Acilius Severus (died between AD 364 and 375; in some editions spelled Aquilus, Aquilius) was a Roman Christian writer of the late 4th century AD, from Hispania.[1] He was from a senatorial family based on known correspondence with the Roman writer Lactantius[2] (c. 250 – c. 325) through written epistles to his ancestors.[3] A fragmentary inscription dicated that his ancestry was rooted from the gens Acilia, a noble family since the first century CE.[4] Severus’ father, who was also called Acilius Severus, was a Roman consul in 323 and prefect of Rome from 325 to 327.[4][5]
In Jerome's De viris illustribus, he writes that Acilius Severus wrote an autobiography in "a volume of mingled poetry and prose," entitled Καταστροφὴν (katastrophḗn, "vicissitudes, calamity") or Πεῖραν (peiran, "proofs, trial").[3][6][7] An inscription also commemorated his restoration of the theater of Merida around 333 and 337.[8] During this period, he was described to have come from Hispaniarum. His patronage of the theater suggests that his family came from Spain.[8] In Jerome’s work, the account of Acilius life story ended in his conversion to Christianity.[9]
References edit
- ^ Pritchett, W. K. (1965). Studies in Ancient Greek Topography: Roads. Netherlands: University of California Press.
- ^ Salzman, Michele Renee; Sághy, Marianne; Testa, Rita Lizzi (2016). Pagans and Christians in Late Antique Rome: Conflict, Competition, and Coexistence in the Fourth Century. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. p. 29. ISBN 978-1-107-11030-4.
- ^ a b "Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Ser. II, Vol. III: Jerome and Gennadius. Lives of Illustrious Men.: Acilius Severus the senator. | St-Takla.org". st-takla.org.
- ^ a b Salzman, Michele Renee (2021). The Falls of Rome: Crises, Resilience, and Resurgence in Late Antiquity. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press. p. 61. ISBN 978-1-107-11142-4.
- ^ Wiseman, Nicholas Patrick (1892). The Dublin Review. Dublin: Tablet Publishing Company. p. 101.
- ^ "Lives of Illustrious Men | EWTN". EWTN Global Catholic Television Network.
- ^ Misch, G. (2014:401). A History of Autobiography in Antiquity. United Kingdom: Taylor & Francis.
- ^ a b Fernández, Damián (2017). Aristocrats and Statehood in Western Iberia, 300-600 C.E. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press. p. 65. ISBN 978-0-8122-4946-0.
- ^ Misch, Georg (2007). A History of Autobiography in Antiquity. Oxon, UK: Routledge. p. 402. ISBN 0-415-17825-8.