Agency Dictionary
humiliores
nounPronunciation: /hjuːˌmɪl.iˈɔː.riːz/
In Portuguese: humiliores
History & Civilizations
Society & PoliticsWhat does “humiliores” mean?
The lower-ranking free population in imperial Rome subject to severe criminal punishments, investigative torture, and forced labor.
Etymology
The Latin plural comparative of humilis, "lowly". In Roman law of the imperial period, humiliores designated the mass of free people of lower social standing, as distinct from the honestiores, the upper ranks. The distinction became legally significant because humiliores were subject to harsher criminal penalties, including corporal punishment and forced labor, from which honestiores were exempt.
Usage note
A technical term of Roman legal and social history. In English scholarship it is always used in the Latin form, without translation, as the counterpart of honestiores.
Synonyms
- commoners
- lower orders
Usage examples
From the 2nd century, the law split free people into honestiores (elites) and humiliores (commoners), each with its own scale of penalties.
Concept
Source editions
Where this entry comes from in the Agency editorial.
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