Ancient Roman term for a rural subdivision of a tribal territory
In ancient Rome, the Latin word pagus (plural pagi) was an administrative term designating a rural subdivision of a tribal territory, which included individual farms, villages (vici), and strongholds (oppida) serving as refuges,[1][2][3] as well as an early medieval geographical term. From the reign of Diocletian (284–305 AD) onwards, the pagus referred to the smallest administrative unit of a province.[4] These geographical units were used to describe territories in the Merovingian and Carolingian periods, without any political or administrative meaning.