Achaea - Roman Province on the Aegean peninsula with Athens as the most prominent city.
Aediles – Elected city officials that were responsible for the maintenance of public buildings.
Aegyptus – Latin name for the kingdom of Egypt. Later, a Roman province that was kept by the emperors as personal hereditary property.
Africa - Region of North Africa that comprises the Roman provinces: Africa, Numidia and Mauretania.
Amphitheater - Amphi-theaters are literally round theaters. Amphi- means "around" in Greek.
Antiochus III - Syrian king who fought against Rome in the Syrian War.
Aqueducts - Advanced Roman systems for the delivery of water over great distances.
Arausio – A settlement in southern Gaul (now the city of Orange in southern France) where a battle was fought in 105 BC between the Germanic tribes the Cimbri and the Teutoni and two Roman armies. The battle resulted in the worst defeat in the history of ancient Rome.
Argiletum - The Argiletum was the main route approaching the Forum Romanum from the northeast. It served to connect the Forum with the Subura district of the city.
Armilustrium – A Roman festival in honor of the god Mars celebrated on October 19th. During this festival the weapons of the soldiers were ritually purified and stored for the winter.
Arpinum – A city in central Italy (modern Arpino). Arpinum was the birthplace of both Cicero and Gaius Marius.
Asia Minor - The Roman Province at the western side of the Anatolian peninsula. Asia Minor was bounded by the black sea to the north, the Aegean Sea to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south and Galatia to the east.
Atrium - (plural: atria or atriums) is a large open space located within a building. Atria were a common feature in Ancient Roman dwellings, providing light and ventilation to the interior.
Augustus Caesar - First emperor of Rome. Appears briefly in Nomenclator Initium as “baby Gaius,” son of Octavius and great nephew to Julius Caesar.
Basilica – A large public building where legal and business matters were transacted. The typical form of a basilica was an open space divided by colonnades with an apse at one end where magistrates sat. On the sides clerestory windows provided light. The basilicas in Rome at the time of Nomenclator: Initium were the Basilica Porcia, the Basilica Aemilia (the earlier basilica Fulvia was incorporated into it), the Basilica Sempronia (this was later replaced by the basilica Julia) and the Basilica Opimia. The Basilica Opimia was probably an annex of the Temple of Concordia.
Bath (thermae) - A Roman public bath typically consisted of three principal rooms: the caldarium (hot bath), the tepidarium (warm bath) and the frigidarium (cold bath). Some thermae also featured steam baths: the sudatorium, a moist steam bath, and the laconicum, a dry steam bath much like a modern sauna. Generally there was an atrium attached to the bath which was used as an exercise yard. Sometimes the bath would include taverna and additional public rooms.
Bestiarii - Gladiators armed with a spear or knife that specialized in fighting beasts.
Bithynia – An ancient kingdom and later a Roman province corresponding roughly to central-northern Turkey.
Brennus – A Gallic leader who, in 387 BC, sacked Rome. This event shaped the view Romans had of the Gallic tribes for centuries.
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