A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

9.5 TRENTIUS. TERENT UTEENT S.
said by Varro to be derived from the Sabine word him in a letter to P. Silius. (Cic. ad Altt. xi. 10,
terenus, which signified "soft" (Macrob. Sat. ii. ad Fanz. xiii. 65.)
9;) The Terentii are mentioned as early as B. c. 12. SER. TERENTIVS, was a friend of D. Brutus,
462, for the C. Terentillus Arsa, who was tribune whom he pretended to be on the flight from Muof the plebs in that year (Liv. iii. 9), must have tina, B. C. 43, in order to save the life of his friend;
belonged to the gens; and indeed he is called C. but he was recognised by the officer of Antony's
Terentius by Dionysius (x. 1). The first member cavalry, and preserved from death. (Val. Max.
of the gens who obtained the consulship was C. Te- iv. 7. ~ 6.)
rentius Varro, who commanded at the fatal battle 13. M. TERENTIUS, a Roman eqlles, was acof Cannae in B. C. 216; and persons of the name cused, in A. D. 32, on account of his having been a
continue to be mentioned under the early em- friend of Sejanus. He defended himself with great
perors. The principal surnames of the Terentii courage, and was acquitted. (Tac. Ann. vi. 8, 9.)
during the republic are CULLEO, LUCANUS, and 14. TERENTIUS LENTINUS, a Roman eques, was
VARiRO: there are a few others of less importance, privy to the forgery of Valerius Fabianus, and was
which are given below under TERENTITUS. in consequence condemned in A. D. 61. (Tac. Ann.
TERENTIA'NUS MAURUS, a Roman poet, xiv. 40.)
probably lived at the end of the first or the begin- 15. TERENTIUS, was said by some persons to
ning of the second century under Nerva and Trajan, have been the murderer of the emperor Galba.
and is perhaps the same person as the Terentianus, (Tac. Hist. i. 41; Plut. Galb. 27.)
the governor of Syene in Egypt, whose praises TERE'NTIUS CLEMENS. [CLEMENS.]
are celebrated by Martial (i. 87; comp. Wernsdorf, TERE'NTIUS SCAURUS. [ScAURUs.]
Po'tae Latini Minores, vol. ii. p. 259). Terentianus P. TERE'NTIUS AFER, was the second and
was a native of Africa, as we might have inferred the last of the Roman comic poets, of whose works
from his surname Maurus. There is still extant a more than fragments are preserved. The few
poem of Terentianus, intitled De Literis, Syllabis, particulars of his life were collected long after his
IPedibts, Metris, which treats of prosody and the decease, and are of very doubtful authority. It
different kinds of metre with much elegance and would therefore be to little purpose to repeat them
skill. The work is printed in the collection of the without scrutiny or comment. We shall, in the
ancient grammarians by Putschius, pp. 2383- first place, inquire who were the biographers of
2450, and in a separate form by Santen and Van Terence, what they relate of him, and the conLennep, Traj. ad Rhen. 1825, and by Lachmann, sistency and credibility of their several accounts.
Berol. 1836. We shall next briefly survey the comedies themTERENTILLA. [TERENTIA, No. 2.] selves, their reception at the time, their influence
TERENTILLUS. [TERENTIUS, No. 1.] on dramatic literature, their translators and imiTERE'NTIUS. 1. C. TERENTIUS ARSA, tators, their commentators and bibliography.
called TERENTILLUS by Livy, tribune of the plebs, Our knowledge of Terence himself is derived
B. c. 462, proposed that five commissioners should principally from the life ascribed to Donatus or
be appointed to draw up a body of laws to define Suetonius, and from two scanty memoirs, or colthe consular imperium. (Liv. iii. 9; Dionys. lections of Scholia, the one published in the sevenx. 1.) teenth century, by Abraham Gronovius, from an
2. Q. TERENTIUS, was sent by the senate, Oxford MS., and the other by Angelo Mai, from
along with M. Antistius, to bring back the consul a MS. in the Vatican. The life of Terence, printed
C. Flaminius to the city, but he refused to obey in the Milan edition of Petrarch's works 1476, is
their summons. (Liv. xxi. 63.) merely a comment on Donatus. Of these, the first
3. L. TERENTIUS MASSAIIOTA, plebeian aedile, mentioned is the longest and most particular. It
B. c. 200, and praetor B. c. 187, when he obtained is nevertheless a meagre and incongruous medley,
Sicily as his province. (Liv. xxxi. 50, xxxviii. 42.) which, for its barrenness, may be ascribed to Do4. L. TERENTIUS, one of the ambassadors sent natus, and for its scandal to Suetonius. But it
to king Antiochus in B. C. 196. (Liv. xxxiii. 35.) cites still earlier writers, - C. Nepos, Fenestella,
5. C. TERENTIUS ISTRA, praetor B. c. 182, ob- Porcius, Santra, Volcatius, and Q. Cosconius. Of
tained Sardinia as his province. In the following these Nepos is the best known, and perhaps the
year he was one of the triumviri for founding a most trustworthy. His contemporaries deemed him
colony at Graviscae. (Liv. xxxix. 56, xi. 1, 29.) a sound antiquarian (Catull. i. 1), and his historical
6. L. TERENTIUS MASSALIOTA, probably a studies had trained him to examine facts and dates.
son of No. 3, was tribunus militum in B. C. 180. (Gell. xv. 48.) Of Fenestella, more voluminous
(Liv. xl. 35.) than accurate, we have already given some account
7. P. TERENTIUS TuSCIVANUS, one of the am- [Vol. II. p. 145]. Q. Cosconius was probably the
bassadors sent into Illyricum in B. c. 167. (Liv. grammarian cited by Varro (L. L. vi. 36, 89), Porxlv. 18.) cius, the Porcius Licinius, a satirical and seemingly
8. TERENTIUS VESPA, one of whose witticisms libellous versifier, mentioned by Gellius (xvii. 21,
is quoted by Cicero in his De Oratore (ii. 61). xix. 19), and Volcatius was the Volcatius Sedigitus
9. L. TERENTITJS, was the companion and tent- quoted by the same author (xv. 24). Santra is
mate of Cn. Pompeius, when the latter was serving enumerated by St. Jerome (Vit. Script. Eccles.)
under his father Strabo in B. c. 87, and w.s bribed among the Latin compilers of Memoirs; he wrote
by Cinna to kill Pompeius. (Plot. Pom7p. 3.) also a treatise De A4tiquitate Verboroln, cited fre10. CN. TERENTIUS, a senator, into whose cus- quently by Festus. Such writers are but indifferent
tody Caeparius, one of the Catilinarian conspirators, vouchers for either fatcts or dates, whether from
was given. (Sall. Cat. 47.) their living so long after the poet's age, or from the
11. P. TERENTIUS HIsro, a friend of Cicero, character of their testimony. In the following
was promagister of the company of publicani, who account we interweave our comment with their
farmed the taxes in Asia. Cicero recormmended text.