The gens Juventia, occasionally written Jubentia, was an ancient plebeian family at Rome. After centuries of obscurity, the gens emerges into history with the appearance of Titus Juventius, a military tribune, in the beginning of the second century BC. The first of the Juventii to obtain the consulship was Marcus Juventius Thalna in BC 163. But the family is renowned less for its statesmen than for its jurists, who flourished during the second century AD.
The Juventii were said to have come to Rome from Tusculum, probably during the fourth century BC. Cicero reports a claim, which he regards as incorrect, that the first of the plebeian aediles was a Juventius, and in fact the Juventii are not mentioned until BC 197, although there is no reason to doubt that the family had already been at Rome for some generations. The nomen Juventius is certainly derived from the Latin juventas, "youth", personified by the goddess Juventas, but the family is probably of Etruscan origin, as the surname Thalna, borne by a number of the earliest Juventii, has the same meaning; Juventius is simply the Latin version of their original name.
The earlier Juventii used the praenomina Titus, Lucius, Manius, Publius, and Gaius. From the first century BC we also find Marcus. All were very common names, except for Manius, which was used by many fewer families.
Branches and cognomina
There were several families of the Juventii in the time of the Republic, with the surnames Celsus, Laterensis, Pedo, and Thalna. However, several Juventii are mentioned without any surname. Thalna, occasionally found as Talna, is an Etruscan name, and was probably the original nomen of the gens, before it came to be known as Juventia.
This list includes abbreviated praenomina. For an explanation of this practice, see filiation.
Titus Juventius (Thalna?), a military tribune serving under the consul Quintus Minucius Rufus in BC 197. He was slain in battle against the Cisalpine Gauls.
Titus Juventius Thalna, praetor peregrinus in 194 BC, was probably the same Titus Juventius who was sent to purchase corn from Apulia and Calabria in 172, for the war against Perseus.
Lucius Juventius T. f. Thalna, legate of the praetor Gaius Calpurnius Piso in Spain, BC 185.
Manius Juventius L. f. T. n. Thalna, tribune of the plebs in 170 BC, praetor in 167, and consul in 163. During his consulship, Thalna defeated and conquered the Corsicans, and was granted a supplicatio by the Senate, but he died shortly thereafter.
Publius Juventius Thalna, triumvir monetalis in 170 BC, and praetor in 149, he was defeated and slain by Andriscus in Macedon.
Gaius Juventius P. f. Thalna, triumvir monetalis in 154 BC.
Juventius Thalna, one of the judices assigned to try Publius Clodius Pulcher, was bribed by the defendant.
Juventius Thalna, apparently a different man from the judex, is mentioned twice in Cicero's letters, first in 45 BC, and again the following year.
Juventius Celsus, a celebrated jurist during the latter part of the first century AD, and the father of the even more influential jurist Publius Juventius Celsus.
Publius Juventius Celsus, one of the most influential of all the Roman jurists, flourished during the reigns of Nerva, Trajan, and Hadrian. He was twice consul, although the years are stated differently.
Publius Juventius Celsus, consul in AD 164.
Juventius, a comic poet mentioned by Varro and Aulus Gellius, probably lived about the middle of the second century BC.
Gaius Juventius, a jurist who had been among the leading students of Quintus Mucius Scaevola. His opinions were highly respected, and were incorporated into the writings of Servius Sulpicius Rufus.
Titus Juventius, a knowledgeable and clever advocate in the Roman courts. His disciple, Quintus Orbius, was a contemporary of Cicero, who describes Juventius' style as slow and rather cold, but wily.
Marcus Juventius Pedo, a judex praised by Cicero.
Marcus Juventius Laterensis, a friend of Cicero and political opponent of Caesar, he was quaestor in an uncertain year, and after several setbacks, obtained the praetorship in BC 51. After Caesar's murder, he was a legate of Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, and took his own life when Marcus Antonius entered Lepidus' camp.
Juventius, a youth described as beautiful by Catullus, who addressed several poems to him.
Lucius Juventius Laterensis, a legate under Quintus Cassius Longinus in Hispania Ulterior during the Civil War, was proclaimed praetor by the soldiers when they believed that Cassius had been put to death. But as Cassius escaped the assassins, he immediately ordered the execution of Laterensis, along with the conspirators.
Gaius Vibius Juventius Verus, consul for the third time in AD 134.
