> Slave names were sometimes numbers.
Senators' and emperors' names were quite often numbers.
That is definitely not the distinction you're looking for.
Senators' and emperors' names were quite often numbers.
That is definitely not the distinction you're looking for.
You're thinking along the lines of generational suffixes? There were Roman emperors who's family name (nomen gentilicium) was a number, the same number being used by son, father, grandfather... not incrementing with each generation.
There were also Roman emperors who's fathers had been slaves.
Lucius Septimius Severus - family name means 7th
Publius Helvius Pertinax - family name means honey-yellow. Son of a freed slave.
"The fifth slave I bought" and "the fifth son of this super rich senator" would have exactly the same name, Quintus.
Pompey Magnus had a son, Sextus (6th), that was relatively famous for his opposition to Octavius.