pecus

Pecus is a Latin noun meaning herd, flock, or cattle. In classical and medieval Latin it referred to domesticated animals kept for work, food, milk, or breeding, collectively. The term could denote a single herd or livestock as a whole. In many texts pecora, the neuter plural form, was used to express livestock as a mass noun. The concept was often contrasted with ager (land) and with bestiae (wild beasts).

Historically, pecus functioned as a key marker of wealth and property; ownership of cattle and other stock was a basis for wealth, obligations, and social status. Roman writers used pecus in discussions of agriculture, economy, and law; discussions of inheritance, taxation, and provisioning often invoked livestock.

Etymology and legacy: The association of wealth with cattle underpins related Latin words such as pecunia (money). In scholarly Latin, pecus appears mainly in historical, legal, and philological contexts and is rarely used in everyday language. In modern usage, the term survives primarily in academic discussions of Latin language and ancient economy.

See also: pecora, the Latin plural form used to denote livestock; pecuniary, a modern term derived from pecunia referring to money or financial matters.