The ''Vicus Jugarius'' (), or the Street of the Yoke-Makers, was an ancient street leading into the

Roman Forum A forum (Latin: ''forum'', "public place outdoors", : ''fora''; English : either ''fora'' or ''forums'') was a public square in a municipium, or any civitas, of Ancient Rome reserved primarily for the vending of goods; i.e., a marketplace, alon ...

. Claridge, Amanda (2nd edition, 2010),
Rome: An Oxford Archaeological Guide
',

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...

, pg 84. The Vicus Jugarius was very old—perhaps even older than Rome itself. The

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 ...

word ''jugarius'' can mean either "yoke" or "ridge". The Vicus Jugarius entered the Forum from the southwest, along the shoulder of the

Capitoline Hill The Capitolium or Capitoline Hill ( ; ; ), between the Roman Forum, Forum and the Campus Martius, is one of the Seven Hills of Rome. The hill was earlier known as ''Mons Saturnius'', dedicated to the god Saturn (mythology), Saturn. The wo ...

and between the

Temple of Saturn The Temple of Saturn (Latin: ''Templum Saturni'' or '' Aedes Saturni''; ) was an ancient Roman temple to the god Saturn, in what is now Rome, Italy. Its ruins stand at the foot of the Capitoline Hill at the western end of the Roman Forum. Th ...

and the Basilica Julia near Servilius’ Pool. The Arch of Tiberius (now vanished) was built for the street to pass through here. Its other end, in the southern

Campus Martius The Campus Martius (Latin for 'Field of Mars'; Italian: ''Campo Marzio'') was a publicly owned area of ancient Rome about in extent. In the Middle Ages, it was the most populous area of Rome. The IV rione of Rome, Campo Marzio, which covers ...

, was near the Forum Holitorium. This was the extent of the street in late Republican and Imperial times, but in former days, it was much longer, extending as far as the

Quirinal Hill The Quirinal Hill (; ; ) is one of the Seven Hills of Rome, at the north-east of the city center. It is the location of the official residence of the Italian head of state, who resides in the Quirinal Palace; by metonymy "the Quirinal" has c ...

and representing a part of the original trade route to the

Tiber River The Tiber ( ; ; ) is the List of rivers of Italy, third-longest river in Italy and the longest in Central Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio, where it is joined by the R ...

. Its ancient name may actually have originally signified a “high-road’, rather than the later sense of “yoke”; something like "the Road along the apitolineRidge". A spot on the road known as the ''Equimaelium'' perhaps recorded the leveling of the home of

Spurius Maelius Spurius Maelius (died 439 BC) was a wealthy Roman plebeian who was slain because he was suspected of intending to make himself king. Biography During a severe famine, Spurius Maelius bought up a large amount of wheat and sold it at a low price to ...

Etymology

words associated with ''jugarius'' include ''jugalis'' ("yoked together") and ''jugo'' ("to marry" or "join"). Some words deriving from this Latin root are (in English): "yoke", "join", "juncture", "conjugal" and even "yoga" (from the

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

root ''yuj'', meaning "to yoke" or "to unite"). ''Juga'', or ''Jugalis'', is an epithet of the goddess Juno in her aspect as marriage goddess (she was believed to join a couple in matrimony). As ''Juno Juga''—Juno of the Yoke of Holy Matrimony—she had an altar on the Vicus Jugarius (exact location unknown). Although it was believed by the ancients that this gave its name to the street, in reality, it was probably the other way around.

References

Tuscus Roman Forum Rome R. X Campitelli {{Italy-road-stub

Etymology

See also

References