Primani Legion of Julian\'s Army

[JeffF]

Is this legion, the Primani, of Julian's army at the Battle of Strasbourg (also known as the Battle of Argentoratum) the Legio I Minervia or a part of it that became a legion of the field army of the 4th century or was it of or from one of the other I Legions? What is the translation of the latin word 'Primani?'

Thanks,

Jeff

[Spurius Papirius Cursor]

Hi Jeff

Don't know if this helps - I came across this in a 1983 article by Robert Grigg (p. 133, n. 11):

"The titles and stations of some of the units in the Comitatus and Pseudocomitatus in the Not. Dig. have helped to link them to former legions..."

Primani:
(a) Late unit title in the Not. Dig.:....Primani
(b) Former legionary title:.....................Leg. I Italica
© Late unit emblem in the Not. Dig.:...knotted rope (?), Not. Or. vi, 5
(d) Former legionary badge:.....................boar or hippocamp

Minervia:
(a) Late unit title in the Not. Dig.:....Minervia
(b) Former legionary title:.....................Leg. I Minerva
© Late unit emblem in the Not. Dig.:...essentially blank, Not. Or. ix, 15
(d) Former legionary badge:.....................Minerva or ram

(Full citation)

Grigg, R 1983, ‘Inconsistency and lassitude: the shield emblems of the Notitia Dignitatum’, The Journal of Roman Studies, vol. 73, pp. 132-142, viewed 30 January 2011, <http://www.jstor.org/stable/300077>.

I think primani might just mean "firsts", but I was amused that GoogleTranslate gave "The First Cut" - make of that what you will.

Cheers