Romanitas - Revista de Estudos Grecolatinos
Romanitas – Revista de Estudos Grecolatinos was born, at first, from a finding: the visible lack, in Brazil, of journals of an interdisciplinary nature committed to the dissemination of intellectual production around Greek and Roman society, a reality in sharp contrast with the increase in the interest aroused, in the last decades, by Classical Studies, as it is possible to conclude based on the growing number of researchers involved, at all levels of academic formation, with research projects on the past of Greece and Rome, which motivated the team of Laboratory of Studies on the Roman Empire/Section ES, linked to the History Postgraduate Program of the Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo (Ufes), to found the journal.
Laboratório de Estudos sobre o Império Romano
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This dossier presents readers with new historiographical contributions that position non-Roman peoples as the protagonists of profound political and social transformations, characterized by both continuities and ruptures that led to the reorganization of the Western Mediterranean.
Dossier: Between Romans and “Barbarians”: Negotiation, Continuity, and Rupture in Late Antiquity
Copyright (c) 2026 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Franks, Romans, and the emergence of the Merovingian Dynasty in Gaul
This article presents a case study on the formation of the Merovingian Frankish kingdom in Gaul during the fifth century through an analysis of evidence related to King Childeric I, who died in 481. To this end, it draws on a body of documentary material composed of written sources, mostly dating from the sixth century, as well as archaeological data associated with the burial ceremony of the aforementioned monarch. The analysis of this evidence, considered together with the historiography, reconstructs Childeric as a ruler operating amid both Roman and Germanic influences, responsible for the formation of a kingdom based in Belgica Secunda through conflicts and cooperation with local forces and the Roman Empire. On the other hand, his richly adorned burial ceremony, modeled on those of Germanic leaders, suggests that the legitimacy of his rule and that of his successor was grounded in the display of a warrior authority rooted in a non-Roman tradition.
Copyright (c) 2026 Anderson Leonardo Vaz Stein https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Sophists and Philosophers in the Roman Empire
Dossier: Sophists, Philosophers, and Rhetoricians in the Ancient World
Copyright (c) 2025 Tim Whitmarsh, Esdra Erlacher https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
It was our aim, in this dossier, to examine the role played by sophists, philosophers, and rhetores in Antiquity, highlighting their functions, discursive strategies, theoretical disputes, social interests, and other issues related to the activities of these individuals. Drawing on an interdisciplinary perspective that brings together History, Philosophy, Literature, and Anthropology, and based on a highly diverse body of sources, the contributors to this issue set out to understand the actions of a range of individuals or groups in the ancient world who, through their literary and discursive expressions, reinforced or mitigated identities, positions, or projects of power. The texts the reader will encounter in the following pages also constitute a valuable body of material for understanding the circulation, production, and dissemination of knowledge in the ancient Mediterranean.
Copyright (c) 2026 Esdra Erlacher https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
This text investigates the social transformations in the Ebro River valley between the 6th and 7th centuries through a cross-analysis of written documentation and archaeological data. It examines the relationship between the peasantry and the Visigothic aristocracy based on four variables: the organization of cities, the construction of fortifications, the processes of rural Christianization, and the reconfiguration of the countryside after the collapse of the Roman Empire. By highlighting peasant agency, the text challenges interpretations that reduce rural history to mere aristocratic domination, demonstrating that, despite the progressive expansion of seigneurial power, significant peasant communities maintained relative autonomy throughout a substantial part of the period. It thus advocates for a diachronic reading that understands class struggle in the Early Middle Ages as a dynamic process, marked by negotiations, resistance, and realignments between peasants and local aristocracies.
Copyright (c) 2026 Eduardo Cardoso Daflon https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Women and Christianity in fifth-century Ireland Women and Christianity in fifth-century Ireland
*]:pointer-events-auto R6Vx5W_threadScrollVars scroll-mb-[calc(var(--scroll-root-safe-area-inset-bottom,0px)+var(--thread-response-height))] scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" data-turn-id="request-WEB:fe443427-8d07-4951-afd3-392575eda4d3-6" data-turn-id-container="request-WEB:fe443427-8d07-4951-afd3-392575eda4d3-6" data-testid="conversation-turn-14" data-turn="assistant"> This article focuses on the forms of religious life adopted by women after conversion to Christianity in regions considered borderlands with the Roman West. One of our main witnesses to this phenomenon is a text attributed to Patrick, known as Confessio, written in Ireland in the 5th century. Considering the historical context of profound religious, cultural, and social transformations of Late Antiquity, the following objectives were outlined: to analyze the evidence of possible female experiences within the scope of Patrick's evangelizing mission in Ireland; to investigate how the author positioned himself on the issue of women in newly converted Christian communities; and to discuss how he would have mobilized these issues while constructing the defense against his detractors, which permeates the text of the Confessio.
Copyright (c) 2026 Clarissa Mattana https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Goths' support for Procopius' usurpation against Valens in the eastern regions of the Roman Empire in 365 brought about a new phase in the Romano-Gothic relations. Committed to subduing them for having challenged his authority, Valens devoted the next four years to campaigns in the Danube region, which did not yield good results. In this article, I will discuss to what extent Valens' dealings with the Goths were anchored in the precedents established by Constantine and what innovations were brought by Valens upon this model.
Copyright (c) 2026 Pedro Benedetti https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
*]:pointer-events-auto R6Vx5W_threadScrollVars scroll-mb-[calc(var(--scroll-root-safe-area-inset-bottom,0px)+var(--thread-response-height))] scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" data-turn-id="request-6a4274d1-7ba0-83e9-9cda-4b4881f0385d-11" data-turn-id-container="request-6a4274d1-7ba0-83e9-9cda-4b4881f0385d-11" data-testid="conversation-turn-42" data-turn="assistant"> The objective of this article is to present how Egyptians understood death and represented their identities in the first century. In this sense, we seek to reflect on the conception of dying in Roman Egypt through the myths and mortuary practices preserved for millennia and adapted to make sense of the historical and social context. Furthermore, we seek to understand the negotiations carried out by members of the chora elite, who represented themselves with symbols of Pharaonic Egyptian belief combined with Greco-Roman elements in funerary portraits.
Copyright (c) 2026 Jéssica Ladeira Santana https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Byzantine Empire (?) between denialism and resilience
This article proposes an exploratory study of the traditional separation between Roman History and Byzantine History, arguing that the Byzantine Empire should be understood as a transformed continuation of the Roman Empire rather than as a distinct entity. Based on an extensive bibliographical review and historiographical analysis, the article discusses how the use of the term “Byzantine” is linked to a persistent denial of the Eastern Romans’ claim to the Roman legacy, resulting from political, religious, and cultural disputes within the context of Latin Christendom and the West. By examining key historical moments, the text questions the validity of these traditional chronological milestones as points of rupture. Instead, it highlights the institutional, cultural, and identity continuity that the Eastern Romans (rhomaioi) themselves recognized in their own society. Such continuity was only possible through transformations and adaptations to new historical circumstances. By emphasizing the Empire’s resilience in the face of these changes, the article exposes historiographical prejudices rooted in Enlightenment thought and proposes a more integrated and dynamic perspective on the long durée of Late Antique and medieval Romanity.
Copyright (c) 2026 João Vicente de Medeiros Publio Dias https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The controversy between Christians and Jews in Late Antiquity
Review of: SOTOCORNO, Ana Carolina Picoli. Conflito e coexistência: as disputas territoriais judaico-nicenas na Hispânia dos séculos IV e V E.C. Curitiba: CRV, 2023. 243 p.
Copyright (c) 2026 José Walter Cracco Junior https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
A emperor between the sword and the quill
*]:pointer-events-auto R6Vx5W_threadScrollVars scroll-mb-[calc(var(--scroll-root-safe-area-inset-bottom,0px)+var(--thread-response-height))] scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" data-turn-id="request-6a4274d1-7ba0-83e9-9cda-4b4881f0385d-13" data-turn-id-container="request-6a4274d1-7ba0-83e9-9cda-4b4881f0385d-13" data-testid="conversation-turn-46" data-turn="assistant"> Much of the reputation of the Roman emperor Julian, known as “the Apostate” (355–363), as a good ruler derives from his competence as a military commander. During his tenure as Caesar in Gaul (355–360), he effectively contained the invasions of the Alamanni. His success is commonly attributed to his military skills. This article argues that Julian’s achievements also owed much to two other factors: his military perambulation through Gallic territories, which attracted the attention and approval of his subjects; and the publication of a short work on the Battle of Argentoratum, his greatest military triumph.
Copyright (c) 2026 Gabriel Requia Gabbardo https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Studies on the interactions between the Romans and aquatic environments
Review of: TIBBS, A.; CAMPBELL, P. B. (ed.). Rivers and waterways in the Roman World: empire of water. Oxon: Routledge, 2024. 273 p.
Copyright (c) 2026 Guilherme de Aquino Silva https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The perception of the barbarian in the “time of kingdoms”
Late Antiquity (3rd–8th centuries) is considered a dynamic historical framework, replete with transformations, readjustments, and mutations. As part of this context, we find the characterization of the barbarian, which underwent significant changes. From a Greco-Roman civilizational perspective concerned with the threats posed by culturally and politically distinct population groups, we observe that the interaction and integration of those considered barbarians into the sociopolitical and cultural environment of western Roman territories from the 5th century onwards ultimately transformed the notion of the barbarian, which, from then on, integrated itself into aristocratic groups of Roman and indigenous origin. So much so that the Goths, who formed a regnum in the territory of ancient Roman Hispania between the 6th and 7th centuries, used tools traditionally associated with the Roman imperial tradition to configure a new barbarian profile with a political-ideological accent, where infidelity, betrayal, and religious issues began to play a significant role.
Copyright (c) 2026 Renan Frighetto https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
*]:pointer-events-auto R6Vx5W_threadScrollVars scroll-mb-[calc(var(--scroll-root-safe-area-inset-bottom,0px)+var(--thread-response-height))] scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" data-turn-id="request-6a4274d1-7ba0-83e9-9cda-4b4881f0385d-7" data-turn-id-container="request-6a4274d1-7ba0-83e9-9cda-4b4881f0385d-7" data-testid="conversation-turn-34" data-turn="assistant"> This study aims to present a historically grounded concept of the State that aligns with the socio-political formations of the Early Medieval Western kingdoms, while analyzing the complex theoretical framework of domination and dependency relations within Visigothic society. The primary sources used are the Acts of the Councils of Toledo, published in Latin-Spanish by Investigaciones Científicas, supplemented by a variety of scholarly works examining the political thought and social structure of the Visigothic Kingdom.
Copyright (c) 2026 Maria Eduarda de Sousa Lopes, João Paulo Charrone https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Review of: NYORD, Rune. Yearning for Immortality: The European Invention of the Ancient Egyptian Afterlife. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2025. 316 p.
Copyright (c) 2026 Pedro Hugo Canto Núñez https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Roman expansion and integration of provincial territories
Interview with Vagner Carvalheiro Porto, professor at the Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology of the University of São Paulo (MAE/USP). He holds a PhD (2007) and a Master's degree (2001) in Archaeology from USP, and a Bachelor's degree in History from the University of Santo Amaro (1994). He coordinates the Laboratory of Provincial Roman Archaeology (LARP/USP), where he conducts research on the Roman provinces of Syria-Palestine and the Iberian Peninsula. He also leads the research groups “Ancient Numismatics” and “Interactive Archaeology and Electronic Simulations” (ARISE). Additionally, he serves as co-editor-in-chief of the Revista do Museu de Arqueologia e Etnologia da USP and is a CNPq research productivity fellow. Among his most recent research projects are those carried out at the archaeological site of Tel Dor, in Israel. His work focuses on the analysis of Roman expansion and the integration of conquered territories into the imperial order.
Dossier: Processes of Expansion and Territorial Integration in the Ancient Mediterranean
Copyright (c) 2025 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Introduction of the dossier: "Processes of expansion and integration in the ancient Mediterranean".
This research aims to understand Cicero's philosophical contribution to the theory of natural law. Among the three major classical schools of thought on natural law (Platonic, Aristotelian, and Stoic), Cicero joined the natural law tradition inaugurated by Plato. Written in the late 50s BCE, inspired by Plato's Laws, De Legibus represents Cicero's principal effort in the philosophical theorization of law. Law, rooted in nature and right reason, represents an objective criterion for the universal validation of positive norms. By associating natural law with the virtue of prudence, Cicero signaled that natural reason was closely linked to the Roman tradition of iurisprudentia, articulating Platonic and Stoic foundations in an original theory of natural law that consolidated a theoretical framework for subsequent philosophical debate.
Copyright (c) 2026 Carlos Gustavo Vianna Direito https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Abstract: The textual, epigraphic, and material sources of the Roman Empire reveal to us that it was common, in the context of the Principate, to find sophists, philosophers, and rhetors circulating through the poleis and civitates. Although we know that philosophy and sophistry were distinct domains of knowledge, with their own teachers and educational centers, in practice, their boundaries often became fluid, so that the same individual could simultaneously play the role of both sophist and philosopher. An exemplary case is that of Dio of Prusa, who has been classified since Antiquity sometimes as a sophist, sometimes as a philosopher. Considering the different identities attributed to the author, our objective in this article is to discuss, based on Dio’s speeches, how sophistry and philosophy were addressed in his discourses and how the orator himself wished to be recognized.
Copyright (c) 2025 Esdra Erlacher https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
A critical analysis regarding Diomedes and the communication of ‘menos’ (Iliad, Book V)
Abstract: This article proposes a critical analysis of the definition of “communication of menos” as presented by Maria Daraki (1980). This concept refers to moments when a god transmits ‘ardour’ to a hero, often accompanied by a poetic formulaic description in which the deity ‘softens’ the hero’s limbs, making them lighter. Our central hypothesis is that Daraki’s definition presents descriptive limitations, preventing the identification of all instances in which menos is transmitted from a deity to a human in the Iliad. To support this analysis, we divide the study into two main stages. First, we address the definition of menos, considering contemporary etymological and terminological studies. Then, we examine the occurrences of the term menos in the first five books of the Iliad, with particular attention to the aristeia of Diomedes (Il. V).
Copyright (c) 2025 Eduardo Rodrigues https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Cultural hybridity and mortuary rites in the Greco-Roman Egypt
Review of: LOBIANCO, L. E. Funerais miscigenados: egípcios gregos romanos. Curitiba: Appris, 2024.
Copyright (c) 2025 Jéssica Ladeira Santana https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Review of: SILVA, M. A. O.; IPIRANGA JÚNIOR, P. (org.). Filóstrato: novas abordagens. Teresina: EDUFPI, 2022.
Copyright (c) 2025 Letícia Aga Pereira Passos https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Mercenary networks in Greek historiography
This text examines key steps from ancient Greek historians in which the actions of mercenaries are narrated from the perspective of the support networks they constituted. The aim is to highlight other elements that made the relationship between mercenaries, regimenters and communities of either origin or reception something more complex than just a relationship of payment for services performed. Finally, two consequences of the coordinated action of these mercenaries are discussed: on the one hand, their transformation into a reserve support base; on the other, and perhaps the most significant consequence, the danger that the presence of these mercenaries in a community entailed as something not always just latent, especially when they were motivated to act in a concerted manner and had opportunities to do so.
Copyright (c) 2025 Breno Battistin Sebastiani https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Sacred Basileía of Justinian (527–565)
Most of the historiography on Byzantium maintains that the political model employed by Justinian in the sixth century was an autocracy. Conceptual definitions of the term, however, are generally restricted to texts that, in essence, trace its origin to the title autokrátōr, drawn from the official protocols of the imperial chancery and used to denote a centralizing and unlimited power, as Justinian’s administration is understood to have been according to this line of interpretation. These historiographical assertions, however, diverge from the Greek texts of the panegyrics On Buildings and Description of Hagia Sophia, written respectively by Procopius of Caesarea (490–562) and Paul the Silentiary (?-580), which employ the form of address basileús. On the basis of these two authors, we seek to propose, as an alternative explanatory framework, the concept of sacred basileía, considering its use primarily as a means of articulating the divine assistance granted to Justinian in his exercise of rule.
Copyright (c) 2025 Ana Maria de Oliveira https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The influence of the ‘grammatici’ and ‘rhētores’ in the‘Corpus Hermeticum’ 18 (11-16)
This article focuses on and examines the Corpus Hermeticum 18, which falls within the scope of the History of Ancient Mediterranean Religions and the History of Philosophy. Thus, the objective is to analyze the influence of grammatici and rhētores on the Hermetic treatises, more specifically on the aforementioned treatise, considering its historical-philosophical correlation with the Second Sophistic. Accordingly, it demonstrates the influence of grammatici and rhētores through the presence of Atticism, particularly the occurrences of verba composita or verba nova. Finally, it concludes that the panegyrist employed rhetorical paretymological techniques, similar to those found in Plato’s Cratylus dialogue. In particular, this article shows that the study of Hellenistic rhetoric in Corp. Herm. 18 paves the way for a deeper understanding of Late Antiquity’s literary practices, revealing that Hermetic production was not isolated from the broader intellectual and rhetorical influences of its time. Lastly, this analysis of the interaction between Hermetic teachings and rhetorical principles allows for a more comprehensive approach to the transmission and composition of Hermetic texts, highlighting their complexity and stylistic sophistication. Thus, the inclusion of treatise 18 in the Corpus Hermeticum should not be seen merely as an editorial accident but rather as a reflection of the intersection between literature, rhetoric, and philosophy in Hellenistic Egypt under Roman rule.
Copyright (c) 2025 David Pessoa de Lira https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Description of Greece, written by Pausanias in the 2nd century AD, is a work composed of ten Books that detail the regions of continental Greece, combining geographical, historical and cultural descriptions. The author emphasizes monuments, religious rituals and local traditions, in addition to reporting conflicts and political events, such as Roman domination. The article analyzes this work within the context of the Second Sophistic, highlighting its archaizing character and its relationship with cultural memory and Greek identity, as discussed by Bommas (2011) and Alcock (1996). It is argued that the Description of Greece responds to the provincialization of Greece after 146 BC, reflecting both an idealized glorious past and the adaptation to Roman rule. While Porter (2001) and Pretzler (2007) emphasize its performative and informative character, Habicht (1998) criticizes the intellectual superficiality of the period. Anderson (1993) and Whitmarsh (2005) emphasize the construction of Greek identity under Rome. The study also relates Pausanias to sophists such as Polemus and Aelius Aristides, demonstrating how his work is inserted in a hybrid political and cultural context, where rhetoric and erudition supported both entertainment and the affirmation of Greek identity, highlighting the effervescent intellectual panorama of the period.
Copyright (c) 2025 Arhão Henrique Ramos da Silva https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Philosophers and Allegorist Philosophers in Ancient Greece
In this article, I propose to investigate the notion of allegory as a mediating mechanism between philosophy and mythical narratives. The Greek allegory, also known in historiography as the “allegory of the poets,” was an interpretative phenomenon aimed at preserving the explanatory value of myths and the morality expressed by poets by constructing a hidden meaning within the narrative structure. Thus, between myth and philosophy, allegory – or more precisely, allegoresis – emerges as an interpretative method that, in addition to defending poetic traditions, recontextualizes the doctrinal richness of myths. Ultimately, allegorical interpretation, or allegoresis, added complexity to a world that questioned the cognitive and educational value of poetry. Therefore, I argue that the debate between myth and philosophy, as well as between poets and philosophers, can be better understood through the inclusion of the so-called allegorist philosophers.
Copyright (c) 2025 Thiago David Stadler https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
In the last decades, Cicero has been reassessed as a significant and complex thinker due to the diversity and breadth of his writings across various literary genres, as well as his creative engagement with Hellenistic philosophy. Cicero’s work offers substantial insights into the intellectual life of the Mediterranean and late Republican Rome, as well as the production and circulation of knowledge during that time. This article will explore aspects of his intellectual landscape and how Cicero’s philosophical project is reflected in some of his forensic speeches and philosophical dialogues.
Copyright (c) 2025 Claudia Beltrão https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The relationship between humans and food initially arises as a primary response to the stimulus of hunger, as a natural instinct for survival. The oldest civilizations emerged where sustenance was guaranteed, and their evolution is closely connected to advancements in the productive sphere. In archaic Roman society, food consisted of products derived from an agricultural and pastoral economy, but contacts with the Etruscans and Greeks permeated Roman culture with new values: the banquet became associated with pomp and luxury as a tangible and necessarily manifest expression of real wealth; even wine became one of the characteristic and most important elements to demonstrate this social status. The aim of this text is to present how wine, unknown to the Greeks and Romans in the archaic period, became a fundamental food on the Roman table and how the Romans developed specific techniques for the cultivation and production of this beverage. In the second part of this article, I will present the results of an experiment conducted between 2009 and 2013 in which we aimed to verify if a wine considered luxurious by the Romans could be considered a quality wine today.
Dossiê: Medicina e Alimentação na Antiguidade
Copyright (c) 2024 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The historiography on Domitian in three acts
In this article, we propose an analysis of the representations of Emperor Titus Flavius Domitian (81-96) in the texts of antiquarian historians confined to the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries. We identify three perspectives on this controversial Princeps. In the period spanning from the late 19th century to the mid-1930s, the traditionalist perspective stands out, wherein, despite its proponents recognizing the importance of material culture in historical analyses, primacy is still given to textual sources. In the second phase, between the mid-1940s and 1989, revisionist texts emerge, in which the characterization of tyranny, inherited from the traditionalists, began to be questioned by historians through the exploration of material culture. Finally, in the rhetorical perspective, which unfolds between the 1990s and the first two decades of the 21st century, historians and classicists are observed to understand the rhetorical construction of both textual sources and material documentation.
Copyright (c) 2024 Irlan de Sousa Cotrim https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0