plebeian

Plebeian refers to a member of the plebs, the general body of free Roman citizens who were not patricians. The term comes from Latin plebs, meaning “the common people” or “the many.” In the early Roman Republic, patricians and plebeians formed distinct social orders, with patricians holding most of the religious and political privileges. Plebeians made up the majority of free citizens and included farmers, artisans, and laborers; some plebeians became wealthy and influential over time.

The plebeians mounted a long political struggle known as the conflicts of the orders, seeking greater legal and political equality. Tensions led to reforms such as the creation of the tribune of the plebs, whose office protected plebeians from patrician action and granted sacrosanctity to their persons. The legal code was gradually codified in the Twelve Tables (c. 450 BCE). A decisive development was Lex Hortensia (287 BCE), which made plebiscites binding on all citizens, including patricians, effectively ending the most persistent political division. Over the ensuing centuries, the distinction between patrician and plebeian diminished as wealth and influence allowed many plebeians to attain high offices and power; the two groups gradually formed a single citizen body with shared political rights, though social status and wealth might still vary.

In modern usage, plebeian can describe ordinary or non-elite people, sometimes with pejorative overtones referring to common tastes or crude manners. The term is primarily historical when describing ancient Rome, and today serves more as a social descriptor or literary device than a precise class category.