[1] The job of the grammarian was to teach the ancient poets such as Homer and Virgil, and the correct way of speaking before a boy moved on to study under the rhetor.
In about 100 B.C., Dionysius Thrax defined grammar as an "acquired expertise of the general usage of poets and prose writers".
He identified six elements to the field:[1] Nearly two hundred years later, Quintilian defined the subject as the knowledge of proper speaking and the explication of the poets.
[1][2] Some grammarians achieved elevated positions in the Roman world and enjoyed preferential treatment, despite their relatively lowly job and often humble origins.
[5] Latin grammarians, like their Greek equivalents, came from all over the Roman Empire, including Syria, Spain, Gaul, Athens and Italy.