antoninianus
|an-to-ni-ni-a-nus|
/ˌæn.təˈnɪn.i.ən.əs/
Roman radiate coin associated with Antoninus
Etymology
'antoninianus' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'antoninianus', where the root 'Antoninus' was a family/name of Roman emperors (meaning 'of Antoninus') and the suffix '-ianus' meant 'belonging to' or 'pertaining to'.
'antoninianus' was used in Classical and Late Latin to mean 'pertaining to Antoninus' and later became the established name for the coin; Medieval and Modern scholarly usage borrowed the Latin term unchanged into English as 'antoninianus' (plural 'antoniniani').
Initially it meant 'pertaining to Antoninus' (an adjectival sense), but over time it came to denote specifically the coin associated with emperors using the name Antoninus ('antoninianus' as a noun).
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a Roman coin introduced in the 3rd century AD, originally a silvered bronze coin valued at about two denarii (often described as a 'double denarius'), issued under emperors of the Antonine/Severan period.
The museum displayed an antoninianus struck during the reign of Caracalla.
Synonyms
Last updated: 2025/09/12 19:59