Roman Descent

[Arthes]

aside from the rumours and legends you mean.....lol
One line of ancestors claims descent via a house that traces back through to Marcus Aurelius, via Commodus (eeeeek- Gladiator hock: ) and includes a Ptolemy or two..that is Ptolemy II.....???? No confirmation - but Jonah mentioned the chances...: :lol: :lol:
They are still trying to trace the origins of a grandmothers ancestors...or place of origin...the name in it's original form can be Latin or sounds like a Hellenic Telchine...!
regards
Arthes

[Felix Agrippa]

I have ancestors from Lowersaxony, Heidelberg, Prussia in Germany, from Bern in Switzerland the eastran part of holland. In England they are from London, York, Derbenshire and Cornwall. The English is the most interesting because my grandfather has olive color skin and black hair and is about 5'7 so he could have some roman blood in him.

[M.H. White]

On the topic of genealogy, my grandfather's family made a book that traced his mother's line back to a Norman knight who came over to England with William the Bastard and was rewarded with holdings in England.

Other than that all the parts of my family are either Anglo-Saxon, Scottish, with a few instances of German and Dutch. I'm a 100% Northern European mix, and it shows. Last week I was in Italy, and I was looking at some Italians walking down the street, and I said to my friend "wow, compared to them, we are pale!"

[tlclark]

I'm a scandanavian anglo mutt.

Now, there have been late roman coins found in Scandanavian graves made into warriors medallions/totems. We have even found Roman bath artifacts and structures in non-Roman lands.

The assumption is that there are scandanavian in Roman service who returned to native lands. Many who were emancipated and attained Roman citizenship.

So there is a slight...SLIGHT chance I am "Roman" :wink:

[Paullus]

My father's family has lived in the Balkans for the past 25,000 years according to the Genographic Project. So its pretty much guaranteed that at least some of my ancestors were Roman subjects and eventually Roman citizens I believe I read somewhere that the Romans considered Illyrian legionaries, along wtih those from Britain, as the most capable 8)

[NightHunter24]

Hmmm...do I have Roman blood in me? that'd be nice...my ancestors came from Spain (HISPANIA) so who knows, maybe I could be descended from some of the Roman settlers that went over to Hispania during the province's infancy. One enver knows. :?

[M.H. White]

On a related note, I've often wondered if I were to don a tunica and some sandals and waltz into 1st century A.D. Rome, whether they would think I was a Gaul or a German.

[Praefectusclassis]

waltz into 1st century A.D. Rome

They would think you were doing a weird dance. :wink:

[M.H. White]

waltz into 1st century A.D. Rome

They would think you were doing a weird dance. :wink:

Doubtless you are correct, sir!

[Theodosius the Great]

Since being Roman hardly ever meant having direct blood descent from plebians or patricians from the city itself, I'd say most natives of Western and Southern Europe qualify as descendents. Caracalla made all freedmen Roman citizens in the early 3rd century so their citizenship would be passed on to their children and beyond. But more significantly than this I would consider being either a Roman Catholic or an Orthodox Christian as being a descendent of Rome since the institution of the Church survived the political collapse of the Western and (later) the Eastern Empire. The Church is the living, unbroken link between modern and ancient Romans.

I believe I read somewhere that the Romans considered Illyrian legionaries, along wtih those from Britain, as the most capable 8)

They still are the best fighters in Europe by far. :wink:

Theo

[Dornicus]

My ancestry is pure Scottish, as far back as my Grandparents can trace (which is to the mid-1500's), so it's more likely that my relatives were resisting Roman control than serving the Romans.

But you never know, right? Maybe they were willing members of the Roman army, though I doubt it. I don't look very Roman.

[taira1180]

My father is from Apulia in Italy (ancient magna Grecia), so i must have some latin blood with all those legionaries who settled in the civil wars, and my mother family is from Galicia in Spain (celtic blood).