See the full list of terms and titles after the JUMP.
If you see some names and words you don't recall from the book, don't worry. You're not going crazy. A lot of the backstory for Tiberia I worked out before I began to write. As I wrote, I found I didn't need all of the detail. So, for example, you see the reason why the Senate is limited to 300 senators, but I didn't get to that in the book. Likewise for why Tiberian rulers don't have lictors any longer. It's almost like bare-bones deleted scenes.
Accord - see the Strand Accord below.
AI (Anno Imperii) - "Year of the Empire," the measurement of years used by Tiberia and much of Larsa. Though Tiber was initially a republic, the "AI" year includes the republican years, too.
Aneipotan - a denomination of the Median Faith. Founded in Attica circa 1000 AI, its name is also its most distinguishing characteristic. "Aneipota" is Attican for "unsaid," meaning adherents believe that the name of God cannot be known and should not be said. Typically, followers will refrain from using the word "God" as a name and will simply refer to the deity as "The One" or "The Great One."
ARP (Ante Rem Publicam) - "Before the Republic," the measurement of years used by Tiberia and much of Larsa, referring to dates prior to the founding of Tiber as the capital of a group of ancient city-states. (There is no "year zero." 1 AI is the first year of the Republic.)
Centurion - officer in charge of a century of Tiberian soldiers.
Century - despite the name, a century is a group of eighty Tiberian soldiers. Six centuries make up a cohort.
Cohort - a group of 480 Tiberian soldiers. Ten cohorts make up a legion.
Consul - an appointed member of the Tiberian bureaucracy, often as part of the Caesar's cabinet. In ancient times, a consul was an elected position and two consuls jointly ruled Tiberia for a year.
Denar - the primary unit of currency in the Tiberian Empire and several nations besides.
Dominus - a Tiberian honorific meaning "lord."
Flamen - a priest in Tiberia's ancient polytheistic religions. In modern Tiberia, there are only a few with that title and their role is largely ceremonial. They are easily recognized by heavy wool cloaks and their skullcaps, sometime decorated with a rod or some symbol of an ancient deity.
Galatia - the Attican name for the primary continent Isinnia, which is the Tiberian name.
Illyria - the Attican name for the continent of Badaria, which is the Tiberian name.
Imperator - title given to Tiberian emperors upon their ascending to the throne, essentially meaning "commander-in-chief."
Imperium - a Tiberian word referring to a person's power to command, typically bestowed by a particular title.
Legion - in the Tiberian military, a group of 4,800 soldiers. A legion is made up of ten cohorts, or sixty centuries.
Legate - a Tiberian senator who also serves as a leader of Tiberia's military, equivalent to a general. Senators often rotate in and out of legate duty, though some are appointed by the Caesar to be legates on a more permanent basis. Legates distinguished by their service may be appointed as a high legate.
Lictors - in the Tiberian Republic and Empire, lictors served as ceremonial bodyguards for any officeholder bearing imperium, with more serving those with more imperium. During the bloody coup of Legate Lucius Sullivan, he used his ceremonial guards as cruel enforcers. Once order was restored, the Caesar banned the position permanently.
Magister - a title bestowed by the Caesar on a military leader to serve, in effect, as the supreme commander for a particular operation or conflict.
Magistrate - an elected position, typically on the level of local governments within Tiberia. Depending on their rank, a magistrate can decide minor civil disputes, certain criminal cases and, more often than not, guide local councils in their governance.
Matrix - an international network of computers and servers, forming a kind of web, if you will. It is the most efficient and advanced means of communication, entertainment and data transfer in modern Larsa.
Median Church - originally, this was the organization that taught a "middle path" to righteousness and salvation. Circa 100 AI, several monotheist groups conferred and decided that, despite their many past conflicts, there was little to separate the basic tenets of their differing faiths. Conflict among Median denominations did not end with that uncharacteristic agreement, however the idea endured. In modern times, there are hundreds of offshoots of the original faith. The general symbol of the faith is a circle bisected vertically by a line or thin rectangle.
Mementic - during Triumphs, a person (in ancient times, a slave) is positioned behind the Triumphator to hold a golden laurel above their head and remind them that they are mortal. The exact wording of this phrase is known only to those who are triumphed.
Optimates - (literally "best ones") a term for the upper echelon of Tiberian citizens.
Othrysianite - also known as a Pantheonite, this is a follower of the ancient Attican gods, the Titans. Cronus, lord of all gods and of time, the harvest, etc., was their leader. The Titans were adopted by ancient Tiberia as their deities in the early days of the republic after Attica was conquered, though their names were altered to align with older, similar Tiberian deities.
Pact of Nations - a collection of countries (originally fifty-two) that banded together to halt the aggressive actions of the Tiberian Empire circa 2600 AI. Their efforts led to the ceasefire known as the Strand Accord. Though enforcement of the Accord waned in the ensuing centuries, the bureaucracy of the Pact remained, as did its charitable and judicial arms, which engaged in humanitarian aid and oversight of Tiberia and other nations' actions toward other countries.
Patarian - a denomination of the Median Faith founded after a group of clerics were driven out of the Synoptic Church for proposing reforms circa 1500 AI. As a mark of their self-imposed filial piety, their priests wear tattered robes made from old rags and clothes.
Patricians - the upper class of Tiberian citizens, sometimes derisively called "patties" by the plebeians.
Plebeians - the lower class or common people of Tiberia. "Plebs" is the common slang for them.
Pontifex Maximus - title given to the leader of the Synoptic Church. At the time of its founding circa 1100 AI by Caesar Maximus III, the emperor was intended to be the pontifex. This title was instead passed along to someone else at the time of the Divestment by Caesar Carus a millennium later, typically someone chosen by the Caesar (though this aspect did not last more than a century).
Praefect - a title with varying duties in the Tiberian military, usually above a centurion but less than a legion's commander or tribune. (Different than a prefect.)
Praetor - an appointed position wherein the title holder acts directly in the stead of the Caesar. These are often roles fulfilled in occupied territories or, more commonly, as the praetor senatus, the leader of the senate in the absence of the Caesar. In the early days of the republic and empire, the praetor supplemented and occasionally took over the powers of the consuls in times of need.
Praetorian Guard - the elite guard of Tiberian emperors. They originally served as guards to praetors, consuls and generals in ancient Tiberia.
Prefect - in Tiberia, a civil position allowing the holder to act as a lobbyist (essentially) for the Caesar. This position is much less important than it was in ancient Tiber. (Different than a praefect.)
Quaestor - a position in the Tiberian Empire that oversaw financial duties and carried the power to audit branches of the bureaucracy. Often rife with corruption, quaestorships were used by officeholders to skim funds. Originally elected, quaestors became an appointed position in the Empire.
Ramani - a branch of the Median Faith founded by followers of a former Synoptic augur named Raman and prevalent in central Isinnia. Many tenets of the Ramani are considered backwards by the more "advanced" nations on modern Larsa, though these controversial aspects are not practiced by all in the faith.
Sanctitas Soli - (literally "sanctity of the soil") an ancient tradition that states an emperor cannot leave Tiberian ground. Once a nation has surrendered, a Caesar is allowed to trod upon that land. The practice dates back to the republic when consuls were not allowed to leave Tiber during their term in office. Only four emperors violated the tradition, most recently Caesar Maxentius IX during the invasion of Nandia.
Scythia - the Attican name for the southern continent of Eridia, which is the Tiberian name.
Senate - the legislative arm of Tiberian government. In the days of the republic, it was the primary decision-making body until the emperors took much of their power for themselves. After a particularly disastrous line of Caesars circa 1400 AI, the Senate staged a minor coup, replacing the Severan Dynasty with the well-regarded Gordian Dynasty and then forcing some concessions upon the ruler. The Senate grew in power again for five centuries until Caesar Maximinus Thrax curtailed their control, and limited the number of senators to three hundred. This balance has been maintained for the last millennium.
Stater - the primary unit of currency in Attica and several nations besides.
Strand Accord - often called simply "The Accord," this was a detailed and burdensome cease fire imposed on the Tiberian Empire after their abortive expansion across southern Isinnia and the Iberian Islands, circa 2600 AI. It was enforced and monitored by the Pact of Nations until that body's members became distracted by their own nations' ills in the ensuing centuries.
Synoptic Church - one of the largest branches of the Median faith on Larsa, founded circa 1100 AI when Caesar Maximus III ("Maximus the Confessor") cast aside the many gods of Tiberia's past in favor of the Median Church and its one deity. With the Synoptic Church, Maximus, the Church's leaders and many Caesars thereafter hoped to bring millions of people under the Empire's sway. The Church and the Empire were considered one and the same for more than a thousand years until Caesar Carus I split the two and stopped using the title pontifex maximus for himself.
Transfer - someone who is (or has) undergone the transferral of their mind into 1) a mechanical body, 2) a new organic body, or 3) the Matrix where they exist as pure thought. Once the technology became available, many of the wealthy took up mechanical bodies made to look human-like or had their minds digitally stored in cubes. In the last days of Larsa, most of those who transferred were transferred directly into the Matrix and eschewed physical form altogether.
Tribune - in the Tiberian military, a tribune carried many duties but often served as an assistant or lieutenant to a commanding officer. (A civilian tribune is a different position; elected by the people and served in the Senate with special veto powers.)
Triumph - a grand celebration accorded to military officials for their battle success. Accorded by the Senate and bestowed by the emperor, the person being triumphed may utilize the title Triumphator for the rest of their life.
War of Expansion - a massive military effort initiated by Tiberia circa 3000 AI to annex six nations in the first phase and several more in the second. The second phase was aborted when their soldiers and servants, the Cylons, developed sentience and revolted. The Tiberians were forced to cede many of their advancements but maintained control over ten nations for a century after the revolt.
I think that's about it. If you come across any words, titles, whatever in your reading of Book Five you think I should include here, just let me know.
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