Socii - Meanings of The Term "Latin"

Meanings of The Term "Latin"

The Romans themselves used the term "Latin" loosely, and this can be confusing. The term was used to describe what were actually three distinct populations:

1. The Latin tribe strictly speaking, to which the Romans themselves belonged. These were the inhabitants of Latium Vetus ("Old Latium"), a small region south of the river Tiber, whose inhabitants were speakers of the Latin language.
2. The inhabitants of Latin colonies. These were coloniae made up of mixed Roman/Latin colonists.
3. All the Italian allies of Rome, not only the Latin colonies, but also the other non-Latin allies (socii).

In this article, to avoid confusion, only group (1) will be referred to as "Latins". Group (2) will be called "Latin colonies or colonists" and group (3) will be referred to as "Italian confederates". Socii will refer to groups (2) and (3) combined.