Matrinia (gens)


The gens Matrinia was a plebeian family at Rome. Members of this gens are first mentioned toward the end of the second century BC. They belonged to the equestrian class. Several of them are known through the writings of Cicero, while others are mentioned in inscriptions from Umbria and Etruria.

Origin

According to Cicero, Titus Matrinius received Roman citizenship from Gaius Marius, one of the legendary figures in Roman history, placing him toward the end of the second century BC, or the beginning of the first.

Praenomina

The chief praenomina of the Matrinii seem to have been Lucius, Manius, and Gnaeus. Lucius and Gnaeus were very common names, but Manius was much more distinctive. There are two examples of the common praenomen Gaius, and a father and son named Publius, also a very common name. Titus and Decimus, found among the Matrinii known to Cicero, are not repeated among the Matrinii known from surviving inscriptions.

Members