38 BC
Encyclopedia
Year 38 BC was either a common year starting on Sunday
or Monday
or a leap year starting on Saturday
, Sunday
or Monday
(link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar
(the sources differ, see leap year error for further information) and a common year starting on Sunday
of the Proleptic Julian calendar
. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Pulcher and Flaccus (or, less frequently, year 716 Ab urbe condita
). The denomination 38 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini
calendar era
became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years. It was also the first year (year 1) of the Spanish era
calendar in use in Hispania
until the 15th century
.
Common year starting on Sunday
This is the calendar for any common year starting on Sunday, January 1 or for any year in which “Doomsday” is Tuesday. Examples: Gregorian years 1989, 1995, 2006, 2017 and 2023or Julian year 1917...
or Monday
Common year starting on Monday
This is the calendar for any common year starting on Monday, January 1 . Examples: Gregorian year 1990, 2001, 2007 and 2018or Julian year 1918 ....
or a leap year starting on Saturday
Leap year starting on Saturday
This is the calendar for any leap year starting on Saturday, January 1 , such as 1972, 2000, 2028 or 2056.Previous year | Next year-Trivia:...
, Sunday
Leap year starting on Sunday
This is the calendar for any leap year starting on Sunday, January 1 , such as 1956, 1984, 2012, 2040, or 2068.This is the only leap year with three occurrences of Friday the 13th, each three months apart in January, April, and July....
or Monday
Leap year starting on Monday
This is the calendar for any leap year starting on Monday, January 1 , such as 1940, 1968, 1996, 2024 or 2052.MillenniumCenturyYear2nd Millennium:18th century: 1720 1748 1776...
(link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar
Julian calendar
The Julian calendar began in 45 BC as a reform of the Roman calendar by Julius Caesar. It was chosen after consultation with the astronomer Sosigenes of Alexandria and was probably designed to approximate the tropical year .The Julian calendar has a regular year of 365 days divided into 12 months...
(the sources differ, see leap year error for further information) and a common year starting on Sunday
Common year starting on Sunday
This is the calendar for any common year starting on Sunday, January 1 or for any year in which “Doomsday” is Tuesday. Examples: Gregorian years 1989, 1995, 2006, 2017 and 2023or Julian year 1917...
of the Proleptic Julian calendar
Proleptic Julian calendar
The proleptic Julian calendar is produced by extending the Julian calendar to dates preceding AD 4 when its quadrennial leap year stabilized. The leap years actually observed between its official implementation in 45 BC and AD 4 were erratic, see the Julian calendar article for details.A calendar...
. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Pulcher and Flaccus (or, less frequently, year 716 Ab urbe condita
Ab urbe condita
Ab urbe condita is Latin for "from the founding of the City ", traditionally set in 753 BC. AUC is a year-numbering system used by some ancient Roman historians to identify particular Roman years...
). The denomination 38 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini
Anno Domini
and Before Christ are designations used to label or number years used with the Julian and Gregorian calendars....
calendar era
Calendar era
A calendar era is the year numbering system used by a calendar. For example, the Gregorian calendar numbers its years in the Western Christian era . The instant, date, or year from which time is marked is called the epoch of the era...
became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years. It was also the first year (year 1) of the Spanish era
Spanish era
The Spanish era, Hispanic era or Caesar era refers to the dating system used in Hispania until the 14th century, when the Anno Domini system was adopted. It began with year one in what is 38 BC, probably the date of a new tax imposed by the Roman Republic on the subdued population of Iberia....
calendar in use in Hispania
Hispania
Another theory holds that the name derives from Ezpanna, the Basque word for "border" or "edge", thus meaning the farthest area or place. Isidore of Sevilla considered Hispania derived from Hispalis....
until the 15th century
15th century
As a means of recording the passage of time, the 15th century was the century which lasted from 1401 to 1500.Constantinople, the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire, falls to emerging Ottoman Turks, forcing Western Europeans to find a new trade route....
.
Roman Republic
- January 1 – Beginning of the Hispanic era, by orders of Octavian Caesar.
- January 17 – Octavian marries LiviaLiviaLivia Drusilla, , after her formal adoption into the Julian family in AD 14 also known as Julia Augusta, was a Roman empress as the third wife of the Emperor Augustus and his adviser...
while she is still pregnant from a recently broken marriage. Octavian gained permission from the College of PontiffsCollege of PontiffsThe College of Pontiffs or Collegium Pontificum was a body of the ancient Roman state whose members were the highest-ranking priests of the polytheistic state religion. The college consisted of the Pontifex Maximus, the Vestal Virgins, the Rex Sacrorum, and the flamines...
to wed her while she was still pregnant from another husband. Three months after the wedding she gave birth to a second son, Nero Claudius DrususNero Claudius DrususNero Claudius Drusus Germanicus , born Decimus Claudius Drusus also called Drusus, Drusus I, Nero Drusus, or Drusus the Elder was a Roman politician and military commander. He was a fully patrician Claudian on his father's side but his maternal grandmother was from a plebeian family...
, while he and his elder brother, the four-year-old TiberiusTiberiusTiberius , was Roman Emperor from 14 AD to 37 AD. Tiberius was by birth a Claudian, son of Tiberius Claudius Nero and Livia Drusilla. His mother divorced Nero and married Augustus in 39 BC, making him a step-son of Octavian...
, lived in Octavian's household. - Octavian appointed Marcus Vipsanius AgrippaMarcus Vipsanius AgrippaMarcus Vipsanius Agrippa was a Roman statesman and general. He was a close friend, son-in-law, lieutenant and defense minister to Octavian, the future Emperor Caesar Augustus...
governor of Transalpine Gaul, where he put down a uprising of the Aquitanians. He also fought successfully against the Germanic tribes, and becoming the next Roman general to cross the Rhine after Julius CaesarJulius CaesarGaius Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman and a distinguished writer of Latin prose. He played a critical role in the gradual transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
. - Mark AntonyMark AntonyMarcus Antonius , known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman politician and general. As a military commander and administrator, he was an important supporter and loyal friend of his mother's cousin Julius Caesar...
, Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus and Marcus LepidusMarcus Aemilius Lepidus (triumvir)Marcus Aemilius Lepidus , was a Roman patrician who rose to become a member of the Second Triumvirate and Pontifex Maximus. His father, Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, had been involved in a rebellion against the Roman Republic.Lepidus was among Julius Caesar's greatest supporters...
sign the Treaty of Tarentum (or 37 BC37 BCYear 37 BC was either a common year starting on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday or a leap year starting on Monday or Tuesday of the Julian calendar and a leap year starting on Monday of the Proleptic Julian calendar...
), extending the Second TriumvirateSecond TriumvirateThe Second Triumvirate is the name historians give to the official political alliance of Octavius , Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, and Mark Antony, formed on 26 November 43 BC with the enactment of the Lex Titia, the adoption of which marked the end of the Roman Republic...
until 33 BC33 BCYear 33 BC was either a common year starting on Saturday, Sunday or Monday or a leap year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar and a leap year starting on Saturday of the Proleptic Julian calendar...
. - ParthiaParthiaParthia is a region of north-eastern Iran, best known for having been the political and cultural base of the Arsacid dynasty, rulers of the Parthian Empire....
n invasion into RomanAncient RomeAncient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
SyriaSyriaSyria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
; Publius Ventidius BassusPublius Ventidius BassusPublius Ventidius Bassus, or in full, Publius Ventidius Publii filius Bassus, "Publius Ventidius, Publius's son, Bassus" was a Roman general and one of Julius Caesar's protégés...
defeats PacorusPacorus I of ParthiaPacorus I of Parthia was the son of king Orodes II and queen Laodice of the Parthian Empire. It is possible that he was co-ruler with his father for at least part of his father's reign...
, at the crossing of the EuphratesEuphratesThe Euphrates is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia...
in the Battle of CyrrhesticaCyrrhesticaCyrrhestica is a district of Greater Syria which appears to have owed its name to the Macedonian occupation of the country. It lies between the plain of Antioch, and was bounded on the east by the Euphrates, and on the west by Amanus and Commagene; to the south, it extended as far as the desert...
. Ventidius lays siege to Antiochus of Commagene in SamosataSamosataSamosata was an ancient city on the right bank of the Euphrates whose ruins existed at the modern city of Samsat, Adıyaman Province, Turkey until the site was flooded by the newly-constructed Atatürk Dam....
until relieved by Antony.
Deaths
- Orodes II of ParthiaOrodes II of ParthiaOrodes II of Parthia ruled the Parthian Empire from 57 to 38 BC. Orodes was a son of Phraates III, whom he murdered in 57 BC, assisted by his brother Mithridates...
- PacorusPacorus I of ParthiaPacorus I of Parthia was the son of king Orodes II and queen Laodice of the Parthian Empire. It is possible that he was co-ruler with his father for at least part of his father's reign...
, crownprince of ParthiaParthiaParthia is a region of north-eastern Iran, best known for having been the political and cultural base of the Arsacid dynasty, rulers of the Parthian Empire....
(killed in battle)