{{short description|Ancient Roman family}} {{redirect|Pomponius|the Renaissance scholar|Julius Pomponius Laetus}} [[File:IMG 1073 - Perugia - Museo archeologico - Urna etrusca - 7 ago 2006 - Foto G. Dall'Orto.jpg|thumb|300px|Etruscan urn containing the ashes of Pomponius Notus]] The '''gens Pomponia''' was a [[plebs|plebeian]] family at [[ancient Rome]]. Its members appear throughout the history of the [[Roman Republic]], and into [[Roman Empire|imperial times]]. The first of the [[gens]] to achieve prominence was Marcus Pomponius, [[tribune of the plebs]] in 449 BC; the first who obtained the [[Roman consul|consulship]] was [[Manius Pomponius Matho]] in 233 BC.<ref name="DGRBM Pomponia Gens">''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'', vol. III, p. 493 ("[[s:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology/Pomponia gens|Pomponia Gens]]").</ref>
==Origin== In the latter part of the Republic, it was common for various gentes to claim descent from the founding figures of Rome; the companions of [[Aeneas]], [[Romulus]], or those who came to Rome in the time of the [[King of Rome|kings]]. The Pomponii claimed to be descended from Pompo, one of the sons of [[Numa Pompilius]], the second [[King of Rome]], whose image appears on some of their coins. Several other gentes also claimed Numa as their ancestor.{{efn-lr|The gentes which are known to have claimed descent from Numa were the [[Aemilia gens|Aemilii]], [[Calpurnia gens|Calpurnii]], [[Pinaria gens|Pinarii]], and Pomponii, by sons named ''Mamercus, Calpus, Pinus'', and ''Pompo'', respectively; and, through a daughter, Pompilia, the [[Marcia gens|Marcii]].}}<ref>Livy, i. 20.</ref><ref>Plutarch, "The Life of Numa", 21.</ref><ref>''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'', vol. I, pp. 30, 168, 582 ("[[s:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology/Aemilia gens|Aemilia Gens]]", "[[s:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology/Ancus Marcius|Ancus Marcius]]", "[[s:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology/Calpurnia gens|Calpurnia Gens]]"), vol. II, p. 940 ("[[s:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology/Marcia gens|Marcia Gens]]"), vol. III, pp. 366, 367, 493 ("[[s:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology/Pinaria gens|Pinaria Gens]]", "[[s:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology/Pomponia gens|Pomponia Gens]]").</ref><ref>Grueber, ''Coins of the Roman Republic'', ii. p. 311, no. 733; p. 361, no. 62.</ref>
''Pompo'', asserted as the name of the ancestor of the Pompilii, does indeed appear to have been an ancient praenomen of Sabine origin. It was the [[Oscan language|Oscan]] equivalent of ''[[Quintus (praenomen)|Quintus]]'', a very common name. Numa's father is said to have been named ''Pompo Pompilius'', and it is evident that the [[Nomen gentilicium|nomen]] ''Pompilius'' was itself a patronymic surname derived from ''Pompo''. ''Pomponius'' appears to be derived from an adjectival form of that name, and the equivalent of the [[Latin]] nomen ''[[Quinctilia gens|Quinctilius]]''. Thus, it is reasonably certain that some ancestor of the Pomponii was indeed named ''Pompo'', although the claim that he was the son of Numa may well be a later addition.<ref>Michael Grant, ''Roman Myths'', pp. 123, 139.</ref>
An alternative explanation suggested during the early nineteenth century, was that the name might be derived from an Etruscan root, ''[[Pumpu]]'' or ''Pumpili''.<ref>Müller, ''Die Etrusker'', vol. I, p. 476.</ref> In her ''History of Etruria'', Mrs. Hamilton Gray supposed ''Pumpu'' to have been the name of Numa's mother, adopted as a surname according to a tradition common to the Etruscan and Sabine cultures.<ref>Gray, ''History of Etruria'', vol. II, p. 34.</ref>
==Praenomina== The Pomponii used a wide variety of [[praenomen|praenomina]]. The principal names were ''[[Marcus (praenomen)|Marcus]], [[Lucius (praenomen)|Lucius]]'', and ''[[Titus (praenomen)|Titus]]''. A few of the Pomponii bore the praenomina ''[[Quintus (praenomen)|Quintus]], [[Publius (praenomen)|Publius]]'', and ''[[Sextus (praenomen)|Sextus]]''. The illustrious family of the Pomponii Mathones favored ''[[Manius (praenomen)|Manius]]'', and there are individual instances of ''[[Gaius (praenomen)|Gaius]]'' and ''[[Gnaeus (praenomen)|Gnaeus]]''.
==Branches and cognomina== In the earliest times, the Pomponii were not distinguished by any surname, and the only family that rose to importance in the time of the Republic bore the surname ''Matho''. On coins we also find the ''[[cognomen|cognomina]] Molo, Musa'', and ''Rufus'', but none of these occur in ancient writers. The other surnames found during the Republic, such as ''Atticus'', were personal cognomina. Numerous surnames appear in imperial times.<ref name="DGRBM Pomponia Gens"/>
==Members== {{filiation}}
===Early Pomponii=== * Marcus Pomponius, [[tribune of the plebs]] in 449 BC.<ref>Livy, iii. 54.</ref> * [[Marcus Pomponius (tribune of the plebs 362 BCE)|Marcus Pomponius]], ''tribunus plebis'' in 362 BC, brought an accusation against [[Lucius Manlius Capitolinus Imperiosus|Lucius Manlius Capitolinus]], the dictator of the preceding year, but withdrew it after being threatened by the dictator's son, [[Titus Manlius Imperiosus Torquatus|Titus Manlius Torquatus]].<ref>Livy, vii. 4, 5.</ref><ref>Cicero, ''De Officiis'', iii. 30.</ref><ref>Valerius Maximus, v. 4. § 3.</ref><ref>Appian, ''Bellum Samniticum'', 2.</ref>
===Pomponii Rufi=== * Lucius Pomponius Rufus, grandfather of the consular tribune of 399 BC.<ref name="Broughton I 85"/> * Lucius Pomponius L. f. Rufus, father of the consular tribune.<ref name="Broughton I 85"/> * Marcus Pomponius L. f. L. n. Rufus, [[tribuni militum consulari potestate|consular tribune]] in 399 BC.<ref>Livy, v. 13.</ref><ref>''Fasti Capitolini''.</ref><ref name="Broughton I 85">Broughton, vol. I, p. 85.</ref> * Quintus Pomponius (L. f. L. n. Rufus), tribune of the plebs in 395 BC, opposed a measure to establish a colony at [[Veii]], for which reason he was accused and fined two years later.<ref>Livy, v. 29.</ref><ref>Broughton, vol. I, p. 89.</ref>
===Pomponii Mathones=== * Manius Pomponius Matho, grandfather of the consul of 233 BC.<ref name="Broughton I 224"/> * Manius Pomponius M'. n. Matho, father of the consul of 233 BC.<ref name="Broughton I 224"/> * [[Manius Pomponius Matho|Manius Pomponius M'. f. M'. n. Matho]], consul in 233 BC.<ref name="Broughton I 224">Broughton, vol. I, p. 224.</ref> * [[Marcus Pomponius Matho (consul 231 BC)|Marcus Pomponius M'. f. M'. n. Matho]], consul in 231 BC.<ref>Broughton, vol. I, pp. 225, 226.</ref> * Marcus Pomponius (M. f. M'. n.) Matho, [[praetor]] in 204 BC.<ref>Broughton, vol. I, p. 306.</ref> * [[Pomponia|Pomponia M'. f. M'. n.]], the daughter of Manius Pomponius Matho, consul in 233 BC, was the wife of [[Publius Cornelius Scipio (consul 218 BC)|Publius Cornelius Scipio]], and mother of [[Scipio Africanus]].<ref>Silius Italicus, ''Punica'', xiii. 615.</ref><ref>William Smith, "Pomponia", in ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'', vol. III, p. 492.</ref>
===Pomponii Bassi=== * [[Titus Pomponius Bassus]], consul ''suffectus'' in AD 94. * Lucius Pomponius Bassus, consul ''suffectus'' in AD 118. * Lucius Pomponius L. f. Bassus Cascus Scribonianus, consul ''suffectus'' between AD 128 and 143.<ref>{{CIL|6|41114}}, {{AE|1973|200}}.</ref> * [[Gaius Pomponius Bassus Terentianus|Gaius Pomponius C. f. Bassus Terentianus]], consul ''suffectus'' around AD 193.<ref>{{CIL|6|41195}}.</ref> * [[Pomponius Bassus (consul 211)|Pomponius Bassus]], consul in AD 211, put to death by [[Elagabalus]], so that the emperor could marry his widow, [[Annia Faustina]]. * [[Pomponius Bassus (consul 259)|Pomponius Bassus]], consul in AD 259 and 271; in the latter year, his colleague was the emperor [[Aurelian]].
===Others===
====Republican Pomponii==== * Sextus Pomponius, [[legatus|legate]] of the consul [[Tiberius Sempronius Longus (consul 218 BC)|Tiberius Sempronius Longus]] in 218 BC, the first year of the [[Second Punic War]].<ref>Livy, xxi. 15.</ref> * [[Titus Pomponius Veientanus]], a ''[[publican]]us'', who as commander of some of the allied troops in southern Italy in 213 BC, attacked the [[Carthage|Carthaginian]] general [[Hanno, son of Bomilcar|Hanno]]; he was defeated and taken prisoner.<ref>Livy, xxv. 1, 3.</ref> * [[Marcus Pomponius (praetor 161 BC)|Marcus Pomponius]], praetor ''urbanus'' in 161 BC, obtained a decree of the [[Roman Senate|senate]], forbidding philosophers and rhetoricians from living at Rome.<ref>Livy, xlv. 21.</ref><ref>Suetonius, ''De Claris Rhetoribus'', 1.</ref><ref>Gellius, xv. 11.</ref> * [[Marcus Pomponius (friend of Gaius Gracchus)|Marcus Pomponius]], an intimate friend of [[Gaius Gracchus]], who sacrificed himself to afford Gracchus to escape his pursuers on the day of his death, in 121 BC.<ref>Plutarch, "The Life of Gaius Gracchus" 16, 17.</ref><ref>Velleius Paterculus, ii. 6.</ref><ref>Valerius Maximus, iv. 7 § 2.</ref><ref>Aurelius Victor, ''De Viris Illustribus'', 65.</ref> * [[Lucius Pomponius|Lucius Pomponius Bononiensis]], a playwright of the early first century BC. * Marcus Pomponius, [[aedile]] in 82 BC, exhibited scenic games, in which the dancer [[Galeria Copiola]] appeared, at the age of 13 or 14.<ref>Pliny the Elder, vii. 49. s. 48.</ref> * [[Gnaeus Pomponius]], an orator of some repute, and [[tribune of the plebs]] in 90 BC, was put to death by [[Sulla]].<ref>Cicero, ''Brutus'', 57, 62, 89, 90, ''De Oratore'', iii. 13.</ref> * Marcus Pomponius, the name erroneously assigned by [[Plutarch]] to Marcus Pompeius, commander of the cavalry under [[Lucullus]] during the [[Third Mithridatic War]].<ref>Plutarch, "The Life of Lucullus", 15.</ref> * Marcus Pomponius, legate of [[Pompey|Gnaeus Pompeius]] during the war against the pirates in 67 BC; he was assigned to keep watch over the [[Ligurian Sea]] and the [[Gulf of Lion|sinus Gallicus]].<ref>Appian, ''Bella Mithridatica'', 95.</ref> * [[Titus Pomponius]], father of Atticus, a man of learning, who, being possessed of considerable property, gave his son a liberal education. * [[Titus Pomponius Atticus|Titus Pomponius T. f. Atticus]], an [[equestrian order|eques]], moneylender, and friend of [[Cicero]]. * [[Pomponia (sister of Atticus)|Pomponia T. f.]], married [[Quintus Tullius Cicero]]. * [[Pomponia|Pomponia T. f. T. n.]], married [[Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa]], and became the mother of [[Vipsania Agrippina]], the first wife of [[Tiberius]]. * Marcus Pomponius Dionysius, a freedman of Titus Pomponius Atticus.<ref>Cicero, ''Epistulae ad Atticum'', vi. 15.</ref> * [[Quintus Pomponius Musa]], ''[[triumvir monetalis]] circa'' 66 BC. * Publius Pomponius, a companion of [[Publius Clodius Pulcher]] at the time of his death, in 52 BC.<ref>Asconius Pedianus, ''In Ciceronis Pro Milone'', p. 33, ed. [[Johann Caspar von Orelli|Orelli]].</ref> * Marcus Pomponius, commanded [[Julius Caesar|Caesar]]'s fleet at [[Messina|Messana]]; the greater part of the fleet was burnt by [[Gaius Cassius Longinus]] during the [[Caesar's Civil War|Civil War]], in 48 BC.<ref>Caesar, ''De Bello Civili'', iii. 101.</ref> * Pomponius, proscribed by the [[Second Triumvirate|triumvirs]] in 43 BC, he escaped Rome disguised as a Praetor, accompanied by slaves playing the part of [[lictor]]s.<ref>Appian, ''Bellum Civile'', iv. 45.</ref>
====Pomponii of imperial times==== * [[Gaius Pomponius Graecinus|Publius Pomponius Graecinus]], consul ''suffectus'' in AD 16, was a friend of [[Ovid]], and the brother of Lucius Pomponius Flaccus, who was consul the following year. * [[Pomponia Graecina]], married [[Aulus Plautius]], the first governor of [[Roman Britain|Britannia]]. * [[Lucius Pomponius Flaccus]], consul in AD 17, was a friend of [[Tiberius]], and the brother of Publius Pomponius Graecinus, who had been consul the preceding year.<ref>Tacitus, ''Annales'', ii. 32, 41, vi. 27.</ref> * Marcus Pomponius Marcellus, a celebrated grammarian and advocate during the reign of Tiberius.<ref>Suetonius, ''De Illustribus Grammaticis'', 22.</ref><ref>Cassius Dio, lvii. 17.</ref> * [[Pomponius Labeo]], governor of [[Moesia]] during the reign of Tiberius, he was denounced by the emperor for maladministration, and put an end to his life in AD 34.<ref>Tacitus, ''Annales'', iv. 47, vi. 29.</ref><ref>Cassius Dio, lviii. 24.</ref> * [[Pomponius Secundus|Publius Pomponius Secundus]], a celebrated tragedian, consul ''suffectus'' in AD 44, later triumphed over the [[Chatti]].<ref>Paul Gallivan, [https://www.jstor.org/stable/638693 "The Fasti for the Reign of Claudius"], ''[[Classical Quarterly]]'', 28 (1978), pp. 408, 424</ref> * [[Quintus Pomponius Secundus]], brother of the playwright, consul ''suffectus'' in AD 41, joined the revolt of [[Lucius Arruntius Camillus Scribonianus|Camillus Scribonianus]] the following year. * [[Pomponius Mela]], a geographer, who probably lived during the reign of [[Claudius]]. * Pomponia Decharis, possibly a [[Freedman|freedwoman]] who was buried in the tomb of [[Eumachia]] in [[Pompeii]].<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fKjyqAihwz0C&pg=PA140 |title=Pompeya |first=Joanne |last=Berry |publisher=[[Ediciones Akal]] |date=2 March 2009 |page=140 |isbn=9788446029281}}</ref> She was the adoptive mother of [[Alleius Nigidius Maius]], who became one of the towns most admired patrons.<ref>{{cite thesis |type=PhD|url=https://pure.uva.nl/ws/files/1342249/104520_11.pdf |title=Sacerdotes piae: priestesses and other female cult officials in the western part of the Roman Empire from the first century B.C. until the third century A.D. |last=Gaspar |first=V.M. |publisher=[[University of Amsterdam]] |year=2012 |access-date=5 June 2019 |pages=206–218}}</ref> * Gaius Pomponius Pius, consul ''suffectus'' in AD 65. * Gaius Pomponius, consul ''suffectus'' in AD 74. * [[Quintus Pomponius Rufus]], consul ''suffectus'' in AD 95. * Lucius Pomponius Maternus, consul ''suffectus'' in AD 97. * Gaius Pomponius Pius, consul ''suffectus'' in AD 98. * Gaius Pomponius Rufus Acilius Priscus Coelius Sparsus, consul ''suffectus'' in AD 98 and proconsul of [[Africa (Roman province)|Africa]] in 112/113.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Eck |first=Werner |last2=Holder |first2=Paul |last3=Pangerl |first3=Andreas |date=2010 |title=A Diploma for the Army of Britain in 132 and Hadrian's Return to the East |journal=Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik |volume=174 (2010) |page=193 }}</ref> * [[Pomponius Mamilianus]], consul ''suffectus'' in AD 100. * Quintus Pomponius Marcellus, consul ''suffectus'' in AD 121. * Lucius Pomponius Silvanus, consul ''suffectus'' in AD 121. * [[Titus Pomponius Antistianus Funisulanus Vettonianus]], consul ''suffectus'' in AD 121. * Quintus Pomponius Maternus, consul ''suffectus'' in AD 128. * [[Sextus Pomponius]], a jurist active during the time of [[Hadrian]]. * Gaius Pomponius Camerinus, consul in AD 138. * Quintus Pomponius Musa, consul in AD 158. * [[Titus Pomponius Proculus Vitrasius Pollio]], consul ''iter'' in AD 178. * [[Pomponius Porphyrion]], an important commentator on the poet [[Horace|Quintus Horatius Flaccus]]. * Pomponius Faustinianus, governor of [[Roman Egypt|Egypt]] from AD 185 to 187. * Lucius Pomponius Liberalis, consul ''suffectus'' in AD 204. * [[Pomponia|Pomponia Rufina]], a [[Vestal Virgin]] put to death by Caracalla.<ref>Cassius Dio, lxxvii, 16.</ref> * [[Marcus Pomponius Maecius Probus]], consul ''suffectus'' in AD 228. * [[Pomponius Januarianus]], consul in AD 288.
==See also== * [[List of Roman gentes]] * [[Pomponia]] * [[Columbarium of Pomponius Hylas]]
==Notes== {{reflist|group=lower-roman}}
==References== {{reflist}}
==Bibliography== * [[Cicero|Marcus Tullius Cicero]], ''[[Brutus (Cicero)|Brutus]]'', ''[[De Officiis]]'', ''[[De Oratore]]'', ''[[Epistulae ad Atticum]]''. * [[Julius Caesar|Gaius Julius Caesar]], ''[[Commentarii de Bello Civili]]'' (Commentaries on the Civil War). * Titus Livius ([[Livy]]), ''[[History of Rome (Livy)|History of Rome]]''. * [[Marcus Velleius Paterculus]], ''Compendium of Roman History''. * [[Valerius Maximus]], ''Factorum ac Dictorum Memorabilium'' (Memorable Facts and Sayings). * [[Asconius Pedianus|Quintus Asconius Pedianus]], ''Commentarius in Oratio Ciceronis [[Pro Milone]]'' (Commentary on Cicero's Oration ''Pro Milone''). * Gaius Plinius Secundus ([[Pliny the Elder]]), ''[[Natural History (Pliny)|Naturalis Historia]]'' (Natural History). * [[Silius Italicus|Tiberius Catius Silius Italicus]], ''[[Punica (poem)|Punica]]''. * [[Tacitus|Publius Cornelius Tacitus]], ''[[Annals (Tacitus)|Annales]]''. * [[Plutarch]]us, ''[[Parallel Lives|Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans]]''. * [[Suetonius|Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus]], ''De Claris Rhetoribus'' (On the Eminent Orators), ''De Illustribus Grammaticis'' (The Illustrious Grammarians). * Appianus Alexandrinus ([[Appian]]), ''Bellum Samniticum'' (History of the Samnite War), ''Bella Mithridatica'' (The Mithridatic Wars), ''Bellum Civile'' (The Civil War). * [[Aulus Gellius]], ''Noctes Atticae'' (Attic Nights). * Lucius Cassius Dio Cocceianus ([[Cassius Dio]]), ''Roman History''. * [[Herodian]]us, ''History of the Empire from the Death of Marcus''. * [[Aurelius Victor|Sextus Aurelius Victor]], ''[[De Viris Illustribus]]'' (On Famous Men). * Elizabeth Johnstone (Mrs. Hamilton) Gray, ''The History of Etruria'', J. Hatchard and Son, London (1843, 1844, 1868). * ''[[Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology]]'', [[William Smith (lexicographer)|William Smith]], ed., Little, Brown and Company, Boston (1849). * [[Karl Otfried Müller]], ''Die Etrusker'', Albert Heitz, Stuttgart (1877). * George Davis Chase, "The Origin of Roman Praenomina", in ''Harvard Studies in Classical Philology'', vol. VIII (1897). * Herbert A. Grueber, ''Coins of the Roman Republic in the British Museum'', William Clowes and Sons, Ltd., London (1910). * [[Thomas Robert Shannon Broughton|T. Robert S. Broughton]], ''The Magistrates of the Roman Republic'', American Philological Association (1952). * [[Michael Grant (author)|Michael Grant]], ''Roman Myths'' (1971).
[[Category:Pomponii| ]] [[Category:Roman gentes]]