| A | B |
|---|
| Monarchy | 753-509 BCE; rule by individual kings |
| Republic | 509-27 BCE; leaders elected by vote |
| Empire | 27BCE-476CE; rule by a single emperor |
| consuls | highest elected officials during the Republic; two per one-year term |
| patricians | highest social class; could trace ancestry back to beginning of Rome |
| equestrians | wealthy merchant class |
| plebeians | lower class |
| optimates | senatorial aristocrats; "the best" |
| toga | only worn by male citizens of Rome |
| praenomen | equivalent to a first name |
| nomen | identified extended family or clan |
| cognomen | last name which indicated the branch of the family to which the person belonged |
| paterfamilias | male head of the family |
| exposure | method of infanticide |
| kissing mouth of deceased | to catch their last breath |
| location of burials | outside city limits |
