Augusta Raurica - Name

Name

The grave inscription of Munatius Plancus merely states the name of the colony as Colonia Raurica. A fragmentary inscription from the Augustinian period speaks of the Colonia P (?) M (?) (?) naris merita ica (Letters in brackets are reconstructions). Apart from this fragmentary reference, the first certain witness to the use of the name Augustus comes from the geographer Ptolemy in the ancient Greek form Augústa Rauríkon (=lat.: Augusta Rauricorum).

Augusta Raurica played an important role in Augustus's plans of conquest with two other colonies that bear his name; Augusta Praetoria, modern Aosta at the southern end of the Great Saint Bernard Pass, and Augusta Vindelicum, modern Augsburg, an outpost on the Danube. These three Augustae form the corners of a triangle that reaches across the Alpine conquests of Augustus, and whose long base from the Rheinknie to the Danube formed the frontier against unconquered Germania.