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Date of Award

Fall 2025

Document Type

Masters Thesis

Department or Program Affiliation

Western Washington University

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

History

First Advisor

Johnston, Christine L.

Second Advisor

Garfinkle, Steven J.

Third Advisor

Zarrow, Sarah

Abstract

This thesis examines the presense of professional collegia associations in the Gallic provinces during the era of the Roman Principate and their effect on Gallo-Roman urban culture. An element of Greco-Roman urbanism, collegia spread into Gaul as part of its shifting urban landscape in the 1st and 2nd centuries CE. Collegia functioned as status-allocating collectives that impacted local social landscapes through their modes of public commemoration and reputation building for both their lower class members and local elite patrons. By examining the spread, distribution, and motivations for Gallic adoption of collegia, this thesis shows how processes of cultural change centered on examples of provincial agency. In Gaul, the social power collegia wielded shaped the local urban elite that came about after the Julio-Claudian dynasty fell. The upwards mobility collegia provided merchants and craftsmen formed an influential base of local social prestige, distinct from older Gallic or Roman notions of prestige, that characterized this new urban culture.

Type

Text

Keywords

Gaul, Rome, Collegia, Collegium, Gallo-Roman, Urban Culture, Provincial Culture, Professional Associations, Social Mobility

Publisher

Western Washington University

OCLC Number

1565075858

Subject – LCSH

Associations, institutions, etc.--Rome--History; Guilds--Rome--History; Professional associations--Rome--History; Urbanization--Rome--History

Geographic Coverage

Rome

Format

application/pdf

Genre/Form

masters theses

Language

English

Rights

Copying of this document in whole or in part is allowable only for scholarly purposes. It is understood, however, that any copying or publication of this document for commercial purposes, or for financial gain, shall not be allowed without the author’s written permission.

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