Julius Africanus
- For the Christian traveller and historian, see Sextus Julius Africanus. For others with this name, see Africanus.
Julius Africanus was a celebrated orator in the reign of Nero,[1] and seems to have been the son of the Julius Africanus, of the Gallic state of the Santoni, who was condemned by Tiberius in 32 AD.[2] Quintilian, who had heard Julius Africanus, spoke of him and Domitius Afer as the best orators of their time. The eloquence of Africanus was chiefly characterized by vehemence and energy.[3][4] Pliny the Younger mentions a grandson of this Julius Africanus, who was also an advocate and was opposed to him upon one occasion.[5] He was consul suffectus in 108 AD.
There is a persistent belief in some quarters that Africanus was actually an African. However, being the son of a Gallic chief he was a member of a Celtic tribe.[citation needed] This confusion probably arises from an incorrect belief that the Roman cognomen Africanus means from Africa (i.e. born in Africa) rather than the correct meaning of famous relation to Africa.[citation needed] The name Africanus originated with Scipio Africanus, who defeated Carthage (in North Africa) during the Second Punic War.[citation needed]
References
- ↑ Smith, William (1870), "Africanus, Julius", in Smith, William, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology 1, Boston, p. 56
- ↑ Tacitus, Annales vi. 7
- ↑ Quintilian, x. 1. § 118, xii. 10. § 11, comp. viii. 5. § 15
- ↑ Dial. de Orat. 15
- ↑ Pliny the Younger, Epistulae vii. 6
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Smith, William, ed. (1867). "article name needed". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology.