Cognomen
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Because of the limited nature of Roman names, the cognomen developed to distinguish branches of the family from one another, and occasionally, to highlight an individual's achievement, typically in warfare. Scipio Africanus Major is one example, but some Romans – notably general Gaius Marius – had no cognomen at all. By the Late Roman Republic, however, the use of cognomens (Latin plural: cognomina) even in daily conversation had become typical.
In contrast to the honorary cognomens adopted by successful generals, most cognomens were based on a physical or personality quirk; for example, 'Rufus' meaning red-headed or 'Scaevola' meaning left-handed.
Today, we refer to many prominent ancient Romans by only their cognomen; for example, Cicero (meaning "chickpea") serves as a shorthand for Marcus Tullius Cicero and Caesar for Gaius Julius Caesar (see Etymology of the name of Julius Caesar).
