| A | B |
|---|
| cursus honorum | ladder of political advancement |
| vigintivir | first step of cursus honorum; 18 year olds serve one year as political interns in Rome |
| tribunus militum | military tribune; second step of cursus honorum; 19-20 year olds served as assistants to a legatus |
| quaestor | treasurer; this position made one eligible for the senate |
| tribunus plebis | originally champions and advisors of plebs; during empire more honorary |
| aedile | official responsible for upkeep of public buildings, baths, sewers, roads & games |
| praetor | ran Roman law courts |
| consul | highest position of cursus honorum; leaders of Roman government during Republic; presided over senate and ran public meetings during empire |
| univira | woman married only once |
| confarreatio | most binding and religious marriage ceremony; bride & groom ate a grain cake (far) |
| flammeum | flame-colored bridal veil |
| dos | dowry |
| sponsalia | engagement ceremony |
| ubi tu Gaius, ego Gaia | traditional phrase spoken during wedding to symbolize the union |
| sententia | opinions of members of emperor's council |
| lictores | attendants who carried fasces in front of praeter (6) & consul (12) |
| fasces | ax tied with a bundle of rods that symbolized 'imperium' |
| suo anno | phrase that meant a man was elected to office at the earliest possible year |
| propraetor | former praetor who served as a provincial governor |
| proconsul | former consul who served as a provincial governor |
| censor | former consul who made sure the senators were eligible |
| veto | power to prevent a law held by tribunus plebis during Republic |
| imperium | the highest political authority, which included the right to command an army, to interpret and carry out the law, and to pass sentences of death |
| dictator | leader with absolute power for 6 months, chosen to resolve a crisis |
| magister equituum | second in command to a dictator |
| S.P.Q.R. | Senatus Populusque Romanus "The Senate and the Roman People"; the symbol of the Roman Republic |
| far | a grain cake eaten by the bride and groom during the most traditional marriage ceremony, confarreatio |
| amici principis | the emperor's council of advisors |
| paterfamilas | the head of a family |
| iunctio dextrarum | the joining of right hands during a wedding ceremony |
| cena nuptialis | the wedding feast |
| bulla | protective charm dedicated to the lares before a girl's marriage or when a boy reached manhood |
