Roman Achievements & Inventions

It is sometimes difficult for scholars to sort what the ancient Romans invented from what they copied from other cultures. The Romans were great believers in taking the best and making it their own. The Greek gods are a perfect example. Once the ancient Romans heard the stories of the ancient Greek gods, they renamed most of them, kept the myths the same, and adopted them all. Suddenly, the Greek gods were not only "Roman" gods, they were the top Roman gods including the king and queen of all the gods - Jupiter and Juno (Zeus and Hera to the Greeks). 

Some scholars credit the ancient Romans with the invention of lipstick and other cosmetics, while others insist cosmetics were invented by the people who lived in the Indus Valley region of ancient India. Then, there is the umbrella. An argument is probably still raging in scholarly circles about which group of ancients invented the umbrella; some say the ancient Chinese, others insist it was ancient Babylonians, still others think perhaps it was the Romans, or possibly the ancient Celts.

You can see the problem. However, here is a list of achievements and inventions that most scholars agree to credit to the ancient Romans, many of which influence our life today:

1. Technology: The ancient Romans were great builders. No one is arguing about that! The ancient Romans built things to last. Their advances in technology include the actual invention of concrete, roman roads, roman arches, and aqueducts.
   
   

2. Medicine: Huge public health programs including welfare programs for the poor  
   
   

3. Language: Roman language (Latin), the root of all the romance languages including English, French, and Spanish 
   
   

4. Religion: Roman mythology and the Catholic faith, which kept learning alive after the fall of the Western Roman Empire 
   
   

5. Roman Law/Politics, including the law that states a person is innocent until proven guilty (from the Twelve Tables), and propaganda campaigns including coinage with the current emperor's picture on it, to remind everyone who was in charge of the empire
   
   

6. Literature/Theatre/Art: Satire, which was a loud and rude sort of sarcastic approach to comic theatre, works of literature including Virgil's Aeneid, realistic statues, ornate jewelry, masks, mosaics. 
   
   

7. Customs, including the use of rings to denote friendship, engagements, and weddings, and the use greenery to decorate during winter holidays, and other holiday customs  
   
   

8. Clothing: Socks (called soccus by the ancient Romans) worn by both women and men, all kinds of shoes including the hobnailed shoe that made such a scary racket, worn by the common soldier - along with shoe construction that adjusted for left foot, right foot variance in shape, which made wearing any shoes a lot more comfortable - and a bunch of neat hats. 
   
   

9. Games: Many board and ball games including knuckleball (jacks) and hoops 
   
   
   

Roman Remains (BBC) 

Powerpoints about Roman Achievements

Snakes and Ladders (Roman Numerals)  

Reading Roman Numerals (Wayzata schools)

A List of Roman Inventions

Every Coin Tells a Story

Roman Science & Technology

Roman Architecture

The Great Builders

Ancient Inventions 

Toys

The Games

See also: