LE SYMPOSIUM INTERNATIONAL LE LIVRE. LA ROUMANIE. L ...

558 IVO TOPALILOV
the Greek names, the curator Αὐρ(ηλίος) Ἀπολλωνίδος is mentioned as a
son of Aelius Valens, most probably a veteran. It is well known that this
cognomen is inspired by features of the mind and body and, as such, it was
quite popular, 102 especially among the military. According to the studies,
this cognomen was one of the most popular names amongst the thracians
too, 103 and with a combination of imperial romanization it becomes clear
that Aelius Valens is a typical name of a veteran.
similar is the case of Πό(πλιος) Αἴλ(ιος) Διοσκου[ρίδης Φιλιπ]
ποπολείτης ἱερ̣[ονίκης, ποπολείτης ἱερ̣[ονίκης, ξυ]στάρχης διὰ βίου [τῆς
τῶν] Παυταλεωτῶν πό[λεως, νικήσας], known by an inscription from
philippopolis. 104 the imperial names show that we are dealing with a
romanized eastern provincial, or a thracian, and the emperor’s name of the
office imply a veteran. he uses the roman onomastic system of tria nomina
in a thracian context, while the omission of his father’s name shows his
humble origins, i.e., he is not a representative of the thracian aristocracy or
Greeks which show their filiation. Πό(πλιος) Αἴλ(ιος) Διοσκου[ρίδης was
buleutes before coming to philippopolis and he is an example of a veteran
promoted to the city-council.
the status of philippopolis as a metropolis as well as the growth of its
importance in the province of thrace are grounds for not only an ordinary
city’s offices to be set up there, but also some of importance for the
whole province. the inscriptions show the tracarches, provincial priests,
tabularius provinciae etc. living in the city. In the next section we will deal
with some of them who may be connected to the topic of the paper.
Thracarchoi
the thracarchoi led the koinon ton thrakon, namely the provincial
assembly of the thracians which gathered in philippopolis. Because of
this, philippopolis gained the status of metropolia.
the studies of the leaders of the provincial assembly started with
the one by B. Gerov in 1948. 105 the next are mostly concerned with the
publication of new inscriptions with θρᾳκάρχης, some of it not discovered in
philippopolis, but in the other cities in thrace. 106 An attempt for a complete
study of the tracarchoi known until now with comments for each of them
102 KAJAnto 1982, 18, 46, 247.
103 See BeŠeVlIeV 1965, 31.
104 See IGBulg. III, 1, 893+ IGBulg. V, 5404.
105 GeroV 1948, 27-33.
106 See BuJuKlIeV 1998, 67-72; GerASIMoVA 2003, 197-208, tabl. lxxVIlxxxIx.