This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. No cleanup reason has been specified. Please help improve this article if you can; the talk page may contain suggestions. (September 2009)

Provincia Macedoniae Επαρχια Μακεδονιας Province of the Roman Empire 146 BC–7th century The province of Macedonia within the Roman Empire, ca. 117 AD Capital Thessalonica in Late Antiquity: Thessalonica (Macedonia Prima) and Stobi (Macedonia Salutaris)[1] Historical era Antiquity  - Established after the Fourth Macedonian War 146 BC  - Balkan interior raided by Slavs 7th century

The Roman province of Macedonia (Latin: Provincia Macedoniae, Greek: Επαρχία Μακεδονίας) was officially established in 146 BC, after the Roman general Quintus Caecilius Metellus defeated Andriscus of Macedon, the last Ancient King of Macedon in 148 BC, and after the four client republics ("tetrarchy") established by Rome in the region were dissolved. The province incorporated ancient Macedonia, with the addition of Epirus, Thessaly, and parts of Illyria, Paeonia and Thrace. This created a much larger administrative area, to which the name of 'Macedonia' was still applied.

Description[link]

Organization[link]

After the reforms of Diocletian in the late 3rd century, Epirus Vetus was split off, and sometime in the 4th century, the province of Macedonia itself was divided into Macedonia Prima in the south and Macedonia Salutaris in the north. These provinces were all subordinate to the Diocese of Macedonia, one of three dioceses which were included in the praetorian prefecture of Illyricum, organized in 318. When the Prefecture was divided between the Western and Eastern Empires in 379, the Macedonian provinces were included in Eastern Illyricum. With the permanent division of the Empire in 395, Macedonia passed to the East, which would evolve into the Byzantine Empire.

Epirus Vetus[link]

The Roman provinces of Epirus vetus and Epirus nova in relation to modern borders.

This section requires expansion.

Epirus vetus or Old Epirus was a province in the Roman Empire that corresponded to the region of Epirus. Between 146 BC and 395, it was incorporated into the Roman province of Macedonia.The capital^[2] of Epirus vetus was Nicopolis, a city founded by Octavian in memory of his victory over Antony and Cleopatra at Actium.

Epirus Nova[link]

Epirus nova or New Epirus or Illyria Graeca^[3][4][5] or Illyris proper was a province of the Roman Empire established by Diocletian (244-311) during his restructuring of provincial boundaries. The province, belonged to the Roman province of Macedonia.^[6][7] Later it became a theme^[8] of the Byzantine empire. Dyrrachium (or Epidamnus) was established as the capital of Epirus nova.^[9] The region of Epirus Nova corresponded^[10] to a part of Illyria that was now was partly Hellenic^[11] and partly Hellenized.^[12] The area was the line of division^[13] between the provinces of Illyricum and Macedonia.The area suffered from terrible earthquakes.

The Ostrogoths led by Theodoric were stopped in Epirus nova by Sabinianus.^[14] They entered in 479, where they remained until 482.^[15]

Roman provinces,400 AD

Macedonia Prima[link]

Macedonia Prima ("first Macedonia") was a province encompassing most of the kingdom of Macedonia, coinciding with most of the modern Greek region of Macedonia, and had Thessalonica as its capital.

Macedonia Salutaris[link]

Also known as Macedonia Secunda ("second Macedonia") was a province encompassing partially Dardania and the whole of Paeonia, the second being most of the present-day Republic of Macedonia. The town of Stobi located to the junction of the Erigón and Axiós rivers, which was the former capital of Paeonia, arose later in the capital city of Macedonia Salutaris ("advantageous Macedonia").

Economy[link]

The reign of Augustus began a long period of peace, prosperity and wealth for Macedonia, although its importance in the economic standing of the Roman world diminished when compared to its neighbor, Asia Minor.

The economy was greatly stimulated by the construction of the Via Egnatia, the installation of Roman merchants in the cities, and the founding of Roman colonies. The Imperial government brought, along with its roads and administrative system, an economic boom, which benefited both the Roman ruling class and the lower classes. With vast arable and rich pastures, the great ruling families amassed huge fortunes in the society based on slave labor.

The improvement of the living conditions of the productive classes brought about an increase in the number artisans and craftspeople to the region. Stonemasons, miners, blacksmiths, etc. were employed in every kind of commercial activity and craft. Greek people were also widely employed as tutors, educators and doctors throughout the Roman world.

The export economy was based essentially on agriculture and livestock, while iron, copper, and gold along with such products as timber, resin, pitch, hemp, flax and fish were also exported. Another source of wealth was the kingdom's ports, such as Dion, Pella, Thessalonica, Cassandreia.^[16]

The Roman empire under Hadrian (ruled 117-38), showing the senatorial province of Macedonia' in southeastern Europe

Notable individuals[link]

Citizens[link]

• Damon of Thessalonica 2 c.BC

Saints and Clerics[link]

Writers[link]

Physicians[link]

See also[link]

• Macedon
• Diocese of Macedonia
• Macedonia (region)

References[link]

v t e Provinces of the Roman Empire at its greatest extent (117 AD) Achaea Aegyptus Africa Alpes Cottiae Alpes Maritimae Alpes Poeninae Arabia Petraea Armenia Asia Assyria Bithynia et Pontus Britannia Cappadocia Cilicia Corsica et Sardinia Creta et Cyrenaica Cyprus Dacia Dalmatia Epirus Galatia Gallia Aquitania Gallia Belgica Gallia Lugdunensis Gallia Narbonensis Germania Inferior Germania Superior Hispania Baetica Hispania Tarraconensis Italia Iudaea Lusitania Lycia et Pamphylia Macedonia Mauretania Caesariensis Mauretania Tingitana Mesopotamia Moesia Inferior Moesia Superior Noricum Pannonia Inferior Pannonia Superior Raetia Sicilia Syria Thracia

Geographic and political division of Macedonia
Macedonia (Greece)	Republic of Macedonia

Macedonia may refer to:

• Republic of Macedonia, a modern country in southeastern Europe
• Macedonia (Greece), a region of Greece
• Macedonia (region), a wider geographical and historical region covering both of the above, as well as parts of Bulgaria, Albania, Kosovo and Serbia

Historical entities

• Macedonia (ancient kingdom), also known as Macedon, the kingdom of Philip II and Alexander the Great
• Macedonia (Roman province), a province of the early Roman Empire
• Diocese of Macedonia, a late Roman administrative unit
• Macedonia (theme), a province of the Byzantine Empire
• Independent State of Macedonia, a puppet state of the Axis powers
• Socialist Republic of Macedonia, a constituent republic of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (1944–1991), and the predecessor of the Republic of Macedonia

Other places

• Macedônia, São Paulo, Brazil
• Macedonia, Ciacova, Romania
• In the United States;
  • Macedonia, Alabama
  • Macedonia, Georgia
  • Macedonia, Illinois
  • Macedonia, Indiana
  • Macedonia, Iowa
  • Macedonia, now Tinton Falls, New Jersey
  • Macedonia, Ohio
  • Macedonia, South Carolina
  • Macedonia, Tennessee
  • Macedonia, Virginia

Other uses

• Macedonia (food), a fruit salad or vegetable dish
• Macedonia (comics), a comic book by Harvey Pekar and Heather Roberson
• Thessaloniki International Airport, "Macedonia", an airport in Greece

See also[link]

Look up Macedonia or macedonia in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Makedonia (disambiguation)
• Macedonian (disambiguation)
• Macedonia (terminology)
• Macedon (disambiguation)
• Macedonia naming dispute

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (December 2011)

Roman Empire under Augustus Caesar (31 BC - AD 6). Yellow: 31BC. Dark Green 31-19BC, Light Green 19-9BC, Pale Green 9-6BC. Mauve: Client states

The Roman empire under Vespasian (ruled AD 69) showing the provinces as then organised^{[dubious – discuss]}

In Ancient Rome, a province (Latin, provincia, pl. provinciae) was the basic, and, until the Tetrarchy (c. 296), largest territorial and administrative unit of the empire's territorial possessions outside of Italy. The word province in modern English has its origins in the term used by the Romans.

Provinces were generally governed by politicians of senatorial rank, usually former consuls or former praetors. A later exception was the province of Egypt, incorporated by Augustus after the death of Cleopatra: it was ruled by a governor of equestrian rank only, perhaps as a discouragement to senatorial ambition. This exception was unique, but not contrary to Roman law, as Egypt was considered Augustus' personal property, following the tradition of earlier, Hellenistic kings.

Republican provinces[link]

The term provincia originally designated simply a task or duty within the Roman state. Under the Roman Republic, the magistrates were elected to office for a period of one year, and those serving outside the city of Rome, like the consuls on campaign, were assigned a particular "province", an area of authority. The term did not acquire a definite territorial sense until Rome started expanding beyond Italy during the First Punic War, and the first permanent provinces (Sicily in 241 BC and Sardinia in 237 BC) were set up.

At the beginning of each year, the provinces were distributed to future governors by lots or direct appointment. Normally, the provinces where more trouble was expected—either from barbaric invasions or internal rebellions—were given to active or former consuls, men of the greatest prestige and experience, while the rest given to praetors and propraetors.

The distribution of the legions across the provinces was also dependent on the amount of danger that they represented. In 14, for instance, the province of Lusitania had no permanent legion but Germania Inferior, where the Rhine frontier was still not pacified, had a garrison of four legions. These problematic provinces were the most desired by future governors. Problems meant war, and war could be expected to bring plunder, slaves to sell, and other opportunities for enrichment.

List of Republican provinces[link]

• 240 BC – Sicilia, propraetorial province (senatorial from 27 BC)
• 237 BC – Corsica et Sardinia, propraetorial province (senatorial from 27 BC)
• 203 BC – Gallia Cisalpina, propraetorial province (merged with Italy c. 42 BC)
• 197 BC – Hispania Citerior and Hispania Ulterior, propraetorial provinces (imperial from 27 BC)
• 167 BC – Illyricum, propraetorial province (imperial from 27 BC)
• 146 BC – Macedonia, propraetorial province (senatorial from 27 BC)
• 147 BC – Africa proconsularis, proconsular province (senatorial from 27 BC)
• 129 BC – Asia, proconsular province (senatorial from 27 BC)
• 120 BC – Gallia Transalpina (later Gallia Narbonensis), propraetorial province (senatorial from 27 BC)
• 78 BC - Cilicia, later Cilicia et Cyprus in 64 BC
• 74 BC – Bithynia, later Bithynis et Pontus in 64 BC (Bithynia et Pontus), propraetorial province (senatorial from 27 BC)
• 74 BC – Creta et Cyrenaica, propraetorial province (senatorial from 27 BC)
• 66 BC – Corduene (imperial from 27 BC)
• 64 BC – Cilicia et Cyprus, propraetorial province (senatorial from 27 BC)
• 64 BC – Syria, propraetorial province (imperial from 27 BC)
• 51 BC – Gallia Comata (divided in 22 BC)
• 30 BC – Aegyptus, personal domain of Augustus, getting a special governor styled Praefectus Aegypti
• 29 BC – Moesia, propraetorial province (imperial from 27 BC)

Imperial provinces during the Principate[link]

The Roman Empire under Trajan in 117; Imperial provinces are shaded green, Senatorial provinces are shaded beige, and client states are shaded gray.

In the so-called Augustan Settlement of 27 BC, which established the Roman Empire, the governance of the provinces was regulated. Octavian Caesar, having emerged from the Roman civil wars as the undisputed victor and master of the Roman state, officially laid down his powers, and in theory restored the authority of the Roman Senate. Octavian himself assumed the title "Augustus" and was given to govern, in addition to Egypt, the strategically important provinces of Gaul, Hispania and Syria (including Cilicia and Cyprus). Under Augustus, Roman provinces were classified as either senatorial or imperial, meaning that their governors were appointed by either the Senate or by the emperor. Generally, the older provinces that existed under the Republic were senatorial. Senatorial provinces were, as before under the Republic, governed by a proconsul, who was chosen by lot among the ranks of senators who were ex-consuls or ex-praetors, depending on which province was assigned. The major imperial provinces were under a legatus Augusti pro praetore, also a senator of consular or praetorian rank. Egypt and some smaller provinces where no legions were based were ruled by a procurator (praefectus in Egypt), whom the emperor selected from non-senators of equestrian rank. The status of a province could change from time to time. In AD 68, of a total 36 provinces, 11 were senatorial and 25 imperial. Of the latter, 15 were under legati and 10 under procuratores or praefecti.

During the Principate, the number and size of provinces also changed, either through conquest or through the division of existing provinces. The larger or more heavily garrisoned provinces (for example Syria and Moesia) were subdivided into smaller provinces to prevent any single governor from holding too much power.

List of provinces created during the Principate[link]

• 27 BC – Achaea separated from Macedonia, senatorial propraetorial province
• 25 BC – Galatia, imperial propraetorial province
• 22 BC – Gallia Comata divided into Gallia Aquitania, Gallia Belgica, Gallia Lugdunensis, imperial propraetorial provinces
• 15 BC – Raetia, imperial procuratorial province
• c. 13 BC – Hispania Ulterior divided into Baetica and Lusitania (senatorial propraetorial and imperial propraetorial respectively)
• 12 BC – Germania Magna, lost after 9 AD
• 6 AD – Iudaea, imperial procuratorial province (renamed Syria Palaestina by Hadrian, and upgraded to proconsular province).
• 14 – Alpes Maritimae, imperial procuratorial province
• 18 – Cappadocia, imperial propraetorial (later proconsular) province
• c. 20–50 – Illyricum divided into Illyricum Superior (Dalmatia) and Illyricum Inferior (Pannonia), imperial proconsular provinces
• 40 – Mauretania Tingitana and Mauretania Caesariensis, imperial procuratorial provinces
• c. 40 – Noricum, imperial procuratorial province
• 43 – Britannia, imperial proconsular province
• 43 – Lycia et Pamphylia, imperial propraetorial province
• 46 – Thracia, imperial procuratorial province
• c. 47 – Alpes Poeninae, imperial procuratorial province
• 63 – Alpes Cottiae, imperial procuratorial province
• 67 – Epirus, imperial procuratorial province
• 72 – Commagene annexed to Syria
• c. 84 – Germania Superior and Germania Inferior, imperial proconsular provinces
• 85 – Moesia divided into Moesia Superior and Moesia Inferior, imperial proconsular provinces
• 105 – Arabia, imperial propraetorial province
• 107 – Dacia, imperial proconsular province (split into Dacia Superior and Dacia Inferior between 118 and 158)
• 107 – Pannonia divided into Pannonia Superior and Pannonia Inferior, imperial provinces (proconsular and propraetorial respectively)
• c. 115 – Armenia, Assyria and Mesopotamia, formed by Trajan, abandoned by Hadrian in 118
• 166 – Tres Daciae formed: Porolissensis, Apulensis and Malvensis, imperial procuratorial provinces
• 193 – Syria divided into Syria Coele and Syria Phoenicia, imperial provinces (proconsular and propraetorial respectively)
• 193 – Numidia separated from Africa proconsularis, imperial propraetorial province
• c. 197 – Mesopotamia, imperial praefectorial province
• 197 (formalized c. 212) – Britannia divided into Britannia Superior and Britannia Inferior, imperial provinces (proconsular and propraetorial respectively)
• 214 AD – Osroene

Many of the above provinces were under Roman military control or under the rule of Roman clients for a long time before being officially constituted as civil provinces. Only the date of the official formation of the province is marked above, not the date of conquest.

Roman provinces in 117[link]

v t e Provinces of the Roman Empire at its greatest extent (117 AD) Achaea Aegyptus Africa Alpes Cottiae Alpes Maritimae Alpes Poeninae Arabia Petraea Armenia Asia Assyria Bithynia et Pontus Britannia Cappadocia Cilicia Corsica et Sardinia Creta et Cyrenaica Cyprus Dacia Dalmatia Epirus Galatia Gallia Aquitania Gallia Belgica Gallia Lugdunensis Gallia Narbonensis Germania Inferior Germania Superior Hispania Baetica Hispania Tarraconensis Italia Iudaea Lusitania Lycia et Pamphylia Macedonia Mauretania Caesariensis Mauretania Tingitana Mesopotamia Moesia Inferior Moesia Superior Noricum Pannonia Inferior Pannonia Superior Raetia Sicilia Syria Thracia

Diocletian's reforms[link]

The Roman Empire and its administrative divisions, c. 395

Emperor Diocletian introduced a radical reform known as the Tetrarchy (284–305), with a western and an eastern Augustus or senior emperor, each seconded by a junior emperor (and designated successor) styled Caesar, and each of these four defending and administering a quarter of the Empire. In the 290s, Diocletian divided the Empire anew into almost a hundred provinces, including Italy. Their governors were hierarchically ranked, from the proconsuls of Africa proconsularis and Asia through those governed by consulares and correctores to the praesides. These last were the only ones recruited from the equestrian class. The provinces in turn were grouped into (originally twelve) dioceses, headed usually by a vicarius, who oversaw their affairs. Only the proconsuls and the urban prefect of Rome (and later Constantinople) were exempt from this, and were directly subordinated to the tetrarchs.

Although the Caesars were soon eliminated from the picture, the four administrative resorts were restored in 318 by Emperor Constantine I, in the form of praetorian prefectures, whose holders generally rotated frequently, as in the usual magistracies but without a colleague. Constantine also created a second capital, Nova Roma, known after him as Constantinople, which became the permanent seat of the Eastern government. In Italy itself, Rome ceased to be the imperial residence, Mediolanum (modern Milan) and later Ravenna being favoured by the emperors. During the 4th century, the administrative structure was modified several times. Provinces and dioceses were split to form new ones, the praetorian prefecture of Illyricum was abolished and reformed, and changed hands between East and West several times. In the end, with the death of Theodosius I in 395, the permanent division of the Empire into Western and Eastern halves was complete.

Detailed information on these arrangements is contained in the Notitia Dignitatum (Record of Offices), a document dating from the early 5th century. Most data is drawn from this authentic imperial source, as the names of the areas governed and titles of the governors are given there. There are however debates about the source of some data recorded in the Notitia, and it seems clear that some of its own sources are earlier than others.

It is interesting to compare this with the list of military territories under the duces, in charge of border garrisons on so-called limites, and the higher ranking Comites rei militaris, with more mobile forces, and the later, even higher magistri militum.

In the longer surviving Eastern Empire, which is today conventionally labeled the Byzantine Empire to avoid scholarly confusion, this administrative subdivision was gradually changed. Justinian I made the first great changes in 534–536 by abolishing, in some provinces, the strict separation of civil and military authority that Diocletian had established. This process was continued on a larger scale with the creation of extraordinary Exarchates in the 580s and culminated with the adoption of the military theme system in the 640s, which replaced the older administrative arrangements entirely.

List of Late Roman provinces[link]

[edit] Praetorian prefecture of Galliae

In Latin, Gallia was also sometimes used as a general term for all Celtic peoples and their territories, such as all Brythons, including Germanic and Iberian provinces that also had a population with a Celtic culture. The plural, Galliae in Latin, indicates that all of these are meant, not just Caesar's Gaul (several modern countries).

[edit] Diocese of Galliae

Galliae covered about half of the Gallic provinces of the early empire:

• in what is now northern France, roughly the part north of the Loire (called after the capital Lugdunum, modern Lyon)
  • Gallia Lugdunensis I
  • Gallia Lugdenensis II
  • Gallia Lugdunensis III
  • Gallia Lugdunensis IV
• in Belgium, Luxembourg, the parts of the Netherlands on the left bank (west) of the Rhine
  • Belgica I
  • Gallia Belgica II
• Germany on the left bank (west) of the Rhine
  • Germania I
  • Germania II
• the Helvetic tribe (parts of Switzerland):
  • Alpes Poeninae et Graiae
  • Maxima Sequanorum

[edit] Diocese of Viennensis

Viennensis was named after the city of Vienna (now Vienne), and entirely in present-day France, roughly south of the Loire. It was originally part of Caesar's newly conquered province of Transalpine Gaul, but a separate diocese from the start.

• Viennensis
• Alpes Maritimae
• Aquitanica I
• Aquitanica II
• Novempopulana
• Narbonensis I
• Narbonensis II

In the fifth century, Viennensis was replaced by a diocese of Septem Provinciae ('7 Provinces') with similar boundaries.

[edit] Diocese of Hispaniae

Hispania was the name of the whole Iberian Peninsula. It covered Hispania and the westernmost province of Roman Africa:

• Baetica
• Baleares (the Mediterranean islands)
• Carthaginiensis
• Tarraconensis
• Gallaecia
• Lusitania
• Mauretania Tingitana or Hispania Nova, in North Africa

[edit] Diocese of Britanniae

Britanniae was again a plural

• Maxima Caesariensis
• Valentia
• Britannia Prima
• Britannia Secunda
• Flavia Caesariensis

[edit] Praetorian prefecture of Italy and Africa (western)

Originally there was a single diocese of Italia, but it was eventually split into a northern section and a southern section. The division of Italy into regions had already been established by Aurelian.

[edit] Diocese of Italia suburbicaria

Suburbicaria indicates proximity to Rome, the Urbs (capital city). It included the islands, not considered actually Italian in Antiquity (hence they were provinces while the peninsular regions still had a superior status), given their different ethnic stock (e.g. Sicily was named after the Siculi) and history of piracy.

• Campania
• Tuscania et Umbria
• Picenum Suburbicarium
• Apulia et Calabria
• Bruttia et Lucania
• Samnium
• Valeria
• Corsica
• Sicilia
• Sardinia

[edit] Diocese of Italia annonaria

Annonaria refers to a reliance on the area for the provisioning of Rome. It encompassed northern Italy and Raetia.

• Venetia and Istria
• Aemilia
• Liguria
• Flaminia and Picenum Annonarium
• Alpes Cottiae
• Raetia I
• Raetia II

[edit] Diocese of Africa

Africa included the central part of Roman North Africa:

• Africa proconsularis or Zeugitana
• Byzacena
• Mauretania Caesariensis
• Sitifensis
• Numidia
• Tripolitania

[edit] Praetorian Prefecture of Illyricum

The Prefecture of Illyricum was named after the former province of Illyricum. It originally included two dioceses, the Diocese of Pannoniae and the Diocese of Moesiae. The Diocese of Moesiae was later split into two dioceses: the Diocese of Macedonia and the Diocese of Dacia.

[edit] Diocese of Pannonia

Pannonia was one of the two dioceses in the eastern quarters of the Tetrarchy not belonging to the cultural Greek half of the empire (the other was Dacia); It was transferred to the western empire when Theodosius I fixed the final split of the two empires in 395.

• Dalmatia
• Noricum mediterraneum
• Noricum ripensis
• Pannonia Prima
• Pannonia Secunda
• Savia
• Valeria ripensis

[edit] Diocese of Dacia

The Dacians had lived in the Transylvania area, annexed to the Empire by Trajan. However, during the invasions of the third century Dacia was largely abandoned. Some inhabitants evacuated from the abandoned province settled on the south side of the Danube. They renamed their new homeland Dacia to diminish the impact that abandoning the original Dacia had on the Empire's prestige. The diocese was transferred to the western empire in 384 by Theodosius I, probably in partial compensation to the empress Justina for his recognition of the usurpation of Magnus Maximus in Britannia, Gaul and Hispania.

• Dacia mediterranea
• Moesia I
• Praevalitana
• Dardania
• Dacia ripensis

[edit] Diocese of Macedonia

The Diocese of Macedonia was transferred to the western empire in 384 by Theodosius I, probably in partial compensation to the empress Justina for his recognition of the usurpation of Magnus Maximus in Britannia, Gaul and Hispania.

• Macedonia Prima
• Macedonia Salutaris (or Macedonia Secunda)
• Thessalia
• Epirus vetus
• Epirus nova
• Achaea
• Creta

[edit] Praetorian Prefecture of Oriens

As the rich home territory of the eastern emperor, the Oriens ("East") prefecture would persist as the core of the Byzantine Empire long after the fall of Rome. Its praetorian prefect would be the last to survive, but his office was transformed into an essentially internal minister.

[edit] Diocese of Thrace

Thrace was the eastern-most corner of the Balkans (the only part outside the Illyricum prefecture) and the European hinterland of Constantinople.

• Europa
• Thracia
• Haemimontus
• Rhodope
• Moesia II
• Scythia

[edit] Diocese of Asiana

Asia (or Asia Minor) in Antiquity stood for Anatolia. This diocese (the name means 'the Asian ones') centred on the earlier Roman province of Asia, and only covered the rich western part of the peninsula, mainly near the Aegean Sea.

• Asia
• Hellespontus (i.e. near the Sea of Marmara, so closest to Greece)
• Pamphylia
• Caria
• Lydia
• Lycia
• Lycaonia
• Pisidia
• Phrygia Pacatiana
• Phrygia Salutaris
• and the adjoining (now mostly Greek) Aegean islands in the aptly named province Insulae

[edit] Diocese of Pontus

Pontus is Latinized from Greek Pontos: the name of a Hellenistic kingdom derived from Pontos (Euxinos), i.e. the (Black) Sea, earlier used for a major Hellenistic kingdom.

It mainly contains parts of Asia minor near those coasts (as well as the mountainous centre), but also includes the north of very variable border with Rome's enemy Parthia/Persia.

• Bithynia
• Galatia
• Galatia Salutaris
• Paphlagonia
• Honorias
• Cappadocia I
• Cappadocia II
• Helenopontus
• Pontus Polemoniacus
• Armenia I
• Armenia II

[edit] Diocese of Oriens

The Eastern diocese shares its geographic name with the prefecture, even after it lost its rich part, Egypt, becoming a separate diocese; but militarily crucial on the Persian (Sassanid) border and unruly desert tribes.

It comprised mainly the modern Arabic Mashriq (Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Israel, the Palestinian Territories and Jordan) except for the desert hinterland:

• Arabia
• Palestina I
• Palestina II
• Palestina Salutaris
• Syria I
• Syria II
• Phoenice
• Phoenice Libanensis
• Euphratensis
• Osroene
• Mesopotamia

Further it contained the southeastern coast of Asia Minor and the close island of Cyprus

• Cilicia I
• Cilicia II
• Isauria
• Corduene
• Cyprus

[edit] Diocese of Aegyptus

This diocese, comprising north eastern Africa—mainly Egypt, the rich granary and traditional personal domain of the emperors—was the only diocese that was not under a vicarius, but whose head retained the unique title of Praefectus Augustalis. It was created by a split of the diocese of Oriens.

All but one, the civilian governors were of the modest rank of Praeses provinciae.

• Aegyptus came to designate Lower Egypt around Alexandria. Originally it was named Aegyptus Iovia (from Jupiter, for the Augustus Diocletian). Later it was divided into two provinces
• Augustamnica was the remainder of Lower Egypt, together with the eastern part of the Nile delta (13 'cities') – the only Egyptian province under a Corrector, a lower ranking governor. Originally it was named Aegyptus Herculia (for Diocletian's junior, the Caesar; with ancient Memphis). Later it was divided in two provinces
• Thebais was Upper Egypt. Nubia south of Philae had been abandoned to tribal people. Later it was divided into two provinces, Superior and Inferior.
• Arcadia (also Arcadia Ægypti; not Arcadia in Greece)

Apart from modern Egypt, Aegyptus also comprised the former province of Cyrenaica, being the east of modern Libya (an ancient name for the whole African continent as well). Cyrenaica was split into two provinces, each under a praeses:

• Libya Superior
• Libya Inferior

Late Roman provinces[link]

References[link]

• Notitia dignitatum
• Early Imperial Roman provinces, at livius.org
• Pauly-Wissowa
• Lintott, Andrew (1993). Imperium Romanum. London: Routledge.
• Mommsen, Theodor (1909). The Provinces of the Roman Empire. 2 vols. London: Ares Publishers.
• Scarre, Chris (1995). "The Eastern Provinces," The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Rome. London: Penguin Books, 74–75.
• Westermann, Großer Atlas zur Weltgeschichte (German)
• Loewenstein, Karl (1973). The Governance of Rome. Springer. ISBN 90-247-1458-3. 

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Roman provinces

• Map of the Roman Empire
• Map of the Roman Empire in year 300

Look up roman in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Roman or Romans may refer to:

• A thing or person of or from the city of Rome

History[link]

• Ancient Rome (9th century BC – 5th century AD)
  • Roman Kingdom (753 BC to 509 BC)
  • Roman Republic (509 BC to 44 BC)
  • Roman Empire (27 BC to 476/1453 AD)
  • Roman Britain, part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire between AD 43 and about 410
  • Roman citizenship
  • Roman alphabet or Latin alphabet, the standard script of the English language and most of the languages of western and central Europe, Indonesia, Malay, and other areas once settled by European colonial empires
    • Romanization
  • Roman architecture
  • Roman army
  • Roman calendar
  • Roman law, the legal system of both the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire
  • Roman numerals, numeral system where certain letters are given a numeral value
  • Imperial cult (ancient Rome), Roman religion
• Byzantine Empire (330/476/629 to 1453), a Late Antiquity and medieval continuation of the Greek-speaking portion of the Roman Empire
  • Romaioi (Ρωμαίοι), Greek-speaking, Orthodox population of the Eastern Roman Empire dating to Late Antiquity (the term translates literally to "Roman")
  • Romioi (Ρωμιοί), Greek-speaking, Orthodox population of the Rum-milet in the Ottoman Empire, or Greek-speaking Orthodox people today (the term translates literally to "Roman")
  • Romanae or the Greco-Romans from Aetolia Acarnania that speak Romanesci
• Holy Roman Empire (c. 900 to 1806), a medieval state in Central Europe

Geography[link]

• Roman, Bulgaria, a town and a municipality in Vratsa Province
• Romans-sur-Isère, in the Drôme département of France
• Roman, Romania, a city in Neamţ county
• Romans, Ain, a town in France
• Roman, Eure, France
• Romans, Deux-Sèvres, France
• Romans d'Isonzo, a town in Italy
• Roman roads
• Roman Valley, Nova Scotia
• Saint Roman, Monaco

Christianity[link]

• Roman Catholic Church, a Christian church that professes the Catholic faith
• Roman Missal, a book containing prayers and readings for a Roman Catholic Mass
• Epistle to the Romans, a letter in the New Testament of the Christian Bible

Typography[link]

• Roman type, an upright typeface style, contrasted to italic
• Times New Roman, a typeface

Literature[link]

• The word for Novel in many European languages.
• Romance (heroic literature), a genre of Medieval French literature
• Nouveau roman, a type of French novel
• Ar-Rum, the 30th book in the Qu'ran, is sometimes translated as The Romans

Music[link]

• Roman (album), by the Japanese musical group Sound Horizon
• "Roman (My Dear Boy)", a song by the Japanese pop group Morning Musume

Cinema[link]

• Roman (film), a 2006 suspense-horror film

Mythology[link]

• Roman mythology

People[link]

Family name[link]

• Johan Helmich Roman, a Swedish composer
• Petre Roman, Romanian politicians
• Valter Roman, Romanian politicians
• Bernard Romans, a Dutch-born navigator, surveyor, cartographer, naturalist, engineer, soldier, promoter and writer

Given name[link]

• Roman (name), a male given name derived from Latin Romanus
• Roman Glick, bass guitarist for American rock band Jackyl
• Roman Madrolle, music artist and producer
• Roman Yakub, composer

Science[link]

• Roman pot, a device used in accelerator physics
• Roman surface, self-intersecting immersion of the real projective plane into three-dimensional geometrical space
• Roman chamomile, a plant
• Roman bean, also known as "Borlotti bean"

Other uses[link]

• Roman (bidding system), a contract bridge bidding system
• Roman candle (firework)
• Roman chair, the exercise equipment
• Romans, a race in the Heroscape Universe
• The Romans (Doctor Who), an episode of the BBC production, Doctor Who
• Roman (vehicle manufacturer), a Romanian truck manufacturer
• Roman Bellic, a fictional character that appears in the game Grand Theft Auto IV

See also[link]

Note: the following entries are arranged in an etymological tree.

• Roma (disambiguation)
  • Rome (disambiguation)
  • Romaic
  • Romanus (disambiguation)
    • Aromanians
    • Romagna
      • Romagnol language
    • Romain (disambiguation)
    • Romaine (disambiguation)
    • Roman (disambiguation)
      • Romanesco
      • Romanesque (disambiguation)
    • Romana (disambiguation)
    • Romand
      • Romandy
    • Romania (disambiguation)
      • Romanian (disambiguation)
    • Romanicus
      • Romance (disambiguation)
      • Romanza (disambiguation)
      • Romance languages (Romanic)
    • Romanization (disambiguation)
    • Romano (disambiguation)
    • Romansh language
  • Rûm
    • Rumelia

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. It needs additional citations for verification. Tagged since January 2011. It includes a list of references, but its sources remain unclear because it has insufficient inline citations. Tagged since January 2011. Its lead section may not adequately summarize its contents. Please consider expanding the lead to provide an accessible overview of the article's key points. Tagged since January 2011.

A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state.

Etymology[link]

The English word "province" is attested since about 1330 and derives from the 13th-century Old French "province," which itself comes from the Latin word "provincia," which referred to the sphere of authority of a magistrate; in particular, to a foreign territory.

A possible Latin etymology is from "pro-" ("on behalf of") and "vincere" ("to triumph" or "to take control of"). Thus a "province" was a territory or function that a Roman magistrate held control of on behalf of his government. This agrees with the Latin term's earlier usage as a generic term for a jurisdiction under Roman law.

Geology[link]

In geology, the term "province" refers to a specific physiogeographic area that comprises a grouping of like bathymetric or former bathymetric elements (now sedimentary strata above water) whose features are in obvious contrast to the surrounding regions, or other "provinces." The term usually refers to sections or regions of a craton recognized within a given time-stratigraphy, i.e., recognized within a major division of time within a geologic period.

History and culture[link]

In France, the expression "en province" still tends to mean "outside the Paris region." Equivalent expressions are used in Peru ("en provincias," "outside the city of Lima"), Mexico ("la provincia," "lands outside Mexico City"), Romania ("în provincie," "outside the Bucharest region"), Poland ("prowincjonalny," "provincial") and Bulgaria ("в провинцията," "v provintsiyata," "in the provinces"; "провинциален," "provintsialen," "provincial"). Similarly, in Australia "provincial" refers to parts of a state outside of the state capital.

Before the French Revolution, France comprised a variety of jurisdictions (e.g., Île-de-France, built around the early Capetian royal demesne), some being considered "provinces," though the term was also used colloquially for territories as small as a manor (châtellenie). Most commonly referred to as "provinces," however, were the Grands Gouvernements, generally former medieval feudal principalities, or agglomerations of such. Today the expression "province" is sometimes replaced by "en région," " région" now being the term officially used for the secondary level of government.

In Italy, "in provincia" generally means "outside the biggest regional capitals" (like Rome, Milan, Naples, etc.).

The historic European provinces—built up of many small regions, called "pays" by the French and "cantons" by the Swiss, each with a local cultural identity and focused upon a market town—have been depicted by Fernand Braudel as the optimum-size political unit in pre-industrial Early Modern Europe. He asks, "Was the province not its inhabitants' true 'fatherland'?"^[1] Even centrally-organized France, an early nation-state, could collapse into autonomous provincial worlds under pressure, as during the sustained crisis of the French Wars of Religion (1562—98).

To 19th- and 20th-century historians, in Europe, centralized government was a sign of modernity and political maturity. In the late 20th century, as the European Union drew nation-states closer together, centripetal forces seemed simultaneously to move countries toward more flexible systems of more localized, provincial governing entities under the overall European Union umbrella. Spain after Francisco Franco has been a "State of Autonomies," formally unitary but in fact functioning as a federation of Autonomous Communities, each exercising different powers. (See Politics of Spain.)

While Serbia, the rump of former Yugoslavia, fought the separatists in the province of Kosovo, the United Kingdom, under the political principle of "devolution," produced (1998) local parliaments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Strong local nationalisms have surfaced or developed in Britain's Cornwall, France's Brittany, Languedoc and Corsica, Spain's Catalonia and the Basque Country, Italy's Lombardy, Belgium's Flanders; and, east of Europe, in Abkhazia, Chechnya and Kurdistan.

Legal aspects[link]

In many federations and confederations, the province or state is not clearly subordinate to the national or central government. Rather, it is considered to be sovereign in regard to its particular set of constitutional functions. The central- and provincial-government functions, or areas of jurisdiction, are identified in a constitution. Those that are not specifically identified are called "residual powers." In a decentralized federal system (such as the United States and Australia) these residual powers lie at the provincial or state level, whereas in a centralized federal system (such as Canada) they are retained at the federal level. Some of the enumerated powers can be quite important. For example, Canadian provinces are sovereign in regard to such important matters as property, civil rights, education, social welfare and medical services.

The evolution of federations has created an inevitable tug-of-war between concepts of federal supremacy versus states' & provinces' rights. The historic division of responsibility in federal constitutions is inevitably subject to multiple overlaps. For example, when central governments, responsible for foreign affairs, enter into international agreements in areas where the state or province is sovereign, such as the environment or health standards, agreements made at the national level can create jurisdictional overlap and conflicting laws. This overlap creates the potential for internal disputes that lead to constitutional amendments and judicial decisions that alter the balance of powers.

Though foreign affairs do not usually fall under a province’s or a federal state’s competency, some states allow them to legally conduct international relations on their own in matters of their constitutional prerogative and essential interest. Sub-national authorities have a growing interest in paradiplomacy, be it performed under a legal framework or as a trend informally admitted as legitimate by the central authorities.

In unitary states such as France and China, provinces are subordinate to the national, central government. In theory, the central government can create or abolish provinces within its jurisdiction.

Current provinces[link]

Not all second-level political entities are termed "provinces." In Arab countries, the secondary level of government, called a muhfazah, is usually translated as a "governorate."

In Poland, the equivalent of "province" is "województwo," sometimes rendered in English as "voivodeship."^[2]

In Peru, provinces are tertiary units of government, as the country is divided into twenty-five regions, subdivided into 194 provinces. Chile follows a similar pattern, being divided into 15 regions, subdivided into 53 provinces, each run by a governor appointed by the president.

Historically, New Zealand was divided into provinces, each with its own Superintendent and Provincial Council, and with considerable responsibilities conferred on them. However, the colony (as it then was) never developed into a federation; instead, the provinces were abolished in 1876. The old provincial boundaries continue to be used to determine the application of certain public holidays. Over the years, when the central Government has created special-purpose agencies at a sub-national level, these have often tended to follow or approximate the old provincial boundaries. Current examples include the 16 Regions into which New Zealand is divided, and also the 21 District Health Boards. Sometimes the term the provinces is used to refer collectively to rural and regional parts of New Zealand, that is, those parts of the country lying outside some or all of the "main centres"—Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Hamilton and Dunedin.

Modern provinces[link]

In many countries, a province is a relatively small non-constituent level of sub-national government, varying in size from that of a UK county to that of a U.S. state – an autonomous level of government and a constituent element of a federation or confederation, often with a large territory. In China, a province is a sub-national region within a unitary state; this means that a province can be created or abolished by the central government.

A province is a distinct unit of government in the Philippines, Netherlands, Belgium, Spain and Italy; and a large constituent autonomous area in Canada, Congo and Argentina.

In Italy and Chile, a province is an administrative sub-division of a region, which is the first-order administrative sub-division of the state. Italian provinces are mainly named after their principal town and comprise several administrative sub-divisions called comuni (communes). In Chile, they are referred to as comunas.

Five Canadian provinces – Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island – have "counties" as administrative sub-divisions. The Canadian province of British Columbia has "regional districts" which function as equivalents of the aforesaid counties.

The island of Ireland is divided into four historic provinces (see Provinces of Ireland), each of which is sub-divided into counties. These provinces are Connacht (in the west), Leinster (in the east), Munster (in the south) and, perhaps most famously (due to The Troubles), Ulster (in the north). Nowadays these provinces have little or no administrative function, though do have sporting significance.

Some overseas parts of the British Empire bore the colonial title of "province" (in a more Roman sense), such as the Province of Canada and the Province of South Australia (the latter, to distinguish it from the penal "colonies" elsewhere in Australia). Similarly, Mozambique was a "province" as a Portuguese colony.

Russia[link]

The term "province" is sometimes used to refer to the historic governorates (guberniyas) of Russia. This terms also refers to the provinces (провинции), which were introduced as the subdivisions of the governorates in 1719 and existed until 1775. In modern parlance, the term is commonly used to refer to the oblasts and krais of Russia.

Largest[link]

The world's most populous province is Uttar Pradesh, India, population 220,000,000.

The world's largest province by area is Quebec, Canada (1,500,000 km²).

Polities translated "province"[link]