In ancient Rome, a gens (pl. Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC gentes) was a clan, caste, or group of families, that shared a common name (the nomen) and a belief in a common ancestor. A clan is a group of People united by Kinship and descent, which is defined by perceived descent from a common ancestor Castes are Hereditary systems of occupation, Endogamy, social culture, Social class, and Political power. Family denotes a group of People affiliated by consanguinity affinity or co-residence By the Republican era and throughout the Imperial era, a Name in Ancient Rome for a male citizen consisted of three parts ( tria In the Roman naming convention, the second name was the name of the gens to which the person belonged. By the Republican era and throughout the Imperial era, a Name in Ancient Rome for a male citizen consisted of three parts ( tria The term has also been used to refer to families within a clan system in other contexts, including tribal clans. A clan is a group of People united by Kinship and descent, which is defined by perceived descent from a common ancestor A tribe, viewed historically or developmentally consists of a Social group existing before the development of or outside of States Many anthropologists use

The origins of the gentes are unclear, although they are probably not as ancient as the Romans themselves thought; although some were associated with particular cults or ceremonies, all were primarily personal and familial in nature, with no specific political or public duties. Also, the gentes did not usually have legendary founders that were worshiped, and the gentile assemblies are not recorded to have passed any sort of legally binding resolutions. Few of the names have clear Indo-European etymologies, and some have been traced to Etruscan names. Etruscan civilization is the modern English name given to the culture and way of life of a people of ancient Italy

Nevertheless, the relationships of the gentes was a major factor in politics; members of the same gens were "family", and therefore frequently (though not always) political allies.

Gentes did have a legal standing in republican Rome. The gens as a legal entity owned property, including a family burial ground. There was a gens chief, more formally in early Rome and less formally in later Rome; in fact, some notable members of patrician gentes had themselves adopted by plebeian families in order to run for offices not open to the patricii. The term " patrician " originally referred to a group of elite families in Ancient Rome, including both their natural and Plebs were the general body of landowners of Roman Citizens in Ancient Rome. Members of a gens had a legal obligation to help one another when asked. A gens was exogamous; that is, individuals could not seek marriage partners from within the gens. Exogamy has two related definitions both biological and cultural NOTICE TO WOULD-BE ROMEOS **************

A gens was patrilineal and patriarchal. Patrilineality (aka agnatic kinship) is a system in which one belongs to one's father's lineage it generally involves the Inheritance of property names or titles Patriarchy is the structuring of Society on the basis of Family units where fathers have primary responsibility for the welfare of hence authority over However, such customs were not necessarily inherited from the Italics; the Etruscans could have exercised them also. Ancient peoples of Italy are all those peoples that lived in Italy (including the islands of Sicily and Sardinia) before the Roman domination By the time of republican Rome, Etruscan culture as a whole was fast assimilating to the Italic. The gentes were probably mixed.

Originally the plebeians and patricians were not allowed to intermarry, and several patrician families had collapsed as a result, until the Lex Canuleia, allowing intermarriage, was passed. Plebs were the general body of landowners of Roman Citizens in Ancient Rome. The term " patrician " originally referred to a group of elite families in Ancient Rome, including both their natural and The Lex Canuleia is a law of the Roman Republic passed in the year 445 BC.

Among the patrician gentes there were two categories, the gentes maiores, and the gentes minores. The maiores were the leading families of Rome: these were the Aemilii, Claudii, Cornelii, Fabii, and Valerii, and they claimed special religious and secular privileges. Aemilius (fem Aemilia) was the Nomen of the gens Aemilia, one of the five most important Patrician families ( gentes maiores The Gens Claudia was one of the oldest families in ancient Rome, and for centuries its members were regularly leaders of the city and empire Cornelius (fem Cornelia, plural Cornelii) was the Nomen of the Patrician Gens Cornelia, one of the For other people places and things named Fabius see Fabius (disambiguation. Valerius originally was a Roman Nomen of the Gens Valeria, one of the oldest patrician families of the city

See also

• Caste
• Derbfine

External links

• The Origin of the Family, Private Property and the State