foederatus means A confederate. One of the tribes bound by treaty, who were neither Roman colonies nor had they been granted Roman citizenship but were expected to provide a contingent of fighting men when trouble arose. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 87 out of 100.
foederatus is pronounced /fiːdɛˈɹɑːtəs/.
Why “foederatus” is a great word
FOEDERATUS — [Noun] A person, tribe, or state bound by a treaty (foedus) to Rome, obligated to provide military aid in exchange for benefits, without being granted full Roman citizenship. From Latin foederātus ("allied, federated"), from foedus ("league, treaty, agreement"). Unlike socius, a general term for an ally implying potential parity, or civis, a citizen with full legal rights, a foederatus was defined by the asymmetrical obligations of a formal pact. It is the Germanic chieftain swearing an oath on a foreign field, the auxiliary cohort forming the battle-line's vulnerable flank, and the distant province sending its sons for a peace that is not its own—the precise machinery of empire built on a foundation of permanent outsiders.
noun
- A confederate. One of the tribes bound by treaty, who were neither Roman colonies nor had they been granted Roman citizenship but were expected to provide a contingent of fighting men when trouble arose.“In the middle stage, the Reges Gothorum saw themselves as something better than mere foederati.”