What it Meant to be Roman
How the Conquered became the Conquerors
The idea of “Roman” is an everchanging concept that dates back to Republican Times. From an elitist status to the revolutionary idea of citizenship and finally a unifying cultural identity; for nearly 2000 years, the term Roman had changed with the needs and state of Eternal Rome. As a result, the term Roman is difficult to define, but this article aims to pin down the history and idea of being Roman.
The Republic
The early period of Roman History consisted of citizenship being granted to more of the population than merely the elite or “Patricians”. First, the “Plebians” in 450 B.C, then to all people of the Italian Peninsula in 100 B.C; citizenship with all its benefits, namely the rights of free movement and voting were bestowed upon the common people.
Furthermore, the idea of “citizenship” was vital to the idea of “Roman”, as the people from the provinces who were not born Roman could earn the title through loyalty and service towards the Republic.
Conquered peoples they deemed civilized could become citizens of Rome, turning what it meant to be a Roman from ethnicity to something else entirely. Greeks, Celts, Germans, Egyptians, and Africans could become Romans.
