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A ''limes'' (;〔''Oxford English Dictionary'' (1989)〕 Latin ''ラテン語:limites'') was a border defence or delimiting system of Ancient Rome. It marked the boundaries of the Roman Empire. The Latin noun ''limes'' had a number of different meanings: a path or balk delimiting fields, a boundary line or marker, any road or path, any channel, such as a stream channel, or any distinction or difference. The word ''limes'' was utilized by Latin writers to denote a marked or fortified frontier. This sense has been adapted and extended by modern historians concerned with the frontiers of the Roman Empire: e.g. Hadrian's Wall in the north of England is sometimes styled the ''Limes Britannicus'', the frontier of the Roman province of Arabia facing the desert is called the ''Limes Arabicus'', and so forth. This was the traditional definition and usage of the term. It is now more common to accept that ''limes'' was not a term used by the Romans for the imperial frontier, fortified or not. This is a modern, anachronistic interpretation. The term became common after the 3rd century AD, when it denoted a military district under the command of a ''dux limitis''.〔Benjamin Isaac, The Meaning of "Limes" and "Limitanei" in Ancient Sources, Journal of Roman Studies, 78(1988), 125–147; Benjamin Isaac, The Limits of Empire: the Roman Army in the East (Oxford: Oxford University Press, revised edition 1992).〕 Some experts suggested that the ''limes'' may actually have been called ''Munimentum Traiani'', Trajan's Bulwark, referring to a passage by Ammianus Marcellinus according to which emperor Julian had reoccupied this fortification in 360 AD.〔Hessian state archaeologist Prof. E. Schallmeyer, quoted in Schmid, A., Schmid, R., Möhn, A., ''Die Römer an Rhein und Main'' (Frankfurt: Societäts-Verlag, revised edition 2006).〕 ==Some ''Limites''== The ''limites'' represented the border line of the Roman Empire at its greatest extent in the 2nd century AD. It stretched over 5,000 km from the Atlantic coast of northern Britain, through Europe to the Black Sea, and from there to the Red Sea and across North Africa to the Atlantic coast. The remains of the ''limites'' today consist of vestiges of walls, ditches, forts, fortresses and civilian settlements. Certain elements of the line have been excavated, some reconstructed, and a few destroyed. The two sections of the ''limes'' in Germany cover a length of 550 km from the north-west of the country to the Danube in the south-east. The 118 km long Hadrian's Wall was built on the orders of the Emperor Hadrian c. AD 122 at the northernmost limits of the Roman province of Britannia. It is a striking example of the organization of a military zone and illustrates the defensive techniques and geopolitical strategies of ancient Rome. The Antonine Wall, a 60 km-long fortification in Scotland, was started by Emperor Antoninus Pius in AD 142 as a defense against the "Barbarians" of the north. It constitutes the northwestern-most portion of the Roman ''Limes''. The most notable examples of Roman ''limites'' are: *Hadrian's Wall – ''Limes Britannicus'' (UNESCO World Heritage ''ID 430bis–001'') *Antonine Wall – in Scotland (UNESCO World Heritage Site〔(UNESCO World Heritage Centre. New Inscribed Properties )〕〔("Wall gains World Heritage status'" ) BBC News. Retrieved 8 July 2008.〕) *''Limes Germanicus'', the Germanic and Raetian ''Limes'' (UNESCO World Heritage ''ID 430bis–002'') *''Limes Arabicus'', the frontier of the Roman province of Arabia Petraea facing the desert *''Limes Tripolitanus'', the frontier in modern Libya facing the Sahara *''Limes Alutanus'', the eastern border of the Roman province of Dacia *''Limes Transalutanus'', the frontier in the lower Danube *''Limes Moesiae'', the frontier of the Roman province Moesia, from Singidunum Serbia along the Danube to Moldavia. *''Limes Norici'', the frontier of the Roman province Noricum, from the River Inn along the Danube to Cannabiaca (Zeiselmauer-Wolfpassing) in Austria. *''Limes Pannonicus'', the frontier of the Roman province Pannonia, along the Danube from Klosterneuburg Austria to Taurunum in Serbia. A mediaeval ''limes'' is the ''Limes Saxoniae'' in Holstein. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Limes」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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