Roman buildings had many features that continued to be used down through the centuries. Pillars, arches and domes were common in Rome and this style was copied during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries in Europe and sometimes even today.
5. The Latin language
Latin became the language used throughout the Roman Empire. It had a huge influence on all the modern European languages. Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, French and Romanian are all based on Latin. Even in English it is estimated that almost a quarter of the words we use have a Latin origin.
Fig 2.33 The dome inside the Pantheon.
6. Calendar
The original calendar used by the Romans had too few months. In 45 BC Julius Caesar introduced a 12-month year to fix this problem. The month of July is named after Julius Caesar and the month of August is named after his nephew Augustus Caesar (Octavian).
7. Numbers
The Romans introduced a method of numbering that we still use today. Roman numerals use letters instead of figures. For example, 3 is written as III, 9 is written as IX (10 – 1 = 9), 635 is written as DCXXXV (500 + 100 + 30 + 5), 2012 is written as MMXII (2000 + 10 + 2). These Roman numerals are often seen on buildings and at the end of films.
Using Roman numerals write the following: 27, 40, 162, 734 and 1975.