Mythography | Ancient Roman Festivals

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Feriae - Ancient Roman Festivals

Bacchanalia | Dionysiac festivals held in honor of the god Bacchus, Bacchanalia were so notorious in ancient Rome that the Roman Senate suppressed the celebration of these rites in 186 B.C.

Feralia | this Roman festival was a type of All Souls Day when the departed were honored

Floralia | the Floralia was a festival devoted to Flora, the Roman goddess of flowers and plants

Liberalia | this festival was a celebration for the Roman god Liber (who, incidentally, was identified with the Greek god Dionysos)

Lemuria | the name Lemuria indicates the time during which the lemures, or "hungry ghosts", wandered the earth

Lupercalia | fertility and purification were the goals of the somewhat strange Roman festival known as the Lupercalia

Parentalia | this All Souls festival was used to honor the dead, and it culminated in the public celebration of the Feralia (see above)

Saturnalia | this merry Roman festival dedicated to the Roman god Saturn involved feasts and gift giving - sound familiar?

Much more information about these and other feriae, or Roman festivals, can be found in the following book:

Oxford Classical Dictionary | edited by Simon Hornblower and Antony Spawforth

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