The origins of Rome
The legend of Rome, founded by Romulus, descendant of Aeneas, handed down to us by the writings of Titus Livy and Virgil, of Latin origins with Greek descent: a combination that was very popular with the Romans, proud of their Latin lineage but fascinated by Hellenistic culture.
Reconstructing the real origins of Rome with certainty is not easy, but it is certain that this city was born and developed progressively, through a series of alliances between villages present since the year 1000 BC on some hills on the left bank of the Tiber, and in partic ular the Capitoline Hill, the Palatine Hill, the Esquiline Hill and the Celian Hill.
Most of these villages were of Latin origin, but it cannot be excluded that there was already a Sabine and even Etruscan presence (Rome was the center of the routes between Etruria and Magna Graecia and we must not forget that in the south there were also Etruscan colonies such as Volturnum, present-day Capua). Moreover, it seems that the Celio derived its name from the Etruscan noble Celio Vibenna and the name of Rome itself could derive from the term "Romun" with which the Etruscans identified the Tiber river.
Other sources trace the origin of the name Rome to the Latin term "Rumis" which indicated the "udder", with clear reference to the breastfeeding of the twins by the she-wolf or even to the milk of the figs of the famous Fico Ruminale which provided them with nourishment.
Yet another hypothesis attributes the origin of the name to the Greek term "Rhome" which indicated the strength and courage of its first inhabitants.
Many years later, through complex and error-free calculations, it was conventionally established that Rome was founded on 21 April 753 BC.
Recent excavations have confirmed that on the Palatine there was a square fortification dating back to the 8th century BC; here the legendary story of Romulus who traced a square furrow and then built a fortification finds confirmation in archaeology.
Even more recent excavations carried out on the Capitoline Hill have brought to light traces of settlements dating back to the Bronze Age (1400 BC). This upsets the picture of the situation even more, suggesting that the first inhabited hill in the area was the Capitoline Hill, probably due to its strategic position in relation to the Tiber.
