Aulus ( , ), feminine Aula, is a Latin ''
praenomen'', or
personal name
A personal name, full name or prosoponym (from Ancient Greek ''prósōpon'' – person, and ''onoma'' –name) is the set of names by which an individual person or animal is known. When taken together as a word-group, they all relate to that on ...
, which was common throughout Roman history from the earliest times to the end of the
Western Empire in the fifth century. An alternative pronunciation leads to the variant spellings Olus, ''Ollus'' and ''Olla''. Aulus was widely used by both patrician and plebeian ''gentes''. The name gave rise to the patronymic ''gens Aulia'', and perhaps also to ''gens Avilia'' and the ''
cognomen
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 ...
Avitus''. The name was usually abbreviated A., but occasionally Av. or Avl.
[''Dictionary of Greek & Roman Biography & Mythology''][George Davis Chase, "The Origin of Roman Praenomina", in ''Harvard Studies in Classical Philology'', vol. VIII (1897)]
For most of Roman history, Aulus was one of the ten most common praenomina, being less common than ''
Titus'', the sixth most common praenomen, and comparable in frequency to ''
Gnaeus'', ''
Spurius'', and ''
Sextus''.
Origin and meaning
The 4th century epitome ''De Praenominibus'' (''Concerning Praenomina'') by Julius Paris derives the name from the verb ''alo'', to nourish. However, Chase argues that in no circumstances could the simple root of ''al-'' be transmuted into ''aul-''. Another popular etymology derived the name from ''aula'' or ''olla'', a palace, perhaps implying nobility, or from its
homonym, ''aula'' or ''olla'', a pot, presumably an affectionate reference to the size and shape of a healthy baby. Both of these are also probably examples of
false etymology
A false etymology (fake etymology or pseudo-etymology) is a false theory about the origin or derivation of a specific word or phrase. When a false etymology becomes a popular belief in a cultural/linguistic community, it is a folk etymology (or po ...
.
One of the most common Etruscan praenomina was ''Aule'' or ''Aules'' (also spelled ''Avle'', ''Aveles'', etc.), the Etruscan cognate of Aulus. Deecke argued that the name was originally Etruscan, deriving it from ''avile'', found in the plural form ("years") in numerous funerary inscriptions. The name would then have been brought to Rome during its period of Etruscan domination in the 6th century BC. The reason why ''avile'' should give rise to a personal name is unclear. Deecke also believed that the Latin praenomen ''Spurius'' was of Etruscan origin.
Chase felt that this explanation looked too far afield for the source of Roman names, and, supported by Zimmermann, proposed that Aulus was derived from , "little grandfather," a diminutive of . This analogy was based on similar diminutives in other languages, some of them meaning "uncle" (from Latin ''avunculus'').
[A. Zimmermann, ''Neue Jahrbücher'' (1897)]
Notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aulus (Praenomen)
Ancient Roman praenomina