Virgilius

Virgilius is the Latin form of a given name, most notably associated with Publius Vergilius Maro, the Roman poet usually known in English as Virgil. He was active in the late Republic, with scholarly consensus placing his life roughly between 70 BCE and 19 BCE. Virgilius’ works are among the most influential in classical Latin literature, including the Eclogues (Bucolics), the Georgics, and the epic Aeneid. The Aeneid in particular, portraying the founding myth of Rome and a linkage between Rome’s origins and Augustan Rome, exemplifies his inventive use of epic diction, myth, and political purpose. Through the Middle Ages and beyond, Virgil’s poetry remained a central model for Latin style and narrative technique, contributing to the medieval and early modern literary canon and to the shaping of Western literary tradition.

In addition to the poet, Virgilius appeared as a medieval Latin given name. In ecclesiastical tradition there is a Saint Virgilius listed as a bishop of Salzburg, who is venerated in some Christian calendars. The name persists primarily in historical, scholarly, and liturgical contexts as the Latin form of Virgil; in modern usage, Virgilius is rare as a given name, with Virgil serving as its common English equivalent.