Linguistic differences
Posted: Wed Sep 08, 2004 12:00 am
Salvete omnes,
Something I've been struggling to work out is the difference between a Cognomen and an Agnomen. As I understand it, both are additions to a person's first name and family name (Praenomen and nomen). However, Cognomina often seem to be inherited as well. So is a cognomen an inherited name that describes a characteristic, and an agnomen an awarded name? (Like... Britannicus!!! )
Or have I entirely misunderstood this?
Bene valete,
Marcus Scribonius Curio Britannicus.
Something I've been struggling to work out is the difference between a Cognomen and an Agnomen. As I understand it, both are additions to a person's first name and family name (Praenomen and nomen). However, Cognomina often seem to be inherited as well. So is a cognomen an inherited name that describes a characteristic, and an agnomen an awarded name? (Like... Britannicus!!! )
Or have I entirely misunderstood this?
Bene valete,
Marcus Scribonius Curio Britannicus.