Imperator

The Latin word imperator was a title originally roughly equivalent to commander during the period of the Roman Republic. It later went on to become a part of the titulature of the Roman emperors and to enter European political vocabulary as a synonym for emperor. Unlike emperor, the word is pronounced with stress on the third syllable.

Imperator as an imperial title

After Caesar Augustus established the hereditary, one-man rule in Rome that we refer to as the Roman Empire, the title imperator was generally restricted to the emperor, though it would occasionally be granted to a member of his immediate family. As a permanent title, imperator was used as a praenomen by the Roman emperors and was taken on accession. After the reign of Tiberius, the act of being proclaimed imperator was transformed into the act of imperial accession. In fact, if a general were acclaimed by his troops as imperator, it was tantamount to a declaration of rebellion against the ruling emperor.

Related Topics:
Caesar Augustus - Roman Empire - Praenomen - Tiberius

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In the imperial period, the term did continue to be used in the Republican sense as a victory title; however, it could only be granted to the emperor, even if he had not commanded the victorious army in person. The title followed the emperor's name along with the number of times he was acclaimed as such, for example IMP V ("imperator five times").

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The title imperator was generally translated into Greek as autokrator. This title (along with sebastos for augustus) was used in Greek-language texts by eastern Roman emperors until the seventh century, when basileus began to supplant it.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~