' Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans''. * Appianus Alexandrinus (

Appian Appian of Alexandria (; ; ; ) was a Greek historian with Roman citizenship who prospered during the reigns of the Roman Emperors Trajan, Hadrian, and Antoninus Pius. He was born c. 95 in Alexandria. After holding the senior offices in the pr ...

), ''Bellum Civile'' (The Civil War). *

Cassius Dio Lucius Cassius Dio (), also known as Dio Cassius ( ), was a Roman historian and senator of maternal Greek origin. He published 80 volumes of the history of ancient Rome, beginning with the arrival of Aeneas in Italy. The volumes documented the ...

, ''Roman History''. * ''

Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology The ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'' is a biographical dictionary of classical antiquity, edited by William Smith (lexicographer), William Smith and originally published in London by John Taylor (English publisher), Tayl ...

'', William Smith, ed., Little, Brown and Company, Boston (1849). * * * Robert K. Sherk,
The Text of the ''Senatus Consultum De Agro Pergameno''
, in ''Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies'', vol. 7, pp. 361–369 (1966). * Ronald Syme, ''The Augustan Aristocracy'', Clarendon Press, Oxford (1989). {{Refend Roman gentes