Marcus Valerius Martialis (known in English as Martial) (March 1, between 38 and 41 AD - between 102 and 104 AD), was a Latin poet from Hispania (the Iberian Peninsula) best known for his twelve books of Epigrams, published in Rome between AD 86 and 103, during the reigns of the emperors Domitian, Nerva and Trajan. In these short, witty poems he cheerfully satirises city life and the scandalous activities of his acquaintances, and romanticises his provincial upbringing. He wrote a total of 1,561, of which 1,235 are in elegiac couplets. He is considered to be the creator of the modern epigram.

Contents

• 1 Early life
• 2 Life in Rome
• 3 Martial and his patrons
• 4 Martial's character
• 5 Martial's Epigrams
• 6 Reception
• 7 Notes
• 8 External links
  • 8.1 Works
  • 8.2 Other links
• 9 References

Adjective

martial m. (f. martiale, m. plural martiaux, f. plural martiales)

1. martial

• art martial

Marcus Valerius Martialis was born sometime around 40 A.D. at Bilbilis, a small town in the north-east of Spain (Hispania). He is commonly known in the English speaking world as Martial. He was a scathing satirist, often writing highly derogatory poems of his acquaintances - including his patrons - which he published under the title of Epigrammata. Though not the first Roman poet to write in an epigrammatic style he is widely considered to have brought the epigram to its acme as a literary genre; thus he is rightly considered the 'Father of the Epigram.'

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