Was Roman citizenship in the ancient world determined by birth records, property holdings, tax records??
Answer Hello, Generally speaking, Roman citizenship, that was a privileged social status afforded to certain individuals, was acquired by birth when both parents were Roman citizens (Romani cives in Latin), although one of them, usually the mother, might be a foreigner (Latin peregrinus) with the right to contract a Roman marriage(Latin, conubium). Anyway I have to point out that it is hard to offer meaningful generalities across the entire Roman period from 753 BC, when Rome was founded, to 476 AD when the Roman Empire fell, as the nature and availability of citizenship was affected by legislation over the centuries. We can say however that: -Roman citizenship was granted automatically to every child born in a legal marriage of a Roman citizen. -People who were from the Latin states in Italian peninsula were gradually granted citizenship especially after the Social War (9088 BC). -Some individuals received Roman citizenship as a reward for outstanding service to Rome. -Finally Rome gr
