To the discussion on the date of birth of tacitus

Author(s):  A.P. Belikov, Dr., Prof., North-Caucasian Federal University, Stavropol, Russia, abelikov@rambler.ru

Issue:  Volume 37, №1

Rubric:  Topical issues of world history

Annotation:  The article is devoted to a discussion about the expected date of birth of Tacitus, of which, unfortunately, there are no precise indications in historical sources. Cornelius Tacitus did not always follow the principle he formulated, that the historian should present and analyze the events of "sine ira et studio" - "without anger and addiction." The date of Tacitus's birth is usually established approximately, relying primarily on his own testimonies and some indirect data. Having analyzed the available information and indirect data, including on the basis of what we know about Roman customs and traditions, the author comes to the conclusion that of all the proposed options, the most convincing is 57 AD. This corresponds to the Roman tradition, since Tacitus married in 77 AD, and conducted by R.P. Saller's study shows that, according to a long tradition, young men from noble families were usually married at the age of 20. We propose that from all the proposed discussion dates for the birth of Tacitus, the one to stay is 57 CE.

Keywords:  Discussion about Tacitus birth date, source information, age of marriage in ancient Rome, specificity of Roman civilization

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