The gens Terentilia was an obscure plebeian family at ancient Rome.
Only one member of this gens appears in history; Gaius Terentilius Arsa was tribune of the plebs in 462 BC.
The nomen Terentilius belongs to a large class of gentilicia derived from other names, typically cognomina ending in diminutive suffixes such as -ulus and -illus.
The antiquarian Varro, himself a member of the Terentia gens, derived this name from terenus, a Sabine word meaning "soft",[3] although Chase proposes the Latin terens, one who grinds or threshes.
The later Terentilii have common cognomina, such as Firmus, strong,[6] and Rufus, red.