Favonia gens

The gens Favonia was a plebeian family at Rome. It is known chiefly from three individuals, one of whom, Marcus Favonius (c. 90 BC – 42 BC) was a politician during the period of the fall of the Roman Republic.

Members

  • Marcus Favonius (c. 90 BC – 42 BC) was a Roman politician during the period of the fall of the Roman Republic.[1] He is noted for his imitation of Cato the Younger, his espousal of the Cynic philosophy, and for his appearance as the Poet in William Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar.
  • Favonius Eulogius, a Carthaginian rhetor who was contemporary with Augustine of Hippo and wrote Disputatio de somnio Scipionis.
  • Marcus Favonius Facilis, a centurion of Legion XX who died in Britain (probably at Camulodunum) and whose tombstone is displayed in Colchester museum.[2]

Name

  • Favonius, meaning "favorable", was one of the Roman wind gods, who held dominion over plants and flowers and was generally equated with the Greek god Zephyrus (his 'return' in early February signaled the coming of Spring in Rome).

See also

References

  1. ^ F. X. Ryan, The Praetorship of Favonius, from the American Journal of Philology Vol 115, Issue 4, at Gale Literature Resource Center; accessed 21 October 2022
  2. ^ EJ Philips The Gravestone of M Favonius Facilis from Britannia Vol 6 (1975) pp. Iii 325 at JSTOR; access date 21 October 2022