Acta Diurna: World’s First Newspaper Appeared In 131 B.C
Conny Waters - AncientPages.com - The history of newspapers goes far back in time. The first proto-newspaper appeared as early as 131 B.C. It was an ancient Roman daily gazette called Acta Diurna (Daily Acts sometimes translated as Daily Public Records). Acta Diurna informed citizens of political and social happenings in ancient Rome.
News of events such as military victories, gladiatorial bouts and other games, births and deaths and even human-interest stories were inscribed on metal or stone and posted in areas with heavy foot traffic, such as the Roman Forum where free citizens met to discuss ideas, philosophy and politics.
Acta Diurna was the first "newspaper".
After a couple of days the notes were taken down and archived. Unfortunately, no intact copy of the Acta Diurna has survived to the present day.
See also:
Palermo Stone: Oldest History Book Of Ancient Egypt
Codes Of Ur Nammu: World’s Oldest Known Law Code
World’s Oldest Dictionaries Are 4,500-Year-Old Cuneiform Tablets Discovered In Ebla
More Fascinating Ancient History Facts
Sometimes scribes made copies of the Acta and sent them to provincial governors for information. Later emperors used them to announce royal or senatorial decrees and events of the court.
Caesar in the Senate. Credit: Pillole di storia
Tacitus, a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire and Suetonius, Roman historian of the Equestrian Order used these Acta as sources of information about the empire’s early emperors in their histories of Rome.
For many Romans the innovation of the year 59 B.C. must have been a blessing. In that year Caesar was consul, and devoted himself to the task of weakening the Senate. One of the privileges of that body had been a meeting in executive session. Only so much of their deliberations was made public as suited the senators. Caesar, however, arranged that reports of their proceedings should be made public. These reports were called the acta diurna, and constitute the original newspaper.
As Evan T. Sage explains in Advertising among the Romans, "at first they must have included only brief summaries of the meetings. Later, some changes occurred. There seems to have been something resembling the congressional leave to print. At any rate, sometimes speeches were transcribed, with even the interruptions noted.
The most famous example is the speech of the Emperor Claudius on admitting Gauls to the Senate, of which we have another version in Tacitus. With the fall of the Republic the sessions ceased to have so much importance, and the act took on more of the look of the society and local columns of our papers.
Thus we find recorded in the acta the visit to the Emperor of a certain C. Crispinius Hilarus with sixty-one descendants in the direct line; imperial decrees; the story of a faithful dog; various prodigies; divorces; benefactions; suicides; acclamations; construction of public buildings, etc. Doubtless, there might be included announcements of games, readings of poets, etc., and this would correspond to the intrusion of similar matter into the news columns of modern papers.
Written by Conny Waters – AncientPages.com Staff Writer
Copyright © AncientPages.com All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part without the express written permission of AncientPages.com
Expand for referencesSage, Evan T. "Advertising among the Romans." The Classical Weekly 9, no. 26 (1916): 202-08. doi:10.2307/4387300.
More From Ancient Pages
-
Ming-Era Two Shipwrecks With 100,000 Ancient Relics Examined By Scientists
Archaeology | May 30, 2023
-
On This Day In History: Dramatic Battle Of Öland – On June 1, 1676
News | Jun 1, 2016
-
Birka Artifacts Shed Light On Vikings’ Daily Life
Artifacts | Jun 24, 2019
-
On This Day In History: Albertus Magnus – Medieval Person Of Great Historical Importance Died – On Nov 15, 1280
News | Nov 15, 2016
-
Zhang Heng Seismograph Could Record Earth’s Dangerous Movements
Artifacts | Mar 8, 2023
-
Baby Carriers Were Used 10,000 Years Ago – New Evidence
Archaeology | Sep 27, 2022
-
10 Enigmatic Ancient Underwater Ruins – Our Oceans Are Full Of Secrets
Featured Stories | Aug 13, 2019
-
Central European Prehistory Was Highly Dynamic – New Study Shows
Archaeology | Aug 27, 2021
-
Neanderthals Had Older Mothers And Younger Fathers Compared To Modern Humans
Archaeology | Apr 23, 2020
-
Evidence Of Copper Processing Unearthed At Archaeological Site In Oman
Archaeology | Mar 6, 2024
-
2,000-Year-Old Measuring Table With Stone Weights Unearthed In Jerusalem
Archaeology | Jan 16, 2020
-
The Chinese Nostradamus And His Striking Predictions
Featured Stories | Sep 15, 2018
-
Enigma Of The Missing Pyramid Bodies – Ancient Egyptian Mystery Remains Unsolved
Civilizations | Dec 10, 2018
-
Human Activities In The Year 1300 Impacted Earth’s Atmosphere More Than Previously Known
Archaeology | Oct 9, 2021
-
Mysterious Ancient ‘Triangle Code’ And Curious Markings Discovered On Vessels In Israel Reveal Something Interesting
Archaeology | Feb 11, 2019
-
Aldworth Giants: Knights Who People Tried To Erase From History
Featured Stories | Jul 2, 2015
-
1,200-Year-Old Rock-Cut Temple Found On Banks Of Arjuna River,Tamil Nadu, India
Archaeology | Sep 3, 2020
-
Undiscovered Neanderthal Artifacts From The Ice Age Are Submerged Below The Waves Of The English Channel
Archaeology | Nov 23, 2022
-
Ancient Egyptians Used Stripy Socks And May Have Invented Them
Ancient History Facts | Dec 5, 2018
-
15,000-Year-Old Shell Beads Found Kebara Cave Are The Oldest Known Use Of Organic Red Pigments
Archaeology | Oct 27, 2023