The gens Quinctia, sometimes written Quintia, was a patrician 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 ...

. Throughout the history of the

Republic A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...

, its members often held the highest offices of the state, and it produced some men of importance even during the imperial period. For the first forty years after the expulsion of the kings the Quinctii are not mentioned, and the first of the gens who obtained the

consulship The consuls were the highest elected public officials of the Roman Republic ( to 27 BC). Romans considered the consulship the second-highest level of the ''cursus honorum''an ascending sequence of public offices to which politicians aspire ...

was

Titus Quinctius Capitolinus Barbatus Titus Quinctius Capitolinus Barbatus (513 BCafter 423 BC) was a Roman statesman and general who served as consul six times. Titus Quinctius was a member of the gens Quinctia, one of the oldest patrician families in Rome. He was the son of L ...

in 471 BC; but from that year their name constantly appears in the Fasti consulares.''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'', vol. III, pp. 633, 634 (" Quintia Gens"). As with other patrician families, in later times there were also

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 ...

Quinctii. Some of these may have been the descendants of

freedmen A freedman or freedwoman is a person who has been released from slavery, usually by legal means. Historically, slaves were freed by manumission (granted freedom by their owners), emancipation (granted freedom as part of a larger group), or self- ...

of the gens, or of patrician Quinctii who had voluntarily gone over to the plebs. There may also have been unrelated persons who happened to share the same nomen.

Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/24 79), known in English as Pliny the Elder ( ), was a Roman Empire, Roman author, Natural history, naturalist, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the Roman emperor, emperor Vesp ...

relates that it was the custom in the Quinctia gens for even the women not to wear any ornaments of gold.

Origin

The Quinctia gens was one of the Alban houses removed to Rome by

Tullus Hostilius Tullus Hostilius (; r. 672–640 BC) was the legendary third king of Rome. He succeeded Numa Pompilius and was succeeded by Ancus Marcius. Unlike his predecessor, Tullus was known as a warlike king who, according to the Roman historian Livy, b ...

, and enrolled by him among the patricians. It was consequently one of the ''minores gentes''. The nomen Quinctius is a patronymic surname based on 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 ...

''. The spelling ''Quintius'' is common in later times, but ''Quinctius'' is the ancient and more correct form, which occurs on coins and in the Fasti Capitolini.

Praenomina

The main praenomina used by the Quinctii were '' Lucius'' and ''

Titus Titus Caesar Vespasianus ( ; 30 December 39 – 13 September AD 81) was Roman emperor from 79 to 81. A member of the Flavian dynasty, Titus succeeded his father Vespasian upon his death, becoming the first Roman emperor ever to succeed h ...

''. The family also used the names '' Caeso, Gnaeus'', and ''Quintus''. All were very common throughout Roman history, except Caeso, which initially was principally borne among the patrician Fabii.

Ernst Badian Ernst Badian (8 August 1925 – 1 February 2011) was an Austrian-born classical scholar who served as a professor at Harvard University from 1971 to 1998. Early life and education Badian was born in Vienna in 1925 and in 1938 fled the Nazis wit ...

therefore suggests that the use of Caeso may reflect an old family connection between the Fabii and the Quinctii.Badian, "Family and Early Career", p. 105. Other praenomina were used by the plebeian Quinctii, such as '' Decimus'', ''

'', or '' Publius''.

Branches and cognomina

The three great patrician families of the Quinctia gens bore 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 ...

''Capitolinus, Cincinnatus'', and ''Flamininus''. Besides these we find Quinctii with the surnames ''Atta, Claudus, Crispinus, Hirpinus, Scapula'', ''Trogus'', and . A few members of the gens bore no cognomen. The only surname that occurs on coins is that of ''Crispinus Sulpicianus'', which is found on coins struck in the time 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 ...

. The cognomen Flamininus is also implied on a denarius. The eldest branches of the gens, those that bore the surnames ''Capitolinus'' and ''Cincinnatus'', may have sprung from two brothers, Titus Quinctius Capitolinus Barbatus, six times consul, and

Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus () was a Ancient Rome, Roman patrician (ancient Rome), patrician, Roman Senate, statesman, and Roman army, military leader of the early Roman Republic who became a famous model of Virtus (virtue), Roman virtue—parti ...

, twice

dictator A dictator is a political leader who possesses absolute Power (social and political), power. A dictatorship is a state ruled by one dictator or by a polity. The word originated as the title of a Roman dictator elected by the Roman Senate to r ...

, two of the greatest men of their age. The Fasti show that both men were the son and grandson of Lucius, and the two were well acquainted with one another. The cognomen ''Capitolinus'' is derived from the '' Mons Capitolinus'', or Capitoline Hill, one of the famous seven hills of Rome. The

agnomen An ''agnomen'' (; : ''agnomina''), in the Roman naming convention, was a nickname, just as the ''cognomen'' had been initially. However, the ''cognomina'' eventually became family names, and so ''agnomina'' were needed to distinguish between sim ...

''Barbatus'' of this family means "bearded".Chase, pp. 109, 110. The surname ''Cincinnatus'' refers to someone with fine, curly hair, as does the agnomen ''Crispinus'', which belonged to the later Capitolini. A few of the Quinctii bear both the surnames ''Cincinnatus'' and ''Capitolinus'', and men of both families also bore the cognomen ''Pennus'' (sometimes found as ''Poenus''). According to

Isidore Isidore ( ; also spelled Isador, Isadore and Isidor) is a masculine given name. The name is derived from the Greek name ''Isídōros'' (Ἰσίδωρος, latinized ''Isidorus'') and can literally be translated to 'gift of Isis'. The name has survi ...

, this surname had the meaning of "sharp": "''pennum antiqui acutum dicebant''." Alternately the name could be connected with ''penna'', a feather, or wing. ''Claudus'' appeared in the beginning of the third century, but was rapidly replaced by ''Flamininus'', which derived from ''

flamen A (plural ''flamines'') was a priest of the ancient Roman religion who was assigned to one of fifteen deities with official cults during the Roman Republic. The most important of these were the three (or "major priests"), who served the importa ...

'', and also gave rise to the '' gens Flaminia''. This cognomen was likely adopted by the descendants of Lucius Quinctius, who was

Flamen Dialis In ancient Roman religion, the was the high priest of Jupiter. The term ''Dialis'' is related to ''Diespiter'', an Old Latin form of the name ''Jupiter''. There were 15 '' flamines'', of whom three were ''flamines maiores'', serving the thr ...

during the third quarter of the third century BC. The family remained prominent over the next century; their most famous member was

Titus Quinctius Flamininus Titus Quinctius Flamininus (229 – 174 BC) was a Roman politician and general instrumental in the Roman conquest of Greece. Family background Flamininus belonged to the minor patrician ''gens'' Quinctia. The family had a glorious place in ...

, who defeated

Philip V of Macedon Philip V (; 238–179 BC) was king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedon from 221 to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by the Social War (220–217 BC), Social War in Greece (220-217 BC) ...

in 197 BC.

Members

Quinctii Capitolini et Crispini

* Titus Quinctius L. f. L. n. Capitolinus Barbatus, consul in 471, 468, 465, 446, 443, and 439 BC. * Titus Quinctius T. f. L. n. Capitolinus Barbatus, consul in 421 BC. * Titus Quinctius T. f. T. n. Capitolinus Barbatus, ''

consular tribune A consular tribune was putatively a type of magistrate in the early Roman Republic. According to Roman tradition, colleges of consular tribunes held office throughout the fifth and fourth centuries BC during the so-called "Conflict of the Or ...

'' in 405 BC. * Titus Quinctius (T. f. L. n. Cincinnatus) Capitolinus, ''tribunus militum consulari potestate'' in 385 BC, and

magister equitum The , in English Master of the Horse or Master of the Cavalry, was a Roman magistrate appointed as lieutenant to a dictator. His nominal function was to serve as commander of the Roman cavalry in time of war, but just as a dictator could be n ...

in the same year to the dictator Aulus Cornelius Cossus. * Gnaeus Quinctius Capitolinus, one of the first two Curule aediles elected in 366 BC. * Titus Quinctius T. f. Pennus Capitolinus Crispinus,

in 361 BC, and consul in 354 and 351. * Gnaeus Quinctius T. f. T. n. Capitolinus, dictator '' clavi figendi causa'' in 331 BC. * Titus Quinctius L. f. L. n. Crispinus, praetor in 209 BC, then consul in 208 with

Marcus Claudius Marcellus Marcus Claudius Marcellus (; 270 – 208 BC) was a Roman general and politician during the 3rd century BC. Five times elected as Roman consul, consul of the Roman Republic (222, 215, 214, 210, and 208 BC). Marcellus gained the most prestigious a ...

, during the

Second Punic War The Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC) was the second of Punic Wars, three wars fought between Ancient Carthage, Carthage and Roman Republic, Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For ...

; wounded near Tarentum, and died at the close of the year. * Lucius Quinctius Crispinus, praetor in 186 BC, was assigned Hither Spain as his province. * Titus Quinctius T. f. Crispinus Sulpicianus, consul in 9 BC. * Titus Quinctius T. f. T. n. Crispinus Valerianus, consul ''suffectus'' in AD 2, and a member of the

Arval Brethren In ancient Roman religion, the Arval Brethren (, "Brothers of the Fields") or Arval Brothers were a body of priests who offered annual sacrifices to the Lares and gods to guarantee good harvests. Inscriptions provide evidence of their oaths, r ...

from at least AD 14 to after 21.

Quinctii Cincinnati

* Lucius Quinctius L. f. L. n. Cincinnatus, consul in 460 BC, and dictator in 458 and 439. * Caeso Quinctius L. f. L. n. Cincinnatus, son of the dictator, died in exile. * Lucius Quinctius L. f. L. n. Cincinnatus, consular tribune in 438, 425, and 420 BC, and magister equitum in 437. * Titus Quinctius L. f. L. n. Cincinnatus Pennus, consul in 431 and 428 BC, and consular tribune in 426. * Quintus Quinctius L. f. L. n. Cincinnatus, consular tribune in 415 and 405 BC. * Titus Quinctius T. f. L. n. Cincinnatus Capitolinus, consular tribune in 388 and 384 BC, and dictator in 380. * Lucius Quinctius (L. f. L. n.) Cincinnatus, consular tribune in 386, 385, and 377 BC. * Gaius Quinctius Cincinnatus, consular tribune in 377 BC. * Quintus Quinctius Cincinnatus, consular tribune in 369 BC. * Titus Quinctius Pennus Cincinnatus Capitolinus, consular tribune in 368 BC, and magister equitum in 367.

Quinctii Claudi et Flaminini

* Lucius Quinctius Cn. f. T. n. (Claudus), a military tribune in 326 BC under

Quintus Publilius Philo Quintus Publilius Philo was a Roman politician who lived during the 4th century BC. His birth date is not provided by extant sources, however, a reasonable estimate is about 365 BC, since he first became consul in 339 BC at a time when consuls co ...

. He was probably the son of Gnaeus Quinctius Capitolinus, dictator in 331, and the father of Caeso Quinctius Claudus, consul in 271. * Caeso Quinctius L. f. Cn. n. Claudus, consul in 271 BC. * Lucius Quinctius K. f. L. n. (Claudus), Flamen Dialis during the third quarter of the third century BC. He was probably a son of Caeso Quinctius Claudus, consul in 271. * Titus Quinctius L. f. K. n. Flamininus, son of Lucius Quinctius, the Flamen Dialis, and father of Titus and Lucius Quinctius Flamininus, the consuls of 198 and 192 BC. * Caeso Quinctius L. f. K. n. Flamininus, one of the

duumviri The duumviri (Latin for 'two men'), originally duoviri and also known in English as the duumvirs, were any of various joint magistrates of ancient Rome. Such pairs of Roman magistrates were appointed at various periods of Roman history both in ...

ordered to contract for the building of the temple of Concordia, in 217 BC. * Quinctius L. f. K. n. Claudus Flamininus, praetor in 208 BC, sent to Tarentum, where he stayed as propraetor until 205. He was either the third son of Lucius Quinctius, the Flamen Dialis, or the same man as Caeso Quinctius Flamininus, the duumvir of 217. * Titus Quinctius T. f. L. n. Flamininus, consul in 198 BC, and censor in 189; defeated

at the

Battle of Cynoscephalae The Battle of Cynoscephalae () was an encounter battle fought in Thessaly in 197 BC between the Roman army, led by Titus Quinctius Flamininus, and the Antigonid dynasty of Macedon, led by Philip V, during the Second Macedonian War. It was ...

. * Lucius Quinctius T. f. L. n. Flamininus, a general under his elder brother, Titus, during the war against Philip, and consul in 192 BC. He was created

augur An augur was a priest and official in the ancient Rome, classical Roman world. His main role was the practice of augury, the interpretation of the will of the List of Roman deities, gods by studying events he observed within a predetermined s ...

in 212 BC. * Caeso Quinctius K. f. L. f. Flamininus, praetor ''peregrinus'' in 177 BC. He was the likely son of Caeso Quinctius Flamininus, the duumvir of 217. * Titus Quinctius T. f. Flamininus, ambassador to Cotys, the King of

Thrace Thrace (, ; ; ; ) is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe roughly corresponding to the province of Thrace in the Roman Empire. Bounded by the Balkan Mountains to the north, the Aegean Sea to the south, and the Black Se ...

, in 167 BC; elected augur the same year. * Titus Quinctius T. f. T. n. Flamininus, consul in 150 BC. * Titus Quinctius T. f. T. n. Flamininus, consul in 123 BC. * Titus Quinctius T. f. T. n. Flamininus, ''

triumvir monetalis The ''triumvir monetalis'' ( ''tresviri'' or ''triumviri monetales'', also called the , abbreviated IIIVIR A. A. A. F. F.) was a moneyer during the Roman Republic and the Empire, who oversaw the minting of coins. In that role, he would be respon ...

'' in 126 BC. He was probably the son of the consul of 123.

Others

* Decimus Quinctius, a man of obscure birth, but great military reputation, commanded the Roman fleet at Tarentum in 210 BC, during the Second Punic War, and was slain in a naval engagement that year. * Titus Quinctius Trogus, accused by the quaestor Marcus Sergius. * Titus Quinctius Atta, a Roman comic poet, who died in 78 BC. * Publius Quinctius, defended 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 his first major oration, ''Pro Quinctio'', in 81 BC. * Lucius Quinctius, praetor in 67 BC, an opponent of the constitution of

Sulla Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix (, ; 138–78 BC), commonly known as Sulla, was a Roman people, Roman general and statesman of the late Roman Republic. A great commander and ruthless politician, Sulla used violence to advance his career and his co ...

, and a rival of Lucius Licinius Lucullus. * Titus Quinctius Scapula, a partisan of Gnaeus Pompeius during the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

. * Quinctius Hirpinus, a friend of the poet

Horace Quintus Horatius Flaccus (; 8 December 65 BC – 27 November 8 BC), Suetonius, Life of Horace commonly known in the English-speaking world as Horace (), was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus (also known as Octavian). Th ...

. * Gaius Quinctius Atticus, consul ''suffectus'' in November and December in AD 69. * Publius Quinctius Scapula, mentioned by

as an instance of sudden death.Pliny the Elder, vii. 53, s. 54.

Footnotes

References

Bibliography

Ancient sources

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 ...

, '' Cato Maior de Senectute'', ''

Epistulae ad Atticum ''Epistulae ad Atticum'' (Latin for "Letters to Atticus") is a collection of letters from Roman politician and orator Marcus Tullius Cicero to his close friend Titus Pomponius Atticus. The letters in this collection, together with Cicero's oth ...

'', '' Pro Quinctio''. *

Diodorus Siculus Diodorus Siculus or Diodorus of Sicily (; 1st century BC) was an ancient Greece, ancient Greek historian from Sicily. He is known for writing the monumental Universal history (genre), universal history ''Bibliotheca historica'', in forty ...

, ''

Bibliotheca Historica ''Bibliotheca historica'' (, ) is a work of Universal history (genre), universal history by Diodorus Siculus. It consisted of forty books, which were divided into three sections. The first six books are geographical in theme, and describe the h ...

'' (Library of History). *

Marcus Terentius Varro Marcus Terentius Varro (116–27 BCE) was a Roman polymath and a prolific author. He is regarded as ancient Rome's greatest scholar, and was described by Petrarch as "the third great light of Rome" (after Virgil and Cicero). He is sometimes call ...

, ''De Lingua Latina'' (On the Latin Language). * Quintus Horatius Flaccus (

), '' Carmen Saeculare'', '' Epistulae''. * 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 The history of Rome includes the history of the city of Rome as well as the civilisation of ancient Rome. Roman history has been influential on the modern world, especially in the history of the Catholic Church, and Roman law has influenced m ...

''. *

Valerius Maximus Valerius Maximus () was a 1st-century Latin writer and author of a collection of historical anecdotes: ' ("Nine books of memorable deeds and sayings", also known as ''De factis dictisque memorabilibus'' or ''Facta et dicta memorabilia''). He worke ...

, ''Factorum ac Dictorum Memorabilium'' (Memorable Facts and Sayings). * Gaius Plinius Secundus (

), '' Historia Naturalis'' (Natural History). * Flavius Magnus Aurelius Cassiodorus Senator, ''Chronica''. * Isidorus Hispalensis, ''

Origines (, "Origins") is the title of a lost work on Roman and Italian history by Cato the Elder, composed in the early-2nd centuryBC. Contents According to Cato's biographer Cornelius Nepos, the ''Origins'' consisted of seven books. Book I was th ...

''. *

Joannes Zonaras Joannes or John Zonaras ( ; 1070 – 1140) was a Byzantine Roman historian, chronicler and theologian who lived in Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul, Turkey). Under Emperor Alexios I Komnenos he held the offices of head justice and private s ...

, ''Epitome Historiarum'' (Epitome of History).

Modern sources

* * * *

Michael Crawford Michael Patrick Smith (born 19 January 1942), known professionally as Michael Crawford, is an English actor, comedian and singer. Crawford is best known for playing the hapless Frank Spencer in the sitcom '' Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em'', Cornel ...

, ''Roman Republican Coinage'', Cambridge University Press (1974, 2001). *

Joseph Hilarius Eckhel Joseph Hilarius Eckhel (13 January 1737 – 16 May 1798) was an Austrian Jesuit priest and numismatist. Biography Eckhel was born at Enzersfeld, in Lower Austria. His father was farm-steward to Count Zinzendorf, and he received his early educa ...

, ''Doctrina Numorum Veterum'' (The Study of Ancient Coins, 1792–1798). *

Barthold Georg Niebuhr Barthold Georg Niebuhr (27 August 1776 – 2 January 1831) was a Danish–German statesman, banker, and historian who became Germany's leading historian of Ancient Rome and a founding father of modern scholarly historiography. By 1810 Niebuhr wa ...

, ''The History of Rome'', Julius Charles Hare and Connop Thirlwall, trans., John Smith, Cambridge (1828). * Martha W. Hoffman Lewis, ''The Official Priests of Rome under the Julio-Claudians'', American Academy, Rome (1955). *

Friedrich Münzer Friedrich Münzer (22 April 1868 – 20 October 1942) was a German classical scholar noted for the development of prosopography, particularly for his demonstrations of how family relationships in ancient Rome connected to political struggles. He d ...

, ''Roman Aristocratic Parties and Families'', translated by Thérèse Ridley, Johns Hopkins University Press, 1999 (originally published in 1920). *

Jörg Rüpke Jörg Rüpke (born 27 December 1962 in Herford, West Germany) is a German scholar of comparative religion and classical philology, recipient of the Gay-Lussac Humboldt Prize in 2008, and of the Advanced Grant of the European Research Council in ...

, Anne Glock, David Richardson (translator), ''Fasti Sacerdotum: A Prosopography of Pagan, Jewish, and Christian Religious Officials in the City of Rome, 300 BC to AD 499'', Oxford University Press, 2008. * D. P. Simpson, ''Cassell's Latin and English Dictionary'', Macmillan Publishing Company, New York (1963). * William Smith, ed., ''

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 ...

'', Little, Brown and Company, Boston (1849). * {{Authority control Roman gentes Alba Longa