This study, first published in German in 1975, addresses the need for a comprehensive account of Roman social history in a single volume. Specifically, Alfoeldy attempts to answer three questions: What is the meaning of Roman social history? What is entailed in Roman social history? How is it to be conceived as history? Alfoeldy's approach brings social structure much closer to political development, following the changes in social institutions in parallel with the broader political milieu. He deals with specific problems in seven periods: Archaic Rome, the Republic down to the Second Punic War, the structural change of the second century BC, the end of the Republic, the Early Empire, the crisis of the third century AD and the Late Empire. Excellent bibliographical notes specify the most important works on each subject, making it useful to the graduate student and scholar as well as to the advanced and well-informed undergraduate.

The Roman province of Noricum occupied most of Austria as well as parts of Italy, Germany and the Balkans. Noricum, first published in 1974, presents a comprehensive history of Noricum, from 400 BC to the end of Roman rule in AD 600. Professor Alfoeldy's account is predicated on the methodical interpretation of literary, epigraphic and archaeological sources, and emphasises the problems of demography and socio-economic history. The chapters are arranged chronologically, ensuring a sense of the continuity of historical events and illuminating the history and archaeology of Noricum both before it came into contact with the Romans as well as under Roman rule. Noricum includes a review of much recent research on the province, detailed references to the source material, a comprehensive bibliography and valuable appendices. It is a substantial work of ancient history and archaeology and will interest both the specialist and the general reader.

The Roman province of Noricum occupied most of Austria as well as parts of Italy, Germany and the Balkans. Noricum, first published in 1974, presents a comprehensive history of Noricum, from 400 BC to the end of Roman rule in AD 600. Professor Alfoeldy's account is predicated on the methodical interpretation of literary, epigraphic and archaeological sources, and emphasises the problems of demography and socio-economic history. The chapters are arranged chronologically, ensuring a sense of the continuity of historical events and illuminating the history and archaeology of Noricum both before it came into contact with the Romans as well as under Roman rule. Noricum includes a review of much recent research on the province, detailed references to the source material, a comprehensive bibliography and valuable appendices. It is a substantial work of ancient history and archaeology and will interest both the specialist and the general reader.

This study, first published in German in 1975, addresses the need for a comprehensive account of Roman social history in a single volume. Specifically, Alfoeldy attempts to answer three questions: What is the meaning of Roman social history? What is entailed in Roman social history? How is it to be conceived as history? Alfoeldy's approach brings social structure much closer to political development, following the changes in social institutions in parallel with the broader political milieu. He deals with specific problems in seven periods: Archaic Rome, the Republic down to the Second Punic War, the structural change of the second century BC, the end of the Republic, the Early Empire, the crisis of the third century AD and the Late Empire. Excellent bibliographical notes specify the most important works on each subject, making it useful to the graduate student and scholar as well as to the advanced and well-informed undergraduate.

English summary: The 4th edition of "Romischen Sozialgeschichte" (Roman Social History) is an updated version of the 3rd edition from 1985. This new edition contains a significantly broadened scope, an extensive annotation apparatus, and a description of new literature that appeared since the publication of the 3rd edition. This edition is still the only summary representation of the history of the society of Rome from origins through late-antiquity. Its subject matter range over questions concerning the origins of the social arrangement, the individual classes and groups of the community, their permeability, conflicts, ideals, crises and their self-understanding in the individual epochs. This edition rests on the results of international research, thoroughly grounded in ancient literary and epigraphic sources and also affording room for the critical discussion over the controversial problems of the Roman social order. German description: Die 4. Auflage der Romischen Sozialgeschichte ist eine aktualisierte, auf den doppelten Umfang erweiterte und um einen umfangreichen Anmerkungsapparat sowie um ein Verzeichnis der in den letzten Jahrzehnten erschienenen Fachliteratur bereicherte Neuausgabe der im Jahre 1985 vorgelegten 3. Auflage. Sie ist nach wie vor die einzige zusammenfassende Darstellung der Geschichte der Gesellschaft Roms von den Anfangen bis zur Spatantike. Ihren Gegenstand bilden Fragen wie die Grundlagen fuer die soziale Gliederung, die einzelnen Schichten und Gruppen der Gesellschaft, ihre Durchlassigkeit, ihre Konflikte, ihre Ideale, ihre Krisen und ihr Selbstverstandnis in den einzelnen Epochen. Sie stuetzt sich auf die Ergebnisse der internationalen Forschung, lasst durchgehend die antiken literarischen und epigraphischen Quellen sprechen und bietet auch Raum fuer die kritische Diskussion ueber umstrittene Probleme der romischen Sozialordnung.

Die Mikrostrukturen einer 'toten' Sprache zu erforschen, ist eine besondere Herausforderung. In jungerer Zeit sind wichtige Studien erschienen, die sich mit der Wortstellung im Lateinischen im Hinblick auf das sogenannte Wackernagelsche Gesetz befassen, wonach Klitika im Indogermanischen nach der zweiten Satzposition strebten. Die vorliegende Publikation uberpruft die vor allem an literarischen Zeugnissen gewonnenen Ergebnisse, wonach das Lateinische uber ein differenziertes System zur Fokussierung sprachlicher Aussagen verfugte, an den ca. 3400 republikanischen Inschriften. Hierdurch ergeben sich Modifikationen bisheriger Erkenntnisse, Neubewertungen sprachlicher Erscheinungen sowie zahlreiche Detailinterpretationen der Texte selbst. Bisherige Forschungsschwerpunkte des Autors: Lateinische Sprache und Poesie des 3./2. Jh. v. Chr.; Lateinische Epigraphik.