Sabine
The tribe of the
Sabines (
Latin Sabini) was an
Italic tribe of ancient
Italy. Their language belonged to the
Sabellic subgroup of
Italic languages and was akin to
Oscan and
Umbrian.
Their original territory, straddling the modern regions of
Lazio,
Umbria, and
Abruzzi, was known as
Sabinium in
Latin. To this day, it bears the ancient tribe's name and is known as
Sabina in
Italian.
Within the modern region of Lazio (or
Latium),
Sabina constitutes a sub-region, situated North-East of
Rome, around
Rieti.
The ancient Sabines were in Latium before Rome was
founded. The legend says that
Romans abducted Sabine women to populate the newly built town, but more realistic studies found many relationships between the two peoples, especially regarding
religion and
mythology. In fact, many Sabine deities and
cults developed in Rome, and many areas of the town (like the
Quirinale) were once Sabine centers.
The area today is a tourist destination, with plenty of interesting medieval villages, and is perhaps most famous for its
olive oil production.
*
Numa Pompilius*
Titus Tatius*
Ancus Marcius*
Attius ClaususMythological References
*
Ovid,
Fasti (Book III 167 - 258)
*Ovid,
Ars Amatoria (Book II 30 - 47)
*
Livy,
Ab Urbe Condita (Book I 9 - 13)
*
Cicero,
De Republica (Book II 12 - 14)
*
Plutarch,
Parallel Lives (Romulus 14 - 20)
Popular References
In the 1954 MGM movie musical
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, the main character, a backwoodsman named Adam, encourages his six younger brothers to kidnap the women they love, citing the story of the Sabine women. All seven brothers sing a song called "Sobbin' Women" (their mispronunciation of "Sabine") as they prepare to abduct their future wives.
