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Submitted for award of PhD September 2006. - King's College London

Submitted for award of PhD September 2006. - King's College London

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Vestini and Paeligni. Some <strong>of</strong> the pagi had Oscan names, which has led several<br />

scholars to believe that they go back to pre-Roman administrative units. 230 Pagi are<br />

also known in territories <strong>of</strong> <strong>for</strong>merly Samnite peoples: the alimentary table <strong>of</strong><br />

Ligures Baebiani, which dates from the reign <strong>of</strong> Trajan, lists 19 pagi in the territory<br />

<strong>of</strong> Beneventum. The table is fragmentary and La Regina suggested that the overall<br />

number <strong>of</strong> the pagi must have been between 30 and 35.231 On the basis <strong>of</strong> the<br />

proportion <strong>of</strong> the number <strong>of</strong> pagi in the geographical area <strong>of</strong> the territory <strong>of</strong><br />

Beneventum, he produced hypothetical numbers <strong>for</strong> the pagi in the territories <strong>of</strong> the<br />

Paeligni and Vestini. La Regina also estimated the number <strong>of</strong> vici included within the<br />

pagi. The settlement pattern <strong>of</strong> the Samnite areas <strong>of</strong> the central Apennines is not as<br />

homogeneous as those <strong>of</strong> the territories <strong>of</strong> the Vestini and Paeligni, so comparable<br />

numbers <strong>for</strong> these areas cannot not be estimated, but La Regina still argued that a<br />

pagus-system functioned also in Samnium. Capogrossi Colognesi has rightly<br />

criticised the thesis that pagi existed among the Italic populations be<strong>for</strong>e the<br />

introduction <strong>of</strong> Roman administration. 232 He notes that the idea that the pagi <strong>of</strong><br />

Beneventum go back to an original Samnite system presupposes a fairly uni<strong>for</strong>m<br />

settlement pattern in the Samnite period, a claim that cannot be substantiated. The<br />

constant, organic relation between pagi and vici suggested by La Regina also lacks<br />

evidence.<br />

229<br />

Cornell (1995) 345.<br />

230<br />

Inscriptions mention the names <strong>of</strong> a handful <strong>of</strong> pagi in the territory <strong>of</strong> the Paeligi, such as the pagus<br />

Vecellanus (ILS 932 a), and pagus Boedinus (ILS 6532), pagi Interpromini (ILS 5609), in Campania<br />

the pagus Herculaneus at/near Capua (ILS 6302), pagus Agrifanus, pagus Capriculanus, pagus Lanita<br />

and pagus Myttianus at Nola or in the Hirpini the pagi Meflanus and Aequanus (ILS 6350) in the<br />

territory <strong>of</strong> Beneventum (ILS 6509).<br />

231 CIL IX 1455, La Regina (1970-1) 445-6.<br />

232 Capogrossi Colognesi (2002) On the Tabula Alimentaria: 131-58, on the Samnite pagi: 170-92.<br />

69

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