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Terentia (; 98 BC – 6 AD) was the wife of the renowned orator Marcus Tullius Cicero. She was instrumental in Cicero's political life both as a benefactor and as a fervent activist of his cause. ==Family background== Terentia was born into a wealthy plebeian family by the name of Terentius. She may have been a daughter of the Terentii Varrones, who were the most important senatorial branch of that family. This is suggested by the fact that Cicero had a cousin with the cognomen Varro and a friend by the name of Marcus Terentius Varro. This Varro owned a house near Arpinum not far from Cicero's own birthplace. Therefore, if Terentia was indeed the daughter of a Varro, Cicero's links to this family may have influenced his marriage to Terentia.〔Treggiari 30〕 Terentia had one half-sister named Fabia, who was a Vestal Virgin and the daughter of a patrician named Fabius. If Terentia’s mother married the plebeian Terentius first, then Terentia was the older sister and probably the sole inheritor of her father’s estate. Upon her father's death, Terentia became incredibly wealthy. She was endowed with a huge dowry, which included at least two blocks of tenement apartments in Rome, a plot of woods in the suburbs of Rome, and a large farm.〔 The apartments and farm generated a considerable annual income. There is evidence that Terentia had much land in her own name. In addition to the public land she possessed, Terentia acquired a large woodland property among many other investments.〔s:Letters to Atticus/2.4〕 s:Letters to Atticus/2.15〔Treggiari 34〕 She also owned a village which she intended to sell in the crisis of Cicero's exile.〔s:Letters to friends/14.1〕 Her total dowry was 400,000 sesterces, which was the exact amount needed for a man to run for senator. Since Cicero was still under the authority of his father, the paterfamilias, he had not yet inherited anything. Therefore, Terentia's dowry was probably used to finance his political career.〔Treggiari 32〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Terentia」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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