Latin Place Names in Italy: Abellinum to Volsinii

Luigi Speranza

This list includes countries and regions in the Italian Peninsula that were part of the Roman Empire, or that were given Latin place names in historical reference.

Until the Modern Era, Latin was the common language for scholarship and mapmaking.

During the 19th and 20th centuries, German scholars in particular made significant contributions to the study of historical place names, or Ortsnamenkunde.

These studies have, in turn, contributed to the study of genealogy.

For genealogists and historians of pre-Modern Europe, knowing alternate names of places is vital to extracting information from both public and private records. Even specialists in this field point out, however, that the information can be easily taken out of context, since there is a great deal of repetition of place names throughout Europe; reliance purely on apparent connections should therefore be tempered with valid historical methodology.

Latin place names are not always exclusive to one place — for example, there were several Roman cities whose names began with

"Colonia"

and then a more descriptive term. During the Middle Ages, these were often shortened to just Colonia.

One of these,

"Colonia Agrippinensis",

retains the name today in the form of Cologne.

Early sources for Roman names show numerous variants and spellings of the Latin names.

The modern canonical name is listed first. Sources are listed chronologically. In general, only the earliest source is shown for each name, although many of the names are recorded in more than one of the sources. Where the source differs in spelling, or has other alternatives, these are listed following the source. As an aid to searching, variants are spelled completely, and listed in most likely chronology.

Superscripts indicate:

1.Latinized form of the Greek-derived name.

2.Latinized form of the Asian-derived name via Greek.

3.Altered Latinized form of the Greek-derived name.

Canonical Latin Name (source(s): variant(s)) English Name (native language(s)) - older name(s), (other language(s)), location(s)

*****************************

Abellinum Avellino (east of Naples)

Acelum Asolo

ad Aesim Falconara Marittima, Marche
Aesis Jesi, Marche
ad Martis S. Maria in Pantano (near Massa Martana, Umbria)
Aenaria Ischia
Agrigentum Agrigento
Alba Pompeia Alba
Albingaunum Albenga
Albintemelium, Albintimilium Ventimiglia
Altinum Altino
America Amelia, Umbria
Ammurianum Murano
Apua Pontremoli
Aquae Statiellae Acqui Terme
Aquilia in Vestinis, Aquilia L'Aquila
Arconisium Racconigi
Ardea Ardea
Ariminum Rimini
Arretium Arezzo
Asculum Picenum Ascoli Piceno
Assisium Assisi, Umbria
Ateste Este
Aternum Pescara
Augusta Augusta
Augusta Bagiennorum Bene Vagienna
Augusta Praetoria Salassorum Aosta
Augusta Taurinorum, Taurasia Turin
Baretium Varese
Barium Bari
Baruli Barletta
Bauzanum, Pons Drusi Bolzano
Bellunum Belluno
Beneventum Benevento
Bergomum Bergamo
Bobium, Ebovium Bobbio
Bononia Bologna
Boreana Burano
Brindisium, Brundusium Brindisi
Brixellum Brescello
Brixia Brescia
Brixino Brixen (Bressanone)
Caesena Cesena
Caieta Gaeta
Capreae Capri
Capua Santa Maria Capua Vetere
Caralis Cagliari, Sardinia
Carreum Potentia Chieri
Castra Nicia Caltanisetta
Catana or Catina Catania
Centum Cellae Civitavecchia
Civitas Sancti Romuli Sanremo
Claterna Claterna
Comum Como
Cremona Cremona
Dertona Tortona
Drepanum Trapani (west of Palermo)
Eporedia Ivrea
Fabiranum, Fabrianum Fabriano
Faesulae Fiesole
Faventia Faenza
Feltria Feltre
Fidentia Fidenza
Firmum (Picenum) Fermo
Florentia Florence (Firenze)
Forum Cornelii Imola
Forum Fulvii Villa del Foro, near Alessandria
Forum Iulii Cividale del Friuli
Forum Livii Forlì, Italy
Forum Popilii Forlimpopoli
Forum Vibii Caburrum Cavour
Fossa Clodia Chioggia
Frusina Frosinone
Fulginiae, Fulginium Foligno
Genua Genoa (Genova)
Hasta Asti
Henna or Haenna Enna
Herculaneum Ercolano
Hispellum, Colonia Julia Hispellum Spello, Umbria
Hostilia Ostiglia
Iguvium, Eugubium Gubbio, Umbria
Industria Monteu da Po
Iria Voghera
Iulia Concordia Concordia Sagittaria
Interamna Nahars, Interamna Nahartium Terni, Umbria
Interamnia Praetutiana, Interamnia, Interamnium, Interamna Teramo
Labellum Lavello
Laus Pompeia Lodi
Libarna near Serravalle Scrivia
Lilybaeum Marsala
Luna Luni
Lupiae Lecce
Mantua Mantua (Mantova)
Mateola Matera
Mediolanum Milan (Milano)
Messana Messina
Mevania Bevagna, Umbria
Modicia Monza
Mutina Modena
Neapolis Naples (Napoli)
Nola Nola, ENE of Naples
Novaria Novara
Nursia Norcia, Umbria
Olmedum Olmedo
Opitergium Oderzo
Panormus Palermo
Parma Parma
Patavium Padua (Padova)
Perusia Perugia
Pisae Pisa
Pisaurum Pesaro
Pistoria, Pistorium or Pistoriae Pistoia
Placentia Piacenza
Pollentia Pollenzo
Portus Naonis Pordenone
Potentia Potenza
Praeneste Palestrina
Puteoli Pozzuoli
Ravenna Ravenna
Reate Rieti
Rhegium, or Regium Lepidi Reggio Calabria
Rodigium or Rhodigium Rovigo
Roma Rome
Scylacium, Scylletium, Scolatium, Scolacium, Scyllaceum, Scalacium, Minervium or Colonia Minervia Squillace
Saena, Sena Siena
Savo Savona
Segusium Susa
Sipontum Manfredonia, Puglia
Spoletium Spoleto, Umbria
Stabiae Castellammare di Stabia
Suasa Castelleone di Suasa, Marche
Surrentum Sorrento
Syracusae¹ Syracuse (Siracusa)
Tarentum Taranto
Tarvisium Treviso
Tauromenium Taormina
Teate Chieti
Tergeste Trieste
Terracina Terracina
Thermae Himerenses Termini Imerese
Tibur Tivoli
Ticinum Pavia
Tifernum Tiberinum Città di Castello
Tridentum Trento
Tuder Todi, Umbria
Tusculum near Frascati (south-east of Rome)
Urbinum Hortense, Urvinum Hortense near Collemancio, Umbria, Italy (?)
Urbinum Mataurense, Urvinum Mataurense Urbino, Marche
Vada Sabatia Vado Ligure
Vardacate, Vardagate Casale Monferrato
Vedinum, Utinum Udine
Veleia, Velleia Velleia, frazione of Lugagnano Val d'Arda
Velitrae Velletri
Venusia Venosa
Vercellæ Vercelli
Vicetia, Vincentia Vicenza
Victimula
Vigiliae Bisceglie
Viglebanum, Vigebanum Vigevano
Vigueria, Viguerium Voghera
Vipitenum Sterzing
Volaterrae Volterra
Volsinii Novi, Volsinium Bolsena


ReferencesIn order of likely publication:

PNH: Pliny (Gaius Plinius Secundus), Naturalis Historia; book "PNH" chapter (that is, "37PNH81" instead of the usual "N.H.xxxvii.81").
PG: Ptolemy (Claudius Ptolemaeus), Geographia; book "PG" chapter (that is, "2PG3" instead of the usual "II.3"). Ptolemy wrote in Greek, so names are transliterated back into Latin to reveal the original form.
HLU: Johann Jacob Hofmann (1635–1706): Lexicon Universale
GOL: The standard reference to Latin placenames, with their modern equivalents, is Dr. J. G. Th. Graesse, Orbis Latinus : Lexikon lateinischer geographischer Namen des Mittelalters und der Neuzeit (1909), an exhaustive work of meticulous German scholarship that is available on-line. To use it, one must understand German names of countries, as they were in 1909. The original was re-edited and expanded in a multi-volume edition in 1972.
[edit] External linksGraesse, Orbis Latinus
Hofmann: Lexicon Universale
Place Names of Europe
Pliny the Elder: the Natural History
Ptolemy: the Geography
[hide]v · d · eEurope

Culture · Demographics · Economy · Geography · History · Politics

Culture Art (Architecture · Capital of Culture · Classical music · Cinema (Film festivals) · Painting · Sculpture) · Cuisine · Etiquette · Literature · Languages (Endangered) · Philosophy · Religion (Christianity · Islam · Judaism) · Sport · Symbols · Universities
(Bologna Process · Erasmus)

Demographics Ageing · Education · Ethnic groups (Genetic history) · Immigration · Life expectancy · Retirement · Population

Economy GDP (nominal) (per capita) · GDP (PPP) (per capita) · GNI (nominal) per capita · GNI (PPP) per capita · budget revenues (per capita) · Average wage · Minimum wage · Unemployment rate · HDI · Corruption · FTAs · EFTA · CEFTA · CUBKR · EAEC

Geography Sovereign states and dependent territories · Area and population · Cities · Villages · Geology · Islands · Rivers · Lakes · Mountains · Extreme points

History Prehistory · Classical antiquity · Late Antiquity · Middle Ages · Early modernity · Military · Predecessor states · Dates of achieving sovereignty

Politics International organisations · Integration · CIS · CoE · CSTO · GUAM · NATO · OSCE (statistics) · Post-Soviet · Transatlantic · Eurosphere

European Union Members (future) · Politics · Visa policy · ENP · Foreign relations · Economic relations (FTAs) · Economy · Eurozone · EEA · EUCU · Schengen · Statistics

Other Communications · Crisis situations and protests · Financial and social rankings · Internet users · Law · Maps · Press Freedom Index · Transport

Portal

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Latin_place_names_in_Italy_and_Malta"
Categories: Alternative names of European places | Latin names of places | Lists of cities in Europe | Lists of place names | Latin place-names | Lists of cities by toponymy | Italy-related lists | Malta-related lists | Italian toponyms | Maltese toponyms
Hidden categories: Use dmy dates from November 2010Personal tools
Log in / create accountNamespaces
ArticleDiscussionVariantsViews
ReadEditView historyActions
Search

Navigation
Main pageContentsFeatured contentCurrent eventsRandom articleDonate to WikipediaInteractionHelpAbout WikipediaCommunity portalRecent changesContact WikipediaToolboxWhat links hereRelated changesUpload fileSpecial pagesPermanent linkCite this page
Print/exportCreate a bookDownload as PDFPrintable version
LanguagesDeutschEsperantoItalianoPortuguêsRomânăThis page was last modified on 9 June 2011 at 07:03.