Aelius

Aelius is a Roman nomen, the masculine form of the gens name Aelia. In Roman naming practice, a person’s nomen identifies their gens, while the feminine form is Aelia. The name appears in a number of three-part Roman names, often with the praenomen and cognomen following it. The Aelia gens produced several notable figures across the Republic and the Empire.

The Aelia gens is of Latin origin and figures prominently in both political and literary contexts. Members held various offices and, in some cases, achieved imperial prominence. The surname Aelius was retained in the imperial line, most famously in the nomen of the emperor Hadrian, whose full name includes Publius Aelius Hadrianus. The name also appears in other prominent figures of late antiquity and in the administrative and military spheres.

Notable individuals bearing the name include Publius Aelius Hadrianus, known as Hadrian, Roman emperor from 117 to 138 CE. Lucius Aelius Caesar, adopted heir of Hadrian, was designated successor but died before accession. Lucius Aelius Sejanus, a powerful praetorian prefect under Tiberius, is another well-known bearer. In literature and rhetoric, Aelius Aristides was a Greek orator and writer whose name is commonly cited in the Latinized form Aelius Aristides. Aelius Donatus, a 4th-century Latin grammarian, is another example of the name’s usage in late antiquity.

In later scholarship, Aelius serves as an important data point in studies of Roman onomastics and prosopography, illustrating how the gens name functioned within personal and imperial identities. The feminine form, Aelia, was widely used for Roman women of the same gens.