Gens Nevia, was a plebeian gens of Phoenician origin. It seems that the Balbi Naevii settled in Spain, in Gades, where they became famous for their wealth. Not being Roman, they were not cited until the end of the Second Punic War (218 - 202 BC) when one of their members, Q. Naevius Matho, was appointed praetor, but none of their members obtained the consulate during the Republic. , up to 30 d. c., when L. Naevius Surdinus, was ordained consul, and made the fame of his family flourish.According to the poet Festo the [prenomen]] Latin Gneus would derive from Naevius, from the classical Latin "want", "stain". Other names attributed to the gens Naevia under the period of the Republic were Matho and Balbus.
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