Cato the Elder
/ˈkeɪtoʊ ðə ˈɛldər/noun
Marcus Porcius Cato (234–149 BCE), a Roman statesman, orator, soldier, and author commonly known as Cato the Elder.
Did you know?Cato’s name likely came from Latin catus, meaning “shrewd” or “clever,” while his surviving work De agri cultura is the oldest extant Latin prose text.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Italic (proposed)
Proto-Italic
*katos
“A reconstructed ancestor associated with cleverness or sharp judgment; its precise reconstruction is uncertain.”
Ancient Latin
Latin
catus
“Shrewd, clever, or experienced.”
3rd–2nd Century BCE
Latin
Cato
“A Roman cognomen meaning roughly “the shrewd one,” borne by Marcus Porcius Cato.”
149 BCE
Latin
Cato Maior
“Cato the Elder, distinguishing him from his descendant Marcus Porcius Cato Uticensis, Cato the Younger.”
16th Century
English
Cato the Elder
“The established English form for the Roman statesman and author.”
Modern English
English
Cato the Elder
“A historical name referring primarily to Marcus Porcius Cato, symbol of stern Roman traditionalism.”