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Agricola is a farming game that shares a name with a (mildly) famous Roman general. They have the same pronunciation, i.e. the game is not pronounced as agri-cola.

Given that Agricola the general isn't super famous, especially not as a farmer, then why does the game share his name?

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    "i.e. the game is not pronounced as agri-cola." - wait, then how is it pronounced?
    – David K
    Commented Feb 27, 2019 at 13:13
  • /aˈɡri.ko.la/, [aˈɡrɪ.kɔ.ɫa]
    – yunzen
    Commented Feb 27, 2019 at 15:25

1 Answer 1

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“Agricola” is the Latin word for “farmer” (dictionary).

It is derived from “ager” (“field”) and “-cola” (“-tiller”, “-cultivator”). “Agriculture” shares the same root, and so does “acre” (albeit indirectly).

That a Roman general had it as his last name is unrelated.

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    I think my question came about by having an interest in Roman history but no knowledge of Latin :-)
    – user10232
    Commented Feb 26, 2019 at 12:32
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    It's probably not totally unrelated - I'll bet that the general was a farmer or was descended from farmers.
    – Arcanist Lupus
    Commented Feb 26, 2019 at 14:18
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    @ArcanistLupus Probably not unrelated, yeah. One of the Roman naming conventions was occupational names, like the English last names Smith, Cooper, Taylor, etc.
    – Andrew
    Commented Feb 26, 2019 at 15:26
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    @ArcanistLupus: OK, but the general is unrelated to the game.
    – RemcoGerlich
    Commented Feb 26, 2019 at 15:42
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    @ArcanistLupus Well, yes. Probably almost every Roman was.
    – sgf
    Commented Feb 27, 2019 at 14:07

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