Agrippa

Agrippa is a Latin given name and surname associated with several notable historical figures across antiquity and the early modern period. The most prominent individuals bearing the name include Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, Herod Agrippa I, Agrippa II, and Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa von Nettesheim.

Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa (63/60 BCE–12 BCE) was a Roman general, statesman, and close ally of Emperor Augustus. He commanded at the naval victory of Actium in 31 BCE, which helped cement Augustus’s control over Rome’s empire. He also oversaw major public works and served as consul, contributing to the administrative and architectural development of Rome during the early Empire. His reputation as a trusted associate of Augustus made the name synonymous with competence in military and political leadership in his era.

Herod Agrippa I (c. 11 BCE–44 CE) was a king of Judea from 37 to 44 CE and a grandson of Herod the Great. He is the subject of accounts in the Acts of the Apostles, where he is described as persecuting certain early Christians and as dying after an illness while in Caesarea. His rule marked a period of intensified Roman oversight in the eastern Mediterranean and the Herodian dynasty’s continuing involvement in imperial politics.

His successor and nephew, Agrippa II (c. 27–92/93 CE), ruled parts of the eastern territories and appears in Acts 25–26 in the Paul the Apostle narrative, where he interacts with Paul and explains the case to Festus and Agrippa’s own position within Roman governance.

In the Renaissance, Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa von Nettesheim (c. 1486–1535) was a German polymath, physician, and writer of occult philosophy. His De occulta philosophia and other works influenced Renaissance thought on magic, hermeticism, and natural philosophy, contributing to debates on science, religion, and mysticism.

The name Agrippa has thus been carried by rulers, scholars, and writers across a broad historical spectrum.