burgus

Burgus is a Latin noun meaning fortress, fortification, or stronghold. In classical and late antique usage it could denote a large castle as well as a smaller defensive outpost along a road or frontier. The term is the genealogical source for related words in European languages, such as the German Burg and the English borough.

In Roman times, burgus designated small frontier garrisons or watch posts intended to guard routes, relay signals, and deter incursions. These sites were typically walled enclosures with one or more buildings, sometimes equipped with ditches and small towers; many were placed near rivers or along major routes to link larger forts.

Archaeology shows burgi along the frontiers of the Rhine and Danube, within the Limes Germanicus and adjacent provinces. Excavated examples reveal variations in plan, materials, and date, but commonly include a rectangular perimeter, ditches, and watch structures; some later burgi show more permanent construction.

In modern scholarship, burgus is used as a technical term in Roman archaeology to describe this type of small fortification and its role in frontier policy, complementing larger castellum and castra sites.

Outside of scholarly discussions, burgus appears in Latin texts and as a historical toponym referring to fortified places.