Family in ancient Rome
An ancient Roman family's structure was constantly changing as a result of the low life expectancy and through marriage, divorce, and adoption.
Ancient Romans believed the patria potestas was first dictated by Romulus, the founder and first king of Rome.
[2]: 20 Examples of mother-child relationships in ancient sources, if discussed at all, focus on describing her as the idealized Roman matrona.
A Roman matrona was a strong, virtuous woman dedicated to the political advancement of her family.
[6] The lack of literary discussion may have resulted because so many children never knew their mothers, who often died in childbirth.
Although mothers gave birth to many children, the size of a Roman family remained relatively small because of the high infant and child mortality rate.
Young girls were often engaged at twelve years old and married at thirteen to a man chosen by her father.
[3]: 67 Childhood ended for women once they were married, but they were still considered childlike because of their weaker dispositions compared to men.
Nurses were used by families of every social level and were often employed when the mother had died from childbirth, was unable to produce milk, wanted to become pregnant again quickly or was ill.[1]: 26 [3]: 41 A nurse, besides having a moral character, was expected to speak properly because her close interaction with her charge was highly influential to the child's development.
[3]: 45 They could be of servile or free status and were responsible for teaching the children proper etiquette and life skills.
[1]: 48 Since the mortality rate of children in Ancient Rome was so high, many parents needed to adopt.
Julius Caesar, for example, adopted his grandnephew Gaius Octavius (later known as Emperor Augustus) because he had no sons to succeed him.
In the second century AD, laws were passed stating a son should care for his elderly father; however, there was no compulsory obligation.
[8]: 132 A mythological example of pietas comes from the story of Aeneas, who carried his elderly father out of the burning city of Troy following the Trojan War.
[3]: 119 The ancient Roman definition of domus consisted of everyone living in the household, which included slaves.
[2]: 94–40 Once married, the wife became a part of her husband's family and gained the title of materfamilias, or "mother of a household".
Since so many marriages were arranged, the couple did not necessarily expect romance, but did hope to live in harmony, or concordia.
[9]: 443 The divorce procedure usually contained a verbal formula, in which the parties confirmed the end of the marriage.
Divorce became increasingly common in the upper classes by the end of the Republic and the beginning of the Imperial periods because so many marriages were based on politics.
[2]: 50 If a man lost favor politically, a wife might divorce him to protect her family's reputation.
If her husband divorced her because of a transgression like adultery or failure to perform her duties in the home, a wife could not have her dowry returned.
In Ovid's poem, The Art of Love, he describes meeting women at a public location, like the circus or a horse race, to avoid detection.
The terminology used by anthropologists when analyzing kinship in cultures is often derived from Latin (words like amitalocality, patrilineal).
