GLOSSARY OF PEOPLES AND PLACES

For clarity and simplicity some geographical names, such as Iraq and Georgia, are used anachronistically. General architectural and topographical sites that are qualified by a specific name are indexed under that name (with the exception of ‘Forum’). For instance, ‘theatre of Pompey’ is indexed under ‘Pompey, theatre of’.

Achaea Roman province comprising much of Greece

Actium promontory on the west coast of Greece, scene of a famous naval battle in 31 BC

Adiabene region in the west of Iraq

Adrana the River Eder

Aedui a people from the area between the Loire and the Saône, with their capital at Autun

Aegeae (1) town in western Asia Minor; (2) town in southern Asia Minor; the latter is referred to at 13.9

Aegium coastal town in the northern Peloponnese

Aequi a people living to the east of Rome

Africa Roman province, comprising roughly modern Tunisia and northern Libya

Alba Longa ancient city south-east of Rome

Albani tribe in Georgia

Alexandria the famous foundation of Alexander the Great in Egypt, a city of major importance in the Julio-Claudian period

Aliso outpost on the River Lippe in Germany

Amanus mountain range in the south of Asia Minor

Amisia the River Ems

Amorgos island in the Aegean

Ampsivarii a northern Germanic people between the Ems and the Weser

Amynclan Sea region off the coast of Campania

Ancona town on the east coast of Italy

Anemurium town on the south coast of Asia Minor

Andecavi a people of Gaul in the area of Anjou

Angrivarii a people in the area of the Weser

Anthemusias town of ancient Mesopotamia

Antioch capital of the province of Syria, in southern Asia Minor

Antium Anzio, city on the west coast of Italy

Aorsi a people east of the Sea of Azov

Apamea city on the River Maeander in western Asia Minor

Aphrodisias important city on the south-west coast of Asia Minor

Apollonis town in western Asia Minor

Apulia Puglia, a region of southern Italy

Aquitania, see LONG-HAIRED GAUL

Arabia the land mass between the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf

Ara Maxima altar near the north-west of the Circus, traditionally built by Evander after Hercules had killed the cattle-stealer Cacus

Arar the River Saône

Araxes the Aras, a major river flowing through Asia Minor, Iran, Armenia, and Azerbaijan and entering the Caspian

Arcadia central mountainous region of the Peloponnese

Arduenna the Ardennes region of Belgium and France

Arii the people of Aria, a region in north-west Afghanistan and eastern Iran

Armenia country occupying the plateau east of the Euphrates, once a separate kingdom of Urartu, then incorporated into the Persian empire and a source of continuous struggle between Rome and Parthia

Armenia Minor country to the west of the Euphrates and Armenia proper, between Pontus and Cappadocia, in north-east Asia Minor

Arnus the River Arno in Tuscany

Arsamosata city near the Euphrates in Armenia

Arsanias river in north-east Asia Minor

Artaxata the capital of Armenia, located on the River Araxes

Artemita Parthian town some thirty miles north-east of Baghdad

Asia Roman province, located in the western area of Asia Minor

Atropatene the name of Azerbaijan from the time of Alexander the Great until the Arab conquest of Iran, after which Arabs modified the name to Azerbaijan

Augustodunum Autun, city in central France

Augustus, Mausoleum of the enormous tomb built by Augustus at the north end of the Campus Martius

Augustus, temple of located somewhere between the Capitoline and Palatine hills; not completed until the reign of Caligula

Auzea forested area in Algeria

Avernus, Lake small lake formed in a volcanic crater near Cumae in south-central Italy

Bactria region roughly equivalent to Afghanistan, between the Oxus and the Hindu Kush

Baetica part of a province originally called Further Spain, created as a senatorial province by Augustus

Baiae fashionable resort on the Bay of Naples

Balearic Islands group of islands, the major being Majorca and Minorca, part of the province of Hispania Tarraconensis

Barium Bari, Adriatic port of southern Italy

Bastarnae a people of uncertain origin, perhaps Germano-Celtic, in the Danube delta area

Batavians a people located between the Rhine and the Waal

Belgae a people of north-east Gaul, in the area north of the Seine and Marne

Belgica, see LONG-HAIRED GAUL

Beneventum hill-town in Campania, north of Naples

Bithynia province in Asia Minor, on the south coast of the Black Sea

Bononia Bologna, founded as a colony in 189 BC

Bovillae town on the Appian Way, ten miles from Rome, traditionally founded by Iulus, son of Aeneas and founder of the Julian gens

Brigantes powerful tribe in the north of Britain

Bructeri a people of north-west Germany, from the area of the River Lippe

Brundisium Brindisi, seaport on the southern Adriatic coast of Italy

Byzantium the ancient predecessor of Constantinople (later Istanbul)

Cadra hill in Rough Cilicia

Caesian forest region probably between the rivers Lippe and Ruhr

Calabria region of Italy, in ancient times essentially the ‘heel’

Cales colony founded in 334 BC, in Campania

Camerium settlement in Latium

Campania highly salubrious area of southern Italy much favoured by wealthy Romans

Campus Martius an open area in the north-west of Rome originally left open, but built on in the late republic and even more so in the imperial period; the traditional place of assembly for the election of consuls and praetors

Camulodunum near Colchester, tribal capital of the Trinovantes and first capital of Roman Britannia

Canninefates Germanic tribe in Holland at the Rhine delta

Canopus city about ten miles east of Alexandria, highly important before the founding of the latter; it gave its name to the western branch of the Nile

Capitoline Hill or Capitol one of the seven hills of Rome, arguably the most historical and significant, housing the temple of Capitoline Jupiter

Cappadocia region in eastern Asia Minor, annexed by Rome in ad 17

Capreae Capri, island in the Gulf of Naples that became imperial property in 29 BC

Capua city of Campania, north of Naples

Carmania part of the Achaemenid empire, stretching north from the Persian Gulf

Carthage ancient city in North Africa, capital of an empire hostile to Rome, later the capital of the Roman province of Africa

Celenderis port and fortress in Isauria in southern Asia Minor

Cenchreus river near Ephesus in north-west Asia Minor

Cercina one of the Kerkenna islands off the coast of Tunisia

Chalcedon town on the east side of the Bosporus

Chamavi a people living east of the Batavians in the area of the Issel

Cherusci the tribe of Arminius, occupying the area of the middle Weser; after the death of Arminius they were torn by internal faction and lost their significance

Chatti a people to the south of the Cherusci, in the area of the upper Weser, Rome’s most powerful German enemy in the Julio-Claudian period

Chauci a powerful tribe in the area of the lower Weser by the North Sea, much admired by Tacitus

Cibyra town in Caria in south-west Asia Minor

Cietae a people from the wild area of western Cilicia

Cilicia region of southern Asia Minor, in the regions of Mts. Taurus and Amanus

Cinithii a people of North Africa

Circus generic name often used specifically of the Circus Maximus between the Palatine, Aventine, and Caelian hills

Cirta town in Numidia

Clanis the River Chiana in Tuscany

Coelaletae a Thracian people in the southern region of Bulgaria

Colchians the people of Colchis, a district on the east of the Black Sea, south of the Caucasus

Colonia Agrippinensis Cologne, colony founded under Claudius

Colophon city of Asia Minor some twenty miles south of Smyrna; nearby was the village of Claros with its famous oracle of Apollo

Comitium the traditional location for the popular assemblies in Rome, next to the Curia

Commagene territory to the west of the Euphrates, bound by Syria, Cilicia, and Cappadocia

Corcyra Corfu, island in the Ionian Sea

Corinth city on the isthmus that joins the Peloponnese to mainland Greece; destroyed by the Romans in 146 BC and refounded as a colony in 44 BC

Corma tributary of the Tigris

Cos island in the Aegean, housing one of the great cult centres of Asclepius

Cosa town on the coast of Tuscany

Crete island combined with Cyrenaica in 27 BC to form a senatorial province

Ctesiphon the ancient capital of the Parthian empire, located on the Tigris some twenty miles south-east of Baghdad

Cumae old Greek settlement on the coast of Campania, famous for its oracle of the Sibyl

Curia the official Senate House in Rome, to the north of the Forum Romanum

Cusus river of Slovakia

Cyme city on the west coast of Asia Minor, about twenty-five miles north of Smyrna

Cyrenaica region that extended from the eastern boundary of Africa to the frontier of Egypt; joined with Crete as a province after 27 BC

Cythnus large island of the Cyclades, south of Ceos

Cyrene Greek city in North Africa, capital of Cyrenaica

Cyrrus city in the province of Syria, about sixty miles north of Antioch

Cyzicus city of Mysia on the southern coast of the Sea of Marmara

Dahae a Scythian people inhabiting the area between the Caspian Sea and the Oxus

Dalmatia region of the eastern Adriatic; subdued by Octavian, it became part of the province of Illyricum and later a separate province bearing its own name

Dandaridae a Sarmatian people between the Caspian and the Sea of Azov

Davara hill in Cappadocia

Decangi a British people of uncertain name (the MS gives Cangi); located in North Wales

Delos small island in the Aegean, an important cult centre and traditional birthplace of Apollo

Delphi ancient sanctuary of Apollo in the hills above the Gulf of Corinth

Denthaliatis fertile strip of land at the foot of Mt. Taygetos, an area of dispute between Sparta and Messene

Diana Limnatis, temple of the temple of Diana of the Lakes lay on the upper length of the Nedon on the border between the Spartans and the Messenians

Dii a people of southern Bulgaria

Donusa the most northerly of the Cycladic islands, east of Naxos

Ecbatana city of Iran, the location of the main mint of the Parthians

Edessa capital city of the kingdom of Osroëne in the upper Euphrates region

Elephantine island in the Nile near Aswan

Elymaeans inhabitants of Elam on the northern shore of the Persian Gulf, bordered on the west by the Tigris

Ephesus the major city of the province of Asia, once located on the west coast at the mouth of the Cayster

Erindes unidentified river in northern Iran

Erycus, Eryx mountain in north-west Sicily

Erythrae town on the west coast of Asia Minor, opposite the island of Chios

Ethiopia broad term used of the region south of Egypt

Etruria region in north-west Italy, comprising Tuscany and part of Umbria, the home of the Etruscans

Euboea large island in the Aegean, lying off the coast of mainland Greece

Euphrates the more westerly of the two rivers of Mesopotamia, the longest in western Asia

Fidenae a Sabine settlement about five miles from Rome on the Via Salaria; an insignificant town by the Julio-Claudian period

Flaminian Way the Via Flaminia, a road from Rome to Ariminum (Rimini), constructed by Gaius Flaminius in 220 BC

Flevum stronghold on the North Sea coast, perhaps Velsen

Flora, temple of located near the Circus Maximus (to be distinguished from another temple of Flora on the Quirinal)

Florentia Florence, an insignificant town until the late empire

Formiae town in Campania on the Appian Way

Fors Fortuna, temple of one of several temples of this ancient cult figure in Rome, in the Forum Boarium and elsewhere; the allusion in Tacitus is to a temple dedicated on the right bank of the Tiber in the Gardens of Caesar

Forum Julii Fréjus, a colony and important naval station on the Aurelian Way

Forum the main public area of a town; when used without qualification in the context of Rome it refers to the Forum Romanum, the main public square of Rome to the east of the Capitol

Forum Augusti vast precinct, north of the Forum Romanum and almost at right angles to it

Forum Boarium the ancient cattle market of Rome, bound by the Capitoline, Palatine, and Aventine hills

Forum Holitorium the vegetable market, between the Tiber and the Capitoline Hill, occupied largely by the theatre of Marcellus

Forum Iulium or Caesaris north-east of the Forum Romanum, the area surrounded by a colonnade; dedicated by Julius Caesar in 46 BC

Frentani an ancient people on the east coast of central Italy, thought by Strabo to be Samnites

Frisians a people occupying the North Sea coast in what is now modern Friesland, as well as much of the adjoining territory in the coastal area between the Yssel and the Ems

Fucine lake lake of central Italy, drained in the nineteenth century

Fundi Volscian town in Campania, on the Appian Way, noted for its fine wines and villas

Gabii ancient Latin city, some twelve miles east of Rome

Galatia region in central Anatolia, incorporated as a Roman province in 25 BC with its capital at Ancyra (Ankara)

Galilee region of northern Palestine

Garamantes a people in the area of south-west Libya

Gemonian Steps stairs leading from the jail towards the Capitol, on which the bodies of executed criminals were displayed

Germania the Roman military zones in German territory consisted of Lower Germany on the north Rhine, its administrative centre at Cologne, and Upper Germany on the south Rhine, its centre Mainz

Getae a Thracian people in the area of the lower Danube

Gorneae fortress in Armenia

Gotones a people on the east bank of the lower Vistula, later known as the Goths

Gyarus one of the islands of the Cyclades, a common destination for the banished

Hadrumetum Sousse, ancient Phoenician colony in Tunisia; it became very prosperous in the Roman imperial period

Haemus, Mt. the ancient name for the Balkans

Halicarnassus Bodrum, coastal town of Caria in south-west Asia Minor; once noted for its splendour, it was insignificant by the Roman period

Halus town in Parthia

Heliopolis important religious centre in Egypt, about five miles northeast of Cairo

Heniochi a people of the Caucasus

Hercules, temple of there were several temples of Hercules in Rome; Tacitus’ reference (15.41) is probably to that of Hercules Victor in the Forum Boarium

Hercynia there is considerable inconsistency in the ancient sources about the location of this region, which lay somewhere between the Rhine and the Carpathians

Hermunduri an ancient Germanic people in the area around Thuringia and northern Bavaria

Hibernia Ireland

Hierocaesaria city of western Asia Minor, north of Smyrna

Hispania Tarraconensis the region encompassed much of the Mediterranean coast of Spain along with the central plateau and the north coast; it became an imperial province under Augustus

Homonadenses a people in the area around southern Galatia and western Cilicia

Hypaepa ancient city of Lydia on the southern slope of the Tmolus

Hyrcania area south of the Caspian, bounded on the east by the Oxus

Iazyges a nomadic tribe from central Asia who migrated to the Ukraine and Moldavia

Iberi a people in the region between the Caucasus range and Armenia

Iceni a people located in Norfolk and Suffolk with their capital at Venta Icenorum, near Norwich

Idistaviso there has been much speculation about the identity of this place in Germany but the topography of Germanicus’ campaigns is too obscure to allow a solution

Ilium alternative name for Troy, used particularly for the Roman town

Illyricum confusingly, Illyricum is sometimes used of the province of that name (later Dalmatia), sometimes used more loosely of the Danube area including Pannonia, which became a separate province in about ad 9

Insubrians a people of Gallia Transpadana, around Milan

Interamna town in Umbria on the Flaminian Way

Ituraeans an Arab people in the area north of Damascus, with their capital at Chalcis

Janus, temple of a famous temple of Janus Geminus was located in the Forum Romanum; Tacitus’ allusion (2.49) is to a less familiar one in the Forum Holitorium

Julius Caesar, Gardens of located on the right bank of the Tiber to the south-west of the city; these gardens were bequeathed by Caesar to the Roman people

Jupiter Capitolinus, temple of the most significant temple in Rome, located on the Capitoline Hill

Jupiter Stator, temple of the location is uncertain but the general consensus is that it was near the Arch of Titus on the northern slope of the Palatine Hill; the temple was vowed by Romulus if Jupiter would stay the flight of the Romans from the Sabines

Langobardi a people who lived north of the Cherusci, concentrated on the west side of the lower Elbe

Lanuvium ancient Latin city in the Alban Hills

Laodicea (ad Lycum) major city of Phrygia in Asia Minor on a hill overlooking the River Lycus; referred to at 4.55, 14.27

Laodicea (Maritima) coastal town of Asia Minor, opposite northern Cyprus; referred to at 2.80

Latium area of western Italy in the region of Rome, home of the original Latin people

Legerda (if correctly read at 14.25), fortress near the north Tigris, possibly Lidjia on the upper slopes of the Taurus

Lepcitani inhabitants of one of two different towns on the coast of North Africa, Leptis Magna in Libya or Leptis Minor in Tunisia

Lesbos large island just off the north-west coast of Asia Minor

Leucophryne the name apparently derives from an older town on the site of the later Magnesia on the River Maeander; the temple on the site was renowned for its size and beauty

Liber, Libera, and Ceres, temple of located on the slope of the Aventine Hill, near the western end of the Circus Maximus

Libya the Greek name for non-Egyptian North Africa

Ligurians inhabitants of an area in north-western Italy

Limnae a town in the Peloponnese on the boundaries between Laconia and Messenia

Liris river originating in the Apennines, close to the Fucine lake

Long-haired Gaul Gallia comata, region of Gaul consisting of the three imperial provinces of Aquitania, Lugdunensis, and Belgica, distinguished from the Romanized senatorial province of Narbonensis

Lucania mountainous region of southern Italy

Lucrine lake this was located in Campania, separated from the sea by a narrow strip of land, and formed into a harbour by Agrippa

Lucullus, Gardens of this magnificent estate was created by Lucius Licinius Lucullus, consul 74 BC; he was notorious for his wealth and extravagance

Lugdunensis, see LONG-HAIRED GAUL

Lugdunum Lyons, major city and capital of the province of Gallia Lugdunensis, the birthplace of Claudius

Lugii confederation of tribes, probably Germanic, in the general region of eastern Germany

Luna, temple of located on the Aventine; it may be identical with the temple of Diana on the Aventine, founded by Servius Tullius

Lupia the River Lippe in northern Germany

Lusitania imperial province in Spain organized by Augustus in 27 BC, comprising Portugal and part of western Spain

Lycia region of southern Anatolia, united with Pamphylia in ad 43 to form the province of Lycia

Lydia territory of western Asia Minor, once an independent kingdom with its capital at Sardis; under the Romans it was part of the province of Asia

Macedonia old Balkan kingdom, annexed as a province in 146 BC

Maecenas, Gardens of located on the Esquiline Hill; they became imperial property on Maecenas’ death

Magnesia (on Maeander) city a little to the north of the Maeander on a tributary stream; it played a leading role in working with the Romans to defeat Antiochus in 190 BC, and alone in Asia held out against Mithridates in 88 BC; 3.62 presumably refers to this town

Magnesia (on Sipylus) city of western Asia Minor in the Hermus valley; this is the city referred to at 2.47

Marcellus, theatre of located on the southern edge of the Campus Martius

Marcian aqueduct constructed by the praetor Lucius Marcius Rex in 149 BC, it brought Rome its best drinking water, from the Sabine hills

Marcomani a people located in the upper Elbe and Danube regions

Mardi a people in the area of Lake Van, seen by some as ancestors of the modern Kurds

Maritime Alps a small Alpine province formed by Augustus in 14 BC

Mars Ultor, temple of the temple of Mars the Avenger, built by Augustus in the Forum Augusti to commemorate the vengeance wreaked on the assassins of Caesar; dedicated in 2 BC, it became the location for victory insignia

Marsi a people living south of the River Lippe in Germany (to be distinguished from the Marsi of central Italy)

Marus the River Morava

Massilia Marseilles, Greek city on the Mediterranean coast that maintained its Hellenic character after absorption by Rome

Mattiaci a Germanic people from the area of Wiesbaden

Mattium unidentified settlement of the Chatti, probably in the region north of the Rhine and Main, in the area of Wiesbaden and Homburg

Mauretania the northern coastal area of the African continent, stretching from the Roman province of Africa to the Atlantic, incorporated into two provinces by Claudius

Mauri broad term for the people of the western strip of the coast of North Africa

Medes a people akin to the Persians, inhabiting Media, a mountainous area south-west of the Caspian

Melitene capital of the small Hittite kingdom of Malatya in the eastern Taurus

Messenia the south-west region of the Peloponnese

Miletus city of Asia Minor at the mouth of the Maeander; it housed a major temple of Apollo Didymaeus within its territory

Misenum town near Baiae on the north side of the Bay of Naples

Moesia region on the lower Danube, in the area of Serbia and Bulgaria, incorporated as a province some time between Augustus and Claudius

Mona Anglesey; the name Mona is preserved in the Welsh name for the island, Môn

Mosa the River Meuse

Moschi a people located in north-west Armenia; they may be the Meshech of Ezekiel 27: 13, 38: 3

Mosella the River Moselle

Mosteni people of Lydia, in Asia Minor; coin evidence suggests that they were located close to Magnesia on Sipylus

Mulvian Bridge this was located on the Flaminian Way, two miles outside Rome

Musulamians a people of North Africa

Mutina Modena, city on the south side of the Po valley, the scene of a major battle in 44 BC

Myrina city of Mysia in western Asia Minor

Mytilene the main city of Lesbos

Nabataeans a people of the region of north-west Arabia; their chief city was Petra

Nar the River Nera, a tributary of the Tiber, flowing through Umbria

Narnia town of Umbria, settled on a hill overlooking the River Nera

Nauportus town on the Ljubljanica river in Slovenia

Naxos the largest and most fertile of the Cycladic islands

Neapolis Naples, the main city of Campania, founded by Greeks; it kept much of its Greek character during the Roman period

Nemetes a Germanic people living in the region of the Rhine between the Palatinate and the Bodensee

Nicephorium Al Raqqa, city founded by Alexander the Great on the Euphrates

Nicephorius river of Armenia on which Tigranocerta stood, probably a major tributary of the Tigris

Nicopolis colony founded by Augustus on the north side of the Ambracian Gulf, opposite Actium

Ninos the famous city of Nineveh, on the River Tigris

Nisibis ancient Mesopotamian city in south-east Asia Minor, often fought over by Rome and Parthia

Nola city of Campania, close to Naples

Noricum Roman province, formed soon after 16 BC, along the Danube, from the Inn to modern Vienna, between Raetia and Pannonia

Nuceria town of Campania at the foot of Mt. Albino

Numa, palace of the traditional palace of Numa Pompilius, second king of Rome, later the official residence of the Pontifex Maximus; given to the Vestals by Augustus

Numantia fortress on the Douro in Spain, centre of Celtiberian resistance to Rome, rebuilt by Augustus

Numidia region in North Africa comprising eastern Algeria and northern Tunisia, incorporated into the province of Africa

Odrysae a Thracian people in the area of southern Bulgaria

Ordovices a people from the centre and north of Wales

Ortygia familiar poetic name for Delos

Osroëne Assyrian kingdom in the area of the upper Euphrates, enjoying considerable independence from the years of 132 BC to ad 244; its capital was Edessa

Ostia the port of Rome at the mouth of the Tiber

Pagyda unidentified river in North Africa

Palatine Hill one of Rome’s seven hills, with rich historical associations; the word ‘palace’ derives from the imperial residence erected on it

Panda unidentified river in the region north of the Black Sea

Pandateria island off the Campanian coast, much employed as a place of exile

Pannonia a Danube province, roughly the equivalent of modern Hungary, originally part of Illyricum but becoming a separate province about the time of the suppression of a major revolt in ad 6

Paphos city located on the west coast of Cyprus, a famous cult centre of Aphrodite

Parthia a kingdom that at its height comprised modern Iran and surrounding territories as far east as Pakistan; the arch-enemy of the Romans

Patavium Padua, in the time of Augustus the wealthiest city of northern Italy

Paulus, Basilica of a structure built on the northern side of the Forum Romanum, begun by Lucius Aemilius Paulus in 55 BC

Pergamum major city of Mysia in Asia Minor, bequeathed to Rome in 133 BC by its last king, Attalus III

Perinthus ancient town settled by the Samians on the north shore of the Sea of Marmara

Perusia Perugia, city perhaps of Etruscan origin, brutally besieged during the conflict between Octavian and Mark Antony

Pharsalus hill-town in Thessaly, the scene of the final great battle between Caesar and Pompey in 48 BC

Philadelphia city of Lydia in Asia Minor, in the valley of the Cogamus; it suffered considerably from earthquakes

Philippi city in eastern Macedonia, the site of the final battles fought by Octavian and Antony against Brutus and Cassius in 42 BC

Philippopolis city on the River Maritsa in southern Bulgaria

Picenum region on the east-central coast of Italy

Placentia Latin colony settled at the juncture of the Po and Trebia rivers on the Aemilian Way in northern Italy

Planasia small island near Elba off the Tuscan coast, used as a place of imprisonment

Pompey, theatre of Rome’s first permanent theatre, built in 55 BC near the Campus Martius by Pompey from the wealth that he had amassed during his eastern campaign; restored by Augustus

Pomptine marshes malarial marshes behind Cape Circeo, not successfully drained until the 1930s

Pontus the Black Sea; also the kingdom, later Roman province, along its southern shore

Praeneste Palestrina, town located on a spur of the Apennines just over twenty miles from Rome; a notable villa resort and the location of an enormous temple of Fortuna Primigenia

Propontis the Sea of Marmara, linking the Aegean and the Black Sea

Puteoli port of Campania; it became a major trade centre and the entry point for much of Rome’s grain

Pyramus one of the great rivers of Asia Minor; it flowed through a narrow valley of Mt. Taurus to Cilicia and the sea

Quadi a powerful people in the area of modern Moravia and upper Hungary; a formidable foe of Marcus Aurelius

Raetia an Alpine province embracing parts of modern Switzerland, Bavaria, and the Austrian Tyrol

Ravenna important port on the Adriatic coast of northern Italy; made the base of the northern fleet by Augustus

Reate Sabine hill-town in central Italy; birthplace of Vespasian

Rhegium Greek colony founded about 720 BC in the ‘toe’ of Italy; it retained its Greek character and its prosperity through the imperial period

Rostra the speaker’s platform at the north-west corner of the Forum, named after the prows (rostra) from enemy ships captured at the battle of Antium in 33 BC which originally decorated it

Sabines an ancient people who inhabited the Apennine region north-east of Rome; in frequent conflict with Rome during their early history, by the late republic they had become thoroughly Romanized

Sabrina the River Severn, rising in mid-Wales and flowing south into the Bristol Channel

Salamis the principal Greek city on the island of Cyprus

Sallust, Gardens of located in the valley between the Quirinal and Pincian hills in Rome; laid out by Sallust the historian, and inherited by his adopted son, from whom it is likely that they passed to Tiberius

Samaritans people of Samaria, the mountainous region of Palestine between Galilee and Judaea

Samnites a warlike people of the southern Apennine region, hostile to Rome for most of the period of the republic

Samos island off the western coast of Asia Minor, housing one of the most celebrated buildings of antiquity, a temple of Juno

Samothrace island in the north-east Aegean, home of the mystery cult of the Cabiri

Sanbulos mountain range in Iran, not positively identified

Santoni a tribe in western Gaul, in the region of Saintes

Sardis capital of the old kingdom of Lydia, incorporated into the province of Asia

Sarmatians a nomadic tribe in two branches, the Roxolani and the Scythians; they migrated to the Danube estuary and over the Carpathians into the plain between the mid-Danube and the Theiss

Saturn, temple of located north of the Sacred Way between the Rostra and the Basilica Julia

Scythia ill-defined region occupied by nomads in modern Russia, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan

Segesta city in north-west Sicily, claiming descent from Troy

Seleucia on Tigris city founded by Seleucus I on the bank of the Tigris opposite the Parthian city of Ctesiphon shortly before 300 BC; it became a centre of some importance

Seleucia Pieria city on the mouth of the Orontes; the usual port of embarkation for Antioch

Semnones a Germanic people from the region between the Elbe and the Oder

Senones a Gallic people from the region of the Seine valley

Sequani a Gallic people from the region of the upper Saône

Seriphos an island in the western Cyclades

Servilius, Gardens of location uncertain; possibly in the south-west of Rome

Silures a people of south Wales; under the leadership of Caratacus they were fierce opponents of Rome

Simbruine lakes lakes formed in the Sabine hills by the River Anio

Sindes unidentified river, possibly the Tejen in Turkmenistan

Sinuessa coastal city located between Naples and Terracina

Siraci a Sarmatian people from between the Caspian and the Sea of Azov

Smyrna Izmir, ancient city on the west coast of Asia Minor at the mouth of the Hermus; refounded on a slightly different site by Alexander, in the Roman period it became one of the most important cities of Asia

Soza unknown town in the area north of the Black Sea

Spartans inhabitants of the city-state of Sparta, which occupied the central projection of the southern Peloponnese

Statilius Taurus, Gardens of located on the Esquiline

Stratonicea city in the valley of the River Caicus in Lydia in Asia Minor

Sublaqueum Subiaco, town in Latium on the River Anio

Suebi a large Germanic group made of several tribes, most significantly the Marcomani, Quadi, and Semnones

Sugambri a German people in the area of the rivers Ruhr and Lippe; in 8 BC Tiberius forcibly settled them on the west bank of the Rhine

Surrentum Sorrento, a coastal town of Campania overlooking the Bay of Naples

Syene Aswan, a trading town on the right bank of the Nile just below the First Cataract

Tanais the River Don

Tarentum ancient city in the south of Italy; once a major seaport, it fell into decay in the late republic

Tarpeian Rock a steep part of the Capitoline from which condemned prisoners were thrown

Tarracina coastal town, located at the edge of the Volscian Hills, in a site commanding the Pomptine marshes

Tarraco capital of Hispania Tarraconensis on the south-east coast of Spain. It received colonial status under Julius Caesar or Augustus and became the first city of Roman Spain

Taunus mountain range in Hessen, Germany

Tauri a people on the south coast of the Crimea

Tauronites a people probably from the Antitaurus region, west of Lake Van

Taurus mountain range in southern Asia Minor

Teleboans inhabitants of a group of islands lying off the coast of Acarnania in north-western Greece

Temnus town in Aeolia in Asia Minor, near the River Hermus

Tencteri a Germanic people located on the east bank of the Rhine

Tenos island of the Cyclades; it was small but housed a celebrated temple of Poseidon

Termestines the people of Termes, a town on the River Douro in Numantia in Hispania Tarraconensis

Teutoburg Forest the site of the Varian disaster in ad 9; thought to be in the area of Kalkreise

Thala town of North Africa, not securely identified

Thebes the old capital of Egypt, a popular tourist site in the Roman period

Thermae bay of the Aegean in north-east Greece

Thessaly area of northern Greece absorbed by the Romans into the province of Macedonia

Thrace region of the Balkans; it became a Roman province in ad 46

Thubursicum small unidentified town in North Africa

Thurii Greek colony founded in the fifth century BC in Bruttium, on the site of the city of Sybaris; it fell into decay in the late-republican period

Tibur Tivoli, town about twenty miles from Rome, famed for its beauty and fine villas

Ticinum Pavia, city of northern Italy on the River Ticino

Tigranocerta city founded in Armenia by Tigranes I, replacing Artaxata as the capital

Tigris the more easterly of the two rivers of Mesopotamia, rising in Armenia

Tmolus mountain range in Lydia in Asia Minor

Torone city of Chalcidice in north-east Greece

Tralles city on the River Meander on the border of Lydia and Caria in Asia Minor

Trapezus Trebizond, trading city on the southern shore of the Black Sea, growing in importance in the early imperial period

Treveri a Gallic tribe with a strong Germanic element, in the Moselle area, with their capital at Trier (Augusta Treverorum); often rebellious, they were apparently pro-Roman during the Tiberian period

Trimetus one of the Tremiti islands off the Adriatic coast of southern Italy, used for political internment in modern as well as ancient times

Trinovantes a people to the south of the Iceni, in Suffolk and Essex, with their capital at Camulodunum

Trisantona the River Trent

Tubantes a Germanic people on the right bank of the north Rhine

Turoni a people of north-west Gaul in the region of Touraine

Tusculum hill-town of Latium some fifteen miles south-east of Rome; a fashionable resort town

Tyre Phoenician city in south Lebanon; a major port and centre of the dye industry, it retained its importance in the Roman imperial period

Ubii a tribe friendly to Rome; resettled from the east to the west bank of the Rhine by Agrippa; their capital was the site of the later Cologne

Umbria mountainous region of central Italy

Usipetes a Germanic people from the region of the north Rhine

Uspe unidentified town to the north of the Black Sea

Vahalis the River Waal

Vangiones a Germanic people from the area of Worms

Vatican district on the west bank of the Tiber, approximating to the modern precinct of St Peter’s

Velinus, Lake a small lake fed by the River Velino in the Sabine area

Veneti a tribe of Gallia Transpadana in the area around Padua; they received citizenship from Caesar in 49 BC

Venus Genetrix, temple of located in the centre of the Forum Iulium

Verulamium St Albans, a city of some importance in the early Roman period of Britain

Vesta, temple of circular temple, containing Vesta’s sacred flame, built in the Forum Romanum in the third century BC

Vetera Roman military site near Xanten, at the juncture of the Rhine and Lippe

Vienne capital of the Allobroges, an important city of Narbonese Gaul

Vindelici the dominant people of the south Germanic–north Danube region, defeated by Tiberius in 15 BC; Vindelicia was eventually incorporated into the province of Raetia

Visurgis the River Weser in north Germany

Volandum unknown, but must have been south of the Araxes and west of Tigranocerta in Armenia

Vulsci a people of central Italy

Vulsinii Bolsena, town in Etruria

Zeugma town of Commagene; built by Seleucus Nicator to control the crossing of the Euphrates into northern Mesopotamia