Fortunae in Italy

This chapter analyses the cults of Fortuna through Italy up to the first century BC. Although the evidence for the cults is mostly fragmentary, contextual information shows that diverse meanings were attached to Fortuna by a variety of agents. Latium and Campania are the regions where most of the cults are attested, and the diffusion of the deity seems to have followed that of the Latin language. There are certain recurring features common to many local cults and sanctuaries, e.g. a tendency to worship Fortuna near liminal places, with sanctuaries attested at the border of different territories and near city walls.

Ancient history · Archaeology · Art · Fortuna · Geography · Humanities · Liminality · Theology · Variety (cybernetics) · Worship · Classical Antiquity Studies · Computer Science · Historical, Religious, and Philosophical Studies · History · Linguistics and language evolution · Philosophy