Augustan

[ aw-guhs-tuhn, uh-guhs- ]

adjective

1. of or relating to Augustus Caesar, the first Roman emperor, or to the age AugustanAge in which he flourished, which marked the golden age of Latin literature.
2. of or relating to the neoclassic period, especially of 18th-century English literature.

noun

1. an author in an Augustan age.

Augustan

/ ɔːˈɡʌstən /

adjective

1. characteristic of, denoting, or relating to the Roman emperor Augustus Caesar (63 bc –14 ad ), his period, or the poets, notably Virgil, Horace, and Ovid, writing during his reign
2. of, relating to, or characteristic of any literary period noted for refinement and classicism, esp the late 17th century in France (the period of the dramatists Corneille, Racine, and Molière) or the 18th century in England (the period of Swift, Pope, and Johnson, much influenced by Dryden)

noun

1. an author in an Augustan Age
2. a student of or specialist in Augustan literature

Other Words From

• post-Au·gustan adjective
• pre-Au·gustan adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of Augustan¹

From the Latin word Augustānus, dating back to 1695–1705. See Augustus, -an

Example Sentences

Ovid, who lived in the Augustan Age, tells his life in detail and so does Apollodorus, in the first or second century A.D.

From Literature

Pope’s Homer read like Homer when it was published, although the idea of reading ancient Greek verse in strict rhymed couplets seems to us a brilliant Augustan period piece.

From The New Yorker

The Evangelical Church of Augustan Confession, a German-speaking Protestant group, said Tuesday that marriage was clearly defined in civil law.

From Seattle Times

Apart from the history that Gibbon narrates — one that should be of interest to Americans right now, I’d say — I’m just knocked over by the prose: those fabulous, architectural, Augustan sentences are dazzling.

From New York Times

In the 18th century — the so-called Augustan age of English literature — Virgil was, if anything, even more deeply cherished.

From Washington Post

Related Words

• classic
• humanistic