Samnites

Home > ... > History > Ancient Greece and Rome > Ancient History, Rome > ...

Essential reading Compare
side-by-side The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition

Samnites

Samnites , people of ancient Italy. Their country was Samnium . The Samnites were Oscan-speaking and therefore should be included among the Sabelli. The Tabula Agnonensis, a bronze tablet that carries an inscription engraved in the full Oscan alphabet, is an important record of the language. The loose confederation of agricultural tribes, expanding in the 4th cent. BC, came into conflict with the Romans over Campania. There was probably a good deal of warfare before the three Samnite Wars (343-341 BC, c.326-304 BC, 298-290 BC), in which the Romans won control of central and S Italy. Although the Samnites continued to fight against Rome with Pyrrhus, Hannibal and later Marius in the Social War, they were crushed (82 BC) by Sulla before the gates of Rome; most of them were killed. Some survivors were sold into slavery; the rest were Romanized.

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1E1-Samnites" title="Facts and information about Samnites">Samnites</a>

Give this article a thumbs-up on StumbleUpon

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

"Samnites." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 19 Dec. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"Samnites." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (December 19, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Samnites.html

"Samnites." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Retrieved December 19, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Samnites.html

Learn more about citation styles

Samnite

The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable | 2006 | | Â© The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable 2006, originally published by Oxford University Press 2006. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

Samnite a member of an Oscan-speaking people of southern Italy in ancient times, who spent long periods at war with republican Rome in the 4th to 1st centuries bc.

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1O214-Samnite" title="Facts and information about Samnites">Samnites</a>

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Samnite." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Oxford University Press. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 19 Dec. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Samnite." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Oxford University Press. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (December 19, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Samnite.html

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Samnite." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Oxford University Press. 2006. Retrieved December 19, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Samnite.html

Learn more about citation styles

Related entries from encyclopedias, dictionaries and thesauruses

A Dictionary of World History entry for Samnite wars

Rate these entries|See all related entries

Free newspaper and magazine articles

Perpetual Unveils Gods and Heroes: Rome Rising; A New Massively Multi-player Game Set in Ancient Rome, by the Makers of Star Trek Online and the Designer of Diablo II.
Business Wire; 3/11/2005

Facts and information from other sites

Related articles from newspapers, magazines, and more

	Reverse engineering a lost culture.(input output)(Samnites) Magazine article from: Mechanical Engineering-CIME; 7/1/2005; ; 700+ words ; You don't hear much about the Samnites these days. They were one of those peoples...their culture. Until recently, the Samnites' reputation has been based on reports...central Italy. The pieces show that the Samnites, like so many of history's conquered...
	What Lies Beneath in Pompeii; Going Deep Yields New Perspective on Ancient Roman City Newspaper article from: The Washington Post; 7/28/2004; ; 700+ words ; ...the remains of a structure built by the Samnites, a mountain warrior people who conquered...of that." In short, it's time the Samnites got their due. "They were traditionally...to write history," Curti said. The Samnites were a tribal people who occupied much...
	REVERSE ENGINEERING A LOST CULTURE Magazine article from: Mechanical Engineering; 7/1/2005; ; 700+ words ; You don't hear much about the Samnites these days. They were one of those peoples...their culture. Until recently, the Samnites' reputation has been based on reports...central Italy. The pieces show that the Samnites, like so many of history's conquered...
	Rome on the move.(Roman Republic) Magazine article from: Calliope; 10/1/2002; ; 700+ words ; ...loosely together into a group known as the Samnites. These nomads regularly attacked towns...three long and costly wars against the Samnites from 343 B.C. to 290 B.C. The Second...nothing would have stood between the Samnites and Rome. Stripped of every possession...
	The lost beauty of Saepinum Magazine article from: The Spectator; 2/23/2008; ; 700+ words ; ...their flocks from north to south. The Samnites were a warlike people who inhabited much...bureaucrats. There are also traces of the Samnites at Saepinum. A stone trough for collecting...ranking lady in about 400 BC.Slowly the Samnites were absorbed into the empire and Saepinum...
	Towards a phenomenology of Samnite fortified centres.(Brief Article) Magazine article from: Antiquity; 3/1/2000; ; 700+ words ; ...outstanding question is `where were the Samnites?' One answer, based on survey data...friendly or comforting. We all know that Samnites did not like Romans; but why assume...S.P. 1995. The hill forts of the Samnites. London: British School at Rome. Archaeological...
	Unpeeling Pompeii. Magazine article from: Antiquity; 3/1/1998; ; 700+ words ; ...the Oscans, the Tyrrhenians (i.e. Etruscans) and the Samnites (Geography 5.4.8). The first systematically developed...then 'enervated' by contact with the Greeks, giving way to Samnites, to whom he reattributed the 'limestone phase', followed...
	FRAMED MAM'S PERMANENT COLLECTION Newspaper article from: The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel; 12/17/2001; ; 424 words ; ...is "Manius Curius Dentatus Refusing the Gifts of the Samnites." It tells the story of the third-century B.C...general Manius Curius Dentatus, who, having defeated the Samnites in battle, is satisfied with the glory of success and...
	Sangre y arena: regresan los gladiadores al Coliseo.(Roma, Italia)(TT: Blood and sand: the gladiators return to the coliseum.)(TA: Rome, Italy) Magazine article from: Epoca; 8/10/2001; ; 700+ words ; ...a pelear a la Arena, para ganar, por supuesto. Haba varias clases de gladiadores: se distinguan por su armamento. Los samnites, luchaban con un escudo largo, un visor, un casco adornado de plumas y una espada corta. Los tracios utilizaban escudo...
	Perpetual Unveils Gods and Heroes: Rome Rising; A New Massively Multi-player Game Set in Ancient Rome, by the Makers of Star Trek Online and the Designer of Diablo II. Business Wire; 3/11/2005; 700+ words ; ...in Rome around 300 BC, a time when the Republic is powerful, but Roman enemies including the Carthaginians, Gauls, and Samnites threaten the fledgling imperial holdings. Worse, the land is beset by terrible creatures, such as Gorgons, Cyclopes, and...