Venetia et Histria (

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

: ''Regio X Venetia et Histria'') was an administrative subdivision in the northeast of

Roman Italy Roman Italy is the period of ancient Italian history going from the founding of Rome, founding and Roman expansion in Italy, rise of ancient Rome, Rome to the decline and fall of the Western Roman Empire; the Latin name of the Italian peninsula ...

. It was originally created by

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 ...

as the tenth ''regio'' in 7 AD alongside the nine other ''regiones''. The region had been one of the last regions of Italy to be incorporated into the Roman Empire. It was later renamed by

Diocletian Diocletian ( ; ; ; 242/245 – 311/312), nicknamed Jovius, was Roman emperor from 284 until his abdication in 305. He was born Diocles to a family of low status in the Roman province of Dalmatia (Roman province), Dalmatia. As with other Illyri ...

the ''VIII provincia Venetia et Histria'' in the third century. Its capital was at

Aquileia Aquileia is an ancient Roman city in Italy, at the head of the Adriatic at the edge of the lagoons, about from the sea, on the river Natiso (modern Natisone), the course of which has changed somewhat since Roman times. Today, the city is small ( ...

, and it stretched geographically from the Arsia River in the east in what is now

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

to the Abdua in the current Italian region of

Lombardy The Lombardy Region (; ) is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in northern Italy and has a population of about 10 million people, constituting more than one-sixth of Italy's population. Lombardy is ...

and from the

Alps The Alps () are some of the highest and most extensive mountain ranges in Europe, stretching approximately across eight Alpine countries (from west to east): Monaco, France, Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. ...

to the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Se ...

Etymology

The name ''Venetia et Histria'' was used for the region in part because of the "early and unwavering" loyalty of the local Veneti people to the

Roman state In modern historiography, ancient Rome is the Roman civilisation from the founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingd ...

. This name was also preferred to using the name of a more rebellious group like the Celtic Cenomani because of the Roman belief in a shared descent with the Veneti from the Trojans. The second term refers to the

Istria Istria ( ; Croatian language, Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; Italian language, Italian and Venetian language, Venetian: ; ; Istro-Romanian language, Istro-Romanian: ; ; ) is the largest peninsula within the Adriatic Sea. Located at th ...

peninsula and the ancient people of that region.

History

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 ...

was the only Roman writer to discuss the Augustan subdivision of Italy into ''regiones'' directly and did so in his ''Natural History''. The region's new borders did not cleave directly to pre-existing regional identities.

Verona Verona ( ; ; or ) is a city on the Adige, River Adige in Veneto, Italy, with 255,131 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region, and is the largest city Comune, municipality in the region and in Northeast Italy, nor ...

which had traditionally been seen as part of Transpadana as it was north of the Po was not incorporated into the region with that name, ''regio XI'' but was made part of ''regio X''. Neratius Pansa, a Roman senator of the late first century AD, is believed, on the basis of epigraphic evidence, to have led a census here under the reign of the Emperor

Vespasian Vespasian (; ; 17 November AD 9 – 23 June 79) was Roman emperor from 69 to 79. The last emperor to reign in the Year of the Four Emperors, he founded the Flavian dynasty, which ruled the Empire for 27 years. His fiscal reforms and consolida ...

in 73–74.

Geography

In the late first century AD, Pliny identified 36 cities in the region, while

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo, Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-si ...

identified 12 in the same area. The CIL has identified 16 separate settlements using

epigraphic Epigraphy () is the study of inscriptions, or epigraphs, as writing; it is the science of identifying graphemes, clarifying their meanings, classifying their uses according to dates and cultural contexts, and drawing conclusions about the wr ...

evidence, and other historians have argued that "the density of cities for the region is not high compared to the rest of Italy". While the capital of the region, Aquileia, was a major centre for commerce, transport, and public life in northeastern Italy, with an amphitheater that could hold more than 27,000 and a position at the centre of a wide network of

roads A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. The ...

, other cities like Concordia, Tergeste, and

Altinum Altinum (in Altino, a ''frazione'' of Quarto d'Altino) was an ancient town of the Adriatic Veneti, Veneti 15 km southeast of modern Treviso, close to the mainland shore of the Lagoon of Venice. It was also close to the mouths of the rivers D ...

were also substantial regional hubs.

Gallery

File:Udine_aquileia2.jpg, Columns in

File:Roman Inscription in Ljubljana, Nar. Muz. Slov., Slovenia (EDH - F030862).jpeg, Inscription from

Emona Emona (early ) or Aemona (short for ) was a Roman castrum, located in the area where the navigable Nauportus River came closest to Castle Hill,Amphitheatre in Pula File:Museo_Altino.JPG, Ruins at museum in

File:Brescia_Capitoline_Temple.jpg, Temple at

Brescia Brescia (, ; ; or ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the region of Lombardy, in Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Lake Garda, Garda and Lake Iseo, Iseo. With a population of 199,949, it is the se ...

References

External links

''Venetia et Histria'' as a Pleiades place resource
{{Authority control Roman Italy History of Venice History of Istria States and territories established in the 0s