The gens Caecia was an obscure plebeian family at ancient Rome, that flourished from the late Republic and into imperial times. None of the Caecii attained any of the higher offices of the Roman state, and the only member of this gens mentioned by Roman writers is Gaius Caecius, an acquaintance of Cicero. A number of Caecii are known from inscriptions.

Origin

While the Caecii are barely mentioned in history, the nomen Caecius must have been of considerable antiquity, for the nomen Caecilius was evidently derived from it, using the diminutive or derivative suffix -ilius. Both are ultimately derived from the surname Caecus, a cognomen originally indicating someone who was blind. Chase classifies Caecius among those gentilicia that were either native to Rome, or are found there and cannot be shown to have come from anywhere else.

Praenomina

The praenomen that occurs most frequently in the epigraphy of this family is Gaius, among the most common praenomina at all periods of Roman history. Other Caecii also used common names, such as Lucius, Marcus, Publius, and Quintus, and there are individual instances of Aulus, Titus, and Vibius.

Members

Undated Caecii