be required for official purposes, and, in isolated corners of the empire and in parts of Italy, its usage would persist into the seventh century, the nomen was generally omitted from the name (even of emperors) by the third century. Two factors encouraged its frequent non-use. Firstly, the cognomen increasingly became the distinguishing name and general name of address. As a result, "New Romans" and, under their influence, "old Romans" too, either dropped the nomen from their name or, in some cases, treated the nomen as a praenomen. Secondly, with the nomen becoming an increasingly fossilized formality, non-Italian families, even those who had acquired citizenship and a nomen prior to 212, began to ignore their nomen. When a nomen was required for official purposes they would simply put the default nomen of "Aurelius" in front of their name, rather than use their actual nomen. See also Spanish naming customs Portuguese name French name Italian name Romanian name Notes References Bibliography Cambridge Latin Course, University of Cambridge Press 2004, Liberati, Anna Maria and Bourbon, Fabio (2005), Ancient Rome, Barnes and Noble Press, External links Roman Names Names of Byzantine Romans in Turkish Names by culture Naming conventions