RomanItaly Posted August 19, 2004 Report Share Posted August 19, 2004 What does the term Italia mean? Is it a term meanign Roman homeland or something? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pompeius magnus Posted August 19, 2004 Report Share Posted August 19, 2004 When they refer to Italia it is most of the time either mentioning the people living outside of the Latium region, which was where rome was in, so for instance the people of Etrusca, Campania, Saminum. Even though they had roman citizenship they were not roman. It also refers sometimes to the whole pennisula, discluding italian gaul which is north of etruscia and umbria, it was the latin word for Italy I believe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Viggen Posted August 19, 2004 Report Share Posted August 19, 2004 A related discussion you can find here http://www.unrv.com/forum/index.php?act=ST&f=2&t=400& cheers viggen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Primus Pilus Posted August 19, 2004 Report Share Posted August 19, 2004 Many places in the ancient world were named after the people who lived there. Italia is no different, likely being adapted from the Itali tribe as discussed in the post Viggen mentioned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gardapthia Posted October 24, 2004 Report Share Posted October 24, 2004 The world "Italy," or "Italia" as the Romans call it, was derived from the the Itali tribe. The Itali tribe referred to their area in southern Italy as Itali. When the Romans conquered them, they adopted the name and spread it to the whole penninsula and the name in Latin was "Italia." This name was spread during the time of the Repulic. The name then stuck and it remains that way today. If you go to Italy, the Italians refer to their country as "Italia." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danno Posted November 2, 2004 Report Share Posted November 2, 2004 Where are people getting this idea of a tribe called "Itali"? Maybe I'm just missing something, but it doesn't ring any bells for me... do you just mean the heterogenous group of people sometimes termed in Greek Italoi, including the many different groups of Samnites, e.g. the Pentri, Caraceni, Caudini, Hirpini, and later the Frentani... then there are the Brutii and the Messapii... Umbrians and Sabines and Faliscans further north. The Etruscans the Greeks referred to as Tyrrhenoi. All of the peoples save the Etruscans and possibly the Messapii spoke languages related to Latin (they all being part of the Italic language family of Indo-European), and probably shared genetic ties as well (although you can never be sure based solely on linguistic evidence). Viteliu is the Oscan (language of the Samnites) word for calf, related to the Latin word vitellius. You can see it used on a coin issued by the revolting Socii during the Social Wars, as part of an attempt to create/regain an identity distinct from that of Rome. http://www.sas.ac.uk/icls/imaginesit/sampl.../italia001.html In fact, there's a whole site dedicated to native languages of Italy titled "Viteliu": http://www.evolpub.com/LCA/VTLhome.html Some points in reference to the thread Viggen noted: It's risky to trust ancient authors too too much when they're talking about the movements of peoples. The Romans would have distinguished between Greeks and Italic peoples, and between the Italic peoples themselves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Primus Pilus Posted November 2, 2004 Report Share Posted November 2, 2004 The Itali is an ancient tribe name with very little reliable reference points. Its assumed they were absorbed quickly into surrounding cultures and the nature of their existance is somewhat mysterious. Unfortunately I don't have any reference material off the top of my head, but I'll see what I can come up with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danno Posted November 2, 2004 Report Share Posted November 2, 2004 Unfortunately I don't have any reference material off the top of my head, but I'll see what I can come up with. Please do. They sound like some uncareful historian's creation or the offspring of quick and hasty research.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Primus Pilus Posted November 2, 2004 Report Share Posted November 2, 2004 Well you must consider... the name of many places in the ancient world derived from a tribal name. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.